| Why
Weed Genetic Engineering?
Genetic
Engineering is of high interest today and it is also one
of the fastest developing sciences.  Case
in point: the U.S. Human Genome Project began in 1990 with
a projected completion date of 2005 (15 years). But due
to the rapidly developing technology in this field, the
completion date has been moved up to 2003. Can you justify
materials in your collection that are 20 years old?
Suggested
Dewey Numbers to Check:
Titles
on genetics (especially the older ones) will be found in
the 570s. Check the 660s for titles specifically addressing
biotechnology. Titles on the ethics of genetic engineering
will be in the 170s. The AV collection must also be reviewed.
Specific
Criteria for Weeding:
Genetic
engineering is a relatively new science, emerging only since
the discovery of DNA in the 1950s.  The
good news here is that you won’t have books on this
topic published before 1950 hiding on your shelves! But
new sciences tend to develop faster than older ones. With
this in mind, you should critically review all titles more
than 5 years old.
The
question of ethics and genetic engineering has been an issue
from the beginning. Cloning, test tube babies, etc., have
always raised ethical concerns. Older titles that are missing
current developments (like ‘CC’ the kitten!) will
not give students a true picture.
Another
continuing topic is the impact of genetics on diseases.
Aside from school research and scholarly interests, there
will always be some students interested for purely personal
reasons such as a family member with a genetically related
disease.
A
new issue of interest is the genetic engineering of our
food supply. Be sure your collection includes this topic.
Consider
Weeding Titles Like These:
- Bio-revolution
: DNA and the ethics of man-made life, 1978. LCCN 78070067
- The
cloning of man : a brave new hope - or horror? 1978. LCCN
78111487
- The
ethics of genetic control : ending reproductive roulette,
1974. LCCN 73081430
- Fabricated
man : the ethics of genetic control, 1970. LCCN 78123395
- From
cell to clone : the story of genetic engineering, 1979.
LCCN 79087515
- Genetic
controversy [filmstrip] : gene splicing and cloning, 1981.
LCCN 81730437
- Genetic
engineering : cloning DNA, 1980. LCCN 80040660
- Genetic
engineering : man and nature in transition, 1974. LCCN 74000959
- Genetic
engineering : prospects for the future [videorecording],
1985. LCCN 85703924
- Genetic
engineering : threat or promise?, 1976. LCCN 76003497
- Genetic
engineering the nature of change, [videorecording], 1984.
- Genetic
fix, 1973. LCCN 73007350
- Genetic
politics : the limits of biological control, 1979. LCCN
79016403
- Genetic
revolution : shaping life for tomorrow, 1974. LCCN 73004085
- Genetics
[filmstrip], 1983.
- Genetics
and disease, 1965. LCCN 64022460
- The
genetics explosion, 1980. LCCN 79022651
- Genetics
for medical students, 1973. LCCN 73013385
- Genetics
in medicine, 1966. LCCN 66012430
- Genetics
in the atomic age, 1965. LCCN 65006920
- Genetics
of livestock improvement, 1963. LCCN 65015414
- Human
engineering : marvel or menace, 1978. LCCN 77026030
- Improving
on nature : the brave new world of genetic engineering,
1977. LCCN 76050815
- Life
from the lab [videorecording] : progress and peril, 1981.
LCCN 81730535
- Man-made
life : an overview of the science, technology, and commerce
of genetic engineering, 1982. LCCN 82014379
- Methods
and goals in human behavior genetics, 1965. LCCN 65024988
- Playing
God : genetic engineering and the manipulation of life,
1977. LCCN 77006023
- Recombinant
DNA : the untold story, 1978. LCCN 77029158
- Reshaping
life : key issues in genetic engineering, 1985. LCCN 84045438
- Splicing
life : a report on the social and ethical issues of genetic
engineering with human beings, 1982.
- Tool
for tomorrow : new knowledge about genes, 1979. LCCN 78013777
- The
ultimate experiment; man-made evolution, 1977. LCCN 76052575
- Who
should play God? : the artificial creation of life and what
it means for the future of the human race, 1977. LCCN 77155214
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