Day 3 – Wednesday 18 November
by Girish Sagaram
During this week we’ve been learning that many of the popular beliefs about DNA, how it works and how scientists work with it aren’t completely accurate. The familiarity we have with the idea of DNA and its association with identity has been formed in part by concepts such as ‘DNA fingerprinting’ which is used in forensics and mostly understood by the public via TV shows like CSI: Crime Scene Investigation. In fact the science is far from simple and results can be misrepresented. We often hear of cases where mistakes have lead to wrongful imprisonment or even wild goose chases such as a recent case in Germany where contaminated samples had created a non-existent suspect. Artists such as Paul Vanouse with his Latent Figure Protocol have used the technique of DNA sequencing to show how genetic information can be manipulated to produce fabricated images.
The demystification of the science surrounding DNA continued today as we isolated a section of DNA from a bacteria and ran a gel electrophoresis. We were infomed that this method of analysing DNA is in fact pretty much out of date and is done much more accurately using computer software. Still, peering through a hole in the top of a (super high tech) cardboard box and seeing our little strip of fluorescent dye glowing eerily in the light was very satisfying. The secret code had been broken, we now understood a little better what those abstract ‘portraits’ really are.
We checked in with the genetically modified bacteria we created the other day and examined the results of their transformation. I was disappointed that our group only managed to grow a tiny spec of glow-in-the-dark bacteria. Having become gods and created transgenic life we naturally wanted our creations to go forth and multiply. Other groups had more success.
We also got to examine some of the sculptural moulds and media used by Oron Catts and the Tissue Culture and Art Project to grow ‘semi-living’ objects like the Pig Wings and Stelarc’s Ear. Tomorrow we will be attempting some tissue culture of our own using cells taken from meat, bones and other animal materials that we had been asked to supply. In preparation for this we began extracting and cleaning the bone marrow, small fish, meat etc and storing it in sterile test tubes ready for tomorrow’s exercise. One member of the group had brought in a live ant. The ‘ant dilema’ brought out strong opinions regarding the ethics of experimention on animals, manipulation of living tissue and what we mean when we talk about ‘life’. Individual sets of ethics were called into question and there was a sense that many of us might be hypocritical when it comes to our stated beliefs and behaviours. We discussed the concept of a ‘cell’. If single cells can be isolated, grown and and kept ‘alive’ is this life? Would the ant somehow still be alive if its cells could be grown this way? Is ‘life’ inherently special or is it a product of simple chemistry? Can it be engineered, and if so should it? Whilst there could be no absolute consensus there was at least a strong sense that whatever reservations we had and whatever our personal ‘hypocrisies’ there was a preparedness to undertake certain morally problematic actions, if only to establish once and for all where we actually stand. As for what happened to the ant, well, what would you have done?
