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From this sentence, my personally understanding is that biotechnology really matters with human being. Biotechnology is "not about technology itself" but "about human beings empowered by biotechnology." In the later passages, author talked about "desire for better children, superior performance..." From this, I can get the message that biotechnology is nothing without making people's life have some changes. And at the same time, author talked about concerns from biotechnology. In fact, what people actually worry about is not just the technology, but the effects that the biotechnology will bring to the human beings based on this sentence I annotated.

The author mentions a great argument surrounding modern technology which is not limited to biotechnology alone. when new technologies are invented the entire focus of humanity will be shifted towards the effects of that certain technology on human beings and not the technology itself therefore in the age of biotechnology we will be more concerned about the results that biotechnology brings rather than the biotechnology itself

Kass' implications in the quote indicates the potential biotechnology has on the human psyche. Although biotechnology has the ability to forge new paths in curing feeble human (or in essence, any living thing) traits, such as sickness and suffering, it can be further exploited to enhance physical traits. However, Kass' tonality shines light that when this technology is fully developed, humans will lose sight of what they formerly relied on "keenest attachments" Therefore, it is of great significance that the limbs (keenest attachments) are used to "...perfect ourselves-as human beings." and not misused or ultimately destroyed.

This analogy stood out to me as a very effective means to explain what the author is trying to get at. The idea that regardless of how bad something is, if everyone has it and I don't, the question isn't if I should have it, it's why don't I. It's used fairly effectively here to get the point across, specifically with the idea of food, which is so necessary to us. We could even go further to draw the connection between food and technology as now completely essential to our lives that who cares if it's contaminated or dangerous, we still need it.

It's interesting the use of the word "soul" here as a means to define the unquantifiable part of what makes us human taken from the article mentioned previously. Much of the author's argument has thus far been biotech based and "soul" is at first what the author describes as the chemicals that makes us feel, whereas "soul" is traditionally used as the essence of who we are while our body is just a vessel for that "soul" to live through.

Genes from unrelated species may be incorporated in the wild by the process known as horizontal gene transfer.

For example, approximately 8% of the human genome originated in viruses.

Up to a quarter of the cow genome apparently originated in snakes, and was probably spread by ticks around the animal kingdom.