Imagine the scene: a newlywed wife and husband are sitting with a catalogue, happily leafing through, pointing and admiring all the different options, fantasizing about all the possibilities for their future. Is it a catalog of new furniture? No. This catalogs all the characteristics, phenotype and genotype, for the child they intend to have. It's basically a database where parents can choose all aspects of their children, from the baby's gender, to appearance, and even personality traits. Parents since the beginning of time have “planned” to have children, but have never been able to legitimately “plan” for their child. This scene does not seem typical of our time and age, but in reality it is what our world is becoming. Through substantial ongoing research and experimentation, scientists, especially biologists, are becoming increasingly passionate about the field of engineering. Genetic engineering. When you think of “genetic engineering,” your first thought is probably a perfect child, or paradoxically an inconceivable creature, forged under a microscope in a scientific laboratory. Although both are genetic engineering, many people do not consider other things, such as genetic engineering of agriculture and medicine, both of which are extremely useful. Through genetically altering plants and crops, scientists have been able to manipulate their genes to resist lower temperatures, herbicides and insects, and even extend the shelf life of some particular products (Gert 1). This technology has made farmers more prosperous, as well as providing the population with more food that will last longer. In medicine “a patent has already been applied for to mix human embryos… middle of paper… has engineering gone too far?” 1). The creation of “chimeras,” animals containing cells from another animal, has been one of the most controversial topics in genetic engineering (ibid). Researchers are concerned with creating new diseases by combining genes to create new ones (ibid). If this were to happen, political figures could step in and impose strict guidelines and regulations for genetic engineering. In 2006, in fact, President George Bush asked to ban the creation of "human-animal hybrids" (ibid). Other scientists react by arguing that these “chimeras” can help find cures for known diseases and could become one of the most useful tools in their arsenal of ideas for the future (ibid). In any case, it is questionable whether the use of chimeras is acceptable or not. If used, they could surface new problems and solve old ones that have plagued us for decades.