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HUI CHEE GLADYS WONG
How far are we willing to go to win? How much more competitive will society become, and how do our actions play a part in promoting competitive behaviours and mindsets that control and consume our lives?
In the year 2040, competition to enter the best universities are at an all-time high. In order to stay ahead, and with CRISPR (Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats) gene editing technology becoming reliable and safe, news of the wealthy making use of gene editing have emerged. From choosing eggs and sperms with the best DNA for their child, to regular gene therapy sessions, gene editing is used to improve one’s intelligence. AVer hiting the news, the demand for gene editing increased drastically as the middle and upper middleclass consider it as a form of investment into their children’s future. If not from birth, it is common for teenagers to get genetic editing done as a middle school graduation giV before entering high school, or in their last year of high school in preparation for the college entrance exam. In response to public criticism that the rich get too much of an advantage over the poor, universities have created separate entrance exams and systems for those who have done genetic editing and those who have not, to compare and select students more fairly. As those who have been genetically edited have comparable intelligence and abilities, their admissions are based on balloting. Unmodified students of ‘natural intelligence’ are highly coveted and celebrated. Despite negative connotations towards gene ediying, it is syill especially popular among people who consider themselves to have a higher chance of getting into a good university by chance over relying on their natural intelligence and hard work.
2023