Part of the Program for Law & Technology's mission is to equip present and future policy makers with the tools and awareness to grapple with these emerging issues. These issues nowhere come together better than in the area of Human Genome research and development

Virtually every discipline within law will be affected. Can the genetic blueprint of DNA molecules be reduced to ownership? Can life be patented? What rights will cloned beings have? Who will have access to the vast stores of genetic information in countless databases around the globe? Can individual gene sequences legally be used to predict propensity toward crime or disease and thereby justify discriminatory treatment? And so on …

The "Law of the Genome" is unfolding before our eyes. As academics, we’d like to help assure that whatever emerges is the product of reasoned and informed discourse between scientists and lawmakers. This year's At the Crossroads conference will focus on this exciting and revolutionary area.