This audiobook analyses gene editing as a revolutionary new technology that could enable the design of new ‘ideal’ humans.

What traits would be desirable?

This kind of question links back to eugenic ideas that were popular in Europe in the early 1920s. Using visual communication and design references, ‘Designing Humans’ critiques past eugenic propaganda and speculates on its possible come back once genome editing enters the biotech market.

Will the ideology that dictates human ‘fitness’ gain momentum once the technology that allows its implementation becomes widely available?

This book raises ethical questions that might become part of mainstream consciousness in years to come and points out the role of communication and language in helping create (or avoid) a potentially dystopian future.

John Martin