Distorted Conversations: On and Offline Explorations of Genomic Art

This paper explores the metaphors of pre-implantation genetic diagnosis (PGD), or the genetic engineering of human embryos, through genomic art. Conversations about technologies like PGD typically center on issues of genetic determinism and autonomy. "Distorted conversations" exposes these issues by pushing the metaphor of ethical determinism as expressed through anonymous "conversations" distorted through online isolation and offline visualization technology. Participants are invited to contribute their hopes and concerns about this technology on a blog site. Portions of these conversations are converted into minuscule text and adhered to petri dishes that would typically be used during PGD procedures. Observers are then invited to join in this distorted conversation through the aid of a microscope. In this way, the conversation mimics the actual procedures of PGD and every aspect of the online and offline portions of the piece are controlled by and manipulated through PGD-type technology