April 1999
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5 Citations
New Genetics and Society
The author of this paper critically adopts Piore and Sabel's (The Second Industrial Divide: Possibilities for Prosperity. New York: Basic Books, 1984) concept of “Industrial Divides”—the postulation that there are historical “moments” when industrial society chooses its technological direction from two or more feasible alternatives—to address the question of whether we are experiencing a new “Industrial Divide” and, if we are, what now appears to be the dominant technological strategy. The author attempts to substantiate his analysis of the strategy being adopted by the advanced industrialized countries by citing his observations of modern biotechnology and genetic engineering, and addresses the question of how society may socially manage these challenging technological developments and their social consequences.