Human Practices and Ethical Acknowledgements

Our team has identified the potential collateral damage of having an exponentially growing population of genetically modified E. coli. We realized that we did want our colonies to widely grow in order to achieve their maximum plastic degradation threshold, but are unsure of how their introduction to an aquatic ecosystem might affect its environment, aquatic organisms, and the people that live off these lifeforms. In an attempt to evade such detrimental repercussions, as a team, we’ve decided to concoct a kill switch of sorts- one that acts upon programmed changes in temperature so that it can accommodate the seasonal changes of Baltimore.

During the summer, when tourism is at an all time high, is when the E. coli will be most active. This is to combat the increases in pollution that follow in an increase in human activity. During the winter, when people are mainly indoors is when it can be inferred that pollution in the Inner Harbor will be at its annual low because of the deficit of human activity. Since there is a relatively low need for our plastic degrading organisms during those winter times, a kill switch can be activated to control the population. By having a more wholesome controlling of the E. coli cells we, as a community, can better monitor them and prevent them from seriously harming our harbor if plans go awry.

Ex: We implement our E. coli cells into the Inner Harbor 1.5 months before winter conditions that would cause our E. coli to self-destruct. We study the aquatic conditions to observe the changes that our G.M.O. may be responsible for.

Say, we notice that there our E. coli cells are making the local crab population sick and its population has decreased by 10%- we now know that our G.M.O’s are incompatible with the Harbor so we won’t reintroduce them after the winter. If we do decide to, they will be further modified to try to solve the crab problem.

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