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CAMBRIDGE, Mass. — It began, unlike any other international meeting devoted to discussions of powerful DNA-modifying technologies, with a dance. Four neon leotard-clad bodies whirled and contorted, cleaving and helixing across the stage at the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in the kinetically charged choreography of DNA strands and CRISPR enzymes caroming around a human cell.
You can think of it as a kind of drama, first at the molecular level and then zooming out to human level, Gabrielle Lamb, director of Pigeonwing Dance, told the audience — a physical representation of the “kinds of cultural and ethical dramas that are going to be decided at gatherings like this.”
That gathering, which took place here last week, was hosted by the Global Observatory for Genome Editing, and its largest-ever event brought together the heads of the nation’s premier science organizations, former White House officials.and the researcher behind the landmark custom-built CRISPR treatment unveiled this month.
The Global Observatory, a 7-year-old effort to bridge a longstanding bifurcation between scientists and ethicists and find new models for fostering cross-community conversations about emerging...