ABSTRACT
The development of genetic research has intensified both public engagement with the subject and academic responses outside of the domain of natural sciences. There is a considerable body of literature belonging mainly to the fields of Sociology, Anthropology and Bioethics examining such topics as the impact of genetic research on particular communities and social groups, their attitude towards various types of genetic screening, ethical implications of genetic research and its possible positive and negative outcomes. The chapter outlines how this potential impact has been perceived and assayed by contemporary 'nonscientific' academic community, that is by humanities scholars, sociologists and cultural anthropologists. The issue of genetics has been discussed quite at length by contemporary philosophers and social theorists who have engaged with the subject of post-humanism and the future of human nature. A similar engagement with the changing patterns in the relationship between nature and culture caused by genetics appears in the work by the historian of science Hans-Jorg Rheinberger.
