Public Awareness

Realizing the importance of education and understanding, we strived to improve general understanding of P. marinus and the Dermo infection. We began at the University of Maryland with a survey to get students from all backgrounds to start thinking about the problems we were addressing. Next, we publicized our project and goals by connecting with deans of various colleges to spark interest in these fields. As awareness increased on campus, we turned our attention to the surrounding community. Networking with schools around the area, programs were established where iGEM members would go to the school and give a presentation or seminar tailored to the interests of the audience. For example, we gave a seminar on biotechnology and synthetic biology at a local high school in order to start education early with students who will be at the forefront of this type of research in the near future. The next step will be to get in touch with state organizations such as the Chesapeake Bay foundation in order to devise outreach initiatives and progressively raise awareness at higher levels of the community.

Additionally we conducted a survey of over 250 students in undergraduate microbiology classes at the University of Maryland to further understand the public perception of this technology through the eyes of our next generation.The survey and responses are found below.

All responses to the survey will be kept anonymous, and no personal information about the participants will be released. The results of the survey may be published.

I have read and consent to the terms of confidentiality listed above ___________

1) What is a biosensor?

a. an organ that measures biological phenomenon

b. an organism that has the ability to sense other organisms

c. a device that measures biological parameters such as temperature or pressure

d. an instrument that has a biological component and measures physical or chemical parameters

2) How do you feel about genetic engineering?

a. Strongly Support

b. Support

c. Neutral

d. Oppose

e. Strongly Oppose

3) How do you feel about the introduction of genetically modified E. Coli into the Chesapeake Bay?

a. Strongly Support

b. Support

c. Neutral

d. Oppose

e. Strongly Oppose

4) If it improved Chesapeake bay health and aquaculture?

a. Strongly Support

b. Support

c. Neutral

d. Oppose

e. Strongly Oppose

5) What danger do you think lies in using biotechnology and bioengineering to address environmental issues?

(open ended)

ANSWERS

By administering this survey to an undergraduate general microbiology class at the University of Maryland, we hoped to gain insight about where students stood on genetic engineering and its applications. We chose this class because it is a general education class at the University of Maryland which attracts students of various backgrounds and majors, not just science majors.

 With the first question, we tried to figure out just what proportion of the students were science majors or non-science majors, so that we could better interpret the responses to the later questions. We chose to ask what a biosensor was to determine if the student had significant background in biology or perhaps exposure to biotechnology. To our surprise, most students answered this question correctly which suggests that many students probably had some experience with or have heard about aspects of bioengineering. This conclusion reveals the extent of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) education of University of Maryland students and the fact that most are fairly well informed about this type of technology.

The next three questions corroborate the results from first question as shown by a relatively high number of students who are open to the idea of genetic engineering of E. coli. Even after being asked bluntly about the introduction of genetically-altered E. coli into the bay without any other information, more students, surprisingly, remained neutral rather than opposed. Finally, as expected, after qualifying the previous question by providing the motivation for the use of E. coli, a large shift was observed towards being supportive of the proposition.

 Lastly, the free response questions (responses not shown) provided a deeper insight into the understanding of the population being surveyed. Most of the students developed valid points regarding possible areas of concern with this type of project. These ranged from ethical concerns to long-term, unexpected problems and the idea that native species may be adversely affected by our biosensor. It seemed to us that most of the concerns stemmed from a lack of understanding of the technology being used. Education and outreach efforts would likely eliminate some of these misunderstandings; however, some of the concerns raised are valid and are points we considered ourselves.

The next step in this project would be to broaden the population being surveyed both in terms of size and diversity. In this way, we can determine if the results we obtained here is actually representative of a university setting. In terms of the participants being surveyed, we believe that young students are the most important because this is the generation that will be deciding on novel technologies that address pressing social and environmental concerns such as the health of the Chesapeake Bay. As a result, it is important to ensure that this demographic, especially, has access to correct information so that informed decisions can be made. However, we acknowledge that it is also important to gauge the views of current policy makers and people outside the university as well, so future surveys may be targeted at older demographics and different regions.

With regards to the effect on public outreach efforts, it is clear that although most of the responses appeared to be informed there is room for improvement. Accordingly, we plan to continue our on campus and community efforts to advertise the issue and our research in order to start a thoughtful dialogue between those affected by concerns regarding the Chesapeake Bay and those who are trying to address these concerns.