Genetic Engineering Astronauds

Chris Mason is a Professor of Genomics, Physiology, and Biophysics at Weill Cornell Medicine, and works with NASA on the impact of space travel on the human genome. Chris is a really big and really interesting thinker and has a book out, The Next 500 Years: Engineering Life to Reach New Worlds, in which he argues that humans have a moral duty to escape not only planet earth, but ultimately the solar system in order to save our species. He also suggests that genetic engineering will be needed in order to give us what he calls "armor on the inside" in order to survive on different planets.

It's a good time to dive into these questions, given that we're in a new era in space travel, with helicopters flying around Mars and missions to both the moon and Mars being planned. We discuss the why, when and how of his 500-year plan to save humanity, which starts with establishing settlements on Mars. We also talk about his unusual twin study, examining the genetic impact of astronaut Scott Kelly's year in space by way of comparison to his now earthbound identical twin brother Mark Kelly, who is a former astronaut and now of course a Senator for the State of Arizona. We also debate the ethics of genetic research here on earth right now, and the risks that it will worsen social inequalities. And obviously we talk about the sci-fi TV series The Expanse - what it got right as well as what it got wrong. It's a wide-ranging conversation - I hope you enjoy it.

More from Chris Mason 

• Read his new book “The Next 500 Years: Engineering Life to Reach New Worlds” (2021) and his op-ed “On Exploring Mars and Saving Endangered Species.” 
• For more, see his ten phase plan of achieving life on Mars and check out the work that his laboratory - The Mason Lab - does. 
• Follow him on twitter: @mason_lab 

Also mentioned

• In his book, A Tract on Monetary Reform, Keynes wrote “In the long run, we’re all dead” (p.80).   
• In his speech, Existentialism is a Humanism, Sartre claimed that “existence precedes essence.” 
• Read The NASA Twins Study by Mason and Endurance: A Year in Space, a Lifetime of Discovery (2017) by Scott Kelly 
• Klara and the Sun (2021) by Kazuo Ishiguro
• The Rise of the Meritocracy (1958) by Michael Young 
• The Fall of Meritocracy (2015) by Toby Young 
• Watch The Expanse

The Dialogues Team

Creator: Richard Reeves

Research: Ashleigh Maciolek

Artwork: George Vaughan Thomas

Tech Support: Cameron Hauver-Reeves

Music: "Remember" by Bencoolen (thanks for the permission, guys!)