Science in Context Conference
This conference brought together 200 A-level students from local schools and leading experts on genetics. This unique event was held within the Nowgen Centre and the University of Manchester on 10 July 2007.
This event was the first time Nowgen collaborated with both the Faculty of Life Sciences and the Centre for the History of Science, Technology and Medicine from The University of Manchester.
The partners put together an exciting programme, which included laboratory activities, keynote speakers, discussions on historical and ethical issues and creative arts activities.
Flyer from the event 
The day was themed around DNA profiling for newborn babies. We gave the students an introduction about what’s currently being done and suggested how this might be extended in the future. We asked the students to consider the benefits and concerns and think about how DNA databases might potentially grow.
DNA databases can be incredibly useful resources – especially for medical research and criminal investigations. Some people are very concerned about the way DNA databases might be used in the future however. Who could access them and how does it infringe our human rights?
The students were engrossed in exploring these questions and learning more about the topic. We received very positive feedback and hope to run similar events again.
