Genetic engineering is very controversial since some people believe that genetic engineering is playing God. As a result, there is opposition to developments in this field from people who do not see the value of genetic engineering, or who fear the consequences that genetic engineering may have for us as people. There is a history of discoveries belonging to genetic engineering, which has led to the emergence of many products that have brought many applications to global society. Although genetic engineering has advantages, it also has disadvantages, including ethical and legal issues that are being addressed in today's society in an attempt to regulate the growth of genetic engineering. Genetic engineering seems like a complicated subject to talk about. But in reality, the form of genetic engineering practiced today is a more effective method than that which has been practiced for hundreds of years, namely selective breeding. Farmers, scientists, and humans from all walks of life practiced selective breeding, which is simply the intentional selection of animals with desirable traits so that those traits are passed down and present in the offspring of those animals (selective breeding). Genetic engineering is a simplified version of selective breeding. Instead of choosing two organisms with desirable characteristics and forcing those organisms to mate, you can take a DNA splice, called gene splicing or recombinant DNA, and place it into a developing bacteria or organism and you can produce the desired trait of the original organism in a completely different organism. With this process, you could theoretically go as far as being able to develop a cow that has the DNA of a shark to develop g...... middle of paper ......troit: GreenHaven Press, 2006. Print. “Genetic engineering”. 2005. Info please. Internet. October 29, 2013. <>."Genetic engineering." 2013. Grace Communications Foundation. Internet. November 4, 2013. Illman, Deborah L. “The transgenic mouse.” November 1996. Pioneers. Internet. December 4, 2013. “Selective breeding”. August 15, 2008. Boilogy Online - answers to all your biology questions. Internet. November 21, 2013. Webber, Glenda D. “Regulation of Genetically Modified Organisms and Products.” January 1995. Biotechnology Information Series. Internet. November 8 2013. .