EVENTS

Lunch Discussion Series - The Safety of Genetically Engineered Foods

Although humans have altered plants and animals for millennia by using selective breeding practices, an increasing number of farmers in the U.S. employ new genetic engineering techniques to create higher yielding, more pest-resistant food. However, these new methods may have unintended consequences through a plant or animal's creation of novel chemical compounds or high levels of naturally occurring ones. Learn more about this issue from Dr. Lynn Goldman, who will discuss and answer questions about the potential public health risks of genetically engineered products and how scientists detect inadvertent chemical changes in modified foods.

Dr. Goldman is a professor of environmental health at Johns Hopkins University. She has worked in the medical arena, public health, as well as for the Environmental Protection Agency. Her discussion is based on a new report from the Institute of Medicine and National Research Council entitled: Safety of Genetically Engineered Foods: Approaches to Assessing Unintended Health Effects.

This event is part of a series of lunchtime discussions based on reports published by the National Academies. A highlight of these events is the opportunity for you to discuss with experts the implications of science to your own life and society as a whole.

Visitors may bring their own lunch. Light refreshments served; lunch not provided. Please RSVP for this event by emailing ksm@nas.edu, calling 202-334-1201 or visiting the museum lobby.

Museum Location Located at the corner of 6th and E Streets, NW in downtown Washington, DC the Marian Koshland Science Museum is within walking distance of the National Mall, two Metro stations, the Verizon Center, and several other museums and attractions.