What are the advantages and disadvantages to the way we currently define life? How might our list of characteristics be challenged in the future (genetic engineering, cloning, etc.) ? (5pts)

Answer:

The way that we describe life is limited and it does not include viruses, which in a way do meet a lot of the requirements of life, except for it being a cell. Though with recent fossil records, there may have been a transitional organism between viruses and bacteria. Viruses are important for a lot of genetic work, they infect cells quickly and be used as efficient vectors. This may require changes in the near future to change how we define life and allow certain lab practices to be common in order to achieve the best results.