4 
Counsel for the American Society for Microbiology 
states that the weight of scientific opinion now considers 
that recombinant DNA research in accordance with the NIH 
guidelines will not have adverse environmental or public 
health consequences. He contends that the present guide- 
lines are more conservative than necessary and that certain 
restrictions in these guidelines could be safely modified. 
He further asserts that these guidelines are not in fact 
the very guidelines of HEW classified as "prohibited" 
as was asserted by plaintiffs. In the opinion of the 
Society, the proposed Fort Detrick experiment will specifi- 
cally advance the public interest and present no risk of 
harm to the environment. 
The research involves dividing and then rejoining 
the heredity-carrying material of various organisms - 
deoxyribonucleic acid, or DNA - to make recombinant hybrids 
that carry some of the traits of two unrelated forms. It 
is contended that the value of such work is that it may 
create new medicines, vaccines, industrial chemicals or 
crops. The risk, some scientists claim, is that it could 
create unexpectedly dangerous new ailments or epidemics. 
Many scientists are of the opinion that exaggerations of 
the hypothetical hazards have gone far beyond any reasoned 
assessment. They take the position that the experience of 
the last four years, including many laboratory experiments, 
has shown no actual hazards. 
Recently the Supreme Court has summarized the 
limited role of the courts in determining whether the 
[Appendix C — 10] 
