The breeding of dogs, horses, cats and many other domesticated animals is done with purposes in mind, i.e., producing offspring that have specific body types, colors, behaviors, or athletic abilities. For example, horses can be bred to produce offspring that have a particular way of moving on foot such as trotting or pacing. If a person buys a horse that has inherited the genes that make it a trotter, it will be a frustrating experience to both trainer and horse trying to teach it to pace. Trotters are genetically programmed to trot and pacers are programmed to pace. Every living thing is programmed to be good at something. Some people are going to have the muscle development to be great baseball players while others couldn't hit the ball. Some have great mathematical skills while others have a tough time with adding 2 + 2. How do you think you have been genetically programmed? What are your strengths? As parent or child, what frustrations have you experienced in teaching and learning? What are the difficulties in determining which of your traits are genetic and which are not?

What is meant by the phase 'genetically programmed?' What would it take to have this happen in humans? What moral and ethical issues relate to genetically programming humans? How are dominant and recessive alleles identified in a person? What might 'expression' and 'penetrance' have to do with this problem?