The Black Box

A black box is a technical term for a device or system or object when it is viewed primarily in terms of its input and output characteristics. People using a black box are not concerned with what went into creating the black box: controversy, critical decisions, mistakes, innovations, and difficulties. Their primary concern is that a certain input creates a predictable output. There are many examples of black boxes such as computers, cell phones, over-the-counter medicine, and even our calendar just to name a few. Again we use these everyday objects not thinking about all that went into creating these black boxes.

As a biology student a black box that I'm very much familiar with is DNA. All I really need to know is that DNA is a double stranded helix with four nitrogenous bases that pair up complementary (A-T and G-C). With this "black box" I have a basic tool for which I can understand heredity, mitosis, reproduction, genetics and many other intricate biological processes. Yet only forty years ago DNA was far from being the black box we know today. Forty years ago Watson and Crick were struggling to figure out the shape of DNA all while other prominent scientists of their day were not even certain that DNA was the biological molecule responsible for heredity.

In the first part of my project I attempted to capture the essence of DNA as a black box.  The box was made out of black foam board cut into the correct lengths and held together with pushpins acting as nails.  On top of the box you will find a sign reading "do not open."

Center of Box

                     Left Side of Box                                                           Right Side of Box

DNA Sculpture

The center of the box contains words that I feel the discovery of DNA has placed into a "Black Box."  For example with the discovery of DNA, the once mysterious process of heredity is now taught in every high school classroom.  Farmers and ranchers can now predict with a certain amount of accuracy the type of offspring they will produce from breeding, whereas before breeding was pure superstition or if luck produced the desired trait in the next generation, it could not be explained why.  On the left side of the box are pictures of the four scientist credited with discovering the molecular shape of DNA.  They are from top to bottom left to right, Francis Crick, James Watson, Maurice Wilkins, and Rosalind Franklin.  On the right side of the black box you will find pictures representing things DNA has placed in a black box.  They include a karyotype, a phylogenic tree, a northern blot used in forensics, a cloned sheep, and pills used in gene therapy.  Also in the box is my homemade sculpture of a DNA molecule I made out of a toilet paper tube. 

Despite all the new innovations and understanding the discovery of DNA's shape has given us, it has not solved everything, or in some cases it has created more questions and disputes.  Surrounding the black box I created a white box with an open lid. This box represents things I felt should have gone into a black box upon the discovery of DNA.  Again this box was constructed with white foam boards and held together with pins.

    Left Side of White Box                             Lid of White Box                             Right Side of White Box

Again the left side of the box contains words representing ideas and objects I felt DNA should have either solved, refuted, or in some cases these words represent problem stemming from the discovery of DNA itself.  For example, I as a scientist and proud atheist, felt religion and supstition should have been debunked in the face of sound, scientific, empirical evidence.  The idea of creationism scientifically speaking is without merit and with the discovery of DNA this idea should have given way long ago to the theory of evolution.  Yet despite this, creation science proponents are to this day impinging upon the science classroom.  The lid of my white box contains pictures instead of words.  The pictures include a stem cell in order to represent a controversy DNA has created, an AIDS ribbon to represent diseases scientist thought could be cured with the discovery of DNA yet today the cures remain elusive, and a burning cross.  The burning cross is present because I felt the discovery of DNA should have given closure to hatred harbored between races and ethnicity still present in our society.  Why when genetics has shown that the races deviate from one another by less than a percentage do we still find racism?  One would think the very little differences among us would pail in comparison to all that we share.  DNA has failed to bring the connectedness that appears on paper into reality, not only among the human race but between us and every other species which inhabit this planet.  Finally on the right side of the box there is a question mark.  This symbol represents all the new questions that have arisen because of DNA.  This monumental discovery has enable us to ask questions we could not have even begun to a mere half decade ago.

Again thanks to everybody who helped me with this project.  I hope those of you who have viewed this like it and find it ironic, thought provoking, and interesting.

-Johnny