[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] * Modern Biological Change The foundations for scientific literacy in biology are rapidly shifting. Since the creation of the recommended National Science Education Standards in the early 1990s (NRC, 1996; Project 2061, 1993), profound and transformational landmarks have taken place in the biological sciences. These include the completion of the Human Genome Project (and many other genome projects); recognition that climate change is affecting ecosystems worldwide; widespread use of genetic engineering; the dawn of genetic medicine; and the emergence of bioinformatics, synthetic biology, and stem cell research. The theme of biological change is central for understanding the 21st century. We have entered a period of rapid and radical biological change. Humans are changing the world's ecosystems and driving many species to extinction at the same historical moment that biotechnology has allowed us to genetically engineer existing organisms and create new ones. For the first time, we have the power to direct our own evolution and the evolution of all life on Earth in very precise, intentional ways. For better or for worse, we are quite literally reinventing On an ecological level, Earth's land, water, and atmosphere have been transformed by humans as our population has increased and we have spread across the planet. Many groups of organisms are in sharp decline and risk extinction, including gorillas (Bermejo et al., 2006), river dolphins (Guo, 2006), lesser pink flamingos (Koenig, 2006), certain pollinators and insect-pollinated plants in Europe (Beismeijer et al., 2006) and North America (NRC, 2006), about a third of all amphibians (Mendelson et al., 2006), coral reef species worldwide (Wilkinson, 2004), and many others. Due to climate change, whole ecosystems are shifting (Grebmeier et al., 2006) and many species are changing their migration patterns (Jonzen et al., 2006). Human impacts on the environment are also driving declines in ecosystem services (Worm et al., 2006; Schroter et al., 2005), as well as political, economic, and social shifts throughout the world. At the same time, however, there is hope for sustainable ecosystems and societies that could allow global stability. On a cellular level, humans can now alter reproduction and prolong life spans, influencing both the creation and destruction of life. Stem cell research could cure a variety of diseases and grow replacement tissues (Rando, 2006). Despite technical difficulties, the commercial cloning of animals is likely to become a more widespread part of agricultural and pet industries (Ledford, 2007). Likewise, in vitro fertilization is becoming more popular among humans, allowing routine selection for and against certain traits using preimplantation genetic diagnosis (Goldman, 2007). Unintentional mutations that affect cell growth and division can be responsible for cancer, while purposeful changes to growth and division can alter the availability of food sources worldwide. On a genetic level, humans can engineer organisms in targeted ways and even create new organisms that never existed before. Genetic engineering allows genes to be moved in a controlled fashion from one organism to another, providing tremendous possibilities to cure disease (Dave et al., 2004), improve crops, and produce novel consumer products of all sorts. Genetic engineering for the purposes of human enhancement is becoming less science fiction and more a pressing reality, raising a host of ethical concerns for many people. Life is also increasingly merging with the world. Many body parts can be replaced with prosthetic limbs, artificial organs, etc., and some replacements offer enhanced capabilities. The human mind is becoming intertwined with computers to the extent that a hard drive crash can be analogous to a lobotomy. Indeed, it is possible to literally connect a brain to a computer so that the brain can directly control non-living parts (Lebedev & Nicolelis, 2006). …