David Holcberg

According to David Holcberg in the following viewpoint, scientists who discover and isolate genes should be able to obtain patents. A natural substance is patentable, he claims, when it is isolated, purified, and found to have utility; the very process many gene researchers are using. Patents reward the work it takes to isolate a gene, Holcberg claims, thus to deny them to scientists would be unfair and would discourage scientific research. Holcberg, a former civil engineer, is a senior writer for the Ayn Rand Institute, an organization whose philosophy is to champion individual rights and the power of reason.

As you read, consider the following questions:

1. What value does an isolated gene have that it did not have before it was isolated, in Holcberg’s view?
2. According to Holcberg, why was Louis Pasteur...