It is called Mycoplasma mycoides JCVI-syn1.0 and was created in the Craig Venter Institute of Rockville by the group coordinated by Daniel Gibson. The American scientist Craig Venter, first to sequence the human genome, discussed the results with these words: *”The artificial cell is a really powerful tool to project all that we expect biology to do. We have already thought of a huge number of possible applications”*, adding *”A cell that changes the definition of what is meant by ‘life’ …This is the first self-replicating species that exists on planet Earth and its father is a computer”*.
The creation of this first artificial bacterial cell is an evolutionary step comparable to the landing on the moon, if not more important. It is not just one more step on the long road of scientific research, but it represents the beginning of a new civilization.
And yet the press in general has reported this most memorable event through small articles of few lines relegated to the pages dedicated to scientific discoveries. The U.S. president Barack Obama has asked the Presidential Commission for the Study of Bioethics to prioritize artificial cell research among their activities, but has not otherwise made any comments about the event. The *Osservatore Romano*, the Vatican’s official publication, stated: *”…a high level work of genetic engineering, a step that goes beyond the replacement of parts of DNA. But in reality it has not created life, one of its engines has been replaced.”*
Why are institutions so reluctant to show the real meaning of this event? The answer may be quite clear if one tries to imagine what would happen if millions of human beings realize that they are similar to the gods. Obviously nothing could continue as before.
In spite of these attempts to produce such concealment, history has already been set in motion and nothing can stop it.
