Scruple

Scruple had not always asked questions first.

When she was small, she loved anything that was possible. If something could be done, she wanted to do it, right away, and see what happened. She once mixed every colour of paint together just because she could, and got a big brown puddle. She once let all the class's snails out of their tank to see where they'd go, and spent the whole afternoon finding them again, under desks and inside a lunchbox.

The snails were fine. But Scruple remembered the sinking feeling, crawling under the desks, of having done something she couldn't easily undo.

Her grandmother, a slow, thoughtful tortoise who had been a scientist for many years, found her sitting quietly that evening. "Being able to do a thing is the start of a question, little one," she said, "not the answer. The bigger the change, the more it matters who it touches and whether you can take it back." She gave Scruple the little brass scale. "Put your questions on here before you decide. Then decide."

When Scruple came to GeneForge, she brought the scale.

"Genetics lets us do astonishing things," the mentor said, the first day. "We can read genes, and now we can even change some of them. What will you bring to the lab?"

"Questions," said Scruple. "Not to stop anyone. To make sure we've thought about it before we do it. Who it affects. What could go wrong. Whether it can be undone." She set the scale on the bench. "Different people weigh those differently, and that's allowed. But nobody should skip them."

The mentor nodded slowly. "You belong here."

So she and Snip sat with the tomato idea.

"It only affects the tomatoes," Snip began, then paused. "Well. The bees carry pollen. So it might spread to the wild tomato plants by the fence."

"And what could go wrong?" said Scruple.

Snip thought. "Faster plants might use up all the water. Or crowd out the beans." He frowned. "I don't actually know. We've never tried it."

"Can it be undone?" said Scruple gently.

"Not if it spreads to the wild ones," said Snip slowly. He looked at the glowing tray. "Okay. What if we grow one changed plant in the greenhouse first, with the door closed, and watch it for a whole season? Then we'd know more before anything gets out."

Scruple smiled and slid the cards back off her scale. "That's a decision I can feel good about," she said. "Careful, and still curious."