I was looking online and found this: The thing is the HHS aspect. Because my character doesn't work at the HHS. It's personal work. Fairly top secret. But they're going to get found out one day because, when you genetically modify humans into a new species and that species has kids... I'd think a human protection service would catch wind then, if not before. Thus... help?
I'm unclear on the question? If you're asking if what your character is doing is illegal, I'd say, yes, deeply and thoroughly illegal. I assume that hiding his activities would be part of the plot from the beginning.
You could write this either way. Your experiments could easily remain secret unless someone is analyzing the DNA of these offspring. Currently that would only rarely be a routine medical order. Patients can request genetic analysis and there are many that do, that is more common by the day. But rarely do the medical providers initiate such investigations. On the other hand, if this story takes place in the future, routine genetic testing of infants and patients is just around the corner. The current bit of social resistance will easily give way to the advantages of testing for certain disease potentials so intervention can be addressed. But writing fiction, take your pick of scenarios.
Firstly, this is later in the current book will be opening second. Second, my main issue is not how that would be found out but if this would be the right office to use in the story or is there a different one to use? Also, it's an alternate slightly-future world like ours in most ways. There's just a few differences, such as some places being closed down or a few towns moved around and slightly more advanced science. However, so that it's clear, this new species is, in a way, kinda plant-based because this once-human species changed from the Animalia kingdom to the Plantae kingdom. The most noticeable difference is that the Plantae Sapiens, at least the genus seen in the story - I may just introduce others later - have vines instead of hair. However, these vines aren't visible right away as the hair is made up of plant fibers that thread together to form the vines. And the way the vines act usually depends on the person's emotions.
I may be wrong, but the Office that you refers to sounds like a body that regulates known research organizations that strive to follow regulations. It sounds like your story refers to a highly criminal enterprise. I suspect that the issues would go way, way beyond failure to follow standard protocols.
The MC's background concerning this is she was working on a (highly experimental) way to cure world hunger and looked to plants. After succeeding, she began to wonder if she should reveal it to the world. She's not a party of a criminal enterprise, just someone who eventually decided not to go public with her work and who later had two children with a man who was changed soon after their wedding. The only human subjects wanted to be changed. As for why she didn't go public, she began to wonder what would happen if more of this species were created. While they don't need food - just water and sunlight - they can't take human medicine, but that's rarely needed. Plus, they can basically choose how many kids they want (the pre-newborn are seeds that are planted, after they bloom they are called seedlings. Toddler stage is sapling) so it'd be too easy to over populate and crowd out the humans. Basically, she has no idea what consequences and risks could come about from releasing it.
I’m just about positive that in our world, that would still be highly criminal—human experimentation is regulated even if the experimental subjects consent. You can make your world very different, of course.
In either case, would I create a new government branch or is there actually another one that deals with that?
I would guess that it would just be the usual criminal enforcement agencies--police, FBI, not sure which. I assume it would depend on whether it's a local, state, or federal crime...?
How would I figure out if it's local, state or federal? Does it depend on where it happens or what exactly happens?
The FDA controls human drug trials in the United States, so I'd guess that legally, it would be a federal thing, but depending on where it took place (secretly in an established hospital, or in some underground Meth Lab of Dr. Moreau) it might be up to local law enforcement to discover the it. Honestly though, since you're dealing with a world where turning humans completely into plants is a possibility, you're really better off creating your own agency (like Marvel did with SHIELD, for example) than having the stumbling block be that you portrayed duties of the Department of Agriculture as being under the purview of the FDA (Hollywood does this all the time with the FBI, NSA, and CIA, drives me nuts).
Glad you got a laugh out of it, but it's true: Veterinary medicine, or at least vaccination of animals, falls under the Department of Agriculture, not the FDA.
Interesting. And I figured you wouldn't have posted your previous message about the jurisdiction if it weren't true.
