... scale. This essay will explore the possibilities that could explain this, by investigating the background to eugenics and the programs used throughout the world during this period, comparing events in the US and the rest of Europe to Germany. Eugenics continues today - the Human Genome project now completed, for example, there is increasing scope for identifying genetic variation and the potential for genetic engineering of the human race - though generally under a "positive" rather than a "negative" guise. I will discuss these questions through describing the science behind eugenics; the eugenics programs themselves in America and Germany and finally the relevance on scientific advances today. Mendel's work into genetics was elementary to the ideas of race improvement. He demonstrated that the inheritance of traits follows particular laws, using peas as his example. His studies were performed between 1856 and 1863 but it was not until the early 1900s that ...

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