There's an App for That???

What isn’t there an app for?  Honestly not much today and in a few years almost everything.  How about a dating app that doesn’t match you based on personalities and interests, but instead matches your genetics to find you the perfect match?  Too futuristic?  Not really.

In a recent MIT Technology review article, I learned about a few companies planning on making it easy to get your own genetics.  The company, Helix, partnered with Illumina believes they will be able to decode a person’s genome for about $100.  Their quest is to create the first “app store” for genetic information.

My sarcasm about a dating app aside, this is a really interesting and cool idea.  Being able to find out if you have any serious genetic preconditions that can be prevented before symptoms show up would be lifesaving.  Even the less serious information such as a “sweet tooth gene” would be fun to play around with.  However, I hope the science stays ahead of the gimmick aspect.  After a release of some powerful and informative services diagnosing and analyzing your genome, I see a bevy of pointless apps that would be as reliable as a horoscope.  People will believe that they will have 7’0” children and live to 120 because an app told them.

I for one will be keeping my eye on this as it unfolds and don’t be surprised if I get my genome sooner rather than later, but I will always be taking all results with a grain of salt.

But back to the fantasy dating app, it may lead to someday seeing a child piano prodigy and saying “You were born to play.”  They may respond, “Yes I was and my parent’s have the genetic testing to prove it!”