Genetics: The Field of the Future A survey conducted in May 1992 by the American Association for the Advancement of Science showed that over the next decade, genetics clearly stands out as the field of the future. There are many ways to use an education in genetics. In medicine, genetics is the basis for understanding the inheritance of genetic diseases, for providing counseling to families who are at risk for genetic diseases, and for scientific investigations into the molecular basis of genetic diseases and to effect cures. In agriculture, genetics is the basis of breeding new crop plants and livestock. A rapidly growing biotechnology industry is using genetics to produce a range of products from pharmaceuticals to microchips. Sensitive genetic tests are increasingly being employed in criminal cases to identify individuals using only a drop of blood, and in food testing to identify minute contamination by disease-causing organisms. Biologists use genetics to identify the genes that function in the life of the cell and those that control the development of a complex organism from a fertilized egg.