“Egg Donor Needed. $50,000 Incentive.” This is a sample heading from one of the ads that has begun to appear at Ivy League schools such as Yale and Harvard. Although egg donation is not news, those intending to purchase human eggs have now gone beyond requesting a certain eye color to demanding Ivy League degrees. These potential buyers believe that raising the standard of their criteria will bring them a better baby. But does this ambition to purchase a genetic advantage for their children make them bad parents?
Couples who place these ads assume that if a young woman attends an Ivy League school, then she will likely pass on her academic ability to her offspring. This assumption disregards many other factors such as the genetic contribution of the sperm and the determining forces of our environment. Our lives are influenced, but not predetermined by our genes.
One danger of ordering babies like televisions is that parents may have unreasonable expectations of their child. If the child doesn‘t turn out the way the parents envisioned, how will he or she be treated? Good parents accept their children for whoever they happen to be—not just for attending Yale.
翻译：
“急征捐卵者，酬金5万美元。”这是一则广告的标题，最近开始出现在常春藤联盟名校的校园内，如耶鲁大学和哈佛大学。虽然卵子捐赠不是什么新鲜事，但卵子购买者指定的条件标准，已从眼睛的颜色提高到(捐卵者)需有常春藤盟校的文凭。这些潜在的买主相信，提高指定条件的标准，可以生出较优的婴儿。然而这种为孩子购买遗传优势的企图，是否让这些买主变成了不道德的父母？
刊登这则广告的夫妇认为，能读常春藤盟校的女生，很有可能将其在学术上的优秀能力遗传给后代。这种假设忽视了许多其他的因素，如精子遗传和后天环境的决定性影响。我们的人生会受到遗传基因的影响，但并不是完全由它决定的。
想像订购电视机一样量身订做婴儿的父母，会对孩子报有过高的期望。如果生出的孩子没有达到父母的期望，他们会怎么对待孩子？好父母应该能够接受自己的孩子，不管他是什么样子–当然也不能只因为他能上耶鲁大学。
