Yeah, that's exactly what I was drawing on. I'm suggesting it as an arguably similar situation where we appeal to "nature" to deny patents. I brought it up because I think that HN might be more likely to consider software as "ownable" but DNA as not, which could seem like an arbitrary distinction (until we really get to a better reason than "nature").
The overwhelming majority of programmers are strongly opposed to any patents on software. The opponents of gene patents have nothing on the fury programmers vent when they see what lucrative software patents actually look like.