NEW YORK: Researchers in New York have created what is believed to be the first genetically engineered human embryo, which critics immediately branded as a step toward "designer babies." But the researchers, at Cornell University, say they used an abnormal embryo that could never have turned into a baby. "This particular piece of work was done on an embryo that was never going to be viable," said Dr. Zev Rosenwaks, director of the Center for Reproductive Medicine and Infertility at NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell hospital. He said the purpose of the work was stem cell research.