Cloning Extinct Animals I
Read the article this discussion is about
- paleogeoff
- plox
- paleoartisans
- AuTrou
- plox
- plox
This archived discussion is "read only".
» paleogeoff - Cloning
I've always wanted to see a mammoth cloned, but we should ask ourselves if this is the right thing to do. We've seen how animals introduced to new environements generally outcompete everybody else and displace the original species. If we were ever to clone a mammoth, how would that affect the environment is such a clone got into the wild? Just a little devil's advocate work to keep those mad scientists out there in check.
-- posted by paleogeoff
» plox - a fascinating topic
There are a lot of smaller creatures than mammoths, with faster maturation. Is any research really being done in this field or is it just something to make TV shows about?I imagine in the next article you will point out the problem of immunity if an extinct animal could be cloned. To me that means that animals misplaced in time have little chance of taking over in any modern habitat.
-- posted by plox
» paleoartisans - cloning difficulties
I recommend the excellent article "Sex, Errors, and the Genome" by Mark Ridley in the June 2001 issue of Natural History. Ridley discusses the important role that sexual reproduction (versus asexual reproduction or cloning) plays in keeping individuals and species healthy. All of the articles in this issue are excellent, and very informative about different aspects of genetics. I had already planned these two articles on Cloning Extinct Animals before the issue came out, so it was quite serendipitous that they also chose this month to discuss genetics!-- posted by paleoartisans
» AuTrou - Cloning prehistoric animals
Aren't these animals really big and dangerous? Has anyone thought about what it would be like for the animal that is going to be impregnated as well as for the animal that will possibly be born?Hey I am as curious as the next person and would like to see an offspring of a wooly mammoths or mastodons. I would love to be working with the scientists and finding all these wonderful discoveries except my morals and values would be saying how much more we could do to help the people in trouble now, our world.
What purpose would this project have other than to say, look what we did!
Granted we need to experiment and for good reason, but why bring back an animal that has been dead for well over 10,000 years? Why not use these experiments and the money for other problems in the world, like cancer, leukemia, Alzheimer, not to mention whomever is funding this endeavor could be feeding millions of starving people with the money he is spending on this project.
Pretty soon humans will be extinct because no one person cared enough to help, and thats a sad thought indeed.
-- posted by AuTrou
» plox - re: millions of starving people
In response to message posted by AuTrou:Re purpose...we don't need to encourage the breeding of more people (although we do). Humans may become extinct but only after they have killed everything else due to human overpopulation and activities ruining the ecosystem.
Re funding...people spend their money on the things they are interested in, like cloning mammoths, or giving to charities, or having internet access.
Re your morals and values...hope you do something constructive with them.
-- posted by plox
» plox - cloning plans
In response to message posted by plox:Japanese planning to clone mammoth for Siberian Wild Life Preserve: http://www.cnn.com/2002/TECH/08/21/clone...
-- posted by plox
Please follow the guidelines set forth in the Suite101 Posting Etiquette when adding to the discussion.