Project Copycat Clones A Cat

texchanchan writes: "'Copying' is not limited to other people's proprietary files. Soon you'll be able to 'share' their prize Siamese. From Yahoo news: "A domestic cat was cloned late last year in a Texas A&M University research program called CopyCat....Cloning research at the university has been funded with more than $3.5 million in investments from John Sperling, an 81-year-old financier who formed Genetic Savings & Clone Inc." (These Texans know how to name things, too.)"

Comments

Price Is Right.

[clinko]

I bet Bob Barker is furious.

Question

[PowerTroll 5000]

Why is it wrong to copy a CD, but not a living creature?

There are much bigger ramifications in the latter type of "copying" than the former.

It's always good to have a backup

[MonkeyInTree]

There are times when frustration gets the better of you and you just need to kick the cat. It's comforting to know that in the future we can make backups first ;)

This just in from Reuters - God files lawsuit.

[immanis]

God files suit in Texas court, cites numbers copyright violations on the part of Texas A&M University.

The Almighty God (Yaweh, The Big Guy, Jehovah) filed a suit in a Texas court today, seeking to block further progress on the CopyCat project, a cloning experiment out of Texas A&M University.

"I'm PISSED!" God was quoted as saying. "It took me days, well a day, to come up with the design of the Cat. It's mine Dammnit! My Cat profits are going to plummet!"

A representative from Texas A&M could not be reached for comment.

Usual cloning caveats apply

[maggard]

1. This is a genetic clone, the same as an "identical twin"
2. Even "identical twins" are often not actually identical; for example hair and pigment patterns often differ. The same is true for clones.
3. While temperament and other characteristics are likely somewhat inherited prenatal nutrition and womb environment have significant if poorly-understood effects
4. Furthermore how the animal is raised (nurture) also has a profound influence on the temperament and behaviors of an animal

So, while this critter may indeed may be a clone it is not the original reincarnated and will differ in any number of ways.

Finally, contrary to any number of unimaginatively-written SF& Horror stories clones haven't shown any special abilities or to be any more susceptible to demonic possession (though with Siamese cats this may be moot - who could tell if they're being unnaturally evil?) However there is a high rate of failure and the produced animals have shown a greater susceptibility to illness and abnormalities (again, with Siamese cats this is also about par for the course already.)

I have a real problem with this

[LordNimon]

There are an estimated 6 to 8 million cats and dogs killed every year because they are not adopted. That's right, every year, millions of cats are purposely killed because no one will adopt them. So if your cat dies, the right thing to do would be to adopt another cat. Save the life of another animal, please!

People who would clone their cat rather than adopt another one disgust me. According the article, the new cat probably won't look the same anyway! And whether it will behave the same is also questionable. So in other words, it is both unethical and pointless to clone your cat.

Someone had to say it...

[brogdon]

There's just no end to the lengths geeks will go to get a little pussy... :)

Scientists Clone Cat; God Files Suit

[Skirwan]

MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN - In a brief press conference outside his part-time home in downtown Milwaukee, God, known to his devotees as the Lord Almighty, announced he was filing suit against a group of researchers at Texas A&M University. God alleges that the domestic cat is his unique creation and that the recent duplication of one of these common animals is a "serious infringement of [his] intellectual property rights". God went on to say that the his research laboratories, Scientology Labs, are hard at work on designing 'uncopyable' creatures which cannot be duplicated outside of the strict guidelines God has set down.

"Ripping and sharing DNA is a crime, and it hurts Me on both a financial and a personal level," intoned the Deity, "and while it pains Me that I must file suit against My children, I must protect My intellectual property from drifting into the public domain, where it could be used by My competitors." God refused to specify which competitors he feared, or what they might do with the genetic algorithms.

"God is simply trying to hold on to an illegally-gained monopoly," stated longtime competitor Satan at a press conference held shortly after in Redmond, Washington. "He's afraid that if genetic protocols are opened for public use, the market would be flooded with non-God organisms, which would of course detract from his brand," added Satan, better known by his stage name, "Prince of Darkness", or by his ubiquitous online handle, "PrttyKtty666". Satan claimed that numerous studies had shown great demand for a wider variety of animals, and that this is the scientific breakthrough that could eventually lead to world populated by Elves, Unicorns, and Dragons. "People love dragons. People love Unicorns. Hell, people even love dinosaurs! Did you ever see Jurassic Park?", opined the source of all evil.

Other major figures in this field have yet to make their voices heard; Religious leaders Buddha, Krishna, Jesus of Nazareth, the Dalai Lama, and Oprah refused to take a stance one way or the other.

The darkness drops again; but now I know
That twenty centuries of stony sleep
Were vexed to nightmare by a rocking cradle,
And what rough beast, its hour come round at last,
Slouches towards Bethlehem to be born?