Slashdot Mirror
Jacket Grown from Living Tissue
RangerRick98 writes "Wired has a story about growing jackets from living tissue. The jacket is grown using "a biodegradable polymer as a base," a coating of 3T3 mouse cells (which apparently continue to grow and split even after being removed from their host), and human bone cells for rigidity. The jacket grown so far is only about 2 x 1.4 inches. The hope is that when the polymer degrades, the jacket will retain its structure. The focus behind this work is 'victimless' leather."
> The focus behind this work is 'victimless' leather
This is great news. Hopefully someday soon we can grow all of our leather clothing. Once we attain that proud accomplishment we can then dump the remains of cows slaughtered for meat in a landfill instead of using their hides for clothing.
- For the complete works of Shakespeare: cat
The artists claim to be making a point about our loose and casual attitude to life, by making us aware that we casually wear dead things.
I find it extraordinarily creepy that these people would criticise our attitude to life by combining mouse skin cells and human bone cells into a living coat. I find this manipulation of living things far more disrespectful to our environment, and all things living than harvesting the hide of dead cattle.
As one poster already pointed out, its not like we slaughter cows just to wear their skins, and toss the rest of the cow in a landfill. Its not like it really improves the cows outlook once it reaches the slaughter house.
Even if this ends up being more economically viable then using cow hides, this will still offend those who view this kind of science as an abomination. Instead of slaughtering cows for their skins, were now tinkering in 'gods' playground, pissing around with the building blocks of life.
And the sort of person who complains about using leather is also likely to be the sort that complains about genetically modified foods.
END COMMUNICATION
"We're growing cattle for their meat anyway, why waste the leather?"
1. Every additional consumer purchase contributes to the economic viability of the producer.
EVEN IF you disagree with the animal rights activists, this is simple math.
2. Instead of asking, "Why waste the leather after the slaughter?", how about asking, why not use this process to *replace* the need for slaughter, i.e. why not work toward making this process an economically feasible substitute for producing meat?
At the least, what the pictures have shown is not leather. Leather is what you have after tanning a hide (a process which usually involves chemicals or enzymes, if I recall correctly). What is shown is raw hide, untreated skin (and, in this case, bone).
I grew up in the rural areas of the northern Rocky Mountains, and I've seen more than one disembowled deer corpse hanging from a garage ceiling--among other things that would make a vegan howl in rage (after heaving, of course). Those images still disturb me, as does the concept of engineering flesh and bone from two different species to create an item of clothing.
And I can't help but wonder how they got the human bone cells for that ghastly project.
~UP
Eat the Path.
I'm actually vegan, and any vegetarian that isn't into it because it's "cool" wouldn't.
It's also worth saying I suppose that the ones who are in it for the "cool" factor are also the loudest most obnoxious ones.
It's unfair to us sensible advocates, that the morons who make such claims wear leather and run around killing other creatures because they're not furry or cute.
And to the GP, When was the last time your plants had a central nervous system?