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Using Liquid Crystals to Guide Stem Cells
An anonymous reader writes "Liquid crystals, the same phase-shifting materials used to display information on cell phones, monitors and other electronic equipment, can also be used to control the differentiation of embryonic stem cells, Wisconsin researchers say. By using the crystals to mechanically strain the cells, they can prevent the indiscriminate (and unwanted) differentiation common in embryonic stem cell research and therapy. So when you want a bone cell, say, you don't end up with one from the kidney."
According to the bible, as well as the Catholic Church, the body doesn't begin life until blood flows through it. The body first has blood flowing through at approximately the 40th day, so using these extremely young blastocysts means that the stem cells aren't living people, thus we can't murder them. So we can use them.
Makes you wonder if 100 years from now, after display technology has moved on to God-knows-what, people think LC technology primarily as some sort of biotechnology, sort of like we think of the radar device in our microwave as being primarily a cooking device, or the mirror as a safety device in cars. Then the moment is over, and you post whatever your view is on the personhood of embryonic stem cells.
I believe the scripture reference you should use to defend your argument can be found in Leviticus 17:11. Be careful, I agree with you, but this verse (coming out of a NIV Bible) should not be streched to say something it is not. If you found anything else, in any Bible, that can prove what you are saying, please post it.
It is really ironic, the verse I mentioned was quoted on CSI.
From in vitro fertilization. You can also get these cells from theraputic cloning. Take a good cloning cell (hair folicle or gut work best. Basically cells that divide most often into themselves.), take an egg cell (Or, if your really good, some studies have shown you can get adult stem cells to become a reproductive cell. Though that technology is a bit far behind to work for this example. Ten years from now -or a week, can never tell when an advancement like that will be made- then you could get as many egg cells from your own body, regardless of sex, and for a lot less pain of finding a donor and injecting her with a shitload of hormones, then plunging a harvesting needle into her abdomen... And it would be a "true" clone, with the mitotic DNA being the same.) Make a slit in egg, remove nucleus. Make a slit in donor cell, remove nucleus. Put donor nucleus in egg cell. Apply a small shock to promote healing and division. Wait a few days. Now you have perfect embrionic stem cells that are a match to your own DNA. Do this a few times to ensure you get at least one healthy sample.
Now you can take these cells, and make new neural tissue, for treating diseases like parkinsons. Or fit into a mold for a new bladder (they managed to make this in dogs), or use the technology of the bladder example, advance it in a few years, and you could make genetically identicle livers and kidneys. Or a new pancreus, good for some insulin goodness, and help the adult onset diabeties.
3 degrees of separation from Vladimir Putin
'Isolated to christians'? Excuse me?!
How is trying to keep a religious, faith-based, totally NON-scientific, unfalsifiable hypothesis (at best) out of PUBLIC, government-funded SCIENCE class 'meddling in the lives of christians'? How is the public school system at ANY school 'isolated to christians'? ID isn't even a 'christian' doctrine, it is an idea pushed by fundamentalist biblical literalists. Even the Catholic church has spoken out against it and in favor of real science.
I suppose if you consider 'stopping the Inquisition from killing innocent, NON-catholic people' to be 'meddling in the lives of christians', you might have a point - But you don't. As usual, it's the 'christians' who are using their religion to push their doctrine into areas where it isn't allowed or wanted, like public school SCIENCE classes.
Somehow I have a feeling that the 'forcing catholic hospitals to perform abortions' is a lot of hooey as well, unless said hospital is getting a lot of $ from non-catholics. If the Public is funding the hospital, then the hospital has to act like a hospital, not a church.
It's positively amazing how many fundamentalist, outspoken 'christians' are willing to lie, cheat, and many other dishonest and unethical things to push this creationist agenda. They've been caught at it over and over and over!
Look at the Dover trial, and the LIES that the school board was caught in. Blatant, outright lies. Look at the various amendmants and pro-ID 'teach the (manufactured)controversy' pushes that have been going on. First time they push the bill, it's flat out creationism. After that's struck down by the judges, the creintelligent designist proponents do a simple search and replace to push ID instead. Now that the Dover trial is over and the dishonesty and lack of science is made clear, *BAM* 'Teach the controversy!'. It's amazing how quickly evangelical 'christians' will stoop to lying and cheating to 'do god's work'. Here's a hint - if you have to lie and cheat and trick people to get them to go along with you, you're NOT doing god's work.
Why do some of us dislike christianity? I don't dislike christianity at all. I would LOVE to see people actually living like Christians, loving and treating our fellow man as we ourselves would like to be treated, giving them leave to live their own lives and make their own choices, and judging others (if it has to be done at all) by their ACTIONS, not by their beliefs or skin color or what they wear or whatever stupid reason it is today.
Unfortunately, nearly every outspoken 'christian' I've ever met has gone on to prove by their ACTIONS that they are using their religion as a club to bully and control others, a shield to hide their real actions behind - not as a way of life.
You yourself bring up ID, and not as real science, oh no - rather than propose any real study on the subject, you want it taught in schools as indoctrination. Evolution EARNED its place in the classroom by 150 years of empirical testing and real, peer-reviewed, multiply repeated by others of any and every religion and creed and never yet falsified.
And if we hold ID up to the same standards of testing, what do we get? 'You're meddling in the lives of poor, god-fearing christians, you atheist monsters!'
Come back when you've got a real argument, shill.