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Russian Scientists Say They'll Clone a Mammoth Within 5 Years

Posted by samzenpus on from the pleistocene-park dept.

Many scientists (mainly Japanese and Russian) have dreamed of cloning a mammoth over the years. When the mammoth genome was partially reconstructed in 2008, that dream seemed a bit closer. Besides the millions of dollars needed for such a project, the biggest hurdle was the lack of a good sample of mammoth DNA. That hurdle has now been cleared, thanks to the discovery of well-preserved bone marrow in a mammoth thigh bone. Russian scientist Semyon Grigoriev, acting director of the Sakha Republic's mammoth museum, and colleagues from Japan's Kinki University say that within 5 years they'll likely have a clone. From the article: "What's been missing is woolly mammoth nuclei with undamaged genes. Scientists have been on a Holy Grail-type search for such pristine nuclei since the late 1990s. Now it sounds like the missing genes may have been found."

25 of 302 comments (clear)

  1. Ice Age Park by alen · · Score: 5, Funny

    Just like Jurassic Park, but colder

    1. Re:Ice Age Park by KennyG944 · · Score: 1, Funny

      OMG! They're gonna clone Roseanne Barr?

    2. Re:Ice Age Park by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Funny

      the roseanne ref is almost as old as the mammoth :)

    3. Re:Ice Age Park by GNious · · Score: 5, Funny

      Mix with current age elephants and unix-gurues - should make for diversity, while keeping the hairyness.

    4. Re:Ice Age Park by Archangel+Michael · · Score: 4, Funny

      I've noticed, the more proficient I get at Linux, my beard grows thicker and greyer ... I'm no longer thinking it is coincidence.

      --
      Agent K: A *person* is smart. People are dumb, stupid, panicky animals, and you know it.
    5. Re:Ice Age Park by Archangel+Michael · · Score: 5, Funny

      Then we'll kill it for dinner. Back to Extinct for you!

      --
      Agent K: A *person* is smart. People are dumb, stupid, panicky animals, and you know it.
    6. Re:Ice Age Park by Kenoli · · Score: 5, Funny

      Go extinct twice; achievement unlocked

    7. Re:Ice Age Park by rubycodez · · Score: 3, Funny

      yes, give it a Mac

  2. I wonder by Dunbal · · Score: 4, Funny

    What the giants will have to say about that.

    --
    Seven puppies were harmed during the making of this post.
  3. Putin... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    Will have shot it five minutes later...

  4. Welcome to... by i+kan+reed · · Score: 3, Funny

    Pliocene park.

  5. All this in the mist of global warming. by jellomizer · · Score: 4, Funny

    Lets give birth to an Ice Age animal during earths period of global high heat. They couldn't survive the end of the last ice age. So lets bring them to life and stick them in a post/anti-Ice Age environment... Brilliant!

    --
    If something is so important that you feel the need to post it on the internet... It probably isn't that important.
    1. Re:All this in the mist of global warming. by fuzzyfuzzyfungus · · Score: 4, Funny

      Each one will be issued a heavy-duty electric razor and a bottle of SPF-50 sunscreen, along with an umbrella in one of five ridiculous novelty prints.

    2. Re:All this in the mist of global warming. by MikeyO · · Score: 4, Funny

      They couldn't survive the end of the last ice age

      I thought they were done in by humans hunting with clovis point spears. They should be fine now, nobody uses spears anymore.

    3. Re:All this in the mist of global warming. by sexconker · · Score: 5, Funny

      Lets give birth to an Ice Age animal during earths period of global high heat.

      Today isn't particularly hot, even by the standards of the time since the last ice age, and much of Russia is often extremely cold.

      In any case, the next ice age should be along at some point in the next few thousand years, so we might as well get prepared. A mammoth will be much more useful as transport than a Prius when the planet is covered with mile-thick ice and the temperature is permanently below zero.

      Fucking Starks and their "winter is coming" doom and gloom bullshit.

    4. Re:All this in the mist of global warming. by Samantha+Wright · · Score: 4, Funny

      You had me at "one of five ridiculous novelty prints." Where does one apply to be a mammoth? Is there a BSD convention nearby?

      --
      Bio questions? Ask me to start a Q&A journal. Computer analogies available for most topics!
    5. Re:All this in the mist of global warming. by cyberchondriac · · Score: 3, Funny

      Until Apple patents their own "iSpear". Unfortunately for them, they won't be very effective as the spear tips will have rounded edges.

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      Look back up at my post, now look back down, you're on the Internet. Now look back up. I'm a signature.
    6. Re:All this in the mist of global warming. by ColdWetDog · · Score: 3, Funny

      Until Apple patents their own "iSpear". Unfortunately for them, they won't be very effective as the spear tips will have rounded edges.

      You just have to hold them correctly.

      --
      Faster! Faster! Faster would be better!
  6. Kinki University? by cashman73 · · Score: 5, Funny

    Now, I really don't want to know WHY they're cloning a mammoth,. . .

  7. I dunno by Megahard · · Score: 4, Funny

    Sounds like a mammoth project.

    --
    I eat only the real part of complex carbohydrates.
  8. mammoths are dumb by MikeyO · · Score: 5, Funny

    Mammoths are dumb, If they are going to pick a species to bring back from extinction, they should pick something cooler, like a mermaid or a unicorn or something.

  9. Re:Preparing for the coming Ice Age by glassbeat · · Score: 3, Funny

    Well, since anthropomorphic global warming is causing the melting of Greenlands ice sheet, which will then cause an Ice Age in Europe, this seems apropos.

    Don't anthropomorphize global warming. It hates it when you do that.

  10. I for one wlecome our by future+assassin · · Score: 3, Funny

    new ... stomp....

    --
    by TheSpoom (715771) Uncaring Linux user here. I have nothing to add to this but please continue. *munches popcorn*
  11. re: beard by King_TJ · · Score: 2, Funny

    Yeah.... and the longer I do systems administration on Microsoft Windows based networks, the more of my hair turns gray. No beard though....

  12. Re: beard by toastar · · Score: 4, Funny

    Yeah.... and the longer I do systems administration on Microsoft Windows based networks, the more of my hair turns gray. No beard though....



    I would think that would make one bald.