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Artificial Human-Like Fingers Grown
Ristoril writes "Scientists in the Kinki (I'm not making this up) University Hospital in Osaka, Japan, have created artificial fingers in cooperation with Harvard Med School in Boston, Mass. Read the whole story about artificial cow fingers from Yahoo! News. "
Hmmmmm. What I'd *really* like to see would be pictures of, say, a cat seeing these mice for the first time...
Criminals wouldn't be a big problem; just deny
them access to the procedures.
What's worse, is that normal people will be able
to keep working longer without retiring.
Or they'll be able to live longer AFTER retiring.
Meaning that young folks in the future better
not want to A) ever work and B) ever retire.
Cool.
"Our love life improved after I replaced my old fingers with these new Kinki fingers!"
It's not like you'ld be getting a hoove in place of a hand. There have already been animal-human organ transplants (I seem to remember stomach or a liver from a pig and an oragatang (sp)). Advanced mammal tendons are advanced mammal tendons, whether from a cow or a human. Besides, for research its a lot easier to get constant from a cow than a person. I'm sure if human flesh would be better during a real operation they would use human flesh (probably even your own).
Besides, if I got a few fingers chopped off, and I could get them replaced with fingers grown in mice from cow cells I would be more than willing to get them rather than run around for the rest of my life without enough digits.
Michael Bannister
Someone grow me a pair o' retinas. I'm tired of browsing the web with Lynx.
These mice are genetically engineered to lack an immune system. This way they can grow things like human ears and fingers in them without worrying about the mouse's immune system attacking the foreign cells.
Pretty frickin' sick.
In addition to your second point, 3rd world countries generally have higher birth rates, albiet tempered by death at an earlier age. Developed nations in general have very low or negative population growth rates. Of course the impact of immigration from 3rd world countries also changes this formula, but in the end, the population grows much faster in third world countries. Which causes lots of other problems, because 3rd world countries are in general much less able to support more people (lack of infrastructure and *food*), and generally lead to a much lower quality of life. Which in turn leads to higher birth rates. So essentially it makes one giant circle! But the people are starting to live longer due to medical advances live in developed countries. So if you add all of these effects together, it means there is a significant population growth, and its likely to keep growing until we run out of space, all social and economic concerns aside.
Spyky
Growing in north america or not, we're all still screwed by lasses fair capitalists.
Be sure to read the "yes, this was an April Fools day prank" disclaimer at the bottom of the page...
. . . is that they come with a choice of barbeque, honey-musterd, or sweet and sour sauce.
i think his point is that HUMANS have ethics, animals who kill other animals do so for survival of their species, we do it so we can gorge ourselves on 32 ounce steaks and "look good", far from justifiable reasons
Cows are your saviors! What *CAN'T* cows do?
:D
Moooooooooooooooooo....
This would be a lot funnier if that were the Beef Council's actual slogan, but it's not. You're confusing "Beef: it's what's for dinner" with "Eggs: their not just for breakfast anymore."
They need to grow an arificial nose to keep the artificial finger busy.
At least now the cows will be able to flip each other off.
Mooo: Hey, that's MY grass.
Moooo: Oh yeah? Well here's your grass!
Oh, yeah... What about the idea presented in the SF book "The Long Arm of Gil Hamilton" by Niven where society has begun mandating organ donation after execution? Slowly, society begins to make more and more crimes punishable by death. I won't go into some of the stuff that goes on after that to avoid spoiling a major part of the backdrop plot.
It's a bit horrifying to consider, but I will say that it certainly is less wasteful, and it makes sure that criminals give something back to society. It'd be ironic justice if the guys in the Littleton shooting where carved up to save the lives of some decent people.
We also do it so we can survive. We must eat. Sure, there are some that overdo it, there will always be stuff like that going on. I bet if you look hard enough you will see the same type of thing in nature somewhere.
;)
Sure, we could all go vegie/vegan... but that's unrealistic. Many of us would not be able to adjust and such a diet requires one to be aware of nutritional requirements as some things are harder to get from plants then animals. And with so many people too damn lazy to get off the couch on occasion, do you really think they can watch what they eat enough to handle something like that? If you want to, enjoy. But it's not for me.
Personally, I feel that there is a reason we are at the top of the food chain. I like the fact that I can eat most species.
"I'd like to share a revelation that I've had, during my time here. It came to me when I tried to classify your species. I realized that you're not actually mammals. Every mammal on this planet instinctively develops a natural equilibrium with the surrounding environment, but you humans do not. You move to an area, and you multiply, and multiply, until every natural resource is consumed. The only way you can survive is to spread to another area. There is another organism on this planet that follows the same pattern. A virus. Human beings are a disease, a cancer of this planet, you are a plague, and we are the cure."
Limits on our lifespan are part of the natural order, but obviously we could give a shit. It's a shame that we not only don't have a clue as to where the draw the line, but that no one seems remotely interested in even asking the question.
Hey, I could actually use a tail. *ehap*
It would be immunity (no T cells --> no host cells for HIV virus particles), but yes, ya might as well have untreatable full-blown AIDS.
Do you honestly believe that animals only kill for the survival of the species? How 'bout...
* Animals killing their young. This happens in
many "higher" species of various kinds -- wrong
place, wrong time, *whap*. Good for survival,
eh?
* Killing their mates. Ditto.
* Colony warfare. Very, very common among insects
and others.
And so forth -- especially 'mong primates and other higher animals. The image of "Bambi" and the ideas of cute, cuddly, peaceful, benevolent life is, largely, a bogus one useful for merchandising and brainwashing.
We kill to survive, too. And, FWIW, "looking good" is related to survival and success in human culture; or do you think that, realistically, deformed humans have as high a chance to procreate as do people blessed with looks and the will to maintain them?
I was just sayin' to the missus; I was sayin: We can send a man to mars, but we can't grow finger-like protuburuncuz from spare chickens and cows.
Why would mice need more fingers?
Just now our technology is discoverying what the greys have known all along, that cows are incredibly flexible and advanced beings and are probably the superior life form on the planet. The whole alien conspiracy is not colonization or giving Joe Bubba Redneck an anal probe. The Alien Conspiracy is about Cows! I... HEY! How are you guys! Ack! Oof! !#%%$ *NO CARRIER*
There wasn't a single link to data at the researcher's web site. The whole thing might as well have been a dead-tree story.
...from a very close source.
Dawkins' book is interesting, and some of his theories make sense, but he tends to be such a reductionist to the point of absurdity. I just can't buy his whole "organisms are just robots created by genes for the sole purpose of carrying them & passing them on" idea. I think genes and multi-cellular organismal bodies at least evolved in tandem. Nevertheless his is an excellent writer. His "The Blind Watchmaker" is also an excellent book and defense of Natural selection and neo-Darwinism.
Respectfully,
Kevin Christie
kwchri@maila.wm.edu
It is well documented that many species kill their young and even EAT them. For example mice will eat their young if their nest is cut off by a predator for any significant length of time. This is done so that the parents don't lose their investment in time and energy to raise these young. In another case, male lions will kill baby lions who were fathered by other males. This is done to increase the chances for its own offspring's survival.
Humans are the only known species who hunt for sport.
So much for the highly literate internet generation! hehe
I've seen a human break 20 meters of ice with his head, and others punch through bricks. The persons who did this tells us anyone can learn this skill. I've never in my life seen a tiger do this.
Many people like to eat things made from cows. Turning cows into food is a good business decision.
People don't mind eating imitation things. Witness imitation crab meat, imitation scallops, and vegetarian hot dogs.
Therefore, many people would like imitation fingers made from cow cells, and would not mind eating them.
-Anonymous CS Lounge Coward
How do you think they keep "BRAIN DEAD" people alive for organ transplant... orrr
keeping ppl alive during a coma?
People the technology to keep the body breathing is around!!
And if they could reconstruct a dud human the costs would be immense... like lets try a new revlon mascara.. oops we melted the head... time for another human clone $10000000 later.
This could only be bad cause it would set a precident to use humans and would end up importing pigmies at a much cheaper price.
I dont think the whole thing is very practical.
A mouse giving that cat "the finger" would be even better =]
Chimps hunt for sport, and sometimes mutilate the target (tree monkeys), sometimes they eat the prey, sometimes they don't, but they definately enjoy the hunt itself. This is well documented. Try "Demonic Males" and its referenced sources (tons of on-site research/observation projects).
well, if they can do it with cow cells, then they can do it with your cells...
and if the can do it with a finger, with dozens of different kinds of tissue, then the could do it with sayu a heart, or a liver.
imagine growing a replacment heart when yo get old!!
That is true...the worst forms of the flu happen when human flu and duck flu combine in pigs.
But regardless, that very rarely happens. It is not eAsy for a virus or bacteria to change hosts...especially virii. Agreed the risk is greater, but not much.
Aids could switch because we are so close to monkeys.
And anyway, if this technique is to become common and cheap, then you need something better than a mouse to grow it in...maybe a very large bioreactor...that way you eliminate the threat of foriegn disease completly
Just remember, the mice the use where created especially for this sort of genetic testing. THey have been in breed so much that they are virtually identical twins. You could transplat anything from one mouse to the other without rejection...now the problem with inbreeding is that it lowers the immune system. These mice have NO immune system.
I just thought you should know that these mice are our creation, and would die without us. I have no problem using animals that were breed for the purpose. That means cows, pigs, chickens...and yes even mice, as long as the animals are not caused more pain than is necessary. If you want to go moral on us, then HOW DARE you eat plants...YOU ARE KILLING INNOCENT PLANTS!!!
It makes as much sense as what you said
That type of genetic manipulation is still many years off. And in addition, in oorde to do it right you would have to genetically modify the human embryos. This method offers a nuch cleaner, cheaper and faster way, although it would be less flexible than spontanious regeneration
It's one name for the whole region. Kansai is another name for essentially the same regional area. It's like saying "Intermountain" or "Great Plains" to describe geographical regions.
Yes, but they are tiny, prehensile, wiggly fingers like worms grafted onto the hoof.
Kind of cuddly, like a Teddy Viper.
Heart VALVES, at any rate, have already been grown from cultured human heart-cells. They create a similar kind of scaffold for it to grow on, and let 'er rip. The cells then grow into a perfectly formed valve - though as far as I know they've never tried to implant one in place of a defective valve in a real living heart.
Spare Part Pets? not jsut an arm, have multitudes of limbs and organs growing on the family dog
I've actually worked with the glow-in-the-dark mice before. Apparently the gene for, well, _glowing_ came from plankton.
The lab I worked at studied ways to keep skin grafts from being rejected. Skin was transplanted from one mouse to another. Glow in the dark skin made for a good marker!
2^5
Where's Gary Larson and The Far Side when you need him!
I've seen mice that grew human ears (cartilage anyway). It was on TLC or Discovery or something like that a few months ago. I would guess these are the same kinds of mice.
Posted by Mad Paintball Terrorist:
I refuse to read any story that originates from Yahoo or has anything to do with Yahoo until they change their stance on Geocities
Posted by Phantom of the Operating Syste:
Like most things, this will start out intended for only 'Serious' use, then the floodgates will open and it will become the pop thing to do. Remember, Edison never expected or wanted the phonograph to be used for entertainment. He invisioned it only for business and governmental communication.
@wheeee! you thought piercings were bad, you ain't seen __nothing__ yet!
-phantom
Posted by Phantom of the Operating Syste:
umm, yeah, that..that is exactly it.
@.@
I really shouldn't be suprised. I am
kinda suprised at what the one twin gave up.
-phantom
Posted by Lord Kano-The Gangster Of Love:
When I was a kid, it was a big deal that I knew how to use a computer. As time went on everyone learned how. When I was in my teens it was a big deal that I could write computer programs. Now, it's an elective at most colleges.
And the one thing I had left, the one thing that I thought that only time would take away from me is just about to be made obsolete. Now any jerk with enough money can have a big penis too.
Bill Gates can walk his (I'm assuming) needle pricked body over to a plastic surgeon and get a special deluxe John Holmes model grown up in a few weeks.
DAMMIT!!!!
LK
Posted by The Incredible Mr. Limpett:
ugh...probably looks like that one deal where they grew a human ear on a mouse...it was just coming out of it's back...gross. poor mouse.
umm what are you talking about? AIDS kills your immune system so if you start off w/o one it really doesn't matter b/c it's just as bad or worse than having AIDS.
the body wouldnt live without the brain. So some type of artificial brian would be needed. It would just keep the body alive while the testing was done. The only problem is that this would be incredibly expensive and we are not even close to this point technologically.
Why do most people think that the idea of a
"superior" species using humans as raw material
is horrific, but this kind of thing is alright?
If you look at movies like Independence Day and
The Matrix, the sole justification provided
for destroying the "enemy" is that they are
behaving almost exactly as these scientists are
behaving toward the lab mice. I'm not an animal
rights nut, but it seems like we've crossed
some very important ethical boundaries when
right and wrong are relative to whether we are
the exploiter or the exploitee. It's a shame
that throw-away sci-fi movies can seemingly
grasp how terrible this kind of thing is
but some of the best minds in the world either
don't care or don't bother to consider it.
This is _way _ beyond the usual animal cosmetic
testing stuff.
If the storylines of those movies ever came true,
I think we would probably be getting what we
deserve. Karma can be a dangerous thing.
Maybe this is just me being overly creeped out, but I'm not sure I could deal with a cow's hand instead of a real one. I think there is a lot of scientists out there that are just getting a little too loopy.
Think I'd rather have a hook. At least then I could be the center of attention in ghost stories.
The fingers would probably be tasty.
hawk, who is amazed at McDonald's ability to charge a higher price than its competitors for a product with no flavor, and didn't realize the obvious analogy until he typed the first part of this run-on fragment
He also did the "East of Eden" (or was it West???) series, in which very primitive, pre-technological, humans stumble into intelligent dinosaurs with advanced biotech . . .
Many other good things too, but the stainless steel rat stuff are still my favorites.
Wow, maybe sometime soon I can get that extra penis I always wanted. You *know* that's what they were planning on doing. Some scientist said, "Hey, I bet I could grow a bigger dick!" He started with a finger just so everyone wouldn't laugh at him though. Way cool....
-Rev. Randy
- Kate
"DNA is life. The rest is just translation."
I can just see this -- Some company out there will make Terminators -- except that they won't have metal for skeleton, they'll have real, honest to god FLESH ...they'll be able to infiltrate any organization, pass any security checkpoint..they will be invisible..they will be us..we will be them....they will rebel against us..there will be a big war..... oh the humanity!..er inhumanity!!!
da w00t. mtfnpy?
Do they actually, really, honest-to-god glow in the dark?
Talk about the pet fad of the century if they ever came out commercially...
"Be nice, veer left, and never stop thinking" Iain Banks - Walking On Glass
A judge around here just sentenced a guy to 10 consecutive life sentences plus 8 other terms. He won't be eligable for parole for 575 years.
At UCLA they have the "Hugh G. Dick Library".
They had to move the sign inside.
This is only vaguely related, but I'm *reasonably* sure that most (if not all) "life" sentences are really just for 20 years...
-harry
I walked around with a sick feeling for weeks after reading this, and seeing that horrible hand... Bleah!
This doesn't seem too far from growing an arm on a dog.
This is wayyy cool! I'm missing part of my right thumb. Now *I* too will hit the space bar with my right hand! Now, *I* too will be able to use the crappy round iMac mouse!!!
Weeee!!!!!
| If it's to replace lost fingers, it sounds
...
| slightly unappealing to me -- I don't know
| if I'd like to have cow tissue grown in mice
| grafted onto me.
The story was a bit sparse, but why would cow tissue grow into human fingers anyhow? Strange stuff, this.
But at any rate, I don't see it making much difference where the finger was grown were a viable replacement available and I needed one.
I mean, as long as it didn't cause Torgo Knee Syndrome or anything
-- Rick
My driving finger is just about shot.
"Your new arm is big and strong. . . not like that little crummy white one on the other side."
to wind a piece of string around"
heh. I wonder how many other people caught that reference.
Not human-sized, human-proportioned.
"Whatever can go wrong, will." --Finagle's Law
that's nothing. At the Defense Language Institue in Monterey they have the "Fukio Aiso Memorial Library"
support gun control: take guns from cops
*falls off chair in spasmodic fits of laughter as co-workers look on bewilderment*
---
DNA just wants to be free...
When I saw the phrase "artificial cow fingers" I suddenly flashed on high school cafeteria names for "mystery meat".
The second thing I thought of is that this could bring a whole new meaning to the phrase "giving someone the finger".
I see even classic Slashdot is now pretty much unusable on dial up anymore.
Just take my word for it. And really, really don't follow any of the links.
I see even classic Slashdot is now pretty much unusable on dial up anymore.
The article was woefully lacking in information. One thing they didn't mention -- what did they have to do to the cow to get the tissue samples? Skin may be easy to come by, but I don't want anyone scrapeing off pieces of my tendons, even if it is so I can have that 11th finger I always wanted.
I actually kinda like the idea that it was done just to see if it was possible. "Hey, wouldn't it be cool if we could give mice fingers grown from cows?"
The enemies of Democracy are
"whoa!"
The enemies of Democracy are
hmmmm... I was just thinking... those of us who only care about the suffering of animals and don't care about health particularly... a cow finger sandwich sounds pretty good. no cows harmed (or humans) wonder what that sandwich would cost? hehe
so I guess I should read the articles first. I guess we can't grow stuff yet outside of a real living thing to supply nutrients... ah the life of a research mouse... that is the life for me.
This is real a double edged sword. In the western world, for them most part, we go out of our way to make prisons comfortable for those being held captive. Otherwise the conditions are considered cruel and inhuman. Here we have the oportunity to say to a prisioner, not only are we going to leave you in a cell till you die but, we're also going to make sure that your body stays healthy so we can keep you there for a longer than you naturally would have been. Were I stuck in a cell for years on end, with no hope of ever seeing the outside world, I think I would yearn for the release that death would bring. This is would take that from me. Which is then more humane -to let him/her die, or to keep him/her alive. I guess this is the same sort of question people ask when dealing with euthenasia.
Further, as I consider it, this appears to put a yet greater burden upon the general population. As it is now the cost of internment of a prisoner (on average) in a Canadian Prision is $60K (cnd) per year. Here we just add more years and more cost to the general public. The public always gets screwed twice. Once when the person commits the crime, and then again when they have to pay to keep him locked up. In the end I think society in general will have to come up with a better solution to crime than internment. But I'm open to suggestions as to what that is. The death of personality seems viable -if we could do it- but it to has its scary side.
Locust
You know.. those sandwitches with fake fingers in them just got alot funnier...
--
OOoooooo 11 fingers.... I can just imagine all of the Emacs bindings that I would create... :)
Excellent point. It's sort of the dilemma of living forever. Right now the population of the planet isn't dying as fast as it's expanding. This is leading to some massive problems as people live longer. Pretty soon we'll have to start finding other places to put people - or deal with seeing crime rates skyrocket, employment crises, major racially motivated wars, etc... the list goes on. It's rather scary to imagine what might happen...
I sware they have them bubble eyed dog-boys down in linear valey!
We're all D-E-V-O !
I think the Russian comedian Yakov Smirnoff (sp?) said it best:
"If someone offers you a finger sandwich, gladly accept. If they offer you a knuckle sandwich, politely decline."
Minimums of 575 years are just ridiculous. What are they going to do when he dies, keep the body locked up for 500 yeaars?
For comparison: In Norway, the maximum total prison term "awarded" in a single trial is 21 years (plus 10 years of "securing", normally a mental hospital). Add to that that a prison year is only 8 months, then a 21-year conviction with parole after two thirds of served time means about nine and a half years total.
Firstly, I'd like to take issue with your conclusion. As long as there is physically room for the population, why would more people lead to fewer jobs? On the contrary, it would lead to more jobs, as more people means more _demand_ for goods and services. The number of jobs available per capita should remain the same.
Secondly, I'm not sure that your first point holds true either. Taken as a whole, the population of the earth is indeed growing. However, break this down by region, and you see huge variances. In many places - most notably North America - the population growth rate is either zero or negative, with immigration making up the difference. This is a cultural effect. Cultures in which families have many children will naturally have populations that grow quickly. Cultures where the average number of children that an individual has over the course of their lifetime is two or less have populations that are stable or declining. A longer lifespan would not inevitably lead to a population explosion - it just means that people would have to have children less frequently in order for the population to be stable (the same number of children per person, just over a longer period of time).
First of all, I agree that what an average finger-growing mouse experiences is likely to pale in comparison to the trauma of the average Avon bunny. Second, it seems we've been making reasonable (read: technology viable in 20 years) progress on getting appendages to grow themselves using native DNA instructions, rather than having to organize the cells ourselves. This would eventually be the only viable solution. I seem to remember someone working on regeneration of limbs in mice (doubtless the most well-understood mammal, due to all the experimentation). If we can do this genetically/automatically, current research with cow cells will be less than useless. Still, impressive stuff. Hopefully we'll soon see eyeballs sold in storefronts, like in Neuromancer.
I want to see where they stuck the human-sized fingers on these poor mice. The image is sort of sadistically funny.
Edu. sig-line: Choose rhymes with lose. Chose rhymes with goes. Loose rhymes with goose.
Comparing? THEN use THAN.
"Yes, this was an April Fools prank!"
For those of you whose gag reflexes won't let you make it that far.
Edu. sig-line: Choose rhymes with lose. Chose rhymes with goes. Loose rhymes with goose.
Comparing? THEN use THAN.
Is hitting the link to the e-mails page. All of those people that didn't know it was a joke and are _really_ into this sort of thing. How long before life imitates art.
Edu. sig-line: Choose rhymes with lose. Chose rhymes with goes. Loose rhymes with goose.
Comparing? THEN use THAN.
Sorry... it was wide open.
Edu. sig-line: Choose rhymes with lose. Chose rhymes with goes. Loose rhymes with goose.
Comparing? THEN use THAN.
Just read a few posts about animal testing on this topic, so I think I will share a few of my thoughts. You know what would be really nice? If they could grow practically a whole human (without a brain of course, not living) and use THAT for tests on chemicals and such, instead of animals in labs. Say something were to cause blindness, they could squirt some of the testing matter into the artificial eye, and have the eye hooked up to a computer for readings. That could maybe be more accurate considering how animals differ from humans and I think I read around 40% of products tested on animals have to be recalled because they did not react the same way to humans. That would be awesome.
Your Momma's so fat she makes emacs look like nano!
This may sound sci-fi, but maybe a computer could act as a brain to test this stuff. Anyone up for an open source brain project?.....hehe
Your Momma's so fat she makes emacs look like nano!
Who knew?
Personally, I'm going to wait for the
snake elbows before I start upgrading
to body v1.1.
Yeah, but I bet the mice they grew the fingers in were harmed. This operation was probbly fatal.
Unless you're one of THOSE vegetarians who thinks not all animals are created equal, this is just as bad as taking a trip to the local McDonalds for a burger.
-Smitty
± 29 dB
It seems to me like the next step would be joint replacement/reconstrution. It mentions in the article that the joints were very well-formed...
Now we can keep those sports stars going well into their 70's. Not that I care, but my brother would be overjoyed...
Also, this could be a major thing to recover from arthritis. "Wow! I feel like I have a new hip! Well, I guess I do. That would explain it."
-Smitty
± 29 dB
I saw it too, a mouse with an ear on it's back looks quite bizzare.
Resistance is not futile - www.gnu.org
I don't think that the cows will find the fingers very useful without the cow thumbs.
I'm nauseated, and I don't have graphics!
TMBG
I think all life sentences that do not specifically prohibit parole eventually wind up in a parole-able state (after 20 years, as you suggest, although I don't know the exact amount myself).
Life sentences without the possibility of parole are truly life sentences, and consecutive life sentences can screw somebody over even if they have the opportunity for parole.
Apparently the 'cultivated in mice' part is nothing new. Apparently, the same polymer matrix stuff has been used to grow human ears on the backs of mice. They look funny, too. I saw this on one of those Fox Thursday Night Trash-TV shows. It must be true.
Can these mice run around like Thing from the Adams Family?
Now that would be cool.
I want a couple of extra fingers on the side of my head so I can hold the phone.
Now mice grow human fingers.. Hmmm..
They grow ears and Human fingers.. We will they may a complete mouse human.
I still remember the story about the glow in the dark mice they created, I think it was from the same place (Kinki).. What I wouldn't do to get one of those!!
I ate my tag line.
I ate my tag line.
-=Ellis (D)25=-
I know they glow really well under black lights. But alot of sea bound animals and blants will radiate a glow, with out a black light.
I ate my tag line.
I ate my tag line.
-=Ellis (D)25=-
But I guess this way you could really give someone the finger.
> No mention of purpose was made in this article.
It's a stepping stone towards a long standing holy grail of genetics: the five-assed monkey, a creature far superior to man.
"Whatever happened to fair use?"
-- Duff-Man
OTOH, if I ever get a finger chopped off by a deli slicer, it would be nice to use these polymer matrices to grow a new one out of my own cells.
Meldroc, Waster of Electrons
it's amazing what a little fooling around with genetics and some sneaky biomedical engineering will get you.
in 'discover' magazine a few years ago, some scientists were able to make mice that would bioluminesce under fluorescent light. glow-in-the-dark mice!
and along the same lines as the finger, i think it was also in 'discover' that they showed the same type of thing with a human ear. there was a little picture of hairless mouse with a big ear sticking right out of its back.
it isn't going to be long until...
LL
"If you are falling, dive." -Joseph Campbell
hmm, I guess I'll throw out american heritige - I DID LOOK IT UP!
:-P
Well, you got me :OD
:-)
:-P
I typoed and left out an 's'
I'll still take a typo over not even knowing how the word is spelled at all any day.
And I did look it up (twice now)
I say we strap down these so called doctors and grow tails on them. After all, it's only fair.
I am sure these mice don't appreciate or have any use for fingers.
It is great maybe in 25 or 50 years we will be able to replace failing organs and such but what will the impact on soceity be? Example if you can now replace dying organs, conceivably we could live many decades longer. So for a criminal with a life sentence, should we extend his life? I mean but are we really extending his life? Would we not just be treating an illness, failure of organs, tissue, etc... so it would really not be elective it would be standard life saving procedures. This is not the only possible dilemma, either. Most people don't talk about issues like this, so I thought I would throw it out.
The article states that these "polymer matrices were implanted into a special breed of mice". What? They are growing fingers in mice?
This is beyond your standard sci-fi becomes science stuff. This is really creepy. If they can grow fingers in mice, I could see them growing limbs in larger animals.
This makes cloning look tame to me.
What are we going to do tomorrow night, Brain?
The same thing we do every night -- Try to take over the world!
Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy:
"You look great. The extra arm suits you." (or something like that)
Save the whales. Feed the hungry. Free the mallocs.
"...quite a feet." :)
Save the whales. Feed the hungry. Free the mallocs.
Cool. 12 fingers would just about make Emacs usable.
/* It's just a joke! */
Save the whales. Feed the hungry. Free the mallocs.
Oh well. I guess that shows that the advertising machines missed their mark on me. :)
Hmmm. Somehow I don't think the Beef Institute had this in mind when they came up with that slogan.
Cool!
When can I go down to a plastic surgeon and get my Beefcake(tm) bio-modifications? Hell, who needs steroids when you can get muscle added the easy way? How about specialized hand work for fine manipulation. What about combat oriented modifications for military and police? Replacement eyes for the blind? That's nothing in light of the eventual potential for replacing your eyes with modified feline eyes for better night-vision and cosmetic reasons.
The ability to fully customize your body to specification with the right amount of money is coming in less than a century, and it's going to have rather freakish social ramifications. Welcome to the dawning of the Post-Human Age.
If it's for-profit but free, you're not the customer -- you're the product (e.g., the Slashdot Beta's "audience").
...what would living longer or inmortality [sp?] do to society, ie there would be plenty of time to do everything, why would you risk lossing you life in war if you lived longer?
yea, we really do need to get working on were to put people, cause there just is never enuff room on a planet, need more space!
nmarshall
#include "standard_disclaimer.h"
R.U. SIRIUS: THE ONLY POSSIBLE RESPONSE
nmarshall
The law is that which it boldly asserted and plausibly maintained..
--Colonel Burr 1783
My name is Inigo Montoya, you killed my father, prepare to die.
this
"If one is really a superior person, the fact is likely to leak out without too much assistance" -- John Andrew Holmes
I guess we'll never know for sure if they consider it "sport", but I have seen first-hand the remains of several sheep ripped open from end to end by a bear. It was a single attack with no provocation, and it didn't eat any of the sheep. Just killed them and left. What's more, it was a brown bear, not a grizzly. Obviously we may never know why, but cats also hunt for something like "sport" or "training", especially when they are young.
The only thing funnier than someone spelling "laissez faire" as "lasses fair" is someone thumbing their nose at them while suggesting ANOTHER INCORRECT SPELLING. Sheesh, if you've got the gall to correct people's spelling in a public forum, at least look it up first (I did)!
A friend of mine who is a physiologist, helps with experiments on pigs (I've told him that I may be required to throw red paint on him one day, but he doesn't mind) for heart patients. They test things like stents...the pigs are never revived...when they're disposed, they're cut in half (I don't know if they've been destroyed by that time or still anesthetized). It seems so sad...at least tho, you're going to learn more about something that saves lives rather than something done for vanity.
Cause everybody wants prosthetics,
four heads on their real heads...
"My God...It's full of ads!" -Fry, about the Internet, Futurama
>>The story was a bit sparse, but why would cow tissue grow into human fingers anyhow? Strange stuff, this.
Havent' we learned by now? Cows can do _anything_! Be micro trains, serve as host computers, grow human fingers, grow mice fingers, feed the hungry, house the poor, save the whales.......
Maybe the Hindu's knew it all along?
First, make it work, then make it right, then make it fast, then, make it bloated!
Any day now, ordering "chicken fingers" could take on a whole new meaning.
Hmmm...
Maybe I could get a few extra fingers.
Perhaps some day having lots of fingers will be in fashion. I can think of lots of good uses for extra fingers.
For example:
I bet I could get 1st post If I could type faster.
The truth is more important than the facts.
-Frank Lloyd Wright
No mention of purpose was made in this article. Were these fingers grown purely to see if it could be done? As a replacement for fingers lost to injury? Something else? If it's to replace lost fingers, it sounds slightly unappealing to me -- I don't know if I'd like to have cow tissue grown in mice grafted onto me. Still, though, if they could someday do that with human tissue it would be quite a feat.
--Carl
It seems as though the fingers still need joints and whatever else to make them useful. What would be cool (or damn creepy) is if useful fingers could be planted on mice and those mice could learn to control the fingers. And why stop at fingers, find out if it is possible to put hoofs on people instead of feet.
--
Blaine
You think about it, it is stupid to grow them on cows or mice for people, when it would be easier to do it with DNA or simply grow it on us!!
And what do these Japanese scientists want with an extra finger anyway?
"I feel so cold, on hookers and gin... this mess we're in"
I have nightmares about these kind of things..
Assume for a moment that a fellow named Jim has just had one of his fingers cut off. Instead of getting a finger reattached that was made of cow cells, why not take Jim's bone, cartilage and tendon cells and graft them onto a polymer scaffold and implant this inside of Jim himself? That way we don't have _any_ chance for rejection.
Plus, Jim could be a great hit at parties for the next 20 weeks.
Learn from your parents' mistakes: use birth control.
This article is shocking to say the least! Cow Cells? No thanks! Anybody heard of mad cow??? And YES, it can pass the species barrier!
CJD Voice Speaking out for those we've lost. Creutzfeldt Jakob Disease Find a treatment, Find a cure.
You might notice that they neglected to mention that these were fingers by shape only. I think this is essentially the same technology that made ears using plastic molds, applied to finger-shaped objects. These artificial fingers have no bones, no nervers, and probably don't have the right muscle configurations to do anything but sit limply on the end of a hand. I'm not sure why they called them fingers at all...