Comments | sukibean: Chimeras (Humans and Animals)

sukibean

Chimeras (Humans and Animals)

Jan 27, 2005 08:25

An interesting article in National Geographic and linked by Slashdot:
Here.

It will be like X-Men come alive. They've already successfully made a few combinations... Personally, I'd love to have cat eyes because 1) they're beautiful and 2) you'd have nightvision.

Comments 29

cryovirus January 27 2005, 17:17:38 UTC

It's interesting stuff, but there is one fairly significant problem that wasn't mentioned (at least as far as I could tell, I didn't read all that closely). Chimeras would greatly increase the odds of viruses jumping species boundries. As it is normally, something like avian flu has to mutate to be able to infect humans, while at the same time being able to continue to infect birds, until an infected bird comes into contact with a human. If the bird happens to be a chimera with human cells though, it mutations in the human-exculusive direction (which previously would have most likely died out before infecting anyone) will be able to be maintained and passed from chimera to chimera before infecting a human.

Finally, a really good reason to have my user-icon being a virus.

etai January 27 2005, 22:06:45 UTC

My user icon will destroy yours. It has tentacles.

Ha Ha! cryovirus January 28 2005, 01:38:48 UTC

Taste my Chibi-Dragonslayer Sword-like vengeance!

Re: Ha Ha! etai January 28 2005, 14:56:52 UTC

Smell my dragonreaver!

desacratrix January 27 2005, 18:28:37 UTC

It sounds a little disturbing to me..

xasteria January 27 2005, 20:41:02 UTC

I don't know. I read it and its.. disturbing to me. Like.. I don't know. its like being stuck in the wrong body. Like.. if they create something that acts and thinks like a human, but is stuck in the body of this morphed up creature.. thats .. just.. cruel. or weird. or something. I understand the organ parts.. I mean that'd be awesome. but fancy a monkey with a human brain with an inferiority complex because all he/she (no more it :X ) would be worth would be scientific prodding and stuff. what happens to the whole free will and stuff thing we humans supposedly have?

And I have NO idea on stuff like this. Its just what occured to me when I read it. It almost got sickening :(

It's all just a little history repeating... jeshii January 27 2005, 23:55:45 UTC

Well, why would it be confused. Having a human brain and a monkey body from birth wouldn't make the chimera have a human image of itself, it would just be a really smart monkey... But it brings up the question, is it just the brain that makes a human? If so it wolud have to be considered a person. But, without the proper vocal cords, it probably couldn't talk right ( ... )

Re: It's all just a little history repeating... xasteria January 28 2005, 00:10:59 UTC

I don't know. It just feels weird. I think I'm watching and reading way too many books with stuff like this. Dean Koontz or whatever you spell his last name had something like this. a very very intelligent dog, that everyone at the lab treasured, and this hideous freak who was ugly and stuff. It hated the dog with a passion cos the dog was so loved and he was so hateful and went all out destroying everyone and everything to kill the dog. The story ended with the monster thing being destroyed after it says something like "kill me." or something cos it hated what it was and couldn't ever have whatever rights the smart humans and the special dog did. or something.

I'd just feel bad. I don't know how I'd feel with an entirely new race of new beings, or something. I mean, cross breeding is one thing, but if there's some race that scientists claim to be sentient.. then like.. eh.

I watch and read too much. Planet of the Apes comes to mind, too. ANYWAY. I'd hush now.

Re: It's all just a little history repeating... etai January 28 2005, 14:50:46 UTC

AI anyone?

I think that was the name of Steven Speilbergs movie.
While we're at it Star Trek: Enterprise.
SG-1 Season 7 and the Replicators
I, Robot, I think. Though I never really saw the movie.

Thread 6

etai January 27 2005, 22:05:55 UTC

I saw that on the discovery channel. In fact, I know from my freshman biology class there already ARE hybrids. There was an oragatang (sp?) who could glow in the dark, because it was cobined with some starfish DNA.

But yeah, on the Discovery Channel, they wanted to try and use animal cells in humans. First things first, starfish possess incredibly regeneratable limbs (human finger tips do too)... so lots of medical uses.

jeshii January 27 2005, 23:56:58 UTC

Regeneration?! That'd be bad ass. Too bad I'm already born...

cryovirus January 28 2005, 01:42:41 UTC

Don't feel too bad about being already born. It may be possible to add the genes after the fact with a viral approach.

etai January 28 2005, 14:54:37 UTC

Well, humans possess limited regeneration. Our fingertips, however, have incredible regenerative abilities. If our fingertips are cut off, they will regrow. So, if that, in itself, could be captured we could theorethically regenerate other things.

Of course, there is always that stem cells topic too. Both of these ideas would not require us to be hybrids. But besides that, even for those already born, it could be possible to "grow" something and then do a transplant. I mean, I doubt this would work of you were a quadrapelegic, but if someone had a failing kidney or something.

Thread 5

jeshii January 27 2005, 23:58:27 UTC

I hear ya. I'd want a dog's sence of smell and hearing. Then again, it might overload my poor feeble human brain!

desacratrix January 28 2005, 02:49:52 UTC

I'd like an eagle's eyesight. The wings wouldn't be bad either. Who wouldn't want to fly?

amorphis13 January 28 2005, 05:56:11 UTC

Human skeet-shooting!

desacratrix January 28 2005, 13:42:52 UTC

No... I got burnt out on skeet shooting when I was 15 :/ I just wish my LASIK was still giving me perfect results.

Thread 6