My level of excitement cannot be measured by conventional means....

Genetic modification along with their recurring theme of de-extinction.... CAN'T WAIT!

One year from today Jurrasic World comes out in theaters.  You know where I will be June 12, 2015.  Where will you be?

Something to ponder.....

In honor of Jurassic Park opening in 3D today, I thought I would share with everyone the new developments in science which could make this science fiction, science fact.  While it will be a LONG time (if ever) until we will be able to clone a T-rex, it is a very real possibility that we will be able to clone more recently extinct animals to create an “insert time period here” park.

Natural decay rates make it impossible to retrieve the whole genome of animals that went extinct tens of millions of years ago but animals that have gone extinct within the past 50,000 years or less could contain enough viable DNA to piece together a fully sequenced genome.  The ability to bring back extinct animals is so within reach there was a TEDx conference held in Washington D.C. on March 15th of this year where they discussed the ethics of “De-Extinction.”

After the successful, yet very short lived, cloning of an extinct Ibex in 2003, scientists have been improving and perfecting the process.  Now, cloning the megafauna which went extinct during the last ice age is no longer just conjecture.  After finding well-preserved mammoths in the Siberian tundra, scientists at the Sooam Biotech Research Foundation in Seoul teamed up with mammoth experts from a university in Siberia to find mammoth tissue buried in the cliffs of the Permafrost.  From the bone marrow, hair, skin and fat they found, the scientists are looking for a live cell they can reprogram to grow into an embryo cell then clone.  If they can’t find a live, viable cell, their next plan of action is going to be to transfer a mammoth nucleus into an emptied elephant egg cell.  But, even if they found a viable cell today, we are still a number of years away from a mammoth being born.  After implantation into an elephant surrogate, it would still be 2+ years before any offspring would grace us with its presence (elephant gestation is 645 days). 

But, even though the ten year old inside of me thinks this is the COOLEST idea ever, however amazing it would be to see a real, live mammoth, saber-toothed cat or Jefferson’s sloth, what’s the real purpose other than pure entertainment value?  There was a reason these species went extinct 10,000 years ago and, while humans may have been a factor and some people may feel “responsible”, we have to remember, it’s been 10,000 years.   The ecosystem has had a chance to adapt, change and evolve.  Adding those megafauna back into the mix could end up causing more problems than solving.  The list of objections and potential conflicts far outweighs the perceived benefits, and this is without adding de-extinction into the equation.  But, just because I don’t think a mammoth should be brought back to life, doesn’t mean this research is for not.  While I believe it is more important for us as intellectual beings to focus our efforts on pre-extinction than de-extinction, I CAN see the benefits of being able to bring back a species which has recently been wiped off the earth because of human thoughtlessness.  Would this research make it possible to see a western black rhino, which was declared extinct only a year and a half ago, on the plains of Africa again? It will be interesting to see where this research takes us in the next decade whether its to a Pleistocene Park or a new population of rhinos in Africa.

Somewhere out there a scientist is measuring lizard emissions and, while it may seem like a complete waste of resources to some people, the findings make for an interesting comparison for current and past environmental conditions and the politics and culture that surround it.

National Geographic recently released an article entitled "Dinosaurs' Gaseous Emissions Warmed Earth?" (Published May 7 by Charles Choi on NationalGeographic.com) in which it describes and critiques the findings of a study done by Dr. Dave Wilkinson of Liverpool John Moores University.  The jist of the article is if modern day lizards and mammals give off 50-100 million metric tons of methane gas annually then 20-ton dinosaurs probably gave off somewhere close to the total amount of current natural as well as man-made daily emissions, which is around 520 million metric tons annually.  And, while the comments left by readers of the article indicate a bit of debate and skepticism, I believe the results are simply a reflection on how much we know and don't know about the earth and its geological and environmental history.

Really, this is just more proof that warming and cooling are all a part of the natural cycle of things.  "...fossil findings make it clear that sauropods lived in a much warmer world than we do.  People sometimes describe it as a super-greenhouse."  Haha, yeah, a super-greenhouse of dino farts!