Gene-editing tools heralded as hope for fighting invader rats, malarial mosquitoes and other scourges may be too powerful to use in their current form, two new papers warn. (https://www.sciencenews.org/article/current-crispr-gene-drives-are-too-strong-outdoor-use-studies-warn?tgt=nr)
So happy that ... like 3-d printing ... in the hands of our highly moral species, this will turn out so well (3-d plastic guns).
Yes, if I thought that people were smart and responsible, then careful experimentation would be warranted. But neither of those preconditions is true.
With gene editing tools used on humans, the parents who create lame names for their children, can also customize them ;-(
Quote from: PopeyesPappy on November 21, 2017, 04:22:12 PMGene-editing tools heralded as hope for fighting invader rats, malarial mosquitoes and other scourges may be too powerful to use in their current form, two new papers warn. (https://www.sciencenews.org/article/current-crispr-gene-drives-are-too-strong-outdoor-use-studies-warn?tgt=nr)
Can we just wipe out a couple of the worst mosquito species and stop there? They kill more people than people kill people. Think of the worst serial killers and dictators and terrorists throughout history. Mosquitoes have a higher kill count.
Quote from: Hydra009 on November 21, 2017, 10:07:01 PM
Can we just wipe out a couple of the worst mosquito species and stop there? They kill more people than people kill people. Think of the worst serial killers and dictators and terrorists throughout history. Mosquitoes have a higher kill count.
Possible ... but anyone who says they did X, are lying. The Soviets and Americans claimed they eliminated their biological weapons ... don't believe it! And geeks will never leave well enough alone .. they would love to have weaponized drones the size of a mosquito ... as bragging rights.
Quote from: Baruch on November 21, 2017, 06:06:03 PM
So happy that ... like 3-d printing ... in the hands of our highly moral species, this will turn out so well (3-d plastic guns).
Yes, if I thought that people were smart and responsible, then careful experimentation would be warranted. But neither of those preconditions is true.
With gene editing tools used on humans, the parents who create lame names for their children, can also customize them ;-(
Oh no, this is NOT good. We might have "Burachs" all OVER the place. Or (gasp) MEs! I'm all the ME I can handle.
Quote from: Baruch on November 21, 2017, 06:06:03 PM
So happy that ... like 3-d printing ... in the hands of our highly moral species, this will turn out so well (3-d plastic guns).
Yes, if I thought that people were smart and responsible, then careful experimentation would be warranted. But neither of those preconditions is true.
With gene editing tools used on humans, the parents who create lame names for their children, can also customize them ;-(
Editing genes to produce functional proteins under certain switching conditions to work with other proteins to work in concert to produce a predictable result is hard.
Editing genes to produce a protein like a prion is easier though. We wont have the augments from Star Trek any time soon.
There is a lot of stuff, happening in a cell, than just building one measly protein. And in real time. Please have your mechanic work on my car, while I am going down the freeway at 80 mph .. or better yet, on my military jet engine, while cruising at 800 mph, while doing 8 G maneuvers.
Quote from: Hydra009 on November 21, 2017, 10:07:01 PM
Can we just wipe out a couple of the worst mosquito species and stop there? They kill more people than people kill people. Think of the worst serial killers and dictators and terrorists throughout history. Mosquitoes have a higher kill count.
If all our natural predators are destroyed we will soon overrun the Earth with humans, and choke the planet. But who cares? We've been told by God to multiply, and he didn't mean "do arithmetic," he meant for us to breed like fucking rabbits, never mind if there comes to be 25 or 30 billion of us. What's a few billion here or there?
Quote from: Unbeliever on December 22, 2017, 05:08:27 PM
If all our natural predators are destroyed we will soon overrun the Earth with humans, and choke the planet. But who cares? We've been told by God to multiply, and he didn't mean "do arithmetic," he meant for us to breed like fucking rabbits, never mind if there comes to be 25 or 30 billion of us. What's a few billion here or there?
Subdue the Earth. Then leave the charred remains to the cockroaches as we go to Mars. Wait, all 7.5b billion of us? Nah, only the 1% ers. Some of them...