The De-Extincting Science in Jurassic World Is Right Around the Corner
By Maddie Stone,
Gizmodo
| 06. 10. 2015
Untitled Document
Twenty five years ago, Michael Crichton captured our imaginations with the crazy idea that scientists might one day resurrect dinosaurs. But on the eve of Jurassic World’s release a quarter century later, the prospect of bringing back extinct creatures is looking a lot less science fictional.
We’ll probably never bring back Tyrannosaurus rex. (Mosquitos with perfectly preserved dino DNA in their guts are a bit like magical leprechauns, though scientists did recently discover what they believe is dinosaur blood in fossils). But for species we’ve driven extinct in recent history, from the passenger pigeon to the Chinese river dolphin to the gastric brooding frog and even the woolly mammoth, we may yet be able to reverse time, thanks to incredible advances in genomics and synthetic biology.
In tribute to our undying love for massive reptilian killing machines, and the impossible dream that they’ll one day rule the Earth again, let’s explore the science of de-extincting life.
Awakening the Dead
On a midsummer’s day in 2003, a group of Spanish and French scientists helped a goat...
Related Articles
By Yelena Biberman and Jonathan D. Moreno, Bioethics Forum | 04.16.2024
A quiet biological revolution in warfare is underway. The genome is emerging as a new domain of conflict. The level of destruction that only nuclear weapons could previously achieve is fast becoming as accessible as a cyberattack.
Now for the...
By Jorge Barrera and Rachel Houlihan, CBC | 04.09.2024
A Canadian DNA laboratory knowingly delivered prenatal paternity test results that routinely identified the wrong biological fathers — ruling out the real dads — and left a trail of shattered lives around the globe, a CBC News investigation has found...
By Timnit Gebru and Émile P. Torres, First Monday | 04.14.2024
The stated goal of many organizations in the field of artificial intelligence (AI) is to develop artificial general intelligence (AGI), an imagined system with more intelligence than anything we have ever seen. Without seriously questioning whether such a system can...
By Carey Gillan, UnSpun | 03.18.2024
A Mexican standoff with the United States turned into a Mexican smack-down this month with the release of Mexico’s formal rebuttal to US efforts to overturn limits Mexico has ordered on the use of genetically modified (GM) corn and the...