Genetically Engineering Sheep for Larger, Stronger Hindquarters 71
baldingbobo writes "Duke and Agriculture department scientists are reporting that they have discovered an elusive, mutated gene that causes certain sheep to have unusually big and muscular bottoms. The discovery is especially exciting, said the researchers, because the unusual gene has evaded all the traditional means of detection for nearly a decade. They've been searching for this advance for nearly a decade.There are photos available as well."
I like big butts, and I cannot lie! (Score:2)
Let's just say it took me a while to realize that there might be an economic motivation behind this research...
For the sake of tidiness... (Score:1)
Thanks!
The Management
Does this mean... (Score:1)
possible drawbacks (Score:1)
but what im wondering, is if there are any drawbacks.
namely: possible cancer
any other ideas?
Re:possible drawbacks (Score:2, Interesting)
Re:possible drawbacks (Score:1)
Re:possible drawbacks (Score:1, Informative)
Olympic sprinters (Score:1)
Cuchullain
Re:Is this the same gene... (Score:1, Troll)
how about posting some "Creative Goatse Links"?
check this out: http://www.microsoft.com [microsoft.com] [goatse.cx]
--
<-- don't go there
Re:Is this the same gene... (Score:1, Troll)
google [google.com]
big breasted fowl (Score:1)
sort of like engineering people to be fatter... oh wait, that's a work in progress...
-tid242
Re:big breasted fowl (Score:2)
Yay for artificial insemination and big turkey dinners!
Re:big breasted fowl (Score:2)
>
> Yay for artificial insemination and big turkey dinners!
without looking... (Score:1, Offtopic)
Re:without looking... (Score:1, Troll)
Re:without looking... (Score:1)
excellent (Score:3, Funny)
homo billybobiens (Score:1)
Scotsman (Score:1, Redundant)
How does that kilt joke go?
Re:Scotsman (Score:1)
<rant>Who the stuff modded this as redundant! I was the first one to make the scotsman comment of any style. You crack puppy.</rant>
Unrealistic body image (Score:3, Funny)
This is the best news article. (Score:3, Funny)
GIANT SHEEP ASSES.
Won't this make it very painful (Score:1)
Re:Won't this make it very painful (Score:1)
Ahh, science (Score:2, Insightful)
-Sean
Re:Ahh, science (Score:2)
-Sean
data vacuum (Score:1)
...and there was much jubilation in Scotland. (Score:3, Funny)
A: Because sheep can hear a zipper from a mile away.
Q: Why do Englishmen wear pants?
A: Because goats are deaf.
Tim
Peals of delight heard in Aberdeen (Score:2, Redundant)
Sorry... so easy... couldn't resist..*guffaw*
Re:The rate of evolution evolved for good reason (Score:2)
I don't understand what your subject line or the first line of your post mean. Can you explain them please?
Re:The rate of evolution evolved for good reason (Score:2)
non-essential
My criteria for who deserves death to satisfy my urges goes beyond a test of anthropmorphism.
What else does it kill? I don't understand.
High fat foods, primarily meat and dairy products are over consumed in the Americas & Europe leading to health problems and a burdon on the health care systems.
The high protein levels in a meat/dairy diet leech calcium from the body causing osteoporosis
The production of meat and dairy as a massive consumer of water. As a method of food production it is very wasteful compared to other non-meat means. People starve while we freeze beef and pour milk down the drain. Europe has massive over production of milk. Farmers can hardly give it away. And yet we're awash with the stuff.
This waste of money lowers the standard of living of us all.
Personally I have crohns disease. A disease linked to the consumption of cows milk. I will require hospital treatment, including surgery [once already], throughout my life. The govt. advertises this poison on TV as some sort of health drink!
Maybe you need a quote
from here [alternet.org]
Former Chairman of Pediatrics at Johns Hopkins University, Frank Oski, M.D. even has a book called Don't Drink Your Milk which blames every second health problem kids suffer on hormone-ridden commercial milk. Sixty percent of ear infections in kids under six years of age are milk-induced, and milk consumption is the number one cause of iron-deficiency anemia in infants today according to the American Association of Pediatrics.
It tastes SOOOOO much better than anything non-meat.
Selfish in the extreme. "I'm going to kill and eat you because I like it."
And it supplies the above mentioned nutrients
Very badly. Not to mention the growth hormones, preservatives and anti-biotics that you get as the payload.
Would you rather get them in the form that we have evolved to best absorb, or from a pill that is made from a polluting factory?
The digestion of meat is a long process. It is my belief that we have not evolved to meat in the volumes we do today. Again witness the levels of heart disease etc.
Many people lack the ability to digest lactose. In fact lactose tolerance is only really present in white people, built up from years of poisoning themselves.
And finally, accellerating growth in animals is selfish and can only damage the health of the animals involved. GM sometimes scientists argue that they are just boosting nature. Nature doesn't need a boost thank you very much. We already massively over produce and then destory food. We grow grain to feed to cattle who use most of it to maintain their day to day existence.
It's insane. And the best people can come up with as excuses are "it's natural" and "it tastes nice". Same can be said for crack cocaine. Stay strung out on beef if you like. I kicked the habit.
12 years dairy & meat free & still going stong.
Re:The rate of evolution evolved for good reason (Score:1)
Sorry, I love rotting animal flesh more than almost anything else in life.
The link on your sig is very interesting. I'm not doubting its overall story, but I do wonder how biased the facts are.
our bias? in the face of all the rest (Score:1)
I can't deny that the taste and texture of meat is a moutwatering delight but that's not enough for me.
I do wonder how biased the facts are.
Take a look around. How many millions of dollars is spent promoting the sale of meat & dairy compared to the few loonies who say 'er, excuse me that might nto be the best idea'.
In our schools it was made a legal requirement that children get half a pint of milk a day provided by the state. A policy that might have directly put me in hospital. [I don't know which milk made me ill of course].
"Milk is good for you".
How many people can you find that would say that and yet *never* have even looked into the subject themselves because they trust the government.
Do you trust the government to be unbiased?
I can find you a ream of quotes from respected physicians and other top notch scientists on the negative effects of milk & dairy & vivisection. In the end it comes down to who's bias you want to go with.
Eevn if you end up saying that 'well the truth must lie somewhere in the middle' then that raises two points :
1. If the antis gave up speaking then the middle shifts. We try and back up our arguments with science and the voices of scientists because we are constsntly faced with the lie that emotions are no basis for making decisions about the suffering of others.
2. Does a neutral stance justify the factory farming of dairy cows [and other 'food animals']? It is a barbaric exploitative industry.
Re:The rate of evolution evolved for good reason (Score:2)
I found this too funny to pass up commenting on...
You're worried about damaging the health on an animal we'll be slaughtering to eat in a couple months?
Do you complain that people fleeing from a forest fire are disturbing the natural beauty of the area by putting tire tracks in the field right before the fire sweeps through and burns the dried grass to the ground?
Re:The rate of evolution evolved for good reason (Score:1)
yes, although I'm not part of the 'we'.
It's not funny at all.
It's tragic.
And your tire tracks condense the soil making post fire recovery more difficult.
Re:The rate of evolution evolved for good reason (Score:1)
Well, there is a controversial theory that Crohn's disease may be caused by a mycobacterium that is carried by cows, although no one has ever shown that transmission from cow-to-human via milk happens in the real world. If the rest of your statements are based on logic like this, I'm not impressed. Anyway, if you are so convinced it's milk-related, have you tried clarithromycin/rifabutin therapy?
PS. Yes, I know someone personally who has Crohn's disease and I know it sucks.
Re:The rate of evolution evolved for good reason (Score:2)
I'd rather not consume the rotting corpses of the dead thanks.
Same here. I tried putting some meat in a pit in my backyard with a big block of ice, but it keeps melting. If only we had some sort of technology that could keep things cold.
Which bacteria cause food poisoning? (Score:2)
Salmonella is the next most commonly found group of bacteria (about 30,000 per annum). They may be present in raw meat, poultry and occasionally eggs. For the remainder, Staphylococcus Aureus, Clostridium Perfringens and Bacillus Cereus produce toxins or poisons in food which may result in severe vomiting. C. Perfringens is usually associated with meat and B. Cereus with rice.
Some variants of normal intestinal bacteria are a cause of food poisoning. A particularly severe type is caused by E. Coli 0157. It is present in some cattle and may contaminate raw meat. It can cause bloody diarrhoea and kidney failure, particularly in the elderly, but is only rarely a cause of food poisoning.
3 kinds of bacteria? out of how many thousands? (Score:2)
why is it that almost *every* vegan or vegetarian that i've ever known has had significantly more health problems than omnivorous(sp) humans? i've only known one vegan who was actually healthy. He'd taken martial arts his whole life, plus he took supplements and worked out in the gym 4 days a week. personally i've had more digestive problems eating vegetarian(tofu) stuff than i ever have had with meat. i've even accidentally eaten raw chicken, spoiled milk, and i eat every burger/steak rare. i eat hamburger helper at least twice a week by myself.
don't get me wrong, i'm not saying that we should go out and kill every delicious animal out there. personally i probably wouldn't eat as much meat as i do if i had to personally kill and watch every animal die. if i had my way, i would just pump billions of dollars into stem cell research until we have the technology to grow meat in a test tube... or meat on a stick... mmmm... meat on a stick...
my grandad smoked unitl he was 90 et.c etc. (Score:1)
My only health problem is crohns disease.
A disease linked to the consumption of milk.
The UK health dept. suggests that the nation cust down on its meat intake. Our popluation is regarded to have been at it's healthiest during and just after World War two when rationing was imposed and meat and dairy was in short supply.
mmmm, meat on a stick, now that would rule.
Re:The rate of evolution evolved for good reason (Score:2)
"it's natural" is not a defence (Score:1)
Do we, as civilised poeple, need to deliberately cause such pain and suffering to our fellow creatures?
Many plants have evolved such that being eaten in part or whole is part of their reproduction.
I choose not to limit myself.
In doing so you limit others.
Re:"it's natural" is not a defence (Score:2)
It's unavoidable. By consuming resources you cannot hope to avoid it. Even walking in the park can harm unknown numbers of creatures. This is not meant to be a license to go on a killing spree though. As with all things there needs to be a responsible balance. I don't think factory farms are a responsible idea. I don't think cramming 10 chickens in a cage and cutting of their beaks is a responsible thing. If we're going to kill'em we owe them something better than that.
Many plants have evolved such that being eaten in part or whole is part of their reproduction.
They merely take advantage of a situation they have little control over.
I choose not to limit myself.
In doing so you limit others.
In living I consume resources. Therefore I limit others by keeping resources from them. Only in death will I be able to stop limiting others because I will no longer be consuming anything.
Re:"it's natural" is not a defence (Score:2)
The amount of resources dedicated to meat & dairy is disproportionate to the reward.
Factor in de-beaking, veal, live pig boiling @ slaughter, vivisection, plucking live turkeys, burning live pigs with flamethrowers as a test, crash testing cars with live pigs, transporting sheep for 20-40 hours across Europe for slaughter in a lorry with little water or rest, killing rodents for fur and
If I don't speak out, who will?
If I don't try and avoid contributing, who will?
Re:"it's natural" is not a defence (Score:2)
Re:The rate of evolution evolved for good reason (Score:1)
Me neither. I personally prefer the freshest corpses of the dead possible. Rotting flesh is just unhealthy, and your body knows it. If you tried fresh or well preserved meat, you'd probably like it more.
Personally, I'm all for sheep with increased thigh size. You should really try a good fresh leg of lamb, roasted slowly over a fire with a good rosemary and garlic rub. Very tasty.
How long 'til this hits my butcher's display case? (Score:1)
P Diddy (Score:1)
Next items on project list (Score:3, Funny)
Woman with two asses [mmdc.net]
And, finally,
God with two asses [mindspring.com]
missing genes (Score:3, Insightful)
"This is the first time in animals where a mutation has been found that leads to the identification of a new gene, rather than analyzing a known gene to find its mutation," said Jirtle. "As scientists, we are missing many genes and their mutations by using the traditional approach of linkage analysis to locate and analyze candidate genes."
This new technique could lead to lots of new discoveries, it seems...
Re:missing genes (Score:1)
do you mean the tail or the kneecaps?
Hmmmmm (Score:1)
Somebody's got to say it... (Score:1)
Frankensheep sex (Score:2)
Does anyone else... (Score:1)
find it vaguely disturbing that this gene is named after Aphrodite, goddess of sexuality?
Whither Mephesto? (Score:2)
Hindquarters (Score:1)
One sheep to another (Score:1)
Re:One sheep to another (Score:1)
Hey, Freddy, start singing!!!
Fat bottom girls, ewe make the rocking world go round....