Talking Apes being created by Science

• TA wrote on 2011-07-28 20:33

  Currently research involving great apes, such as chimpanzees, is outlawed in the UK. But it continues in many other countries including the US, and British scientists are permitted to experiment on monkeys.
  
  Professor Thomas Baldwin, a member of the Academy of Medical Sciences working group that produced the report, said the possibility of humanised apes should be taken seriously.
  
  "The fear is that if you start putting very large numbers of human brain cells into the brains of primates suddenly you might transform the primate into something that has some of the capacities that we regard as distinctively human.. speech, or other ways of being able to manipulate or relate to us," he told a news briefing in London.
  
  "These possibilities that are at the moment largely explored in fiction we need to start thinking about now."
  
  Prof Baldwin, professor of philosophy at the University of York, recommended applying the "Great Ape Test". If modified monkeys began to acquire abilities similar to those of chimpanzees, it was time to "hold off".
  
  "If it's heading in that direction, red lights start flashing," said Prof Baldwin. "You really do not want to go down that road."
  
  In the US, scientists have already implanted human embryonic stem cells - which can develop into any part of the human body - into mouse embryos.
  
  The mouse cells rapidly outgrew the human stem cells, so that only a tiny proportion of the embryos ended up "human".
  
  Working group member Dr Robin Lovell-Badge, a leading geneticist from the Medical Research Council's National Institute for Medical Research, said this was not surprising given the differences between mice and humans.

  
  Source
  
  So, what do you think about this?
• Phunkie wrote on 2011-07-28 20:35
  I don't like tampering too much with other creatures, like trying to create some super-animal or animal-human hybrid.
  
  That's too much, IMO.
  
  But research is always good. I just don't think they should be testing on chimpanzees. Maybe small monkeys, but I dunno.
• Osayidan wrote on 2011-07-28 20:35
  Planet of the apes prequel.
  Also that mouse experiment will give us ratmen/master Splinter.
• Moppy wrote on 2011-07-28 20:40
  While I feel that we shouldn't tamper with nature like this, I am also extremely curious as to what kind of messed up world that our scientists create.
• Sumpfkraut wrote on 2011-07-28 22:32
  Funny, they're only complaining about the kind of research that would most likely make this research be considered inhuman.
  
  Honi soit qui mal y pense.
• Cynic wrote on 2011-07-28 22:36
  Some primates have already been taught to speak via sign language, so this seems more like an excuse to randomly f*ck with nature than anything.
  
  But meh.
• Skye wrote on 2011-07-28 22:59
  ****.
  
  I hate primates. The gross me out. And frankly, I don't wanna see them talking.
  [SIZE="1"]inb4 "but you're a primate too!" In my opinion, no, I'm not, so please don't tell me that I am. I would greatly appreciate it.[/SIZE]
  
  But in the overall scheme of things, I don't like scientists when they start screwing around with animals like this. :U
• Sumpfkraut wrote on 2011-07-28 23:13

  Quote from Skye;530176:

  I hate primates. The gross me out. And frankly, I don't wanna see them talking.
  [SIZE="1"]inb4 "but you're a primate too!" In my opinion, no, I'm not, so please don't tell me that I am. I would greatly appreciate it.[/SIZE]

  
  
  Deja-vu. :what:
• Taycat wrote on 2011-07-29 02:18
  What could they honestly gain from giving things from nature speech?
• Spartaaaaa wrote on 2011-07-29 13:49

  Quote from Mythical Detective Loki;530376:

  What could they honestly gain from giving things from nature speech?

  
  
  [video=youtube;I-CkjaghqEg]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I-CkjaghqEg[/video]
  
  That is all.
  :lol:
• Chockeh wrote on 2011-07-29 14:39
  Science is scary.