Dino Proteins Extracted
You'd think nothing could be better than getting dino DNA from insects trapped in amber? Well how about extracting T-rex protein?!
However, before you get too eager, we at the Null are a little bit disappointed. All the talk is of changing the way that people think about fossil preservation and presenting new methods for studying diseases such as cancer. Nowhere are we hearing the mention of the patter of tiny dino feet.
Alright, so extracting a bit of collagen - whilst amazing - isn't going to give us the template to mass-produce reptiles of unusual size, but you've got to admit it's a damn good start. Extracting organic matter from a skeleton 68 million years old? That has to be a huge step forward.
But as it is, researchers seem set on demeaning the whole issue. Not only has lead researcher Mary Schweitzer tried to dash our hopes of a real-life Jurassic Park on film (see below), she's also been debasing the lizard king itself. She claims that the T-rex proteins had similarities to those of chickens, frogs and newts. Yeah, as much as Bruce Lee's fists of fury have similarities to a girly slap. Next she'll be telling us T-rex tastes like chicken. Dream on Mary!
Main photo: David Monniaux, www.di.ens.fr/~monniaux
Your Say:
You need to listen to Mary Schweitzer with Clarke's Second Law in mind: "When a famous scientist, nearing the end of his [or her] career, says something is possible, they are almost certainly right. When a famous scientist, nearing the end of his [or her] career, says something is impossible, they are almost certainly wrong."
Alton Naur, location unknown.
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