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Science & Technology

PayPal founder funds mammoth resurrection

By T.K. Randall
July 3, 2017 · Comment icon 7 comments

Could mammoths soon roam the Earth once again ? Image Credit: Charles Robert Knight
Peter Thiel has reportedly contributed $100,000 towards efforts to resurrect the woolly mammoth.
Harvard University's Professor George Church and his team have been working to bring back the long-extinct species by first producing a "mammophant" - a cross between a modern elephant and a mammoth that will possess some of the physical traits of both species.

To achieve this, the researchers aim to splice in the genes associated with certain mammoth traits such as long shaggy hair, subcutaneous fat and blood adapted to cold weather climates.

Now according to a new book by Ben Mezrich entitled Woolly: The True Story of the Quest to Revive one of History's Most Iconic Extinct Creatures, their efforts are being helped along by PayPal founder Pete Thiel who contributed $100,000 to the project back in 2015.

As things stand, it has been predicted that a live mammoth could be created within the next ten years.
Not everyone however is enthusiastic about the prospect of bringing the species back from the dead.

"The proposed 'de-extinction' of mammoths raises a massive ethical issue - the mammoth was not simply a set of genes, it was a social animal, as is the modern Asian elephant," said Matthew Cobb, professor of zoology at the University of Manchester.

"What will happen when the elephant-mammoth hybrid is born ?"

"How will it be greeted by elephants ?"

Source: Tech Times | Comments (7)




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Recent comments on this story
Comment icon #1 Posted by The Russian Hare 8 years ago
I want to see mammoths tramping across the arctic.
Comment icon #2 Posted by highdesert50 8 years ago
While I applaud the scientific effort, current relatives, the elephants, are dwindling at some 7 to 8 percent per year due to environment loss and poaching. Other species, such as cheetah, are endangered. Why not advocate and monetarily support that which we have rather than trying to resurrect them in the future.
Comment icon #3 Posted by travelnjones 8 years ago
He invests money in weird causes like resurrection and extension of human life. Preventing endangered species is not going to be on his radar. It's more making scifi a reality or strange libertarian social experiments that excite him.
Comment icon #4 Posted by Captain Risky 8 years ago
Resurrection of an ancient species for what purpose? Will they be allowed to roam the wilds of Canada, Alaska and Siberia... or for Zoo's? That's what I wanna know.
Comment icon #5 Posted by Jon the frog 8 years ago
Free of legislation ivory ! good for business !
Comment icon #6 Posted by RoofGardener 8 years ago
Umm... if I'm reading the article correctly, then this is somewhat of a fraud. They are splicing elephant genes with additional genes associated with "mammoth-like characteristics." (e.g. long hair etc).  They are creating a new creature, not reviving the mammoth. It won't have any mammoth DNA !
Comment icon #7 Posted by Jon the frog 8 years ago
You can patent OGM...


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