British Academy To Look Into Ethics of Human-Animal Hybrids

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British Academy To Look Into Ethics of Human-Animal Genetic Hybrids

Anyone want a pet Futar?

It'd probably turn out to be more like FUBAR.


Of course it could make a remake of Clash of the Titans really authentic...

I bet it is only a matter of time before someone creates a human / gorilla hybrid. As to whether it would be viable and survive is a different matter. Ethics committees or not, that sort of experimentation will likely occur in countries with fewer restrictive laws such as China. I'm more concerned about germ warfare and if anyone creates a virus as nasty as Ebola that transmits and mutates as easily as the common cold.

I dont think it will be that big of an issue. When the real trouble starts is when we hybridize these new creatures into the bulk of humanity.

For instance, say China makes a gorilla-human hybrid. There will be a good deal of stink over that, but as long as it stays within their borders, not a lot can be done. Now what happens if that hybrid mates with a human? And that human mother takes the baby outside of China?

You have a quarter gorilla with full human rights? Maybe? But no citizenship in any country.

What if that mostly human is sexually mature at 7 like a gorilla is?

The rights issue gets really hairy after the first generation. For instance, here in Canada, we have a family reunification process. An adult who successfully achieves Canadian citizenship can apply(I think it almost always succeeds), to bring their parents or children to Canada, and THEY gain citizenship. What if you are a newly emigrated nobel physicist and your Daddy is a 400 pound silverback Gorilla with a penchant for Szechuan cooking?

I don't think anyone is breeding chimera. I think what's being experimented is growing replacement body parts in animals. The question is, once we get there, what's there to stop someone from doing the other way around?

Probably the notable lack of a market for animal parts grown on a human - not many people are looking for a chihuahua ear to transplant onto poor little Fifi from a bodybuilder's shoulder...

Agreed, but not every country is driven by economics. The military may like the idea of not so intelligent but obedient and fierce human-whatever hybrids as soldiers.


It's not hard to imagine people willing to pay for replacement parts for their pets. Although it should still be more economical to grow it on animals.

I think the idea is hilarious. . .
breeding a human and an animal. . .like a human isn't an animal

Blasted ethics boards. We'll have to go underground.

Parts from pigs are currently being used to repair human heart valve damage because pig tissue is closely compatible with human tissue. Why not carry this out to its logical conclusion?

ruveyn

Completely agreed of course. My statements simply draw a difference in that human animals have certain legal rights that non humans do not.

well maybe you should ask the "beef" in your burger if that's the same.

this is actually a topic that is in my head for a while now. it is really sad how we are unable to make anything even close to macromolecules that are normal in the body of bacteria much less mammals. most of bio and medicine protocols are heavily exploiting animals for "growing" materials (antibodies for example). we don't know how to make anything that sophisticated (at least not from the scratch) so we steal their bodies/parts. so i guess this is already present in a sense. hate it but considering the slow advance it is going to be here for a while.

also this mixing (see fluorescent pigs) in the animal world has been there for a while now.