Pandora's box opens a little wider...

Designer insects? **

Mosquitos used to transmit vaccines?
Flys bred to insure their offspring die?
Insecticide resistant bees?
Silkworms that produce pharmaceuticals?

Uhhhhhhhhhhhhhh, what if the mosquitos acquire an even deadlier disease and transmit that also?

What if a decrease in the fly population disrupts the food chain or leads to an increase in bacteria?

What if the bees we can't kill start acting funny?

How long before the Department of Defense figures out how to use insects to transmit stuff to an enemy?

Who's watching over all these experiments?

How long before an "experimental batch" of these "things" escapes into the wild?

Not that I'm worried or anything. :worried:

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Get this...

I know a guy who works on making fruits produce medicine.

Got a headache? Eat an oragne with asperin in it.

He said that they had success with simple drugs and are working on more complex ones.

This way is far cheaper than producing the drugs, more natural, harder to overdose etc.

According to him they probably need 5 more years of research and then some more time for FDA aproval..

They're also working on fruits that'd have very high vitamin counts etc.

what if the mosquitos acquire an even deadlier disease and transmit that also?

That would be called "divine retribution".

This way is far cheaper than producing the drugs, more natural, harder to overdose etc.

Just be careful to not eat too many of those tasty, laxative tangerines.

Doesn't it seem a bit odd that someone would want to put drugs in something you have the potential to eat a lot of? Popping a bunch of pills is a danger to children, but even intelligent adults will consume a bowl of grapes without a second thought. I think the overdose risk is higher.

I can just see it now. LSD oranges. Heroin peaches. :(

Genetic modifications like these worry me. I don't think it's beyond the realm of the possible that one small mistake, if it gets into the environment, could wipe out our species.

For a fictional account of such an occurance, I highly recommend Zodiac -- by Neal Stephenson. Witty and gripping.

Originally posted by Kitsune
what if the mosquitos acquire an even deadlier disease and transmit that also?

That would be called "divine retribution".

This way is far cheaper than producing the drugs, more natural, harder to overdose etc.

Just be careful to not eat too many of those tasty, laxative tangerines.

Doesn't it seem a bit odd that someone would want to put drugs in something you have the potential to eat a lot of? Popping a bunch of pills is a danger to children, but even intelligent adults will consume a bowl of grapes without a second thought. I think the overdose risk is higher.

Well the idea is that you can't possibly eat so much that you'd overdose.

It's easy to swallow 20 pills instead of one. It's another thing to eat 20 oranges instead of one.

Wouldn't want to have acid reflux after eating one of those.

They could put alcohol in chicken wings and make Wing Bowl even _more_ of a spectacle...

Originally posted by Beestie

How long before an "experimental batch" of these "things" escapes into the wild?

Its already happened! Africanized killer bees were a crossbreeding experiment done in Brazil. They got loose, and they're coming your way!

I think bio-correcting fruits is kinda interesting. Sure, filled with lots of potential evil applications, but still...interesting.

California banned the sale of the Taiwanese glowing zebra fish based on the fear that they may escape into the wild. I think it was a DNR exec. decision. There was assurance that they would never survive out there. But who is willing to risk it?

Meanwhile Canada is deciding whether "higher" life forms can be patented. Which could be tough for Canada if they disallow it. It could add to the brain drain.

A friend gave me a book "As the Future Catches You" by Juan Enriquez. Not a thick read (I dont do well with thick scientific texts... zzzzz ATCG zzzzzz) its more of a thought starter, conversational thing geared towards business/economics. It was very interesting. I'd recommend it. (even though its 3 years old so now rather out of date!) It certainly made me start to realize the acceleration of discovery. Yikes!

The fruits and veggies don't bother me, assuming they would be kept separate as medication and not replace current varieties in the supermarket. They would probably be patented and expensive which would keep them separate.
The insects however make me nervous. Unlike the fruits and veggies they can come and get me.:(

Originally posted by dar512
I can just see it now. LSD oranges. Heroin peaches. :(

FUNNY YOU SHOULD SAY THAT

Some day i'll tell you a little story 'bout that.

Originally posted by xoxoxoBruce

The fruits and veggies don't bother me, assuming they would be kept separate as medication and not replace current varieties in the supermarket. They would probably be patented and expensive which would keep them separate.....

Is it not the case that bees can cross pollinate plants? Its pretty obvious that wherever they now grow oranges is where they would choose to grow the mutant oranges. I thought that a bee could grab some pollen from a mutant plant and effectively cross breed it into a non-mutant plant just by tansferring the pollen.

I do know that one problem in some areas where they are growing genetically altered wheat and stuff is that the seeds from the genetically altered crops are being blown into (and dropped by birds) into the non-mutant strains - (and vice versa) - the two strains are being mixed together. Not exactly the same thing but it illustrates that keeping these "things" (insects/grains/fruits/etc.) separate and away from unintended consumers (or **gulp** consumees) ain't as easy as it sounds.

Originally posted by dar512
I can just see it now. LSD oranges. Heroin peaches.

Tomacco

Originally posted by sycamore


Tomacco

....MMMMMMMMMMMMMMM TOMMACCO....


rofl!
.

or goats which produce spider silk.

I've thought that this was cool since I first heard about it.

Good thinking Beestie. Hadn't thought of the cross pollination.:worried:

Someone has actually brought the tomacco to life.

Landmine-detecting plant developed by Danish researchers
Boy, does planet earth need this one. They figure there are around 100M unexploded mines in the world. Thats 100M potential limbs blown off.

I guess that wouldn't work in arid areas without extensive irrigation.:confused:

Scientists are now combining the Asian bird flu with human flu to assess the possibility that they might combine naturally in a host infected with both. That, would be trouble

I'll try and find the site later on, but scientists in the Low Countries have come up with tangerine whose flesh looks, tastes like, and cooks like beef.
MMmmmmm.....steak on a stick......

Originally posted by headsplice
I'll try and find the site later on, but scientists in the Low Countries have come up with tangerine whose flesh looks, tastes like, and cooks like beef.
MMmmmmm.....steak on a stick......

What about its nutritional content?

Now, UK researchers think we are in the midst of the Sixth major extinction event.

We just missed an extinction event yesterday.