Am I the only one who initially thought that said "First truly artificial orgasm engineered?"

What would engineers know about orgasms anyway?

Telemakhos

Nope, I did too. Then I read the thing and was very disapointed.

But even if they do, there is no fear of these bacteria running amok in the wild, says Mehl. They are special research strains that cannot live without the nutrients supplied in the lab.

Sure. Keep hoping that.

That seems incredibly cool to me, kind of proves that life on other planets is feasable too. Once we can build ilfe from the ground up we can do a lot of other things.

yes i thought it said orgasms at first too, huhuhuhh

This isn't an artifial organism at all. It's just a mutated bacterium. *Yawn*. I wanted robots or a Golem.

Am I the only one who initially thought that said "First truly artificial orgasm engineered?"

Me too.

What would engineers know about orgasms anyway?

I know I like them.

I'll second or third the "orgasm" notion. It's too early. What times does football start?

I'm convinced that scientists don't EVER watch sci-fi horror movies.

Come on! How many times have we seen this plot?

I just had to read these to make sure I wasn't the only one who thought it said 'orgasm'.

And now I know.

Now we need someone to say, "I found this article very difficult to...."

That's great and all, but can we smoke it?

I don't understand. Can someone with still-sharp biology chops help me:

What are the defining characteristics of an amino acid? Is it something like, say, an HClOMgN+ group (or something that makes sense) that defines this molecule as an "amino acid", followed by a chain of other atoms? God damn, organic chem was always a mystery to me.

And if that's the case - supposing that "new" amino acids can be built willy-nilly just by starting with the basic "amino" part and coding for stuff from there on... who's to say that these new acids will be at all useful for anything?

Crap, now I'm trying to remember how the whole codon base system works... adenine, guanine, pyrosine, ... shiat, i forgot...

Orgasm, organism. Bah. Give us artificial super models and kill two birds with one stone.

Scrowdid: Does that mean we CAN smoke it?

It's probably best taken intravenously.

Or baked into brownies.

Telemakhos - no, I think nearly everyone thought that.

And if that's the case - supposing that "new" amino acids can be built willy-nilly just by starting with the basic "amino" part and coding for stuff from there on... who's to say that these new acids will be at all useful for anything?

Can you say prion?

Fortunately, we can kill these things off easily with just a little Selsun Blue.

paragraph 4 "Jolla has managed to coax E. coli bacteria to produce a 21st amino acid and use it to make a protein, using only natural food sources such as sugar and water.

paragraph 11 "But even if they do, there is no fear of these bacteria running amok in the wild, says Mehl. They are special research strains that cannot live without the nutrients supplied in the lab."

and it's a strain of e. coli to boot. Is anyone else scared?

I thought we elected the first artificial organism as president.

01-19-03 10:50:47 AM
Obbop

I thought we elected the first artificial organism as president.

True enough, if you're talking about the popular vote.

it's evolution baby!

maybe in the future this process will be automated by machines, and the lines will blur between what is living and what isn't, and what is machine and what isn't.

It's all fun and games until something escapes, multiplies, and threatens the existence of all of humanity

I second Reactron's motion -- we should synthesize artificial supermodels dependent on special nutrients that can only be doled out by men.

First truly artificial organism engineered

From the article: For this they stole genes from other bacteria that make pAF as a secondary metabolite and added them to the E. coli bacteria.

Bzzzz.... get your own dirt.

Telemahkos-

I'll admit it as well. That's how it goes when the wife is "out of order".

01-19-03 10:33:23 AM Scrowdid
I don't understand. Can someone with still-sharp biology chops help me:

What are the defining characteristics of an amino acid? Is it something like, say, an HClOMgN+ group (or something that makes sense) that defines this molecule as an "amino acid", followed by a chain of other atoms? God damn, organic chem was always a mystery to me.

R
|
NH2-C-CO2H
|
H

Where R = whatever the fark it wants...

And if that's the case - supposing that "new" amino acids can be built willy-nilly just by starting with the basic "amino" part and coding for stuff from there on... who's to say that these new acids will be at all useful for anything?

to my knowledge, no one. this seems to really be more of a case of a biologist betting $5 with another biologist that he can pull it off. kinda like the hacker who just hacks for the thrill of hacking. except this is gene hacking.

Crap, now I'm trying to remember how the whole codon base system works... adenine, guanine, pyrosine, ... shiat, i forgot...

adenine, guanine, cytosine, thymine

a combo of three of them makes a codon. (thus 4 to the 3rd power permutations,athough only like 20 ammino acids, so there is alot of redundancy). the codon is made into mRNA, taken outside the nucleous where amino acids that are "stuck" on tRNA (tRNA just has three base pairs, so there is a special tRNA for each possible 3--base pair combo) and a chain is made from lots of matching tRNA pairs attaching to the mRNA. then the string of attached amino acids coil into the 3D protein structure. yahoo.

and i too must throw my hat in and say that the title looked like it said orgasm.

on the diagram of the amino acid, move the R-Group and the Hydrogen so they connect to the center carbon, not the Nitrogen...

Stupid message board. Screws up my drawings

But even if they do, there is no fear of these bacteria running amok in the wild, says Mehl. They are special research strains that cannot live without the nutrients supplied in the lab.


Until one dark night
(flash lightning)
one scientist working alone at night...

This is not a created organism. This is an organism hacked together from other pre-existing components. It would be like me putting a spoiler on my car, adding a nitrous tank and claiming I invented a brand new vehicle.

I'm glad I'm not the only dumbass that thought it said orgasm.

Errr, is there anyone who didn't read that as 'orgasm'?

Another step forward in the biologist's quest to fark the human race even harder than the physics did....

"It's a very great accomplishment."

not just great. VERY great.

I would go so far as to say it is a super-duper accomplishment. maybe even a ginourmous, extra-mega-ultra-uber-accomplishment.

Still. No. Cure. For. Cancer.

LiquidNumb

we can smoke anything. i want to smoke a bunny rabbit. or a widow...

make that a "wabbit"

/me read "orgasm"

I still wanna know how it is possible to engineer an orgasm. fricken.

Statik Thanks for the refresher. That amino acid structure rings a bell now that I see it again.

Wow, I'm so glad I'm not the only one who saw that as orgasm.

I still wanna know how it is possible to engineer an orgasm. fricken.

Dontcha remember? Walken did it in Brainstorm.

God surrenders....

Michael Crichton surrenders...

I guess this answers the age old question: "What do you get when you cross a sperm whale and an e. coli bacteria?"

*raises hand* I'm guilty of reading it as "orgasm" too

Note to self: Read the word "organism" atleast ten times so you don't get confused while reading the article

I submitted an article about this very thing weeks ago. Never made it. Who do I have to blow around here to get an article posted instead of waiting for some brown-noser to post the same farking thing?

"First truly artificial organism engineered?"

What's Michael Jackson?

Chopped livva?

Likewise here with the orgasm thought :P

Sigh ;P

I must be weird. I read "organism" the first time...

oi vay! you ARE wierd, trom. ;)