Human cloning - are we already there?
By Asavin Wattanajantra in Editorial
Posted in research, science, human clones, Predictions on
In my feature the Top five sci-fi tech we didn’t get, I put human cloning as one of the technologies we haven’t seen yet, and remarked that with advances in DNA science it could be closer than I thought.
Well, reports have indicated that ‘maverick’ doctor Panayiotis Zavos has already done it - cloning 14 human embryos and implanting them in the wombs of 14 volunteers.
Naturally, the Daily Mail has chosen to go for the fury baiting angle, by reporting that a ten year old little girl who died at the age of ten could be brought back to life thanks to freezing blood cells that he secured after her death.
According to the Independent, the cloning was recorded by a documentary film-maker, who testified that the cloning had taken place, and that he was actually dealing with women who were prepared to carry the first cloned embryos specifically created for human reproduction.
Is this to be believed and are we actually at a stage where human clones could be born? The New Scientist makes the good point that he provided no scientific proof or data to back up the claims.
If it isn’t true, then it shows the lengths and ways people will go to in securing publicity and fame. He appears to have a long career and has a long list of qualifications - is he so desperate for publicity that he would go as far as making up wild claims?
If it is true, then that’s a whole different matter. It is simply hard to believe that people would volunteer to have a cloned baby, but perhaps if you are looking at the publicity and fame surrounding it, then it is maybe understandable.
From the doctor’s point of view, you can also understand why he’s attempting it in the first place. No matter how abhorrent you may find it, a successful birth of a human clone would put his name down in history forever.
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Bendy phones straight out of the future
By Asavin Wattanajantra in Editorial
Posted in Predictions on
It feels like mobile phones are entering the world of science fiction, with Nokia and Cambridge University collaborating on the ‘Morph’ phone.
Judging by the news coverage that it has got in the last few days then this is definitely an idea that appeals to everybody.
Having a phone which you can use like a keyboard, bend in the shape of a mobile phone and even fit as a bracelet is something I haven’t imagined was possible.
Before mobile phones actually came into public usage I struggle to remember any predictions that it would be as popular as it is now.
One of my favourite science fiction films was Blade Runner. Flying cars, check. Androids, check. Not a mobile phone in sight. Nobody thought it was possible.
My first phone was around 1994. It was an Orange one and felt like a brick. (Actually a similar size to the Samsung 5 mega pixel camera phone I have now). Next were the early Nokia phones .. The ones with no pictures or pretty colours, all black and grey text. It’s a long time ago now.
It’s amazing to see the speed of mobile phone technology. Ten years ago nobody could even imagine a contraption like the iPhone with its touchscreen and multiple music and communication capabilities.
In around ten years we will likely have something like the Morph phone and it is astonishing to think about it. But that is the pace of change.
Nokia and Cambridge have been working together for a while, not only on nanotechnology. They have a number of projects on the go which you may well see, not only in mobile phones but in all sorts of other practical uses.
The phone company are giving Cambridge the freedom to research on anything that they want and the Morph is just one of those projects. I for one am looking forward to seeing more of this invention and innovation.
Rated: 93.33% (3 votes)
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The year ahead
By Asavin Wattanajantra in Editorial
Posted in Security, Predictions, Microsoft, Social Networking, iPhone, Apple on
Let me introduce myself. My name is Asavin Wattanajantra, I
Rated: 50% (2 votes)
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