[vaseline2008]

Planarian Worms

Flatworms have the ability to preserve key parts of their DNA when regenerating that offer the potential for immortality.

The reason they may hang around forever is that the asexual adult flatworm stem cells appear to maintain lengths of telomere, a key DNA component associated with protecting cells from aging.

This ingredient allows the invertebrates to replace damaged cells, and theoretically continue life without end, according to the study.

One interesting note is that - as you all know - if you cut a worm in half you end up with 2 worms...does this "tech" make worms "indestructible" in a mild sense of the word? Of course if you mash it up it becomes a pile of mashed up worm...but you get the point.

[vision-master]

Immortality is entering the stream and going towards that which is ahead.

[Sys1]

We are an interesting species. We are at a point in which everything converge, from peak oil, global warming, exponential debt and pollution to internet, artificial intelligence, DNA manipulation, nanotechnologies.
We will get to up to the stars or down to caverns. Interesting times ahead.

[graham]

Planarian Worms

Flatworms have the ability to preserve key parts of their DNA when regenerating that offer the potential for immortality.

The reason they may hang around forever is that the asexual adult flatworm stem cells appear to maintain lengths of telomere, a key DNA component associated with protecting cells from aging.

This ingredient allows the invertebrates to replace damaged cells, and theoretically continue life without end, according to the study.

One interesting note is that - as you all know - if you cut a worm in half you end up with 2 worms...does this "tech" make worms "indestructible" in a mild sense of the word? Of course if you mash it up it becomes a pile of mashed up worm...but you get the point.

Absolute nonsense. You get either a dead worm or a worm that recovers from its wound and its dead tail.

[vaseline2008]

Planarian Worms

Flatworms have the ability to preserve key parts of their DNA when regenerating that offer the potential for immortality.

The reason they may hang around forever is that the asexual adult flatworm stem cells appear to maintain lengths of telomere, a key DNA component associated with protecting cells from aging.

This ingredient allows the invertebrates to replace damaged cells, and theoretically continue life without end, according to the study.

One interesting note is that - as you all know - if you cut a worm in half you end up with 2 worms...does this "tech" make worms "indestructible" in a mild sense of the word? Of course if you mash it up it becomes a pile of mashed up worm...but you get the point.

Absolute nonsense. You get either a dead worm or a worm that recovers from its wound and its dead tail.

Well perhaps not all worms, but the planarian seems to do so. (From the same article.)

Scientists at Britain's University of Nottingham were able to generate more than 20,000 flatworms from a single one that they had cut up into several pieces. Each piece they cut grew into its own new independent living worm, the Telegraph reports.

[sicophiliac]

Well.. one would wonder why natural selection didn't favor this type of regenerative ability in larger, longer lived and more complex organisms. Surely the ability to regenerate tissues would be advantageous as compared to healing with scar tissues or simply a stump where a leg or arm used to be. I would guess that preserving the telemores would probably lead to rampant tumor and cancer growth. I mean cells can keep regenerating but genetic defects will still be there and accumulate. The longer cells can divide the more opportunities arise for those lethal combinations of mutations that lead to cancer.

[vision-master]

natural

selection

Is an oxymoron............

[SeaGypsy]

Sometimes

the herb

is too strong

or full of heavy metals from the hydroponic solution not being flushed.

Nature selects.

[AgentR11]

Natural selection does NOT provide what is optimal.
It provides what is *necessary* to survive and out-compete.

Individual immortality might, or might not be nice; but its really not a great help when it comes to catching and eating the gazelle.

I'm generally of the opinion that immortality as in agelessness would be pretty unpleasant; and immortality as in regenerative agelessness would be a recipe for world destruction. Primates are *NOT* nice to begin with, primates that are unkillable is a truly horrifying concept.

[vision-master]

Sometimes

the herb

is too strong

or full of heavy metals from the hydroponic solution not being flushed.

Nature selects.

Our origins have been written into our DNA. We come from the Stars......

Tell me Sea Hag............ If we evolued from hairy apes, why did we lose our fur?

Now we have to wear fur in order to stay warm........

[vision-master]

Natural selection does NOT provide what is optimal.
It provides what is *necessary* to survive and out-compete.

Individual immortality might, or might not be nice; but its really not a great help when it comes to catching and eating the gazelle.

I'm generally of the opinion that immortality as in agelessness would be pretty unpleasant; and immortality as in regenerative agelessness would be a recipe for world destruction. Primates are *NOT* nice to begin with, primates that are unkillable is a truly horrifying concept.

Funny how everyones idea of Immortality is living in the physical world 3D.

Welcome to the Iron age. lsol

[AgentR11]

Funny how everyones idea of Immortality is living in the physical world 3D.

Well, I did specify in my examples of immortality, and given that the context of the thread is planaria regenerating forever, physical world seems the appropriate line of discussion.

Spiritual immortality or an immortally heightened consciousness is a different can of worms, though not one particular relevant to regenerating planaria.

[vision-master]

Even the gods pass on.......



But perhaps the most puzzling of the artifacts are the coneheads with elongated skulls. The traditional explanation for the elongation is banding – tightly wrapping the heads of babies in order to force a deformation of the skull. On several of the skulls you can clearly see the marks of the bands.

Other skulls, however, appear to be elongated naturally. They are perfectly smooth and show no evidence of having been banded. There are (unsubstantiated) reports that a pregnant mummy has been found and x-rays indicate the fetus has an elongated skull.

[AgentR11]

Tell me Sea Hag............ If we evolued from hairy apes, why did we lose our fur?
Now we have to wear fur in order to stay warm........

Because heat dissipation is a critical problem for homo sapiens; staying warm however, is trivial in most climates, and in the ones where we evolved, mostly nekkid in January is perfectly fine for an active, hunting male.

Having fur I couldn't get rid of would kill me outright. dead. dig a hole and drop me in, dead.

That sort of problem causes natural selection to function very harshly.
Thus, I have no fur.

I do have a thin leather jacket for when it gets really cold though.

[vision-master]

Yeah sure, we evolued from having fur into pretty much having none. Sounds like 'natural selection' to me..... lol

[AgentR11]

Yeah sure, we evolued from having fur into pretty much having none. Sounds like 'natural selection' to me..... lol

Indeed. Brain size increases make fur increasingly lethal. Brain evolves, gets bigger, those that sweat more and have less fur have an easier time surviving and are more competitive. Fur go *poof* in an evolutionary blink of an eye.

[vision-master]

Sounds like a wet dream....... ha

[AgentR11]

Considering that its the start of March, still Winter, I biked for coffee beans this morning, but made the mistake of wearing a cotton shirt. Absolutely soaking wet in sweat by the time I got back, and its just an eight mile r/t. Thank God for Nylon (or silk), otherwise clothes would be intolerable!!!

Definitely wet. Very, very wet. Not very dreamy though.

nb.. On your chicken, I'm pretty sure a chicken has a substantially higher surface area/mass ratio than does a human. That has consequences.

[vaseline2008]

As I learn more and more about evolutionary theory and the processes, I would have to conclude that due to climate changes -- most likely the Earth heating up -- the hairy ones of the species died off from hyperthermia or heat exhaustion while the less hairy/furry ones survived. Most likely the hairy/furry ones that were able to move to another region of the Earth that was less hot survived. Both types probably lived in isolation from each other allowing them to evolve as they have.

I can't be certain for I wasn't there to witness it but to me this sounds like the most likely scenario.