So, hey, mini vat-brains. …Yeah, hold up for a second.

Assuming this is a real story: this news is just a touch alarming.

 Scientists reported Thursday they had picked up human-like electrical activity in lab-grown brains for the first time, paving the way to model neurological conditions and answer fundamental questions on how our gray matter develops.

It’s not clear whether the pea-sized brains are conscious: the team behind the breakthrough suspect they’re not because the activity resembles that of preterm babies, but they cannot say for certain, opening up a new ethical dimension to this area of research.

Continue reading So, hey, mini vat-brains. …Yeah, hold up for a second.

Today’s exercise in bioethics: Neanderthal babies!

What could possibly go wrong?

Professor George Church of Harvard Medical School believes he can reconstruct Neanderthal DNA and resurrect the species which became extinct 33,000 years ago.

His scheme is reminiscent of Jurassic Park but, while in the film dinosaurs were created in a laboratory, Professor Church’s ambitious plan requires a human volunteer.

He said his analysis of Neanderthal genetic code using samples from bones is complete enough to reconstruct their DNA.

He said: ‘Now I need an adventurous female human.

Continue reading Today’s exercise in bioethics: Neanderthal babies!