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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 16, 1998)
Tm £ Battalion Monday • February 16,15! Debate focuses on human clones By Tiffany Inbody Editor in chief PHILADELPHIA- The scientist who cloned the world-famous sheep, Dolly, said the debate on cloning is leaving a person out, the cloned child. Dr. Ian Wilmut, researcher for the Rosenthal In stitute in Scotland, and other cloning experts ad dressed the rights and wrongs of human cloning at the American Association for the Advancement of Science annual meeting on Friday. Wilmut said there are ethical issues to be con sidered in any use of cloning technology. Cloning can be used appropri- mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm ately in some instances but “If Michael Jordan was cloning an adult person is not one J "i think the relationship be- doned and the lO-year-old tween the child would be bound to be different, dis turbed," he said. “I think we should • i i • t t -o treat each child as an individual." we consider him worthless? Dr. Arthur Caplan, director of tion, he said. There needs to be a system in place to assist fam ilies who want cloned children. Loti Andrews, pro fessor of reproductive law and genetic law at the Kent School of Law in Chicago, said the issue of who the legal parents are becomes confusing. If Bill Gates wanted to clone himself, genetically, he would be creating an identical brother, she said. Under laws in some states, the legal guardian could be 10 different people, Andrews said. Andrews addressed ethical questions when con sidering the cloning of an adult, particularly a fa mous one. mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm “If Michael Jordan was cloned and the 10-year-old clone broke his knee, would we consider him worthless?” The cloned child would be Lori Andrews Professor of Reproductive Law and Genetic Law and the parents « i i i • i i i under pressure to be a basket- i hp diffpmijjt. His- Clone broke hlS knee would ball star and not pursue other avenues of life, she said. McGee said, “Cloning could intensify parents’ desire to styl ize their children, to make them in the image of a father.” Caplan presented a scenario of the relationship between a guardian and a clone. He re ferred to one possibility as the “Woody Allen Syn drome,” referring to the film personality who mar ried his step-daughter. “It is somewhat odd to think that people might have feelings that are consistent with love or even sex ual feelings toward someone that they parent,” he said. “Something like that is going to be true of clones.” Caplan used the example of cloning his wife. “I am in love with my wife. What does that do to the re lationship to the clone?” the Center for Bioethics at the University of Pennsylvania Health System, said some of the people who can afford to use the cloning^^^^ technology are arguing for their rights to reproduce in any way possible. “Reproductive technology in the United States at this point in time is kind of a Wild West,” he said. If a person has enough money, someone out there can find a way to clone a human, Caplan said. Dr. Glenn McGee, the associate director for edu cation for the Center for Bioethics at the University of Pennsylvania Health System, said having a cloned child would change the nature of a family. Cloning raises many of the same issues as adop- NASA prepares for Martian microbi PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Rock samples that NASA plans to scoop up from Mars could contain live bacte ria or viruses, and scientists are mak ing elaborate plans to protect Earth from possible microbial Martians. Several federal agencies are working together to design and build a high tech laboratory that will protect against a living Mars germ. Such a germ might pose a risk of disease or infection for the Earth’s people, plants or animals when the Martian samples are returned in about 10 years. “Samples from Mars should be considered hazardous until proven otherwise,” Jonathan Y. Richmond, a biological containment expert for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said Sunday at the national meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. “The risk is very small, but not zero,” said John D. Rummel, NASA’s planet protection officer. “We’re ignorant (about Mars) and what we’ve learned in biology is that when you are ignorant, be careful.” Although the site and many de tails are still unknown, NASA plans to build a laboratory that would quarantine the Mars samples be hind the same biocontainment bar riers that scientists now use to pre vent the escape of Ebola, a highly contagious and lethal African virus. Samples collected by robot craft WOMEN'S SUPPORT GROUP For Women Who are Currently Involved or Have Been Involved in an Abusive Relationship Beginning February 17 - 6:30 p.m. - 7:45 p.m., Texas A&M University Counseling and Assessment Center Light Refreshments and FREE Child Care Provided On-Site Call 845-8021 to register or for Questions. . m Tiffany Inbody, Editor in Chief Flelen Clancy, News Editor Brad Graeber, Visual Arts Editor Robert Smith, City Editor Matt Weber, Night News Editor Jeremy Furtick, Sports Editor James Francis, Aggielife Editor Mandy Cater, Opinion Editor Ryan Rogers, Photo Editor Chris Huffines, Radio Producer Sarah Goldston, Radio Producer Dusty Moer, Web Editor News: The Battalion news department is managed by students at Texas A&M University in the Division of Student Publications, a unit of the Department of Journalism. News offices are in 013 Reed McDonald Building. Newsroom phone: 845-3313; Fax: 845-2647; E-mail: batt@unix.tamu.edu; Website: http://battalion.tamu.edu Advertising: Publication of advertising does not imply sponsorship or endorsement by The Battalion. For campus, local, and national dis play advertising, call 845-2696. For classified advertising, call 845- 0569. Advertising offices are in 015 Reed McDonald, and office hours are 8 a.m. to 5 p.m, Monday through Friday. Fax: 845-2678. Subscriptions: A part of the Student Services Fee entitles each Texas A&M student to pick up a single copy of The Battalion. Mail sub scriptions are $60 per school year, $30 for the fall or spring semes ter and $17.50 for the summer. To charge by Visa, MasterCard, Discover, or American Express, call 845-2611. The Battalion (ISSN #1055-4726) is published daily, Monday through Friday during the fall spring semesters and Monday through Thursday during the summer session (except University holidays and exam periods) at Texas A&M University. Second class postage paid at College Station,TX 77840. Postmaster: Send address changes to The Battalion, 015 Reed McDonald Building, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX 77843-1111. COLLEGE STATION, TX. SERVING AGGIES SINCE 1983 New Breakfast Special Breakfast Burrito or Breakfast Taco (Less Than 5 Minutes) To Go Only! Look For Money Off on the Wednesday Coupon! The Deluxe 846-7466 203 University Drive i s 3.95^^^H pager airtime Aerial phones sold here Discount Pauine System ‘Service Free Activation ‘Accessories 15th Annual Healthy Heart Run benefiting the American Heart Association presented by the A&M College of Medicine 10k, 5k, and 1 mile walk on February 28 at 9 a.m. Location: Reynolds Medical Building Registration forms at Barnes & Noble, Copy Korner or online at hsc.tamu.edu/admis/funrun.html MSC Barber Shop Serving All Aggies! Cuts and Styles All C orp Cuts $7. Regular cuts start at $8. XJ 846-0629 Open: Mon. - Fri. 8-5 tgST Located in the basement of the Memorial Student Center 0n-Campus Interviews Veeder-Root. the world leader in manufacturing automatic tank gauging systems and environmental products, invites you to experience our two-year rotational program. Come join us on Wednesday, February 18th from 7 to 9pm for a reception at the Briarcrest Country Club. And Thursday, February 19th at the Career Fair in the Wehner Building. Go to JobTrak HYPERLINK http://www.jobtrak.com on the web for detailed descriptions of our career opportunities. Also, for more information on our organization visit us at our web site HYPERLINKhttp:// www.veederroot.com We will be interviewing on campus on February 20th. See your career services office for instructions on how to sign up for interviews. VEEDER-ROOT Takinathe GftE in April? Another reason to sign up for The Princeton Review NOW: Veteran Instructors [ The teachers For this April’s pencil and pa per GRE here at TAMU have over 14 years combined personal experience helping people do their very best on this diFFicult test. You deserve every advantage. Courses start thjs Saturday. THE PRINCETON REVIEW (409) 696-9099 (800) 2REVIEW on Mars would be sealed on the Martian surface and not opened un til the containers are placed in vaults under negative pressure, which per mits air to flow in, but not out. Richmond said that bits of the Mars samples would be placed in agar, a laboratory nutrient, to see if anything grows. Specimens would be exposed to tissue cultures to test for toxicity and for the presence of any microorganism. Eventually, some of the material could even be injected into animals to see if it does harm, he said. NASA has done all of this before. The agency built a complex labo ratory to protect the Earth from any moon bugs when samples were returned during the Apollo lunar program. No evidence of life was ever found. But Rummel said “life is quite a bit more likely on Mars than on the moon.” Mars was a warm, wet place, per haps with oceans, some 3.5 billion years ago, at a time when it is be lieved life was appearing under sim ilar conditions on Earth. “There’s nothing about Mars that we know of that would have pre vented life from evolving there in the same way it did on the early Earth,” Rummel said. Some Mars microbes could still be living, despite its present hos tile environment. “We are finding that organisms can live in far more extremen tions than we once thoughip hie,” said Margaret S. Race,asi tist for the SETI instituif, organization that specializes! search for extraterrestrials. Earth microbes have beer living inside rocks, in thesupei ed water of undersea volcanic and in the extreme dr>'and the Antarctic. But Rummel, Richmor others believe it is verym that any living Mars bugcouli leash an extraterrestrial plage the Earth. Richmond noted thatifu bial life does exist on Mars,it|r ably has the same genetiepat® Earth life. He said scientists now b that over billions of yeai* Mars have landed on tun lend , age | knocked there when asic:: Idisl smashed into the Red Planet:: Say] Earth probably have also lane Mars. As a result, it is possibli life forms on the planets« have a common origin. NASA plans to send sampkEfyol lection robot landers to twoil -ed ent sites on Mars in 2001 1 The machines would colleci^the store bits of rock, soil, ice an mosphere. In 2005, another roboi would be sent to oneofthesite lect the samples and returnthi Earth by 2008. ACCOUNTIN 209/229 coi nP; Step ms Step liui itei Billy’s Video, Need Help? Call Us! Quantum Cow Tutoring:260-C0W! Univ. Dr., Northgate, next to CD Warehouse (2-9pm Sun-1 TEXAS A&M FOOTBALL 12TH MAN/WALK-ON Organizational Meeting DATE: Wednesday, February 18,1998 TME: 4:30 PM WHERE: Kyle Field — Football Locker Root * MOST HAVE STARTED COLLEGE IN THE FALLG ‘96 OR AFTER * MOST BE ENROLLED IN A MINIMUM QF12 HE * ATTENDANCE IS MANDATORY Do you wonder what your future holds? Come talk to DCS and discover the answers. UCS has been in the computer and automotive business for 27 years. We are looking for many different backgrounds including sales, customer service, programming, consulting, and technical support for our Houston and College Station offices. So come explore career opportunities with UCS at our informational February 19, 1998 4:00 p.m. - 7:00 p.m. College Station Hilton Ballroom 1 We will have representatives from various departments, so feel free to bring a friend and come any time between 4:00 p.m. and 7:00 p.m. We hope to see you there! If you are unable to attend or have any questions, please call: UCS 1-800-883-3031 http.7/www. ucs-systems.com E.O.E. UCS Hires Non-Tobacco Users Only UCS 4r MSC Visual Arts Committee Presents: A Field Trip to the museums of Fort Worth! February 21,1998 leave campus by Sam return by 8pm Renoir’s Portraits Impressions of an Age Kimbell Art Museum Fort Worth, Texas Hurry! Space is limited! Sign up by 8 pm Monday, February 16 at the MSC Forsyth Center Galleries (across from the Aggieland Post Office). $5 TAMU Students with I.D. $15 non-students other museums in the area: Amon Carter Museum, Fort Worth Museum of Science and History, Modem Art Museum of Fort Worth Pierre-Auguslc Renoir, Two Sisters (On the Terrace) detail, 1S81 Look us up! X Ifyou have special needs or for more Memorial student Center http://www.msc.tamu.edu <5- information , ease cal| in advance a , Vtsual Aits Committee http://vac.tamu.edu (409)845-9251 ore-mail: vac.tamu.e*