Woolly mammoths have been extinct for about 10,000 years, but we occasionally find one that has been preserved in Siberian permafrost. Resurrecting these huge elephantlike mammals may be possible by cloning DNA isolated from such frozen remains. Researchers are now studying the DNA of a remarkably intact baby mammoth recently discovered frozen in a Siberian swamp. What are some of the pros and
cons, both technical and ethical, of cloning an extinct animal?
What will be an ideal response?
The pros of cloning an extinct animal are that we would have the chance to study an animal that was unavailable to science previously, and that could potentially benefit mankind. However, the cons are very ominous. Introducing a previously absent species to an ecosystem could be extremely deleterious to existing species, and it is possible that the resurrected species could harbor a disease or impact existing organisms in some other fashion.
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