When people first got over how awesome the special effects and sheer awe of seeing dinosaurs on the big screen in Jurassic Park was, they were left pondering and asking the question, “is this possible?” Ever since the movie and subsequent sequels have been created, scientists have been trying to figure out whether or not it’s actually possible to bring back extinct animals by genetic engineering similar to the kind we were “taught” about in Jurassic Park.
De-extinction, or using the power of modern biotechnology to bring back extinct species like mammoths and dinosaurs, would be cool, there’s no question about it. But is it really as easy as the movies make it look? Or do the cruel hands of time make it impossible? This week Youtube’s “It’s OK To be Smart” looks at the technical and ethical hurdles behind the science of de-extinction and reverse engineering species that are no longer around.
Check it out below:
