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Did South Korean Doctors Clone Human Embryo? Researchers in South Korea claimed in December, 1998 that they had cloned a human embryo, but other researchers disputed the claim. Start Date: 2/10/99 In December 1998, a team of Korean researchers at Kyunghee University Hospital, led by Professor Lee Bo-yeon, claimed that they had cloned a human embryo. Their method, they said, was to replace the nucleus of a woman's egg cell with the nucleus of a cell from her body, transferring her entire DNA to the egg. They then managed to coax the egg to devide twice, creating an embryo of four cells. Had that embryo continued to develop, it would be been a clone of the woman. According to an Associated Press story dated January 28, 1999, American experts said that, to their knowledge, this was a medical first. But a panel of the Korean Doctors Association concluded after a 25-day investigation that Professor Lee's team had kept such sloppy records that their accomplishment could not be verified and the results were in doubt. Meanwhile, Lee's claims provoked widespread media attention as well as anti-cloning rallies in South Korea, where the Parliament is moving toward a ban on human cloning research. Excelsior, Michael Lindemann's new novel (written under the pen name Michael Paul), depicts a wholly plausible near future in which human cloning is both widespread and widely abused; terrorists have access to target-specific biological weapons; recreational space travel is commonplace; and mounting pressures of global climate change, environmental decline, population growth and civil unrest inspire radical new approaches to urban security. Built by Frontier on a Macintosh on 6/17/00; 11:50:33 AM. Web Comments - Produced by Larry Lowe Served 2593 times since 2/10/99.

Study Says Hackers Threaten U.S. Military A Pentagon study says hi-tech hackers could outpace official efforts to protect vital military information systems. Japan's 'Consumer Robot' a Sign of Things to Come A Japaneses firm has announced the advent of the world's first consumer robot designed to perform simple household tasks. In the near future, such robots will become far more capable. NASA: New Hypersonic Propulsion Engine An experiment scramjet engine is being tested for NASA's Hyper-X program, aimed at creating air-breathing aircraft that can fly to the edge of space at Mach 10. Cybernetics Prof Implants Chip in His Own Body Professor Kevin Warwick claimed on Aug 25, 1998 to have become the first human to have a computer chip surgically implanted into his body. New Research Promises Bone, Muscle Replacement New research shows that stem cells from adult bone marrow can be directed to grow into new bone and muscle tissue that can replace similar tissue lost to disease or accident. Huge NSA Encryption Scam Claimed The Swiss firm Crypto AG reportedly designed their widely used encryption devices so that the NSA could decode secrets from many countries. Stem Cells: Hope and Controversy on the Bio-Tech Frontier New research on stem cells might lead to cures for diabetes, Parkinson's and Alzheimer's, and to growing replacement organs from a patient's own tissue. Pig Intestine Has Amazing Medical Properties Recent research shows that tissue taken from the small intestine of pigs has remarkable healing and restorative effects in a wide variety of medical applications. How it works is still not understood. Artificial Muscles Are Key to Robots of the Future New artificial muscles made of plastic that bends and contracts somewhat like biological muscle tissue could give future robots enormous dexterity, and also help paralyzed humans regain mobility. Stem Cells May Allow Regrowth of Liver New research on bone marrow stem cells suggests that it may become possible to regenerate the liver and other major organs.