Elite / Frontier Good news for traders to van Maanens Star

[Riedquat For A Dream]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-16972761

 

[porl]

but bad news for everyone else?

 

[Geraldine]

Only one thing to say to this, DIET STEAKETTE. ITS BAD!!

 

[Bounder]

But why stick with culturing cells from smelly hairy brutes like cows? Personally i wouldn't eat any synthetic meat that hadn't been grown from my own tissues. I'd have my full consent, can't see any harm in it... and hey it's good to know what you're eating, right?

 

[gunbladelad]

Problem is though - wouldn't that technically be cannibalism and therefore against the law?

What would your policy be on synthetic meat if you were eating out?

 

[turwhitt]

Is cannibalism actually illegal though?
I think it's the things before that - e.g. murder, desecration etc. that would be illegal.
If i were to put in my will that i wanted to be eaten after my natural death, would it actually be illegal to eat me?

 

[gunbladelad]

It looks like a bit of a legal minefield after a quick google search.

Personally I think I'll keep clear of Synthetic meat.

 

[turwhitt]

Well i think it's a great idea (synthetic meat, that is) and as a veggie i'd happily eat it.

 

[porl]

Is cannibalism actually illegal though?
I think it's the things before that - e.g. murder, desecration etc. that would be illegal.
If i were to put in my will that i wanted to be eaten after my natural death, would it actually be illegal to eat me?

Perhaps not illegal but not that smart, toxins build up in the flesh and get concentrated after successive cycles! Never eat meat eater’s kids.(on the other hand turwhitt is a veggie so this one’s fair game )

Well i think it's a great idea (synthetic meat, that is) and as a veggie i'd happily eat it.

Really? Even if it has to be cultured from living tissue?:S

To be honest I find the whole thing somewhat disturbing, if we can culture meat to eat then why not grow clones so we can have a supply of spare parts for our aging or damaged bodies, and this being a fair and utopian planet I’m sure rich and poor would have equal access to this.

Really?

 

[Bounder]

Problem is though - wouldn't that technically be cannibalism and therefore against the law?

What would your policy be on synthetic meat if you were eating out?

oh let 'em gossip, it's my body and i'll do with it what i like. Might call it the over-unity diet and write a book or something. Could have steak and kidney pudding one day, haggis the next, black pudding for brekkie, liver paté and tongue sandwiches for tea...

And toxins shmoxins - i'd just shoot it full of antibiotics and growth hormones. A sprinkle of nitrates and it'd be fine...

Or how about celebrity cannibalism - come to think of it i'd rather eat Charlize Theron, i mean if it was still economical...

 

[turwhitt]

Really? Even if it has to be cultured from living tissue?:S

It depends on what your reasons are i suppose. I'm a veggie because i do not want to support the intensive farming industry, and because it is unsustainable and wasteful as a food source.

Synthetic meat solves the farming problem, as the "meat" has never been conscious, and solves the unsustainability somewhat as it is 60% less wasteful (so they say). It'd still have to be a rare treat though, as even 60% less wasteful than farmed, living meat, is still wasteful compared to just eating the existing biomass (i.e. vegetables/plants) in the first place.

why not grow clones so we can have a supply of spare parts for our aging or damaged bodies

As long as they are not conscious then yes - why not? The sooner the better IMO.

and this being a fair and utopian planet I’m sure rich and poor would have equal access to this.

You have to start somewhere, and the more mainstream the process becomes, the more affordable it will become to the masses.


BUT we must bear in mind that if we are going to make ourselves semi-immortal, we have got to start colonising space too!