Frozen Woolly Mammoth Arrives in Japan

yahoo news ^ | 11/18/04 | some fool from AP

[satchmodog9]

TOKYO - World fairs have typically focused on the wonders of the future, highlighting new technologies from glass and steel construction in the 19th century to satellites and computers today. But next year's fair is different.

The Japanese organizers of the 2005 world's fair have shipped a 18,000-year-old frozen woolly mammoth from Siberia to become the centerpiece attraction.

Naoki Suzuki, the Japanese scientist overseeing the Aichi Expo exhibit, said Friday the preserved head, tusks and front leg of the mammoth have arrived in Nagoya near the fair site, about 170 miles west of Tokyo.

[TontoKowalski]

There was a television program about the mammoth on Discovery (I think) a couple of years ago. If you're really interested, I'm sure their web site would have the DVD or video available.

It was a documentary of the excavation of a mammoth, but had plenty of cool-looking computer-generated footage. It was a very interesting program.

[ErnBatavia]

Less than one minute! (see a couple below yours....)

[satchmodog9]

Current thinking is they were hunted to death by early man.

Sure, always blame the gun owner.

[SirChas]

What can I say.. Great minds etc...

[the invisib1e hand]

whew. i was worried that it got lost.

[bd476]

Wooly Mammoth story Ping.

[TC Rider]

..with theories pointing at human hunters, a killer disease or climate change.

Bush's fault.

[Sloth]

Mature and juvenile wooly mammoths pictured with a Diatryma gigantea.

[lafroste]

Wouldn't that be awesome? I'm not sure if it's ethical, but damn I'd like to see one walking around.

I believe they should do it and that it is perfectly ethical. I would clone it in a second and try to revive the species if I had any say in it.

[SoDak]

The problem is that it would not necessarily have a native ecology ready for it. Other factors are things like long-dormant viruses, and bacterium.

[TontoKowalski]

Not Bush's fault. Climate/environmental disasters are more properly laid at the feet of VP Cheney and Haliburton.

The President is to blame for church burnings in Arkansas which occurred when Clintoon was a child. This article is not about that.

[Pilsner]

I read a Louis Lamour interview many years ago, I think it was from Western Horseman but don't hold me to that. In one portion they asked him about a Sackett character of his who kills a woolly mammoth in the 1600s. Lamour recited both indian foldlore that discussed the whoolly mammoth as still being present when the White man arrived, and survivors of a John Hawken's ship. During the reigh of Elizabeth 1st John Hawkens (Hawkins?) traded African slaves for Spainish gold and silver in Mexico. He was attacked by the Spainards and forced to maroon some of his men when he lost several ships. (One survivor who sailed back to England was Francis Drake, who later paid the Spainish back with interest) Hawkens promised that he would return, but some of the men, stranded in Mexico and fearing thet he either could not or would not return, decided to walk out -- to Nova Scotia. Two or three made it after many years. One animal they they decribed as having seen when they made it back to England is clearly a woolly mammoth. Lamour pointed out that they did not make a big deal out of the mammoth because they did not know that it was supposed to be extinct.

[yooper]

"The Japanese organizers of the 2005 world's fair have shipped a 18,000-year-old frozen woolly mammoth from Siberia to become the centerpiece attraction."

Could be the next great Japanese sci-fi movie: "Mammzilla Stomps Tokyo."

[BIGLOOK]

Good points on the revivification of pathogens, but doubtful if these were healthy, migrating critters that walked into a blizzard.

I doubt the mammoth was fast frozen like chicken parts now a days. We're dealing with too few specimens to make generalizations.

Good to hear from you, SoDak, and congratulations on your Daschle extinction event!

[SoDak]

I guess part of what I wrote was quite stupid. If we are able to extract DNA, we won't be awakening pathogens in the carcasses. If we can get good DNA, it's all good, I say raise the mammoth. Oh, and thanks for the Congrats. I'm still thrilled two weeks later.

[tarheelswamprat]

1. How did a mammoth very large animal) survive in the Arctic? 2. How could a complete mammoth freeze fast enough to be preserved almost whole? 3. Why was their grains and pollens from a much warmer climate in his stomach?

Google the term "pole shift". That's one theory that has been proposed.

[BIGLOOK]

Not so far off on your part. The experts will be looking to recover DNA. I hope they'll think to examine tissue for pathogens.

If Mammoths can be cloned from the DNA via a surrogate, sounds like a good business opportunity for you. South Dakota Mammoth Ranch. I know of a guy near you that needs a job; lots of experience shoveling sh*t. Hang on while I look up his Number in my Capitol Contacts.

[Domestic Church]

"Godzilla versus Mammoth!"

I would expect Godzilla to at least show respect for the ancient pachyderm, given his political views.

[SoDak]

Oh, I doubt he'll be looking here. He'll be looking to shovel more of it in DC in the private sector.

[WorkingClassFilth]

Answer: Because it wasn't an arctic climate when the critter was alive and something very, very nasty happened real quick-like to flash freeze Jumbo.