Science FACTion: Scientists Splice Together Goat and Spider Genes... Seriously

As we have previously discussed on this blog, spider silk is really fascinating stuff. Peter Parker was a head of the curve by a few decades with his web-slinging inventions, but we know that modern day scientists have been researching on how to recreate the material for commercial use. Spider Silk, which has greater prehensile strength than steel, is extremely difficult to synthesize, so scientist are also attempting to research ways to harvest the material naturally.

Evidently these so called "scientists" have reasoned that the best way to go about this is to splice in spidersilk making genes in with goats and their milk producing genes. Scientists believe that they can then extract the material from the goat's milk after lactation:

With his team of researchers, Randy Lewis, a professor of molecular biology at the University of Wyoming developed a way splice the spider’s silk-making genes into goats, so the protein can be harvested from their milk. “When the goats have kids, and they start lactating, we collect the milk, and we can purify that spider silk protein in much, much higher quantities,” Lewis tells the Science Nation, a publication of the National Science Foundation, which helped fund the research.

The silk-making protein can be harvested from the milk of the transgenic goats in much higher quantities.

Because of the vagaries of the genetic lottery, not all the goats wind up with the spider gene. Of the seven kids (three sets of twins and one single) born in February, only three are would-be web-slingers.

Of course, any endeavor that involves animals or genetic engineering is bound to find itself knee-deep in an ethical quagmire, but Lewis insists that the transgenic goats are no different in health, appearance, or behavior “In lots of ways, these goats are a lot more pampered because they are very valuable,” he says.

I'm sure NOTHING could ever go wrong with giving goats spider genes...

SPIDER-GOAT! SPIDER-GOAT! Does whatever a Spider can!

catch a video from Science Nation after the jump:

Superhero Term Papers

The folks over at Comics Alliance have produced a series of fantastic mocked-up term papers from our favorite tight-wearing, web-swinging, mask-donning, cape-flying comic book characters. Superhero or not, you still have to get your BA before you head off for vigilante-town. Unless, that is you're a mutant... in that case, you end up spending your entire teenage and young adult life in the boarding school from hell where all your friends are slaughtered before you and your teachers give you code names and train you to be a part of a fringe para-military strike team under the thrall of a charismatic but psychologically controlling individual.

But without further adieu, here are a few choice term papers (click to embiggen):

Hal Jordan

Bruce Wayne

I really want to see Poison Ivy's Environmental Studies 302 - Special Topics: Ecofeminism term paper. I imagine it ponders taking patriarchy and dissolving it in the digestive juices of a genetically altered pitcher plant.

Who's term paper would YOU want to see?

And the Opening Weekend Figures Are....

Gene Luen Yang has a great mini-comic about why he's not going to see The Last Airbender until it's third weekend or later. I love his compromise and plan on following suite!

Superqueeros! for May 26th, 2010

Wildcats #23

Part one of three!! The Wildcats have finally set up a home base for their operations, so now it's time to start solving some mysteries! Jackson King and Ladytron are on the hunt for the new Doctor, but back at the ranch an army of baddies is on the rise! Apollo and Midnighter will no doubt be cameo-ing in this storyline (if only as boyfriend ex machina), and the World's End Wild-verse is one of the most exciting universes I've ever read. #pickoftheweek

Wonder Woman #44

THE ULTIMATE SIMONE WONDER WOMAN!!!!! While Gail will be joining JMS, Geoff Johns, and more next month on the anthology issue #600, this is the last issue penned exclusively by Simone before JMS takes over writing duties! And while I'm super excited for JMS's take on the power princess, I'm also expecting the amazing beefcake to drop off after the switch in writers. Which is tres triste, y'all. Tres triste.

Dark Wolverine #86

Daken Vs. Wolverine! Also, Romulus Vs. Skaar, but whatever. Daken Vs. Wolverine!!!! Lots of daddy jokes!!! I'm so excited for the stabbing and the bitching! And the this-storyline-is-not-a-dream! That will be a welcome relief from this title's status quo! Also, hot inked sociopaths!

Detective Comics #865

The Batman story in this book is actually quite good. But that's not why DC865 is featured in this blog post! The Question is nearing the end of her storyline and this issue the solicits promise a reveal of the big bad! The Question is the only reason I'm still picking up this book now that Batwoman is gone/on hiatus/elsewhere, and it's a testament to the quality of her story that I'm plunking down the dineros for her mini-comic. So git it!

Gotham City Sirens #12

Poison Ivy's in trouble! Will her sirens come to her aid, or will she have to outsmart her former employee and save her own life? It might not be explicitly queer, but GCS has definitely found its feet and is a consistently awesome book about the DCU's most compelling villains.

Madame Xanadu #23

It's the end! Not of the series, but of the storyline that pits the Madame against her sister Morgana. The solicits promise a fight to the death, but for mystical immortals that's, I'm sure, simply a relative term. Check out the action packed conclusion of this GLAAD-nominated book's most exciting storyline!

Use the Force Luke... to turn left in .5 miles

Have you ever needed to ask for directions on your way to Mos Eisley? Well search no more, friend.

The popular GPS navigation technology company, TomTom, has released a series of new Star Wars voices for their GPS devices. The first of such voices to guide you through the perils of navigating your vehicle is the infamous Sith Lord, Darth Vader. Now, being a New Yorker... I hate driving. I love jumping on the subway and zipping around town on a bike. But I now almost want to purchase the cheapest used car I can find just to be able to hear the dark lord guide me to my next target... er... destination. Check out a video of Vader's voice recording:

I remember taking a spring break road trip with friends out to Nashville, where we used my parent's GPS device. Whenever we veered off-course our nifty device always said "Recalculating" like a good nice, polite, navigation assistant. What happens when you disobey a Sith lord? Here's hoping it goes something like, "I find your lack of faith disturbing..." #please.

More Star Wars voices are slated to be released in the coming months including:

• C-3PO - "The chances of safely navigating the streets of New York are 456,264,742 to 1!"
• Yoda - "Grove Street leads to Maple Avenue leads to Birch Boulevard, which leads to... the Dark Side"
• Han Solo - "Turn left hear kid, and let's blow this thing and go home!"

One caveat, I'm concerned that Yoda's odd sentence syntax would guide me off a cliff. Read the full announcement after the jump.

Read more »

Science FACTion: I CAN HAZ WEB SHOOOTERZ?!

So, it turns out our friendly neighborhood Spiderman had it right all those years ago. Evidently Scientists have been trying to figure out just how those nifty spiders create their silk which has a greater tensile strength than steel! According to inhabitat, scientists at two universities have made a decisive breakthrough in their research:

Spider silk may seem fragile, but it actually has a tensile strength that is a whopping five times more than steel! Scientists have been trying to replicate and harness the properties of the elusive material for years and now researchers from the Technische Universitaet Muenchen and the University of Bayreuth have actually unlocked the secret of how spiders construct the elastic fibers. Armed with this new knowledge, they’re planning to build an artificial spinning apparatus that will mimic a spider’s silk glands, which could eventually lead to a material that could have an unlimited number of applications from medical to construction.

All I can say is that if I'm not webswinging by 2020, I am suing Science. Cuz I was promised flying cars and FTL travel, and they have produced neither.

Elementary, My Dear Robin!

Cool new thing alert! Comics Alliance has cobble together a periodic table of the elements of superheroes! O is for orphan, Fe is for metallic form, etc, etc! Work out your favorite superhero's molecular structure, or use a Ouija board to create a character all your own!!!