Monthly Archives: January 2021

Cloning was already an established practice in Star Wars when the clone army was commissioned from Kamino, so where are all the other clones?

Dexs comment about the quality of Kaminos work suggests there are multiple cloners to choose from, and Kaminos reputation means that they must have done enough cloning work to establish themselves as the finest in the business. Despite this, few clones are ever seen outside of the Republic Army. The Empire and the Sith also continue cloning through The Mandalorian and the sequel trilogy, long after the Republic Army was gone. Though the cloning business may have taken a significant hit from the Clone Wars, it doesnt seem the practice completely went away in these later years, givenhow easy it was for the Empire to collect scientists capable of cloning Emperor Palpatine.

Related:Star Wars: Every Character Who Knew About Order 66

Yet, if cloning is a common practice, where are all the other clones? The answer could lie in how they're used. Jedi Master Sifo-Dyas and the Sith quickly turned to the Kamino cloners as a solution to their military needs, and the Kaminoans seem to have some experience in growing an army that would be obedient and efficient. Even in the sequels, Kyle Ren bitingly suggested a clone army might be easier for Snoke to control than his Stormtroopers. Clone armies are likely a common use for clones, though not armies the size of the Republics. Smaller clone armies could be used as planetary or private security forces.The Republic didnt have amilitary before the clone army, but lesser governments and powerful individuals would have plenty of use for small-scale batches of clone soldiers.

The expansive Republic Army was only possible through the dark money the Sith secretly provided Sifo-Dyas to pay for the commission and later through the deep pockets of the Galactic Republic government. Its unlikely anyone besides the Sith or the Republic would have the treasury to pay for a large army, so cloners probably earn their keep off of small commissions. Aside from security forces, wealthy individuals may hire cloners for more personal reasons, such as alternative means of raising a child, similar to Jango Fetts request for serving as the clonetrooperstemplate. In this way, many people in the galaxy could be the product of cloning, though only those with considerable means would be able to afford this process, particularly on a large scale.

It may seem like the Republic Army and the Sith strandcasts are the only uses of cloning in Star Wars, but clones are probably scattered throughout the galaxy in various roles. The movies and shows have yet to deeply explore cloning beyond its immediate relationship with the fall of the Republic and the rise of the Empire and First Order. Given that other clones would be cast from different templates and far less numerous than Jango Fetts clones, they could even appear in the story without acknowledgment. The Clone Wars may be long over, but the world of cloning still has a lot of story potential for Star Wars to explore in the future.

Next:Star Wars: Why Kamino Wasn't in the Jedi Archives

Young Sheldon Explains Big Bang Theory Finale Plot Hole

Christy Box is a features writer for Screen Rant. When shes not writing about Star Trek, shes a linguistic anthropologist and researcher. Her experience in TV production as a director, producer, and camera operator has made her passionate about the work that goes into bringing a story to the screen. She is fascinated by science fiction, monsters, slow-burn suspense, complicated female leads, and faithful book adaptations. In her free time, she writes fiction and reads everything she can get her hands on. She has also written for Ranker and Factinate.

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Star Wars: Why There Aren't Many Clones Outside the Republic Army - Screen Rant

A new Pokmon fan theory indicates that Team Rocket might've been cloned a lot, but it might not actually make much sense.

Few villains are as iconic asPokmon's Jessie, James and Meowth. Team Rocket is beloved by fans of all ages as the lovable goofballs who pursue Ash and his Pikachu across the entirePokmon world, often finding themselves soaring into space as a result of their schemes. Despite their goofy demeanor, however, Team Rocket can accomplish great things when they apply themselves, as seen in the Alola Region when Jessie and James placed fairly high in the Manalo Conference.

However, when going back to the early episodes ofPokmon, Jessie and James seem almost unrecognizable when compared to later seasons. The first 12 or so episodes ofPokmon, right before the team reach Cerulean City, feel like a far more competent, intimidating threat. This has led some fans to speculate that maybe Jessie and James were cloned.

RELATED:MechaMew2 Is the Coolest Pokmon You've Never Heard Of

On the Fan Theories subreddit, one user recently posted a theory speculating that Team Rocket was cloned. The user speculates that the Team Rocket who appeared at the start of the series was simply too competent to be the same characters who, only a few episodes later, would end up trapped on the SS Anne and unaware that Magikarp was a somewhat uselessPokmon.

The theory argues that Giovanni already had access to cloning technology, thanks to the Mewtwo project, which, at that time, was ongoing. Every time Team Rocket was blasted off into space, they'd burn up on re-entry or die, which would result in a new Team Rocket team being sent out, each with the memories of the original. To this end, Giovanni also wants them to capture Pikachu because Pikachu can be used to power up the cloning devices. This makes Pikachu a high-priority case for Giovanni.

RELATED:Pokmon's 25th Anniversary Involves Merch, Celebrations & Katy Perry

Though it's a fun thing to consider, this theory has a lot of problems. For one, Team Rocket and the others remember their prior exploits. If all of them were clones, they would be unable to remember any of their previous experiences. Not to mention, Team Rocket is often shown pulling themselves together after being blasted off, indicating that they definitely survived each blasting off point.

Furthermore, Team Rocket isn'talways incompetent in later episodes; at times, they're still highly capable thieves. They consistently demonstrate engineering skills with various machines and devices used to capture Pikachu. DuringPokmon the Movie: 2000, they even use their skills to help Ash save the world. During the Alola League, they prove they're incredibly competitive players when Jessie ranked in the Top 16 and James ranked in the Top 8 out of over 151 of the strongest trainers in Alola.

RELATED:This Gengar Pillow Is the Second-Weirdest Pokmon Product You Can Sleep In

The biggest hole in the theory, however, is that Mewtwowas the first and only specimen to survive Giovanni and Dr. Fuji's cloning process. When Fuji tried to clone his dead daughter Amber in "The Birth of Mewtwo," AmberTwo, along with multiple other cloned starters, all die. Mewtwo is the only success Giovanni had at cloning. Mewtwo later destroyed all the cloning technology, only to rebuild it for his own purposes. Giovanni never had access to this rebuild technology nor knew of its existence, and it's unlikely it even existed after the events of the first movie.

Not only would it make little sense for Team Rocket to be cloned, but any aspect of this theory that tied into Giovanni's cloning technology falls apart when you realize that Giovanni had nothing to clone Team Rocket with. Mewtwo was a fluke for Giovanni, which was why he couldn't just make a new Mewtwo when Mewtwo ran away.

Ultimately, the fan theory, while interesting, simply cannot hold up under scrutiny. The Team Rocket who won in the Manalo Conference is the same Team Rocket as there always was.

KEEP READING:Pokmon: Ash's Best Traveling Companion Is... His Mom

The Promised Neverland Reinvents Itself in Its Season 2 Premiere

Earned my MFA from Fairleigh Dickinson University. Written for The Mary Sue, ScreenRant, The Anime Feminist, The Gamer, and Vocal. Lifelong lover of comics, anime, and weird films. Loves different varieties of coffee.

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Pokemon: Team Rocket Clone Theory Attempts to Explain Their Change From Villains to Joke Characters - CBR - Comic Book Resources

Tullis Matson and Dr Gareth Starbuck with Suffolk Punch mare Ruby and her newborn filly foal, who was born in 2020 through the use of sex-sorted semen.

A free webinar on genetic preservation and animal cloning is being hosted by Tullis Matson next week.

In the first British Breeding webinar for 2021, Matson will talk to Gemini Genetics and ViaGen Pets and Equine to explain the concept and applications of animal genetic preservation and animal regeneration (cloning).

Matson, of Stallion AI Services, will describe the process in submitting samples for genetic preservation and the applications of the technology to not only the equine breeding industry but also to the preservation of rare and endangered breeds and species.

Matson was behind the use of sex-sorting of equine semen that resulted in the birth of a Suffolk Punch filly foal last year. With fewer than 72 female Suffolk Punches remaining in Britain and fewer than 300 in the world, every female born is vital to the survival of this endangered and iconic British horse.

He will then hand over to Blake Russell, president of ViaGen Pets and Equine, for an exclusive insight into the world of animal cloning. Live from their premises in Texas, Canada and South Carolina, this webinar will give behind the scenes access to the extensive facilities and technologies. It will cover everything from companion animal cloning to equine cloning and even rare and endangered species regeneration. A live viewing of the worlds first cloned Przewalskis horse foal is also on the agenda.

Pre-registration is essential. Those booking will receive a link and access code for the webinar.

Register for the webinar, on Thursday, January 28 at 7pm (GMT)

Blake Russell is President @ViaGen Pets and Equine, which deliver genetic preservation and cloning services to pet and horse owners worldwide. He also runs an equine breeding program at his ranch in North Texas, where he and his family take care of his prized cloned stallion Pure Tailor Fit, a clone of two-time AQHA Racing World Champion Tailor Fit. Blake has had a successful 25-year career in the animal genetics business working in more than 15 countries. He received his B.S. in Animal Science from Oklahoma State University and his MBA from Emory University.

Tullis Matson is Founder and Managing Director @Stallion AI Services. He began working in racing stables and then running his fathers non-thoroughbred stud at Twemlows Hall, before a study tour of New Zealand where he completed a course on the Artificial Insemination (AI) of horses. On his return, Twemlows Hall Stud Farm began practising AI for the first time. Tullis started Stallion AI Services Ltd in 1996 and this soon developed into taking stallions in for freezing, chilling and fresh insemination. In 2008, Tullis set up Equine Reproduction Supplies which is now the UKs largest distributor of equine artificial insemination equipment and in 2010 was given the exclusive rights to distribute the world-renowned Minitube products in the UK. In 2011 Tullis Matson received the Marsh Christian Award for Conservation in Genetic Bio-Diversity, in recognition of significant technical, scientific and practical contributions to the field of genetic bio-diversity.

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Free webinar on preserving equine genetics and cloning - Horsetalk

The Pyrenean ibex went extinct 21 years ago this month -- and then again 3 years laer.

21 years ago this month, a wild goat species went extinct and kicked off a bizarre but ultimately hopeful scientific adventure.

The Pyrenean ibex became extinct in January of 2000, when a falling tree landed on the last surviving member of the species. Three and a half years later, the Pyrenean ibex became extinct for the second time, when a newborn clone gasped her first and last breaths in a Spanish laboratory. Heres the strange tale of how the Pyrenean ibex became the first extinct species to be cloned and the first species to go extinct twice and what it means for future conservation efforts.

If A Tree Falls In The Forest, Does It Cause An Extinction?

Scientists know exactly what killed Celia, the worlds last wild Pyrenean ibex. Rangers at a Spanish national park found her on January 6, 2000, lying beneath a fallen tree an open and shut case. The real mystery, which ecologists may never definitively solve, is how Celia ended up dying alone, when her species once flourished in the mountains of northern Spain and Portugal and southern France.

Several species of ibex wild mountain goats live across Europe, Asia, and Africa. Theyve coexisted with humans for a long time; people painted ibexes on the walls of caves in southern Europe 30,000 years ago and at sites in Israels Negev Desert at least 10,000 years ago. The subspecies known as the Pyrenean ibex moved into the mountains of northern Iberia and southern France around 18,000 years ago, near the end of the last Ice Age, along with a few other closely related subspecies.

For thousands of years, they thrived. Even in the Middle Ages, historical records tell us that Pyrenean ibex, also called bucardo, grazed the rocky, scrub-dotted mountain pastures in abundance. But their numbers dropped sharply in the 1800s. By 1910 only 40 bucardos remained, sheltered in a national park in northern Spain. Less than a century later, the last of their descendants died and then she was cloned, and then the clone died.

Were Not Going To Stock A Theme Park This Way

Conservationists saw what was coming long before Celias death, but they still came perilously close to missing their chance. Less than a year before the last Pyrenean ibex died, biologists took skin biopsies from her ears and put the tissue in cold storage. Shortly after her death, Spanish government agencies think of them as the Spanish counterparts to the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services working with a private company called Advanced Cell Technology and other teams of researchers, thawed out the frozen samples and started trying to bring the bucardo back from the dead.

The concept is called de-extinction, and Jurassic Park made it look a lot easier than it actually is.

First, if you want an extinct species to walk the Earth again, you need a place to put it. Ecosystems adapt to the loss of a species in several ways; maybe a new species movies in to fill the empty niche, or maybe the whole food web changes so much that the landscape becomes nearly unrecognizable to its old inhabitants. Thats why de-extinction efforts often start by trying to understand the lifestyles and ecological role of extinct species like the thylacine.

Technically, of course, you could create a thylacine, a woolly mammoth, or a bucardo and keep them in captivity but aside from the ethical arguments, resurrecting a species without reintroducing it to the wild misses most of the point of de-extinction.

The next challenge the one currently facing efforts to renew the northern white rhinoceros population is finding a species that can carry cloned embryos to term. You need a fairly close relative whose babies have a similar gestation period and birth weight, and you need to implant the embryo at just the right moment: its stage of development has to coincide with the surrogate moms reproductive cycle. And the rather surprising problem is that we dont know quite enough about the reproductive cycle of living animals like wild goats and southern white rhinos.

Putting one animals DNA into a cell is actually the easy part, relatively speaking. When the Spanish researchers tried cloning Celia, they produced nearly 500 cloned embryos, and they implanted 154 of them into female goats (some ibexes and some wild/domestic hybrids). Only 5 of those surrogates ended up pregnant, and only 1 managed to give birth.

When Life Doesnt Find A Way

For the first few seconds, it looked like the Pyrenean ibex was going to make a comeback. The cloning team delivered Celias daughter by Cesarean section, and the newborn burcado had a normal heartbeat, wide open eyes, and actively kicking legs. She just couldnt breathe.

Physical defects in the lungs as well as in other organs have also been reported in neonatal cloned sheep that failed to survice, Jose Folch and his colleagues noted in their 2009 paper on the effort.

Later, scientists learned that the cloned goat had been born with an extra lobe in her left lung, which took up too much space in her chest and kept the left lung from inflating properly. All of her other organs looked normal, and her nuclear DNA was identical to Celias, without any potential lethal mutations. After several minutes of severe respiratory distress, the Pyrenean ibex passed into extinction for the second time.

What would life have been like for Celias daughter if she had survived? Its hard to say, but the struggling newborn goat could never have completely revived an extinct species on her own. It takes two, as they say and actually it takes somewhere between 50 and 500, if you want enough genetic diversity to actually keep the species going in the long run.

The best bet would probably have been to cross-breed the cloned burcado with males from another, closely related subspecies of ibex. That way, some of the extinct species genetic diversity would at least get passed along, even if the burcado ended up absorbed into another species and therefore technically still extinct. In other words, de-extinction is complicated, not just technically but philosophically.

Folch and his colleagues concluded, At present, it can be assumed that cloning is not a very effective way to preserve endangered species. [] However, in species as bucardo, cloning is the only possibility to avoid its complete disappearance. To that end, they urged storing tissue and cell samples from endangered species to give future cloning programs a fighting chance.

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The Species That Went Extinct Twice - Forbes