Scientists want to bring back the woolly mammoth - an ancestor of the elephant. It became extinct 4,000 years ago. The idea to bring it back to life is like something from the movie Jurassic Park. Scientists will use the DNA from mammoth bones to clone the giant animal. It would be the first time since the Ice Age for a mammoth to walk on the earth. The lead scientist is a geneticist from Harvard. He is an expert in editing DNA and genes. Ben Lamm, a businessman working on the project, said: "Our goal is to have our first calves in the next four to six years."
Mr Lamm created a technology and software company and gave $15 million for this research. He said he has big plans to bring the mammoth back to life and to return it to its Arctic home. He also wants to revive other species. Mr Lamm believes the research will result in new ideas that will improve biotechnology and health care. Lamm said the project was like the Apollo missions to the moon. They led to the development of everyday products like freeze-dried food, and of technology such as GPS. Mr Lamm believes research into genes will also improve our lives.
Try the same news story at these levels:
Woolly Mammoths - Level 0, Woolly Mammoths - Level 1 or Woolly Mammoths - Level 3
Sources- https://www.theguardian.com/science/2021/sep/13/firm-bring-back-woolly-mammoth-from-extinction
- https://edition.cnn.com/2021/09/13/world/woolly-mammoth-resurrect-deextinction-scn/index.html
- https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2021/09/13/resurrect-woolly-mammoth-company-plans/8325439002/
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