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Hmm this makes me feel uneasy - why did they do it? Apart from the "hey cool! We sequenced Mendel's DNA!" what was the actual point? Sure now you know his ge
by mattlondon 4y ago
Hmm this makes me feel uneasy - why did they do it? Apart from the "hey cool! We sequenced Mendel's DNA!" what was the actual point? Sure now you know his genetics predisposed him to diabetes... Was that worth exhuming his body for?
What will they do at 250 years? Dig him up again for selfies?
- Eleison23 4y ago[dead]
- tgv 4y agoIndeed. They justify themselves like this: > "He wasn't against research on his own body," she says. This isn't (that kind of) research, though. It's just morbid curiosity.
- bpodgursky 4y agoWould you say the same thing about someone who spent a couple years writing a biography of Mendel? Digging through his letters, possessions, life history? This gives background on his epilepsy and health conditions. It's interesting. It's respectful. Scientists can have fun sometimes; it's OK.
- rendall 4y ago> We sequenced Mendel's DNA!" what was the actual point? The article addresses that. Indeed, before I read the article, I too was tempted to write an angry dismissal. However, their approach and reasoning were very respectful. It was less about curiosity than honoring the fellow for his contribution to human knowledge. If they managed to enlist the support of the Augustinians themselves, I'm certain that we can entirely relax.
- aliqot 4y agoJeez you got really hung up over someone having the audacity to hit the comments with a reply before reading.
- bratbag 4y agoGood. More people should.
- mattlondon 4y agoFwiw I read before commenting.
- rendall 4y agoI assumed mattlondon did read the article.
- pavon 4y agoI read the article and I didn't see any discussion of what the goal or purpose of this research was, scientific or otherwise. It really read like they did it solely because "it would be cool" and they thought he would have been okay with that.
- mattlondon 4y agoI don't think exhuming someone's dead body after several hundred years is really "honoring" them. I just don't see what the objective here was (regardless of approvals) apart from "wouldn't it be cool if..." type attitude. What does the world gain here apart from a bit better understanding that a historical figure was genetically predisposed to diabetes etc (which FWIU has no really relevance to his research) I just don't see the value in desecration of 5 people's graves just to sequence Mendel's DNA for no obvious reason apart from just for shits and giggles. Just because you can doesn't mean you should.
- deleted 4y ago[deleted]
- qwerty456127 4y agoWhy not?
- i000 4y agoAgree. As a geneticist I have to say this is both scientifically vapid and ethically wrong. Mendel did not consent to this. Just like Henrietta Lacks did not know or consent to her tumor being used for research (which includes sequencing). Given how much bad publicity the biomedical research without consent has attracted this PR stunt is baffling and plain stupid. Poor Mendel.
- JoeAltmaier 4y agoHe was the father of modern genetics. Isn't it possible that this is a way to celebrate his accomplishments? By understanding the man using the very tools he provided the foundational discoveries for?
- permo-w 4y agoat what point do people stop caring about this kind of thing? 300 years? 500? a thousand? a few thousand? in reality it doesn’t matter and this outrage is irrational sentimentality when I die, you can throw my bones to the wild, but make sure to give me a stick to fight off the dogs
- sonabinu 4y agoAgreed! There should be a better way to give tribute. Maybe a way to encourage more people to design and conduct experiments diligently, encourage curiosity among young children. So many other ways to honor the scientific mind without exhuming the body.