Some Chick
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 Posted: Thu Apr 05, 2007 1:27 am Post subject: Pill To Cut Down On Cow Farting |
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Farmer's Little Helpers: A Pill To Cut Down On Cow Farting
by John Laumer, Philadelphia on 03.28.07
Tree Hugger
Anyone who has driven through dairy country has noticed that cows out to pasture generally all face in a similar direction. We always thought that bovine behavior had a practical basis...if you were a cow that is...such that if your neighbor let fly, you would be better able to hear trouble coming and "hoof it". Now, we see that some German agricultural researchers may have developed a novel means of climate change mitigation (Bovin-o?) which, if it has commercial success, may allow cows to align themselves in a more casual manner.Via the Guardian Cow farts (methane gas) are responsible for a good chunk of total greenhouse gas emissions. "And now, German scientists have invented a pill to cut bovine burping. The fist-sized plant-based pill, known as a bolus, combined with a special diet and strict feeding times, is meant to reduce the methane produced by cows." According to one of the researchers at the University of Hohenheim in Stuttgart, "The idea is that the cows would use the methane to produce glucose instead of passing it as wind. In turn this should help them to produce more milk." Note: methane gas has a longer atmospheric lifetime than it's breakdown product, C02, and hence methane has a much higher climate forcing potential. Thus, a little prevention goes a long way. The underlying marketing principle here seems solid too. Give farmers a productivity enhancing tool that has corollary environmental benefits and the free market can make it happen. Still, it's not a good enough reason for bringing a cow on the elevator. For those concerned with animal welfare and bio-accumulation potential, we read elsewhere that that bolus' active ingredients are various humic acids, natural plant derived tannins specifically.
http://www.treehugger.com/file.....ttle_1.php
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Lester
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| Posted: Thu Apr 05, 2007 3:10 am Post subject: |
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| I have a cheaper way, just blame it on the dog. |
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Xerxes
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| Posted: Thu Apr 05, 2007 3:48 am Post subject: |
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| It will become the new boutique foods. First it was organic, now this. I am strictly old-school, I like my beef and my milk gassy. Seriously, I wonder if it affects the food? I know that they are already selling cloned cow milk. |
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Lester
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| Posted: Thu Apr 05, 2007 3:50 am Post subject: |
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| Do they clone the cow or just the milk? |
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exton
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| Posted: Thu Apr 05, 2007 4:52 am Post subject: |
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| The cow. You can't clone milk. |
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Xerxes
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| Posted: Thu Apr 05, 2007 4:53 am Post subject: |
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| The whole cow....I fear they might start selling us cloned beef. |
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Lester
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| Posted: Thu Apr 05, 2007 4:55 am Post subject: |
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| exton wrote: | | The cow. You can't clone milk. |
Why not?
I'm all for gentically engineered/cloned food, and people for that matter, I'm even for cloned people food, as long as cloned people aren't sentient. |
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Xerxes
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| Posted: Thu Apr 05, 2007 5:04 am Post subject: |
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| Lester wrote: | | exton wrote: | | The cow. You can't clone milk. |
Why not?
I'm all for gentically engineered/cloned food, and people for that matter, I'm even for cloned people food, as long as cloned people aren't sentient. |
Too scary for me, my faith in science is great. But not that great. one misplaced chromosome and you're eating "Soylant Green"  |
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exton
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| Posted: Thu Apr 05, 2007 5:09 am Post subject: |
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| Lester wrote: | | exton wrote: | | The cow. You can't clone milk. |
Why not?
I'm all for gentically engineered/cloned food, and people for that matter, I'm even for cloned people food, as long as cloned people aren't sentient. |
...no, i mean, it's physically impossible to clone milk. The proposition doesn't even make sense.
You can only clone organisms. Milk is not an organism, it is a liquid that is excreted by an organism.
In order to get the same milk, you've got to clone the whole cow. |
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exton
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| Posted: Thu Apr 05, 2007 5:10 am Post subject: |
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| Xerxes wrote: | | Too scary for me, my faith in science is great. But not that great. one misplaced chromosome and you're eating "Soylant Green" |
One misplaced chromosome and the cow won't live.
You should read a bit about the subject before shaking in your britches; it's nothing to be worried about. |
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Lester
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| Posted: Thu Apr 05, 2007 5:13 am Post subject: |
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Can you clone cheese?
I like soylant green.
I almost typed that with a straight face. |
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Xerxes
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| Posted: Thu Apr 05, 2007 5:20 am Post subject: |
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| Lester wrote: | Can you clone cheese?
I like soylant green.I almost typed that with a straight face. |
You can, actually cheese will clone itself, if you leave it out long enough. |
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Lester
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| Posted: Thu Apr 05, 2007 5:40 am Post subject: |
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| Asexual reproduction. Yay. |
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Anym
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| Posted: Thu Apr 05, 2007 3:42 pm Post subject: |
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| I want a clone! and I am perfectly fine with eating a clone steak. |
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Xerxes
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| Posted: Thu Apr 05, 2007 7:09 pm Post subject: |
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| Lester wrote: | | Asexual reproduction. Yay. |
Yep, that way when you tell someone to go F*** themselves, they can actually do it! Like a worm.
Although, like with most relationships, you would end up just hating the other end of yourself..... |
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