quote:

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Japanese scientists have written men out of the reproduction rule-book, and created fatherless mice.

The team made the animals by combining the nucleus of one female's egg with that of another, essentially creating a mouse with two mothers.

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I think I'll keep my husband anyway. He's so cute and cuddly. Obsolescence has ever stop me from keeping something I like.

[ April 29, 2004, 07:28 PM: Message edited by: The Rabbit ]
 

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Posted by MaydayDesiax (Member # 5012) on :
 
look at it this way: one day he'll be a collector's item.
 

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Posted by BYuCnslr (Member # 1857) on :
 
I keep telling women that men suck and you don't need us anymore, but nobody listens to me.
Satyagraha
 

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Posted by mr_porteiro_head (Member # 4644) on :
 
I might be obsolete, but I'm still useful. And happy.
 

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Posted by MaydayDesiax (Member # 5012) on :
 
yes, dear, but you're cute and cuddly... I think I'll keep you too
 

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Posted by pooka (Member # 5003) on :
 

quote:

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Kyuko is one success from 460 attempts at growing embryos

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Parthenogenic mice! Now there's a boon to humanity. I know they aren't technically parthenogenic, but from two female haploids.
 

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Posted by MEC (Member # 2968) on :
 
virgin births are possible in nature, however the child only has chromosomes of the mother. I don't have a link though.
 

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Posted by Valentine014 (Member # 5981) on :
 
Did anyone ever see that Sliders episode where they went to that dimension where men were on the verge of extinction due to a virus and all the women nearly had had heartattacks when they saw them (of course I would have one too if Jerry O'Connell popped out of the air in front of me).
 

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Posted by MEC (Member # 2968) on :
 
How about the episode where women could no longer have babies and men had to be artifically impregnanted?
 

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Posted by jehovoid (Member # 2014) on :
 
Could you imagine the utter womanliness of a woman who got her genes from two women? She'd probably need a separate house as her shoe closet.

Oh yeah, anybody ever read Herland? I guess it really could happen.

[ April 29, 2004, 07:36 PM: Message edited by: jehovoid ]
 

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Posted by Dan_raven (Member # 3383) on :
 
Until they create a robot that stomps on spiders and removes mice, Men are far from obsolete.
 

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Posted by Valentine014 (Member # 5981) on :
 
For bugs

For mice

*waves goodbye to Dan*
 

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Posted by Jenny Gardener (Member # 903) on :
 
That kind of man would never be allowed in my house. We practice catch and release.

I allow a certain population of spiders to live in my home, and I only remove them if the population gets too large. The population only gets large if my household ecosystem is out of balance (for instance, when the ladybugs invade in the fall). I can use my spider population as a measure of the health of my household.

As for mice, well, we have a cat. She is a very efficient mouser. If I didn't have a cat, I would welcome blacksnakes.

I still like men, though. They have a certain something I'd rather not do without. And they smell nice, and they have a very valuable but different perspective than mine.
 

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Posted by Nick (Member # 4311) on :
 
What about all the slave labor women make us men-folk do?
Who would build everything?


jk, I actually dig women contractors.
 

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Posted by jehovoid (Member # 2014) on :
 
I hate contracting things from women.
 

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Posted by Nick (Member # 4311) on :
 

quote:

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Until they create a robot that stomps on spiders and removes mice, Men are far from obsolete.

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I think he said remove, not kill. I agree with the catch and release idea. I like those boxes. Especially since I could just run the rodent to the local wildlife area (5 minutes away from my house) and set him off.
 

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Posted by jehovoid (Member # 2014) on :
 
Set him off? Are you using fireworks in a way they weren't intended to be used?
 

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Posted by Valentine014 (Member # 5981) on :
 
Even with the new bug and mice gadgets, Jenny is right (and no, I don't use those bug things for the same reasons Jenny does), men are nice. Not just for doing things like building decks, fixing leaky faucets and the like, but they smell so good.

We'll not right after doing those things but in general.
 

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Posted by jehovoid (Member # 2014) on :
 
Not to mention the entertainment value.
 

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Posted by Valentine014 (Member # 5981) on :
 
Is this better?
 

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Posted by Nick (Member # 4311) on :
 

quote:

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Set him off? Are you using fireworks in a way they weren't intended to be used?

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I meant set the little thing off on it's way. Not any sort of violence.
 

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Posted by Nick (Member # 4311) on :
 
I remember what I smelled like after cutting out built in cheap sink that came with house an replaced with it with a self rimming sink.

Powdered porcelain and iron, mmm mmm!
 

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Posted by Polio (Member # 6479) on :
 
Where are all these men you're talking about who kill bugs and mice? I want one. My boyfriend will see a spec-that-might-be-a-spider and jump up and start dancing around until it spontaneously combusts.
 

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Posted by Nick (Member # 4311) on :
 
The only spiders I know of that give me pause are brown recluses (sp?) and Black Widows. Both are common where I live, so you just make sure you don't use to thin of paper towel to crush them. Actually, "Daddy Long-Leg" spiders are the most poisonous known, but one of the least dangerous due to not being able to pierce our skin.
 

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Posted by Dan_raven (Member # 3383) on :
 
Without men, who would run out and buy you the chocolate when you really, really, want it.
 

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Posted by Nick (Member # 4311) on :
 
Who would you vent on without men?
 

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Posted by Pixie (Member # 4043) on :
 
Hmmm... Cute, cuddly, good-smelling, handy around the house, just good to have around in general... and my best friend.

I don't think he's obselete, but he is an absolute treasure: one I plan on cherishing for many, many years hence.
 

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Posted by Bob the Lawyer (Member # 3278) on :
 
I wonder why this is being presented now? It certainly isn't new, I remember learning about back when I started my degree a waaaay back when. You can also remove all the female genetic material and replace them with male coding. Although you'd still need a womb.

What's REALLY awesome are the ramifications of doing all this
 

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Posted by Polio (Member # 6479) on :
 
I don't even like chocolate. I think I'm getting ripped off here.
 

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Posted by jehovoid (Member # 2014) on :
 

quote:

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Who would you vent on without men?

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quote:

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Although you'd still need a womb.

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quote:

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Could you imagine the utter womanliness of a woman who got her genes from two women? She'd probably need a separate house as her shoe closet.

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-o-

quote:

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Actually, "Daddy Long-Leg" spiders are the most poisonous known, but one of the least dangerous due to not being able to pierce our skin.

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http://www.snopes.com/critters/wild/longlegs.htm
 

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Posted by Jon Boy (Member # 4284) on :
 
*waits for Nick to mention that woman comes from womb-man*

[ April 29, 2004, 11:41 PM: Message edited by: Jon Boy ]
 

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Posted by Nick (Member # 4311) on :
 
You just HAD to steal my thunder didn't you Jon Boy.

 

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Posted by Jon Boy (Member # 4284) on :
 
What can I say? Preemptive folk etymology debunking is a hobby of mine.
 

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Posted by Nick (Member # 4311) on :
 
So you're saying that woman is not a word that came from the phrase womb man?

I'm smart about a lot of things Jon, but I don't like having to have a dictionary on hand to read your posts. I'm not an english major...

[ April 29, 2004, 11:56 PM: Message edited by: Nick ]
 

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Posted by Ralphie (Member # 1565) on :
 

quote:

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I hate contracting things from women.

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Oh, c'mon jehovoid.

Like you've ever been close enough to one to contract anything.
 

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Posted by Jon Boy (Member # 4284) on :
 
You're kidding, right, Nick? I mean, you've talked about this etymology at least a couple times, and I posted about it each time. Woman does in fact not come from "womb-man." It comes from the Old English wifman, meaning, of course, "wife-man." If you want a further explanation, I'll be happy to give you one in my thread (but I'm going to bed now, so don't expect an answer right away).
 

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Posted by Nick (Member # 4311) on :
 
It was your vocabulary that confused me, that's all. I have never seen the word etymology before.
 

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Posted by jehovoid (Member # 2014) on :
 
One time I drank out of the same cup after a girl. I thought I got pregnant from it but it turns out I never menstruate anyway so my period's always late.
 

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Posted by Slash the Berzerker (Member # 556) on :
 
I can hit stuff really hard.

Women will tell you that they don't want you to hit anything, but secretly they love the idea that if they NEEDED something hit, you could do it really well.
 

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Posted by Ralphie (Member # 1565) on :
 

quote:

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One time I drank out of the same cup after a girl. I thought I got pregnant from it but it turns out I never menstruate anyway so my period's always late.

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I will never be this funny.
 

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Posted by Frisco (Member # 3765) on :
 
When men become obsolete, the only guys left will be those of us skilled in the art of sweet, sweet lovin'.

It's the time I've been preparing for my whole life. Unfortunately, I think I was born a little early. No matter. My genes will live on.

Also, I think I'll write a book.
 

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Posted by Jon Boy (Member # 4284) on :
 
preemptive: marked by the seizing of the initiative : initiated by oneself <a preemptive attack>

folk etymology: a popular but erroneous etymology

debunk: to expose the sham or falseness of <debunk a legend>

hobby: a pursuit outside one's regular occupation engaged in especially for relaxation

Edit: Wait—did you mean that you've never seen the word etymology before, or that you've never seen the word etymology before?

etymology: the history of a linguistic form (as a word) shown by tracing its development since its earliest recorded occurrence in the language where it is found, by tracing its transmission from one language to another, by analyzing it into its component parts, by identifying its cognates in other languages, or by tracing it and its cognates to a common ancestral form in an ancestral language

Wow. That's a long definition.

[ April 30, 2004, 10:17 AM: Message edited by: Jon Boy ]
 

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Posted by Nick (Member # 4311) on :
 
I know all of those, just not etymology. You know what is really sad? It was an english teacher that told me that.
 

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Posted by Jon Boy (Member # 4284) on :
 
It is my sad experience that most English teachers know next to nothing about English. They should just start calling themselves literature teachers and stop living a lie.
 

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Posted by Nick (Member # 4311) on :
 
Well, I did graduate from the California school system. It's not the worst, but when I was a sophomore in high school, my state's education was rated as 36th in the nation.
 

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Posted by MEC (Member # 2968) on :
 
*agrees with Jon Boy*

[ April 30, 2004, 10:25 AM: Message edited by: MEC ]
 

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Posted by Megachirops (Member # 4325) on :
 
*frown*

I'm a former English teacher (and a former editor), and Cor is an English teacher. And I don't think your characterization applies to either of us.

Of course, you didn't mean us.

Just like OSC didn't mean us when he said more or less the same thing to us immediately upon hearing that she was an English teacher.

So why does it rub me the wrong way?
 

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Posted by Nick (Member # 4311) on :
 
Icarus, I don't think you're in that category of English teachers. You're a pretty brilliant guy, but most English teachers are not.
 

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Posted by advice for robots (Member # 2544) on :
 
Preemptive folk etymology--LOL

The only thing more useful would be an ERE--an Emergency Rescue Etymologist. "Quick! That word! What's its origin? Hurry up, man, he's having a vowel shift!"

I attribute my relative lack of job stress to the fact that I don't have to save lives on a daily basis. "Quick! We need a one page article STAT! Hang on, miss, he just got the revisions back, you're gonna be just fine."
 

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Posted by Megachirops (Member # 4325) on :
 
Thanks, Nick.

As I said, though, I know that in neither case was it referring to either of us. I'm thinking about it some more, and I think I'm starting to be able to verbalize what makes me uncomfortable about it. If you have an assumption about what "most" of a particular class of people are, then I fear that this is how you judge all of them until they prove themselves otherwise to you. And most people do seem to believe that most teachers are incompetent. Heck, most teachers I know believe that most teachers are incompetent, and that they are among the rare exceptions. It's the old "Those who can, do" thing--and we buy into it ourselves! And so when I meet somebody (say a writer I pretty much idolize) and say I'm a teacher, I hate the thought that I'm starting with that as a knock against me. I hate the thought of being prejudged at all, even if that's only natural human behavior.

Of course, we're all prejudiced. The question is one of degree. I'm not claiming to be an exception.

It's kind of like--and I know that this is not the best analogy, simply because of how charged it is, but it's what comes to mind--"In my experience, blacks are vulgar, unintelligent, and dishonest. Of course, I don't mean you personally. You're an exception." (Oh, dear. If this analogy is offensive, I will delete it. It would be better, though, if you can explain to me why I'm wrong.)
 

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Posted by Jon Boy (Member # 4284) on :
 
Sorry, Icarus. It was just supposed to be an exaggeration, but it wasn't very funny. I think that too many English teachers don't know nearly enough about English, but I wouldn't seriously say that most know next to nothing. But in all seriousness, I probably knew more rules of grammar and usage than my high school honors English teacher.
 

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Posted by Jenny Gardener (Member # 903) on :
 
I agree with Slash. If I can't hit something hard enough, it's nice to be intimate with someone who can.
 

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Posted by rivka (Member # 4859) on :
 
Ic, you and Cor are exceptions to many rules.

I'm not an English teacher, although I have subbed for some on occasion. I tend to be unhappily surprised at some of their usage and grammar knowledge.

Like the time I was asked to pick a grammar topic and teach it. I chose subjunctive -- and discovered that results of a previous writing assignment (graded by the teacher I was subbing for) were posted on a bulletin board. They were about hopes and wishes, and most should have used subjunctive. None did -- and this had not been corrected (although other errors had been).
 

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Posted by Ninja Squirrel (Member # 6508) on :
 
I notice some prejudice that no-one has mentioned yet.

quote:

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Could you imagine the utter womanliness of a woman who got her genes from two women? She'd probably need a separate house as her shoe closet.

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quote:

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Why is obsession with shoes considered "womanly"? Being a female myself, I find the stereotype a little offensive.

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As I told celia a week ago--you're an exception.

It's called reality: Come join us.
 

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Posted by Eaquae Legit (Member # 3063) on :
 
Slash is right about more of us than like to admit it...

At least among the people I know, anyway.
 

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Posted by rivka (Member # 4859) on :
 
If I reach out my left hand from where I sit at the computer, I can reach my closet door. That's because it's rarely closed -- the shoe rack that hangs from it tends to make opening and closing it awkward . . .
 

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Posted by Nick (Member # 4311) on :
 
I'm not being stereo typical, but a lot of women out there think it's totally normal to spend $100 dollars on a purse.
 

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Posted by pooka (Member # 5003) on :
 
My husband has more pairs of shoes than me, but it's because he is saving the old ones for when general war breaks out.

So it is also possible to make a mouse from two male haploids?

I meant to look it up, but how does 1 in 480 experimental success rate compare with, say, cold fusion?
 

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Posted by Nick (Member # 4311) on :
 
Granted, I spend a lot on shoes too, but that's because I always go to stores that have shoe specialists. I have sensitive feet, so I always have to buy running shoes.
Average pair is $85.00.
 

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Posted by Megachirops (Member # 4325) on :
 
Jon, as I said, I know you weren't talking about us. And I don't doubt the truth of your observations (or rivka's). Stereotypes exist because there is some kernel of truth behind them. And I wasn't mad at you. Rather, I was exploring my own uncomfortable reaction, and trying to figure out why it bothers me when I hear statements like that even though they aren't directed at me. As I noted, it's the fear that people who don't already know me will immediately judge me based on this notion, and that rather than starting from a neutral position, I will have to begin by proving that this negative stereotype does not apply to me.

 

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Posted by Jon Boy (Member # 4284) on :
 
Okay. I just wanted to make it clear that I'm not bashing all English teachers or teachers in general (especially since Ruth is planning on being an English teacher, and I think she'll make a great one).
 

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Posted by Lara (Member # 132) on :
 
Well, I don't think English teachers will ever be obsolete, even if a million pairs of shoes are joined together succesfully.
 

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Posted by jehovoid (Member # 2014) on :
 
I realize that making a joke about women and shoes is a bit lame, so I've thought of a better punchline for the womanly woman from two women set-up (although the punchline is really just a formality since the whole appeal of the joke in the first place was saying "womanliness...woman...two women" in the same sentence):

She'd rival Clay Aiken for girliest being in the universe.

Okay, maybe that's lame too (and the timing is off because it's a redo of a previous joke). It's so hard to make fun of girls. Especially genetic-freak girls.

So no one's read Herland? By Charlotte Perkins Gilman, also wrote The Yellow Wallpaper which most everybody's probably read. Oh well, I'm sure someone on Hatrack's read it, just didn't come into this thread.
 

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Posted by Megachirops (Member # 4325) on :
 
It was funnier when it was not PC.


 

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Posted by UofUlawguy (Member # 5492) on :
 
I have read Herland.

Of course, it was required reading for a college course. And no, it was not Women's Studies. It was a class on Utopias/Dystopias.

I guess the question whether the society in Herland is a Utopia or a Dystopia would depend on whether you're asking a man or a woman.
 

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Posted by LadyDove (Member # 3000) on :
 
I was looking for Slashy's chatting thread and found this one that reminded me of the "Are Men Necessary" thread.
 

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Posted by ricree101 (Member # 7749) on :
 

quote:

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Originally posted by jehovoid:


So no one's read Herland? By Charlotte Perkins Gilman, also wrote The Yellow Wallpaper which most everybody's probably read. Oh well, I'm sure someone on Hatrack's read it, just didn't come into this thread.

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