Bio Engineer Archive
Thread: How many of us pursue Bioengineering IRL?
Page 1 of 2
ishakal
Mon Nov 08, 2004 12:46 pm
#1
I happen to be a bioengineer in real life in addition to playing one in SWG, i was wondering how many of us do the same thing (have a biology related career.)
Ishakal Pathfinder
Biohazard Biotechnologies
Scylla
Uubu
Mon Nov 08, 2004 2:17 pm
#2
I work as a pharmacy tech which is one reason i chose BE. Since then it has sparked my interest in alot of bioengineering stories i read on the news.
mozter2112
Mon Nov 08, 2004 2:23 pm
#3
i'm a stay at home mom at the moment but while i was in school(and when i go back to finish) i was pre-science emphasizing biology and genetics.i plan on going into genetic counceling.
ishakal
Mon Nov 08, 2004 9:41 pm
#4
Well, i know something about how cloning and genetic engineering is done. I don't think that SOE had biology in mind when they designed SWG (ie the boneless pikets.) The way that i think it should be done, and this is my opinion, is a little different. Now, it seems to me that we have a bit of control over the finished product with creature cloning, but, it comes down to mixing dna from wildly different organisms together haphazardly. The way i would like to see it done is to start with a template, for argument's sake a durni. Now, the cloning process should center around genetically engineering the durni, not mixing dna from five different creatures and stuffing it into a durni husk. You should be able to take a dna sample from a wild critter, and isolate the genes that code for the desired trait. For instance, genes coding for a particular venom or for rancor armor. Then, you should be able to have a culture (bacteria or other cells) grow the genes for you as some sort of a gene bank. The bioengineer could then draw from this nearly infinite supply of dna and add genes to the basic durni genome in order to get it to express the desired phenotype.
And, of course, the failure rate for bioengineering is way too low to be close to realistic, but this is a game.
Ishakal Pathfinder, phD
Biohazard Biotechnologies
Scylla
And, of course, the failure rate for bioengineering is way too low to be close to realistic, but this is a game.
Ishakal Pathfinder, phD
Biohazard Biotechnologies
Scylla
CapricornONE
Mon Nov 08, 2004 10:43 pm
#5
LOLZ!!! that is the funniest thing I have heard all night!
ishakal wrote:
Well, i know something about how cloning and genetic engineering is done. I don't think that SOE had biology in mind when they designed SWG (ie the boneless pikets.) The way that i think it should be done, and this is my opinion, is a little different. Now, it seems to me that we have a bit of control over the finished product with creature cloning, but, it comes down to mixing dna from wildly different organisms together haphazardly. The way i would like to see it done is to start with a template, for argument's sake a durni. Now, the cloning process should center around genetically engineering the durni, not mixing dna from five different creatures and stuffing it into a durni husk. You should be able to take a dna sample from a wild critter, and isolate the genes that code for the desired trait. For instance, genes coding for a particular venom or for rancor armor. Then, you should be able to have a culture (bacteria or other cells) grow the genes for you as some sort of a gene bank. The bioengineer could then draw from this nearly infinite supply of dna and add genes to the basic durni genome in order to get it to express the desired phenotype.
And, of course, the failure rate for bioengineering is way too low to be close to realistic, but this is a game.
Ishakal Pathfinder, phD
Biohazard Biotechnologies
Scylla
droid327
Tue Nov 09, 2004 2:13 am
#7
i'm a paleobiologist so the evolutionary holes in this game disgust me so much i've had to develop mental defenses against them when I go out hunting =)
How exactly would a Merek ever evolve? How do they eat?!? They have little monkey mouths but no fingers!! And their arms are far too long, they couldnt practically get food from their claws to their mouths! It would be like us trying to eat with 3' chopsticks =D Some of you might remember my rant about Rancor taxonomy as well heh....
oh! oh! and Rontos, wt f? Why would you need long necks on Tatooine, nothing is going to grow more than a foot or two off the ground. Barring the odd "a dead log" monster lair, there isnt even anywoody vegetation on Tat at all!
Message Edited by droid327 on 11-09-2004 01:15 AM
Message Edited by droid327 on 11-09-2004 01:15 AM
Zadokk
Tue Nov 09, 2004 11:28 am
#8
droid327 wrote:
oh! oh! and Rontos, wt f? Why would you need long necks on Tatooine, nothing is going to grow more than a foot or two off the ground. Barring the odd "a dead log" monster lair, there isnt even anywoody vegetation on Tat at all!
lol i hadn't noticed that myself. makes you think what the devs were drinking thinking at the time.
Meplorium
Tue Nov 09, 2004 5:28 pm
#9
I work ina lab at a major cancer center. For the Rontos, most likely brought in from off world. SW has a galatic culture that has been around for thousands of years. Everything would be cross bread/transplated in that time. Sort of like how Australia has the largest wild camel population in the world or New Zealand with its sheep.
No idea how Mereks eat, maybe the ewoks domesticated small spiders 1000s of years ago and just keep feeding them by hand. I personally never thought or cared how a CG animal eats just as long as it isn't eating my CG character.
droid327
Tue Nov 09, 2004 6:29 pm
#10
Meplorium wrote:
I work ina lab at a major cancer center. For the Rontos, most likely brought in from off world. SW has a galatic culture that has been around for thousands of years. Everything would be cross bread/transplated in that time. Sort of like how Australia has the largest wild camel population in the world or New Zealand with its sheep.
No idea how Mereks eat, maybe the ewoks domesticated small spiders 1000s of years ago and just keep feeding them by hand. I personally never thought or cared how a CG animal eats just as long as it isn't eating my CG character.
nah im starting to think that Mereks evolved when a BE crossbred a Dalyrake with an Ewok =D
IobewBestoes
Wed Nov 10, 2004 2:17 am
#11
Not into bioengineering so much, but I did graduate college with a degree in Medical Microbiology & Immunology... and I'm a microbiology/biochemistry sorta "geek"... lol
I'm kinda disgruntled about the whole pet aspect of the BE profession. Maybe because I used to be a MCH back when pets were much more useful (when Graul Maulers had light armor, and you could pull 2 at a time). Granted a BE can still make better pets than probably 75-80% of the mobs found... with the exception of the super high-end creatures. However, with CH being such a dead profession now, it seems BE industry in the game is exclusively making chef/tailor additives. I'm not complaining, I make millions per week of off mass-producing these, I just wish the pet aspect was somehow adjusted so they'd have a better demand.
I'm kinda disgruntled about the whole pet aspect of the BE profession. Maybe because I used to be a MCH back when pets were much more useful (when Graul Maulers had light armor, and you could pull 2 at a time). Granted a BE can still make better pets than probably 75-80% of the mobs found... with the exception of the super high-end creatures. However, with CH being such a dead profession now, it seems BE industry in the game is exclusively making chef/tailor additives. I'm not complaining, I make millions per week of off mass-producing these, I just wish the pet aspect was somehow adjusted so they'd have a better demand.
Zadokk
Wed Nov 10, 2004 3:59 am
#12
i would guess closer to 95% of all (samplable) mobs found. There really arent many animals in the wild that are better than what we can do. Harder, faster, better, stronger is basically the motto we live to. In that 5% are mobs like Merek Harvester (who has 75% kinetic) and mobs that have specials we can't use (like Plague Strike). Really there's very little we can't do to improve a wild spawn, even if its just lowering the overall CL.
IobewBestoes wrote:
Granted a BE can still make better pets than probably 75-80% of the mobs found...
Hylidex
Wed Nov 10, 2004 8:10 am
#13
I've done some bioengineering in RL. I have been looting like crazy in game looking for a Geonosian thermocycler. After that, I'll have to find an analogue of Taq polymerase--perhaps from creatures living on Lokian volcanoes? I figure if I can get PCR working, I can sell my mask-sent shirt and pants and not have to endure any more of those murderous business trips to Dathomir and Endor.
This thread has been good for a GREAT laugh.
I am not sure about SWG paleobiology, but I can say for certain what Mereks eat. They eat BE's. I speak from experience. They kill by stabbing with those long forelimbs, then nibble at their leisure with their little monkey teeth.
I've been trying to work with the boneless picket idea. This should be a great food item. With a little genetic engineering, I'm hoping for boneless skinless pickets which can be directly packaged up and sold at the local food stores. Now if only ANY of us had nutritional requirements....
The lack of nutritional requirements for any creature in SWG probably accounts for the wild speciation. Food is no longer a major selective factor. Rontos probably have long necks to attract mates. Breeding seems a little strange, too, since somehow creatures have made dead logs and piles of rocks hatch out other adult creatures. Obviously there is much to be learned about SWG biology.
As far as BE's improving on wild creatures, yes, it is possible. My level 60 gnort is BMOC among the wild gnorts. Wild rancors tend to laugh at my rancors, though. I haven't even dared the embarrassment of a kimogila.
And one final thought: imagine where DNA fingerprinting technology would be today if there were a 20% chance the DNA donor would die during sampling.
Page 1 of 2