[Ads-l] Word: de-extinction

[Jonathan Lighter]

Hence to "de-extinct."

https://www.cnn.com/2025/04/07/science/dire-wolf-de-extinction-cloning-colossal/index.html
A species of wolf that died out some 12,500 years ago lives again as the
“world’s first successfully de-extincted animal,” according to Dallas-based
biotech company Colossal Biosciences.

JL

On Thu, Apr 10, 2025 at 5:49 PM ADSGarson O'Toole <adsgarsonotoole at gmail.com>
wrote:

> The term "de-extinction" is in the news because of the articles about
> dire wolves.
>
> The OED has an entry for "de-extinction" (noun) which refers to the
> scientific underpinnings of "de-extinction". The first citation in
> 1979 is intriguing, but it is from a fantasy novel titled "Source of
> Magic" by Piers Anthony. This is the second book of Anthony's famous
> Xanth series. I doubt that Anthony presented any scientific
> underpinnings for his use of "de-extinction", but I have not read his
> book. Maybe the 1979 citation should be in brackets?
>
> The OED does mention that the 1979 citation is in a fantasy novel.
>
> [Begin excerpt from OED]
> de-extinction noun
>
> The (proposed or imagined) revival of an extinct species, typically by
> cloning or selective breeding. Also: the (proposed) use of such
> methods to prevent a currently endangered species from becoming
> extinct.
>
> The source of quot. 1979 is a fantasy novel.
>
> 1979 He just stood there and stared at this abrupt de-extinction... If
> he killed these animals, would he be re-extincting the species?
> P. Anthony, Source of Magic xi. 236
>
> 2013 A new organisation..has been created to examine the potential for
> a new branch of zoology: de-extinction.
> [End excerpt]
>
> There is a big gap between the 1973 and 2013 citations. The following
> 1992 citation is grounded in science, specifically selective breeding
> guided by genetics. So, I think it is a solid citation for
> de-extinction.
>
> Date: February 22, 1992
> Newspaper: Abilene Reporter-News
> Newspaper Location: Abilene, Texas
> Article: Earthweek: A Diary of the Planet
> Quote Page 8A, Column 6
> Database: Newspapers.com
>
> [Begin excerpt]
> De-Extinction
>
> Conservationists in South Africa are, through selective breeding of
> zebras, trying to reproduce a horse-like animal called a quagga that
> has been extinct for more than a century. The last quagga died in
> 1883, but thousands roamed the deserts of southern Africa before they
> were hunted to extinction by early European settlers.
>
> A DNA analysis of tissue from four stuffed specimens showed that the
> animal was actually a subspecies of the plains zebra. In the heat and
> dust of Vrolijkheid Nature Conservation Station, 125 miles from Cape
> Town, selected zebras which have some of the quagga's genetic
> characteristics have already produced offspring that are without
> stripes, and look more like the extinct quagga than a zebra.
> [End excerpt]
>
> Piers Anthony did write the impressive science fiction novel
> Macroscope, so I think he would have been capable of imagining a
> scientific basis for de-extinction, but I do not know whether he
> mentioned any basis in his fantasy novel.
>
> Garson
>
> ------------------------------------------------------------
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>


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