End of lightbulbs
Scape @ Sun Oct 23, 2005 1:16 am
Accidental Invention Points to End of 
bossdog @ Sun Oct 23, 2005 6:23 am
Maybe our pets will start lighting up our homes !
$1:
Firefly Genes Light Up Stanford Research Mice
San Francisco Chronicle, Saturday, October 11, 1997 Page A1 Charles Petit, Chronicle Science Writer
Scientists at Stanford University are using mice and rats that glow faintly in the dark -- thanks to firefly genes inserted into their cells -- as potent new tools for medical science.
The oddly luminous rodents -- one mouse was treated so just its ears lit up -- could shed new light on how some diseases, including AIDS, spread through a living organism. ``They're cute as can be, but this is good science too,'' said research associate Stan Spillman at Stanford's Molecular Biophotonics Laboratory.
By using genes that give cells the power to glow, researchers can more easily tell whether transplanted DNA is functioning in living cells selected for therapy or study.
The firefly genes enable cells to make an enzyme called luciferase. It occurs naturally in fireflies. Named for Lucifer, mythical ruler of the underworld and its hellish flames, it emits a pale yellowish green light when combined with a substance with a similar name, luciferin.
For scientists, it literally puts a beacon on some biological processes that they previously could only guess about. In the past decade, many research groups have used luciferase genes as labels on transplanted DNA. Many kinds of plants, as well as some kinds of small fish, have been made to glow faintly.
The work with glowing rats and mice is supervised by Christopher Contag, acting assistant professor of pediatrics and director of bioluminescence research at Stanford's School of Medicine. He said the animals are the first living, intact mammals in which the glow of the luciferase gene has been detected. A report on the work is published in this month's issue of the journal Photochemistry and Photobiology.
By combining the firefly genes with other genes in which they are interested and inserting the new genetic packages into the animals, researchers can learn when the genes are actually active. For instance, some of the mice now at Stanford have firefly genes combined with a gene normally found in HIV, the AIDS virus. Studying conditions under which the HIV gene is active may help lead to new techniques against AIDS.
San Francisco Chronicle, Saturday, October 11, 1997 Page A1 Charles Petit, Chronicle Science Writer
Scientists at Stanford University are using mice and rats that glow faintly in the dark -- thanks to firefly genes inserted into their cells -- as potent new tools for medical science.
The oddly luminous rodents -- one mouse was treated so just its ears lit up -- could shed new light on how some diseases, including AIDS, spread through a living organism. ``They're cute as can be, but this is good science too,'' said research associate Stan Spillman at Stanford's Molecular Biophotonics Laboratory.
By using genes that give cells the power to glow, researchers can more easily tell whether transplanted DNA is functioning in living cells selected for therapy or study.
The firefly genes enable cells to make an enzyme called luciferase. It occurs naturally in fireflies. Named for Lucifer, mythical ruler of the underworld and its hellish flames, it emits a pale yellowish green light when combined with a substance with a similar name, luciferin.
For scientists, it literally puts a beacon on some biological processes that they previously could only guess about. In the past decade, many research groups have used luciferase genes as labels on transplanted DNA. Many kinds of plants, as well as some kinds of small fish, have been made to glow faintly.
The work with glowing rats and mice is supervised by Christopher Contag, acting assistant professor of pediatrics and director of bioluminescence research at Stanford's School of Medicine. He said the animals are the first living, intact mammals in which the glow of the luciferase gene has been detected. A report on the work is published in this month's issue of the journal Photochemistry and Photobiology.
By combining the firefly genes with other genes in which they are interested and inserting the new genetic packages into the animals, researchers can learn when the genes are actually active. For instance, some of the mice now at Stanford have firefly genes combined with a gene normally found in HIV, the AIDS virus. Studying conditions under which the HIV gene is active may help lead to new techniques against AIDS.
dgthe3 @ Sun Oct 23, 2005 12:14 pm
i'm not sure i want my house lit by my walls or chairs or any other funriture, or my pets. I do like the idea of light bulbs that produce more light than heat but the idea of ordinary objects illuminating a house is just kinda wierd, maybe thats just me though
Scape @ Sun Oct 23, 2005 2:16 pm
Although there is much to be said about conditioned response one must be conscious of it to realize what impact it is having on ones tastes and preferences. I am sure that the gas light made for interesting designs for most light fixtures but purpose of the design in the 1st place was done away with. Thus the original purpose was a limitation to the evolution. In time we shall see things in a whole new light.
low_n_slow @ Sun Nov 20, 2005 10:36 pm
I'd paint my dog and bathroom with that Quantum dot mixture. that way when i go upstairs at night i won't be tripping over the dog on my way to the bathroom and when i go to take a piss i'll be able to see the toilet 
PostManPat @ Sun Nov 20, 2005 10:39 pm
Isn't there a lighbulb in some Fire Station thats been on for 50+ years. I mean they can make lighbulbs that do that shit but then they don't make money.
xerxes @ Mon Nov 21, 2005 12:10 am
Of course. The first lightbulb Edison made for the Queen's dollhouse still works. It's over 100 years old and still works.