Bernann McKinney was clearly overjoyed about being reunited with her beloved pit bull terrier Booger last week - or, to be precise, five of him.
Ms McKinney of California had paid USD 50,000 (Dh184,000) to a biotech company in South Korea to create genetic clones of her pet dog from cells taken from Booger before he died, and last week she was presented with five identical puppy versions of him. (British readers will remember Ms McKinney as Joyce McKinney who in the 1970s kidnapped a Mormon missionary in England and later claimed that she was so in love with him that she would "ski naked down Mt Everest with a carnation up my nose if he asked me to".
Scientifically, there's nothing new in all this. The first cloned organism, a tadpole, was created as long ago as 1952, while the famous Dolly the cloned sheep, which was supposed to open the way to cloning from adult cells, was born more than a decade ago. Even pet cloning has been done before, the first- a cat named "CC" - being born in 2001.
The real significance of the Booger story lies in the claim by RNL Bio, the company that created the puppies, that it expects to be able to clone up to 300 dogs next year for anyone willing to pay. And that's just the start, according to chief executive Ra Jeong-Chan, who reportedly has plans to set up an office in Dubai to clone champion camels and horses.
Taken at face value, this suggests cloning really has turned the corner, and is finally about to become commercially viable. After the media hoopla that surrounded the birth of Dolly and other cloned animals, one could be forgiven for being surprised that this hadn't happened years ago. But the hype has obscured the fact that the success rate of the cloning process has been disappointingly - some would say, repulsively - low. Creating Dolly required more than 270 sheep eggs, which created just 29 embryos, and of those implanted into sheep, 95 per cent ended in miscarriages, with only Dolly surviving to adulthood.
Scientists have been searching for more effective ways of creating clones ever since, with research teams in South Korea and Japan claiming to have made important progress. Judging by the confident forecasts of RNL Bio, such research is now starting to pay off.
So are we about to see the emergence of whole stables of identical racehorses and camels, each carrying the genes of champions? Quite possibly, but anyone thinking of spending a fortune on creating their own stable of unbeatable clones is likely to be bitterly disappointed by the end-results. For despite the oft-repeated claims about the crucial importance of genes "for" various traits, their role is far from decisive.
Arguments over the relative importance of genes and environment - the "nature versus nurture" debate - go back long before anyone even knew what genes were. Most have focused on the role of genes in determining human traits. As long ago as 1690, the English philosopher John Locke claimed human behaviour is entirely the product of experience, each of us entering the world as blank slates. But by the start of the 20th century, the debate had lurched over to the other extreme, and a widespread conviction that many traits were largely if not wholly inherited. The claim was backed by studies of identical twins separated at birth, whose similar traits despite different upbringing was put down to the fact that they have identical genetic blueprints.
Yet for all its apparent scientific rigour, this fails to explain the experience of many parents of identical twins, whose offspring turn out radically different despite having both the same genes and a similar upbringing. This suggests that the nature-nurture split is a false dichotomy, with genes, environment and other factors interacting in complex ways.
After dismissing such evidence as hopelessly anecdotal, scientists have largely caught up with this folk wisdom. Studies of identical twins show that genes are responsible for around 50 per cent of the variation in personalities between individuals.
Simple arithmetic then implies that a hefty 50 per cent must be put down to environmental factors, of which the most obvious is home background and parental influence. Yet ground-breaking research published in 1995 by the American psychologist Judith Rich Harris showed that parents have virtually no impact on how their children turn out. Studies of children raised in the same family reveal that parental influence accounts for no more than five per cent of the variation in traits between children.
Exactly what accounts for the remaining 45 per cent is something of a mystery. One possibility is the influence of a child's peer group, or what Harris called "group socialisation". This could explain how children from the same two parents and raised in the same family often turn out so differently. Such children may well have different experiences and peer groups outside the home.
The implications of all this are clear. When it comes to gauging the likely future performance of anything from humans to horses, genes often count no more than environmental factors. A genetic clone of a champion horse could thus turn out to be no more than a lazy lookalike. Worse still, precisely what environmental factors lead to success are far from clear - and may never be fully understood.
The idea of cloning has long seemed like science fiction. Researchers may have turned the technique into science fact, but most of the claims made for it remain the purest fiction.
Robert Matthews is Visiting Reader in Science at Aston University, Birmingham, England
@Email:www.robertmatthews.org
Company%20Profile
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In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
Where to buy art books in the UAE
There are a number of speciality art bookshops in the UAE.
In Dubai, The Lighthouse at Dubai Design District has a wonderfully curated selection of art and design books. Alserkal Avenue runs a pop-up shop at their A4 space, and host the art-book fair Fully Booked during Art Week in March. The Third Line, also in Alserkal Avenue, has a strong book-publishing arm and sells copies at its gallery. Kinokuniya, at Dubai Mall, has some good offerings within its broad selection, and you never know what you will find at the House of Prose in Jumeirah. Finally, all of Gulf Photo Plus’s photo books are available for sale at their show.
In Abu Dhabi, Louvre Abu Dhabi has a beautiful selection of catalogues and art books, and Magrudy’s – across the Emirates, but particularly at their NYU Abu Dhabi site – has a great selection in art, fiction and cultural theory.
In Sharjah, the Sharjah Art Museum sells catalogues and art books at its museum shop, and the Sharjah Art Foundation has a bookshop that offers reads on art, theory and cultural history.
Learn more about Qasr Al Hosn
In 2013, The National's History Project went beyond the walls to see what life was like living in Abu Dhabi's fabled fort:
The National's picks
4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
5.45pm: Raging Torrent
6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
8.50pm: Calandogan
9.30pm: Forever Young
The bio
His favourite book - 1984 by George Orwell
His favourite quote - 'If you think education is expensive, try ignorance' by Derek Bok, Former President of Harvard
Favourite place to travel to - Peloponnese, Southern Greece
Favourite movie - The Last Emperor
Favourite personality from history - Alexander the Great
Role Model - My father, Yiannis Davos
'Gehraiyaan'
Director:Shakun Batra
Stars:Deepika Padukone, Siddhant Chaturvedi, Ananya Panday, Dhairya Karwa
Rating: 4/5
Results
5pm: UAE Martyrs Cup (TB) Conditions Dh90,000 2,200m
Winner: Mudaarab, Jim Crowley (jockey), Erwan Charpy (trainer).
5.30pm: Wathba Stallions Cup (PA) Handicap Dh70,000 1,400m
Winner: Jawal Al Reef, Richard Mullen, Hassan Al Hammadi.
6pm: UAE Matyrs Trophy (PA) Maiden Dh80,000 1,600m
Winner: Salima Al Reef, Jesus Rosales, Abdallah Al Hammadi.
6.30pm: Sheikha Fatima bint Mubarak (IFAHR) Apprentice Championship (PA) Prestige Dh100,000 1,600m
Winner: Bainoona, Ricardo Iacopini, Eric Lemartinel.
7pm: Sheikha Fatima bint Mubarak (IFAHR) Ladies World Championship (PA) Prestige Dh125,000 1,600m
Winner: Assyad, Victoria Larsen, Eric Lemartinel.
8pm: Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan Jewel Crown (PA) Group 1 Dh5,000,000 1,600m
Winner: Mashhur Al Khalediah, Jean-Bernard Eyquem, Phillip Collington.
NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
The rules on fostering in the UAE
A foster couple or family must:
- be Muslim, Emirati and be residing in the UAE
- not be younger than 25 years old
- not have been convicted of offences or crimes involving moral turpitude
- be free of infectious diseases or psychological and mental disorders
- have the ability to support its members and the foster child financially
- undertake to treat and raise the child in a proper manner and take care of his or her health and well-being
- A single, divorced or widowed Muslim Emirati female, residing in the UAE may apply to foster a child if she is at least 30 years old and able to support the child financially
World record transfers
1. Kylian Mbappe - to Real Madrid in 2017/18 - €180 million (Dh770.4m - if a deal goes through)
2. Paul Pogba - to Manchester United in 2016/17 - €105m
3. Gareth Bale - to Real Madrid in 2013/14 - €101m
4. Cristiano Ronaldo - to Real Madrid in 2009/10 - €94m
5. Gonzalo Higuain - to Juventus in 2016/17 - €90m
6. Neymar - to Barcelona in 2013/14 - €88.2m
7. Romelu Lukaku - to Manchester United in 2017/18 - €84.7m
8. Luis Suarez - to Barcelona in 2014/15 - €81.72m
9. Angel di Maria - to Manchester United in 2014/15 - €75m
10. James Rodriguez - to Real Madrid in 2014/15 - €75m
if you go
Getting there
Etihad (Etihad.com), Emirates (emirates.com) and Air France (www.airfrance.com) fly to Paris’ Charles de Gaulle Airport, from Abu Dhabi and Dubai respectively. Return flights cost from around Dh3,785. It takes about 40 minutes to get from Paris to Compiègne by train, with return tickets costing €19. The Glade of the Armistice is 6.6km east of the railway station.
Staying there
On a handsome, tree-lined street near the Chateau’s park, La Parenthèse du Rond Royal (laparenthesedurondroyal.com) offers spacious b&b accommodation with thoughtful design touches. Lots of natural woods, old fashioned travelling trunks as decoration and multi-nozzle showers are part of the look, while there are free bikes for those who want to cycle to the glade. Prices start at €120 a night.
More information: musee-armistice-14-18.fr ; compiegne-tourisme.fr; uk.france.fr
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Anghami
Started: December 2011
Co-founders: Elie Habib, Eddy Maroun
Based: Beirut and Dubai
Sector: Entertainment
Size: 85 employees
Stage: Series C
Investors: MEVP, du, Mobily, MBC, Samena Capital
Profile of MoneyFellows
Founder: Ahmed Wadi
Launched: 2016
Employees: 76
Financing stage: Series A ($4 million)
Investors: Partech, Sawari Ventures, 500 Startups, Dubai Angel Investors, Phoenician Fund
