# Baby mice science news: am I confused or is the author confused?
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/baby-mice-science-news-am-i-confused-or-is-the-author-confused/765898
**Category:** In My Humble Opinion
**Created:** [September 14, 2016, 12:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/baby-mice-science-news-am-i-confused-or-is-the-author-confused/765898 "2016-09-14T00:49:17Z")
**Posts on this page:** 7
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@elfkin477](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfkin477)
#### Post date: [September 14, 2016, 12:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/baby-mice-science-news-am-i-confused-or-is-the-author-confused/765898/1 "2016-09-14T00:49:17Z")
Here’s the headline: [Scientists Have Bred Live Mice with No Need for Fertilized Eggs](http://gizmodo.com/scientists-have-bred-live-mice-with-no-need-for-fertili-1786543071)
And here’s their explanation:
> [@](#):
>
> Researchers from the University of Bath injected sperm directly into a modified, inactive mouse embryo. The resulting mice appeared to be normal, and were even able to reproduce.
Am I completely missing something, or does the author not realize that an embryo **is** in fact a fertilized egg to begin with?
I could well be missing something but this reminds me a lot of people talking about electric cars not needing fossil fuels not realizing how high a percentage of electricity is produced from fossil fuels to begin with.
---
### Author:  [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)
#### Post date: [September 14, 2016, 1:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/baby-mice-science-news-am-i-confused-or-is-the-author-confused/765898/2 "2016-09-14T01:43:17Z")
The author’s paper is titled “Mice produced by mitotic reprogramming of sperm injected into haploid parthenogenotes”. That’s pretty clear. I don’t think the author is confused at all.
Whoever wrote the headline “Scientists Have Bred Live Mice with No Need for Fertilized Eggs” (and I don’t dignify headline writers with the title of _author_) should be slapped and sterilized, however.
---
### Author:  [@Trinopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trinopus)
#### Post date: [September 14, 2016, 4:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/baby-mice-science-news-am-i-confused-or-is-the-author-confused/765898/3 "2016-09-14T04:26:06Z")
> [@elfkin477](#):
>
> . . . does the author not realize that an embryo **is** in fact a fertilized egg to begin with? . . .
I know you can get sea-urchin eggs to start to divide and replicate without actually fertilizing them. Could it be that you could do that, somehow (chemical stimulus?) with a mammalian egg? It divides, becomes a blastocyst, all without sperm, purely parthenogentically? If, after it has divided a bunch of times, then you introduce sperm…um… Damned if I know! Worth messing around with, I guess!
---
### Author:  [@magnusblitz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/magnusblitz)
#### Post date: [September 14, 2016, 4:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/baby-mice-science-news-am-i-confused-or-is-the-author-confused/765898/4 "2016-09-14T04:50:07Z")
> [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](#):
>
> I don’t think the author is confused at all.
I think he meant the author of the Gizmodo article, not the actual study.
---
### Author:  [@elfkin477](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfkin477)
#### Post date: [September 14, 2016, 10:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/baby-mice-science-news-am-i-confused-or-is-the-author-confused/765898/5 "2016-09-14T10:07:33Z")
> [@magnusblitz](#):
>
> I think he meant the author of the Gizmodo article, not the actual study.
Yes, the author who wrote the news brief, not the person who wrote up and conducted the experiment.
---
### Author:  [@Ambivalid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ambivalid)
#### Post date: [September 14, 2016, 11:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/baby-mice-science-news-am-i-confused-or-is-the-author-confused/765898/6 "2016-09-14T11:29:15Z")
> [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](#):
>
> The author’s paper is titled “Mice produced by mitotic reprogramming of sperm injected into haploid parthenogenotes”. That’s pretty clear.
Took the words right out of my mouth. 🆒
---
### Author:  [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)
#### Post date: [September 14, 2016, 2:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/baby-mice-science-news-am-i-confused-or-is-the-author-confused/765898/7 "2016-09-14T14:19:33Z")
> [@](#):
>
> **Baby mice science news**
I understand this is the most respected science journal in California.