• Lichtblitz@discuss.tchncs.de
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        2 days ago

        Depending on the source DNA seems to have a half life of 500-1500 years. This source calculates with slightly over 500 years. Permafrost samples may be more on the upper end of the scale but the message would be similar:

        A study of DNA extracted from the leg bones of extinct moa birds in New Zealand found that the half-life of DNA is 521 years. So every 1,000 years, 75 per cent of the genetic information is lost. After 6.8 million years, every single base pair is gone.

        https://www.sciencefocus.com/the-human-body/how-long-does-dna-last

        • mlg@lemmy.world
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          1 day ago

          Knowing our current tech landscape, some startup CEO will convince a bunch of investors that he can get an AI to produce the genome sequence using existing sequencing data to predict what dinosaur DNA actually was.

          And even though it’s obviously a rugpull, any hypothetically successful AI would probably just get stuck outputing genomes that result in different types of bananas.

    • Evil_Shrubbery@thelemmy.club
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      3 days ago

      What if we used a time machine, go back in time, place a mosquito on a dinosaur, then when all full of blood place it into a cryogenic container that can last say 70+million years, go back to the present, find the container, and sequence the DNA?