The Future of Farming Is Brain-Dead Chickens?

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The Future of Farming Is Brain-Dead Chickens?

Post by Anakha56 »

Right so this is just freaky for me... :? For some reason I dont have a problem eating living, breathing feeling chickens but a lobotomized one? I feel sick... :( Pics on the link dont help matters... :(

http://gizmodo.com/5888853/the-future-o ... /gallery/1
The Future of Farming Is Brain-Dead Chickens?

The poultry industry routinely takes heat for the densely-crowded conditions birds are subjected to. But what if the animals didn't feel pain or suffer stress? One student thinks he has the solution—raise chickens like vegetables by lobotomizing the lot of them.

Architecture student André Ford has presented a very radical solution increase the efficiency and humaneness in raising poultry. Under his plan, birds would have their frontal cortexes surgically severed, rendering the animals permanently unconscious with no zero sensory input while maintaining their lower brain functions—breathing and such—so that they continue to grow.

The form and function of a chicken plant would change drastically as well. The birds would be suspended and immobilized from hanging racks. Their feet would be removed (not going to be doing much walking in their state) and the animals would receive nutrients through an esophageal tube. A second tube would remove waste—Matrix-style. The birds could literally be stacked—quadrupling the density from one chicken every 10 square feet to four—quietly growing until they're large enough to be harvested.

"Harvested" is an oddly applicable phrase for what this method would entail. The birds are effectively reduced to being fleshy vegetables that just sit there until picked. But that can't be any worse than their current living conditions, right?

So far, this is still simply an art project dubbed The Headless Chicken Solution at the Royal Collage of Art. But it could well be a glimpse into the future of industrial-scale farming. [Inhabitat via DVice]
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Re: The Future of Farming Is Brain-Dead Chickens?

Post by rustypup »

densely-crowded
<..>
very radical solution increase the efficiency
<..>
with no zero sensory input
1) i would dearly like to punch the author...
2) as delightfully sensational as the story is, it ignores the one fundamental problem this approach has yet to overcome.. limp bags of flesh aren't particularly effective at producing muscle.. you know, the actual 'meat'...

given that we don't particularly care at this point how it ends up on the plate, why would this approach faze* anyone?...

*i am disappoint
Last edited by rustypup on 28 Feb 2012, 11:28, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: The Future of Farming Is Brain-Dead Chickens?

Post by Tribble »

Oh how science fictioney ! Wonderful. Tell me - who would lobotomise the chickens - how old would they have to be and when will they start on cows and sheep? ROTFL - it is gross but I guess that is where we are headed (at least hopefully we will still have ours).

And as the puppy said - what exactly would be edible? Limp fleshy fat? Sedentary life leads to flab (gross).

I wonder if vegetarians would be able to eat them with a clear conscience? Oooh all these questions and no one able to answer them.
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Re: The Future of Farming Is Brain-Dead Chickens?

Post by hamin_aus »

I don't care, lobotomise them and run electricity through their muscles to stimulate them.

As long as they stay delicious.
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Re: The Future of Farming Is Brain-Dead Chickens?

Post by rustypup »

jamin_za wrote:run electricity through their muscles to stimulate them.
therein lies the problem. while electrical impulses do, indeed, trigger muscle response it still isn't sufficient to produce adequate muscle mass...

you'll still be able to render it as deep-fried Suspicious Nuggets, though...
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Re: The Future of Farming Is Brain-Dead Chickens?

Post by hamin_aus »

rustypup wrote:while electrical impulses do, indeed, trigger muscle response it still isn't sufficient to produce adequate muscle mass...
citation needed.
Do you know how little exercise chickens get in a hatchery?
They live almost their entire lives in a cage the size of a shoe box. I think a few hundred joules every few seconds plus some acme growth hormones will be sufficient.
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Re: The Future of Farming Is Brain-Dead Chickens?

Post by KALSTER »

Well, presumably since it is already so ridiculously impractical, you could just electrically stimulate it's brain or neural plexus to let them press up against a board or something.. While playing Mozart and bathing them in soothing compliments to further placate the veggie/vegan police.
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Re: The Future of Farming Is Brain-Dead Chickens?

Post by hamin_aus »

You know who should be lobotomised and shocked periodically?

KALSTER
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Re: The Future of Farming Is Brain-Dead Chickens?

Post by rustypup »

jamin_za wrote:I think a few hundred joules every few seconds plus some acme growth hormones will be sufficient.
verimark customer... :P "lose weight while you drink!"

you're suggesting a huge amount of preparatory work per chick. to prevent the charge simply travelling around the muscle, (which it would do if applied directly), you'd have to attach a fair number of electrodes in order to ensure that the thigh and breast muscles get a complete workout... else all you''ll have is a thin film of realised muscle over a glut of lumpy, tasteless, tissue*...

there's also the delicious risk of frying the entire lot if you don't it just right leading to fried innards, (chicken hearts are one of my favourites!)

shambling may not be much but it's shifting and balancing a constant load. they also tend to flap their stubby excuses for wings every so often... something zombie-hen won't be doing... (not in your waking moments)

*to be fair, given KFC's popularity, there's a massive market for deep fried lumpy tasteless tissue...
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Re: The Future of Farming Is Brain-Dead Chickens?

Post by KALSTER »

jamin_za wrote:You know who should be lobotomised and shocked periodically?

KALSTER
Wouldn't be so bad. I wouldn't know about it anyway.

Damn. First Doo wants to kick me in the balls, then Jamin wants to lobotomise me. Take note: I prefer the second followed by the first, instead of the other way around. Once I'm dead, please plant a tree on my grave.
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Re: The Future of Farming Is Brain-Dead Chickens?

Post by hamin_aus »

rustypup wrote:you're suggesting a huge amount of preparatory work per chick
I wouldn't be the first guy to waste a lot of effort on a chick only to get unsatisfactory results...
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Re: The Future of Farming Is Brain-Dead Chickens?

Post by Tribble »

But Jammy - I never thought chicks were never a waste for you - no matter how little time you spent on them.
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Re: The Future of Farming Is Brain-Dead Chickens?

Post by StarBound »

Killing living creatures to survive or creating non-living creatures to survive. One is cruel, one is unnatural.
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Re: The Future of Farming Is Brain-Dead Chickens?

Post by Tribble »

They would still be living - just not able to know it
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Re: The Future of Farming Is Brain-Dead Chickens?

Post by StarBound »

If it feeds the masses then I suppose no one will complain apart from animal rights groups. But then I would be more inclined to rather get proper cloning on its way so they can clone me up a medium rare fillet steak on the go instead of growing some brain-dead cow.
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Re: The Future of Farming Is Brain-Dead Chickens?

Post by Tribble »

What effect would the electricity stimulation on the chicken's muscles have on the taste and quality of the meat?

@StarBoung - I agree that cloning would be more humane and less freaky
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Re: The Future of Farming Is Brain-Dead Chickens?

Post by KALSTER »

StarBound wrote:Killing living creatures to survive or creating non-living creatures to survive. One is cruel, one is unnatural.
There is no such thing as unnatural.
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Re: The Future of Farming Is Brain-Dead Chickens?

Post by Tribble »

Why not? Natural = being of nature. Death is part of nature - so is pain. Hence removing the ability to feel pain is seen as unnatural. It is natural to kill a living creature so that you may survive - it is not natural to make that creature into something it is not, just to appease your sense of moral responsibility. Most people don't believe that chickens have feelings - nor do they care what sort of life they have. They were put on this earth for us to exercise dominion over. So why go to all this trouble - it is unnatural.
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Re: The Future of Farming Is Brain-Dead Chickens?

Post by rustypup »

define natural in context of the "natural" world. nothing exists in isolation. everything affects everything around it to a greater or lesser degree..

what is meant by "natural" outside of homeo-blather marketing-speak?

arsenic is "natural"... so it must be good.... right? right?
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Re: The Future of Farming Is Brain-Dead Chickens?

Post by doo_much »

rustypup wrote: arsenic is "natural"... so it must be good.... right? right?
Depends on who you feed it too...
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Re: The Future of Farming Is Brain-Dead Chickens?

Post by Tribble »

Natural isn't always good for you. Death is a natural progression of life through time - but it is not desired nor pleasant.
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Re: The Future of Farming Is Brain-Dead Chickens?

Post by StarBound »

Whatever the case this adds a new dimention of cruelty. Your going to need to nutralize those chickens and that costs money. So in order to save money some businesses wont bother with doing it and just cut the legs and force feed the stuff under shock therapy.

So taking the problem back to the roots, if chicken farms breaks regulations then fine the living ***** out of them.

That or we can hope that 3DFX chips solves world hunger...

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Re: The Future of Farming Is Brain-Dead Chickens?

Post by Tribble »

ROTFL - Brilliant ad
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