Live data from Hacker News

Most U.S. Dairy Cows Are Descended From Just Two Bulls

npr.org

81–90 of 261 posts

Re: Most U.S. Dairy Cows Are Descended From Just Two Bulls

#81

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You're going to have to pry my homemade kefir from my cold, dead hands!

Well Kefir is a good example of a fermented milk drink that more people should consume, instead of regular milk, really. It's got a nice bonus that any one can ingest it, including lactose-intolerant people.

Well, kefir should really be made with unpasteurised milk the commercial ones are pasteurised.

Re: Most U.S. Dairy Cows Are Descended From Just Two Bulls

#82
post #63

This is large scale Matrix-like exploitation at its finest like only humans can do. Copying the genes of a single animal hundreds of thousands of times, killing the males at birth, plugging the females to a milking machine, feed them corn and soy which is totally not their natural diet and injecting them with tons of antibiotics, hormones and god knows what else. I wonder what could possibly go wrong? All completely…

[deleted]

Re: Most U.S. Dairy Cows Are Descended From Just Two Bulls

#84
post #5

This is real scary. One genetic flaw exploited by say a virus could wipe out the entire dairy industry.

Wait till you find out that all the world's cash crops are essentially genetic clones of each other. We're literally one superbug away from global famine.

Bananas are a good example they are all clones, 95% of banana exports come from a single cultivated variety, the Cavendish.

Re: Most U.S. Dairy Cows Are Descended From Just Two Bulls

#85
post #69

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Its also pretty similar to human milk, which has evolved to be a close-to-perfect source of nutrition.

For babies, not for adults. Adult animals in most species can't even drink milk, they can't digest it anymore past infancy. Biologically this means that the infant would release the mother so that they could have another child, so there is biological adaption on most species to not drink milk past a certain age. And we have it too via lactose intolerance, which is normal. However, some relatively small percentage of…

There are questions about effects of almost anything on long-term human health. Over-stressing about what to eat like any other type of stress might not be that healthy even in the short term :)

Re: Most U.S. Dairy Cows Are Descended From Just Two Bulls

#86
post #81

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Well Kefir is a good example of a fermented milk drink that more people should consume, instead of regular milk, really. It's got a nice bonus that any one can ingest it, including lactose-intolerant people.

Well, kefir should really be made with unpasteurised milk the commercial ones are pasteurised.

[deleted]

Re: Most U.S. Dairy Cows Are Descended From Just Two Bulls

#87
post #63

This is large scale Matrix-like exploitation at its finest like only humans can do. Copying the genes of a single animal hundreds of thousands of times, killing the males at birth, plugging the females to a milking machine, feed them corn and soy which is totally not their natural diet and injecting them with tons of antibiotics, hormones and god knows what else. I wonder what could possibly go wrong? All completely…

You're going to have to pry my homemade kefir from my cold, dead hands!

There's water kefir, which can be made without milk.

Re: Most U.S. Dairy Cows Are Descended From Just Two Bulls

#88
post #61

as you go back in time, the tree of ancestors shrinks, so ultimately all cows in the world are descended from 2 cows, are they not?

It's not that simple. If you look back far enough, "cows" are descended from perhaps multiple species of "not really cows, yet". And the same is true for all of those species. So you never get back to two of any one species.

Well, there is this https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mitochondrial_Eve

Re: Most U.S. Dairy Cows Are Descended From Just Two Bulls

#89
post #65
post #63

This is large scale Matrix-like exploitation at its finest like only humans can do. Copying the genes of a single animal hundreds of thousands of times, killing the males at birth, plugging the females to a milking machine, feed them corn and soy which is totally not their natural diet and injecting them with tons of antibiotics, hormones and god knows what else. I wonder what could possibly go wrong? All completely…

Milk is a very good source of calcium and it has nothing to do with lactose.

Milk contains a lot of calcium, but scientific studies show that humans barely absorb any of it, especially if pasteurized. Even worse, milk increases calcium loss in bones, resulting in higher rates of fractures.

Modern milk is also a processed food, which brings a host of other negative associated factors.

Re: Most U.S. Dairy Cows Are Descended From Just Two Bulls

#90

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You're going to have to pry my homemade kefir from my cold, dead hands!

Well Kefir is a good example of a fermented milk drink that more people should consume, instead of regular milk, really. It's got a nice bonus that any one can ingest it, including lactose-intolerant people.

Only the original recipe, which is made from unpasteurised goat's milk. The store-bought ones have practically no relation to the real thing in either micronutrient distribution, lactose quantity, or taste.
Post reply on HN