Some researchers in my temporary hometown of Gifu, Japan want to clone mammoths.

Japanese scientists seeking to clone prehistoric wooly mammoths were preparing their first frozen DNA samples Tuesday in bid to bring the beasts back to life.

Remnants of what scientists think is from mammoth bone marrow, muscle and skin were unearthed last August in the Siberian tundra where they had been preserved in ice for thousands of years.

I've also heard of projects to resurrect the Tasmanian Wolf and other extinct animals.

I wonder, and the article doesn't mention, logistical stuff like: What the hell is going to carry this thing to term? Are they going to try to embed an embryo in the womb of an elephant? You either need to have an artificial womb (we're years away from that) or a natural carrier.

Smaller extinct animals seem like much better experimental test cases for such precedents. There have to be extinct insects, rodents, plant species, etc., that would be a hell of a lot easier to clone and coax into an adult stage.

Some people, argue against trying to clone extinct animals on principle. Some argue that once a species is dead and gone, it should stay gone. Why? Well, nature selected against it, so that's that.

I don't happen to agree with this idea. Anybody else have thoughts on the matter?