Using a new and relatively simple technique, scientists in Hawaii have created dozens of cloned mice, marking the first documented cloning of adult mammals since researchers in Scotland announced the birth of Dolly the sheep last year.

Researchers predicted that the new-found ability to study and practice cloning in a laboratory animal as convenient as the mouse would quickly lead to the discovery of even better techniques for cloning various animals including, almost certainly, people.

Indeed, one of the key findings of the new work is that a biological roadblock that scientists thought might interfere with their ability to clone mice and people is not insurmountable in mice after all, suggesting human cloning is also achievable with relative ease.