Wired UK: The Bio-Crime Prophecy
Hacking computers is commonplace today and is at the forefront of national security concerns. But looking into the the future, hacking DNA is an emerging threat. Cells are living computers. DNA is software. Our bodies are networks. And they can all be hacked. Imagine a crime scene where your involvement has been spoofed. (See a...
Not all your DNA is the same.
In this study, published in Nature, Yale researchers discovered copy number variation (CNV) in skin cells, indicative that we are “mosaics” of cells with slightly different genomes. Next generation sequencing technology was used. You might think about it this way. If we had a million computers that were brand new, their hard drives would all...
Hacking the President’s DNA
Almost a year ago, I collaborated with Future Crimes visionary Marc Goodman and bestselling author and writer Steven Kotler to speculate how the advances in personalized medicine could be co-opted for less than altruistic purposes. We submitted the article to the Atlantic Magazine. The article appears in November 2012 issue, on your newsstand now. (Here’s the online...
iGEM Regionals complete, now onto World Championship
The iGEM genetic engineering competition regional events are over and now teams are heading to the World Championship, to be held at MIT in Cambridge November 2-5. The regional results can be found here. Overall, 190 teams from over 30 countries are participating and the competition is fierce! See you there! Recent News Articles iGEM Bioengineering...
Synthetic Biology Scorecard
In December 2010, the Obama administration published New Directions: The Ethics of Synthetic Biology and Emerging Technologies, a report from the Presidential Commission for the Study of Bioethical Issues. Within the document were recommendations aimed to minimize risks from the technology while ensuring that social and economic benefits are realized. It suggested revisiting the topic...
Time to write human genomes
In 1990, scientists launched one of the largest international collaborations in life science, an effort to sequence the human genome. This work inspired a new generation of genetic researchers and led to countless breakthroughs in new technologies, informatics, and medicine. I was one of the researchers who had their careers launched by this effort. Now,...
USB-Sized DNA Sequencer by Oxford Nanopore
How quickly things change in the genomic world! Just over a month since Ion Torrent announced their next-generation Proton Sequencer, the technology may already be obsolete. This week, the first “nanopore” DNA sequencing Device was unveiled at the Advances in Genome Biology and Technology conference by UK-based Oxford Nanopore Technologies. Nanopore sequencing works by...
Tomorrow Project
I was interviewed for this podcast by Intel Inc. Futurist Brian David Johnson for the Intel’s Tomorrow Project last year in Portland. Brian helps Intel understand medium-term trends in technology and society so they can align their business operations appropriately. It’s always a pleasure to work and share information with him.
Happy Yogurt
I just came across this video (see below) by Tuur van Balen, a self-described Freelance Designer Researcher, who talks about hacking yogurt to produce the antidepressant Prozac. van Balen brilliantly combines fact (synthetic biology, lab techniques, biobricks) with fiction (to my knowledge, biosynthesis of Prozac, or flouxetine, a chemical hasn’t been demonstrated) to produce a...
Informatics and Synthetic biology – a one-two punch for world economy
Emerging technologies are crucial to continuing global prosperity. As technologies age, they are replaced by newer ones that offer greater performance, efficiency, or other important advantages. Recently, the World Economic Forum’s Global Agenda Council on Emerging Technologies conducted a survey of their network to discover which technology trends would have the greatest short term impact...
Will.I.am and Intel seeks to TRANS4M the world
Feb. 10, 2012 – /PRNewswire/ — International recording artist will.i.am amplified his philanthropic side at TRANS4M, a forward-looking conference held Thursday, February 9, 2012 at the UCLA School of Theater, Film and Television. Musician and entreprenuer will.i.am co-hosted the first-time, invite-only conference he founded. Urging 250 attendees from various walks of life “to find smart ways...
Singularity University and Triple Ring Technologies launch Synthetic Biology Entrepreneur Program
February 2, 2012: Singularity University and Triple Ring Technologies announced the launch of a summer entrepreneurial program in synthetic biology. The program combines Silicon Valley mentorship in synthetic biology and startup enterprises with world-class engineering in a state-of-the-art laboratory space, with up to $50,000 in funding. The goal? Help young synthetic biologists turn their ideas...
