Tag Archives: Genetic engineering

Open-Source Biology and Biohacking Hack Chat

Posted on by

Join us on Wednesday at noon Pacific time for the open-source biology and biohacking Hack Chat!

Justin Atkin‘s name might not ring a bell, but you’ve probably seen his popular YouTube channel The Thought Emporium, devoted to regular doses of open source science. Justin’s interests span a wide range, literally from the heavens above to the microscopic world.

His current interest is to genetically modify yeast to produce spider silk, and to perhaps even use the yeast for brewing beer. He and the Thought Emporium team have been busy building out a complete DIY biology lab to support the effort, …read more

Continue reading Open-Source Biology and Biohacking Hack Chat→

Biohacking Lactose Intolerance

Posted on by

Would you pop a homemade pill containing genetically engineered virus particles just so that you can enjoy a pizza? Not many people would, but then again, if you’ve experienced the violent reaction to lactose that some people have, you just might consider it.

Such was the position that [The Thought Emporium] found himself in at age 16, suddenly violently lactose intolerant and in need of a complete diet overhaul. Tired of scanning food labels for telltale signs of milk products and paying the price for the inevitable mistakes, he embarked on a journey of DIY gene therapy to restore his …read more

Continue reading Biohacking Lactose Intolerance→

Neill Blomkamp’s Latest Short Film ‘Zygote’ Is Pure Biological Horror

Posted on by

The latest release from Oats Studios stars Dakota Fanning and takes place in a gritty, dangerous futuristic mining outpost. Continue reading Neill Blomkamp’s Latest Short Film ‘Zygote’ Is Pure Biological Horror→

Genetically Engineered Muscle Cells Power Tiny Bio-Robots

Posted on by

One of the essential problems of bio-robotics is actuators. The rotors, bearings, and electrical elements of the stepper motors and other electromechanical drives we generally turn to for robotics projects are not really happy in living systems. But building actuators the way nature does it — from muscle tissue — opens up a host of applications. That’s where this complete how-to guide on building and controlling muscle-powered machines comes in.

Coming out of the [Rashid Bashir] lab at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Campaign, the underlying principles are simple, which of course is the key to their power. The technique …read more

Continue reading Genetically Engineered Muscle Cells Power Tiny Bio-Robots→

Watch Genetically Modified Zika-Fighting Mosquitoes Released From a Van

Posted on by

Like an ice-cream truck—one that distributes genetically-modified, disease-fighting insects instead of sweet treats. Continue reading Watch Genetically Modified Zika-Fighting Mosquitoes Released From a Van→

Adding CIA to DNA

Posted on by

In this Threatpost op-ed, computer engineer Alexandrea Mellen explores the need for information security concepts in genetic engineering, and how concepts such as the security triad of confidentiality, integrity and availability apply. Continue reading Adding CIA to DNA→