This Weekend, Start Building a New Life Form - io9 Comments

This Weekend, Start Building a New Life Form

CarolynG — Sun, 02 Mar 2008 22:27:03 PST

Thanks for this post Annalee!

I just spent the past hour poking around these websites. Even if I never become a garage Dr. Frankenstein, this information is still fascinating and enjoyable to read.

CarolynG

This Weekend, Start Building a New Life Form

gattsuru — Sun, 02 Mar 2008 13:53:40 PST

"But it's scary to think that a few years later bad guys will use this stuff to build bio-weapons."

They've been using the basic techniques for more than a few years already. The involved materials can be difficult to get, but the science and actual physical capabilities really aren't that hard, if all you're looking to do is make the next smallpox. Once something exists and is heavily documented as the more interesting bacteria, making it again usually isn't difficult.

Actually hacking biology -- making new concepts or at least copying multiple existing ones together -- is going to be more interesting, though.

gattsuru

This Weekend, Start Building a New Life Form

botanicidal — Sat, 01 Mar 2008 21:29:29 PST

Thank the godless for tacit knowledge. Good luck with building your own home-grown biohazadous waste. Have fun with the troubleshooting. PCR quickchanges, cloning techniques, restriction digests and ligation can sound simple but in practice, but you are dealing with DNA, not lego. Pas si simple.

botanicidal

This Weekend, Start Building a New Life Form

Admore — Sat, 01 Mar 2008 17:55:06 PST

@Annalee Newitz & 92 BuickLeSabre - Just a heads up, you folks are close to infringing on my "Cute Baby" IP. Next message is from my attorney. All "Cute Baby" bio stuff? Mine. All mine. If you want cute babies, you're going to have to pay me! Prior art my ass.

Admore

This Weekend, Start Building a New Life Form

corpore-metal — Sat, 01 Mar 2008 14:10:37 PST

It's real cool that this stuff is decentralizing and filtering out to the public. The Home Biolab Revolution begins!

But it's scary to think that a few years later bad guys will use this stuff to build bio-weapons. I keep thinking of Frank Herberts White Plague.

corpore-metal

This Weekend, Start Building a New Life Form

corpore-metal — Sat, 01 Mar 2008 14:06:46 PST

The Home Biolab Revolution begins! It's real cool that this science and technology is democratizing.

But, it will also be real scary when bad guys start building bio-weapons with it a few years later. I keep thinking of Herbert's White Plague.

corpore-metal

This Weekend, Start Building a New Life Form

Klebert L. Hall — Sat, 01 Mar 2008 09:34:46 PST

'like' factories...
'critters'

Damnit. Gonna have to mash my hand on the keyboard to order one of those 'typing wands' at this rate.
-Kle.

Klebert L. Hall

This Weekend, Start Building a New Life Form

Klebert L. Hall — Sat, 01 Mar 2008 09:33:21 PST

Well, even if we discount the whole reproduction thing, our bodies are constantly creating new life forms life factories... Our immune systems fight the gazillions of tiny dritters that live on/in us, evolutions ensues, voila!
-Kle.

Klebert L. Hall

This Weekend, Start Building a New Life Form

jrghoull — Sat, 01 Mar 2008 08:16:32 PST

to the writers of io9:

i never heard about a new gawker site site coming about..and i'm on gizmodo all the time (a place where i assume would have mentioned a new gawker site being made and why its coming about)

sooo, maybe this isnt the best place to be asking this question (or maybe it is...a blog site made of many users=artificial life in a sense?)but how did io9 come about? was gawker media looking to start a sci fi site or did one of you guys (the writers) suggest it to them or was there some specific reason they wanted to start one up?

anyway, you guys are already one of my fav sites. i look forward to reading about playing with genetic from my post. finally i can look into creating a fruit that will taste like w/e u want it to!

jrghoull

This Weekend, Start Building a New Life Form

zafner — Sat, 01 Mar 2008 05:40:09 PST

Another awesome post, Annalee.

This site is bleedin' fantastic.

zafner

This Weekend, Start Building a New Life Form

Jeff-Minor — Sat, 01 Mar 2008 05:39:00 PST

I think it might be more practicle to use computer/emergent AI modeling for "Lego Life" (did I just make that up?), in as much as biological experimentation take a lot of stuff. Greg Egan wrote a story about a woman who "invents" a life form with a LL modeling program. Can't remember the name of the book yet.

Jeff-Minor

This Weekend, Start Building a New Life Form

92BuickLeSabre — Fri, 29 Feb 2008 17:57:15 PST

@Annalee Newitz: We can build her. We have the technology. We have the capability to build the world's first bionically cool baby. This will be that baby. Cuter than any baby before. Better. Cooler. Cuter.

(I know the reality is even more technologically amazing, but that's still what I like to imagine.)

92BuickLeSabre

This Weekend, Start Building a New Life Form

Annalee Newitz — Fri, 29 Feb 2008 17:07:11 PST

TMI that I know a baby who is cute? Yeah, who wants to know that?

Annalee Newitz

This Weekend, Start Building a New Life Form

cde — Fri, 29 Feb 2008 17:01:11 PST

@Annalee Newitz: Creeply TMI :P

cde

This Weekend, Start Building a New Life Form

Annalee Newitz — Fri, 29 Feb 2008 16:49:17 PST

@92BuickLeSabre: I got myself modified just so that crap wouldn't happen. I prefer my life forms to be built in the lab. The coolest baby I know was built in a lab! Oh man she is cute.

Annalee Newitz

This Weekend, Start Building a New Life Form

92BuickLeSabre — Fri, 29 Feb 2008 16:42:34 PST

@moff: ...and here I am always making sure that I'm not building new life-forms.

92BuickLeSabre

This Weekend, Start Building a New Life Form

moff — Fri, 29 Feb 2008 16:39:55 PST

Honestly, there is a simpler way to build new life-forms, and it's more fun, too.

moff

This Weekend, Start Building a New Life Form

BloggyMcBlogBlog — Fri, 29 Feb 2008 16:38:02 PST

Time to build that yeast that can survive in 100% alcohol. No more distillation for me!!

BloggyMcBlogBlog