Researchers turn living cells into biological sensing and computing platforms.
The preferred term is “ribocomputing.” Take a molecule of RNA, the “messenger” chemical that carries instructions from a cell’s DNA to the rest of the cell, and basically rewire it. By hacking the RNA, it’s thus possible to take command of the processes of the cell, particularly that of protein synthesis. It’s also possible to rewire the RNA to respond to specific stimuli, offering an engineered microbiological system that reacts to inputs in the same way that an embedded computer might respond to a temperature sensor of accelerometer.
Synthetic biology or “hacked” biology is a quickly growing field, but the term ribocomputing is scarce, mostly limited to a single 2016 study. That was the case at least until this week and the publication of a paper in Nature describing RNA-based synthetic biological circuits that are capable of implementing just what I described above: sensing external signals and directing cellular machinery to respond to those signals in programmed ways. It’s fascinating but also a bit spooky.
Imagine a scientist experimenting on her own genes from her kitchen, rather than going to a physician, because she wants to cure a medical ailment. Another “do-it-yourself” scientist across the country extracts DNA samples from plants to figure out how they affect its growth.
DIY biohacking is a relatively new phenomenon in which scientists (typically those with an interest in genetic engineering) want to take biology experimentation outside of the lab or classroom. Currently, it’s mostly used for medical purposes, but the future of DIY biohacking could look a lot different. So we asked four experts a simple question: By the year 2040, what will be the gene most edited via DIY biohacking?
Welcome to Mr Futurist’s first weekly podcast where I discuss what going on in emerging science and technology. Scientists have successfully edited the first human embryo in the U.S. using CRISPR. CRISPR is a gene editing technique that can modify any region of the genome of any species with high precision accuracy. Modifying a species to have certain characteristics or traits. If you’re curious as to what CRISPR is, I have added a link below to an excellent video from Futurist that explains what CRISPR is and what it can be used for, all in 60 seconds. It’s worth a minute of your time.
Eric Shuss, Ed Hudgins, Peter Voss, Zoltan Istvan, Gennady Stolyarov; Michael Shermer (mod) discuss artificial intelligence and robots. Will these developments lead the economy of the future or end capitalism as we know it?
Gennady Stolyarov II, FSA, ACAS, MAAA, CPCU, ARe, ARC, API, AIS, AIE, AIAF, is the second Chairman in the history of the U.S. Transhumanist Party and the Chief Executive of the Nevada Transhumanist Party. Mr. Stolyarov is an actuary, independent philosophical essayist, science-fiction novelist, poet, amateur mathematician, composer, and Editor-in-Chief of The Rational Argumentator, a magazine championing the principles of reason, rights, and progress. Mr. Stolyarov regularly produces YouTube videos discussing life extension, libertarianism, and related subjects, In December 2013, Mr. Stolyarov published Death is Wrong, an ambitious children’s book on life extension illustrated by his wife Wendy Stolyarov. Death is Wrong can be found on Amazon in paperback and Kindle formats, and can also be freely downloaded in PDF format in the English, Russian, French, Spanish, and Portuguese languages.
Dr. Edward Hudgins is research director at the Heartland Institute, which seeks to develop and promote free-market solutions to social and economic problems. Hudgins has written extensively on the promise of exponential technologies and the need for a human achievement and entrepreneurial ethos. Before joining Heartland, he worked at The Atlas Society, which promotes the philosophy of reason, freedom, and individualism developed by Ayn Rand. During his stint at the Cato Institute, Hudgins directed regulatory studies and produced the book, Space: The Free-Market Frontier. He has also worked at the Joint Economic Committee of Congress and at The Heritage Foundation, where he pioneered the concept of an Index of Economic Freedom. Hudgins has a BA from the University of Maryland, an MA from American University, and a PhD from the Catholic University of America. He has taught at universities both in the United States and Germany.
Zoltan Istvan is a Libertarian candidate for California Governor in 2018. He is often considered one the world’s leading transhumanists after his popular run in the 2016 US Presidential race as a science and technology candidate. Zoltan began his futurist career by publishing The Transhumanist Wager, an award-winning, #bestseller in philosophy that has been compared to Ayn Rand’s work. Zoltan is also a leading technology journalist, a successful entrepreneur, and a former filmmaker and on-camera reporter for the National Geographic Channel. His futurist work and promotion of radical science has reached over 100 million people. He is a graduate of Columbia University, and lives in San Francisco with his physician wife and two young daughters. Breitbart wrote, “Istvan is a dynamic personality, as polarizing as he is engaging.” The New York Times wrote Zoltan has “a plausibly presidential aura.”
Cyborg tech has mostly been backroom, squishy, bloody, and experimental. Now an FDA-approved surgically implanted hearing aid connects to your standard-issue iPhone.
THÉORIZ studio is bringing an empty room to life with motion tracking and augmented reality. Projections in the room change as you interact with them. They offer environments like walking up stairs, pushing down walls, jumping on to surfaces or walking through doors that look like a portal. This could end up being one trippy ride.
😂.
