Lifeboat Foundation

Some people object we shouldn’t cure ageing because it is natural. Well, so is malaria, for example…

You know, I may even agree ageing is ‘natural’. If we define natural as something that happens spontaneously, without external intervention, as a consequence of chemical and physical interactions, then yes, ageing is natural. This is not a great argument in favour of ageing, though, because there are very many perfectly natural things that are really bad for you, ranging on the badness spectrum pretty much anywhere from ‘mildly upsetting’ to ‘catastrophically apocalyptic’: mosquito bites, genetic diseases, viral diseses, earthquakes, tsunamis, stars going nova, being eaten by lions, cancer, a pidgeon pooing on the fancy suit you rented for your wedding precisely when you say ‘I do’, bacterial infections, and so on. So, okay, maybe ageing is natural. So what? It is also the number one cause of suffering and diseases in the western world. Frankly, I don’t give a damn if it is natural or not. It’s still pretty bad.

Speaking of rejuvenation being not natural, I could nitpick a lot. I could ask, what is ‘not natural’? Is it anything human made? Then what about things made by animals? For example, if a building is ‘not natural’, what about a beehive then? Natural or not? Given we humans have a natural tendency to tweak things around to make them work the way we want, wouldn’t rejuvenation be our natural response to the problem of ageing, just like medicines are our natural response to the problem of diseases?

Continue reading “Ageing is natural. Rejuvenation is not” »

Killer mice; Yikes!

SCIENTISTS have turned mice from timid rodents to voracious predators by successfully flicking a genetic killer switch in their brains.

https://youtube.com/watch?v=kUZn1Rh0HO8

Universal soldier is here.

http://mirrorspectrum.com/behind-the-mirror/darpa-geneticall…dier-army#

Continue reading “DARPA genetically modified humans for a super soldier army” »

Is Synbio the next big thing? Hmmm; depends. If we’re talking about ensuring that we have a solid foundation/ infrastructure (including platforms; etc.) on QC 1st then with the existing evolution and maturity of the fundamentals around Synbio as a 1st step; then accelerating the further maturity of Synbio into creating super humans and singularity? My answer is yes. If we’re not even considering that we need QC and just focused on Synbio only; my answer is No as QC will be required as a foundation for things like real Humanoid AI, cell circuited humans/ super humans, etc.

Why we might soon be buying silk, wood, and more fabricated out of genetic code.

A Salmonella pathogen manages a trade-off between virulence and transmission by manipulating the gut–brain axis and blocking appetite loss.

They could be used for guided pollination… or for surveillance.

Just when you thought there wasnt mushroom left for new drug discovery!

A team of Michigan State University scientists has genetically sequenced two species of poisonous mushrooms, discovering that they can theoretically produce billions of compounds through one molecular assembly line. This may open the door to efficiently tackling some lethal diseases.

The study, published in the journal BMC Genomics, reveals the DNA of two Amanita mushrooms, which are responsible for the majority of fatal mushroom poisonings.

Continue reading “Sequencing poisonous mushrooms to potentially create medicine” »

Scientists have engineered the first ever ‘semi-synthetic’ organisms, by breeding E. coli bacteria with an expanded, six-letter genetic code.

While every living thing on Earth is formed according to a DNA code made up of four bases (represented by the letters G, T, C and A), these modified E. coli carry an entirely new type of DNA, with two additional DNA bases, X and Y, nestled in their genetic code.

The team, led by Floyd Romesberg from the Scripps Research Institute in California, engineered synthetic nucleotides — molecules that serve as the building blocks of DNA and RNA — to create an additional base pair, and they’ve successfully inserted this into the E. coli’s genetic code.

Continue reading “New Organisms Have Been Formed Using the First Ever 6-Letter Genetic Code” »

That’s a relief.

Of all the potentially apocalyptic technologies scientists have come up with in recent years, the gene drive is easily one of the most terrifying. A gene drive is a tool that allows scientists to use genetic engineering to override natural selection during reproduction. In theory, scientists could use it to alter the genetic makeup of an entire species—or even wipe that species out. It’s not hard to imagine how a slip-up in the lab could lead to things going very, very wrong.

But like most great risks, the gene drive also offers incredible reward. Scientists are, for example, exploring how gene drive might be used to wipe out malaria and kill off Hawaii’s invasive species to save endangered native birds. Its perils may be horrifying, but its promise is limitless. And environmental groups have been campaigning hard to prevent that promise from ever being realized.

Continue reading “The UN Okays Synthetic Biology” »