Notes 20110915

At long last, we finally have the lab rebuilt! Let the biology projects begin!

We need:

• a microwave
• an autoclave or pressure cooker
• an incubator (we could make a basic one from a 100w light bulb in cooler 100m cultures)
• some kind of flame source for fixing gels on slides

Some things to do with our newfound bio lab:

• A simple microscopy lab (get the microscope out and look at things)
• Isolate DNA, cut up, run on gel to teach basic techniques
• Get PCR up and running, send samples out for sequencing

There is a Wired magazine article on DIY bio in this month's episode. Also, here is an [interesting Wired blog post]

We had a discussion about closed or semi-closed ecosystem models, where there are plants and fish feeding each other. Biocurious built very small ones for kids.

We want to find a good DIY bio experimental series and start running it, to have some structure.