Friday, October 31, 2008
The Geography of Biodefense
Two recent stories in the press have drawn attention to some really questionable decisions to site biodefense facilities.
Wired magazine looks at the possibility of a level 4 biosafety lab, specifically a National Bio- and Agro-Defense Facility, being built at the existing Plum Island Animal Disease Center just off of the tip of Long Island. Of course, the primary question being the wisdom of such a facility being located so close to the most populated city in the country.
The New York Times looks at the existing Robert E. Shope Medical Laboratory at the University of Texas in Galveston, one of two facilities pushed by the post 9-11 Bush Administration. The second facility, to be located in Boston University Medical Center, has met much more resistance than has emerged in Galveston. Both facilities will study highly contagious and lethal pathogens, from Ebola to drug-resistant tuberculosis.
While no longer active, the Sunshine Project is a great resource for how these facilities are funded, regulated and sited.
Sunday, October 12, 2008
Will Sweet Energy Give Us Cavities?
It's been a while since I've posted here, but I just received news from our friends at the ETC Group. This weekend, they've been in attendance at SynBio 4.0 conference in Hong Kong. The meeting is obviously the fourth in a series where leaders in the emerging field of synthetic biology come together to plan our shiny new future. Even though I've been posting about synthetic biology here for a few years now, apparently, most of us in the U.S. don't have any idea what it is. OK, I don't really think this blog is a barometer of public knowledge... I'd be surprised if anyone is even reading it other than me.Anyway... The ETC Group has a new report about the potential, and existing, problems surrounding the push to develop fuels from plant-derived sugars. Lots of familiar arguments against biofuels, but some welcome specificity with regard to genetic engineering.
And if you're interested in their first hand accounts of the SynBio 4.0 conference, check their blog.
Archives
June 2004 July 2004 August 2004 September 2004 October 2004 November 2004 December 2004 January 2005 February 2005 March 2005 April 2005 May 2005 June 2005 July 2005 August 2005 September 2005 October 2005 November 2005 December 2005 January 2006 February 2006 March 2006 April 2006 May 2006 June 2006 July 2006 August 2006 September 2006 October 2006 November 2006 December 2006 January 2007 February 2007 March 2007 April 2007 May 2007 June 2007 July 2007 September 2007 October 2007 November 2007 December 2007 January 2008 February 2008 March 2008 April 2008 May 2008 June 2008 October 2008
