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Journée #4 - Développement d'un scénario mêlant un contexte (géographique, politico-économique, etc.) et des recherches biotechnologiques issues du biohackerspace.

#photos workshop

the-recollection

bio-ensci

The UK’s first bus powered entirely by human and food waste has gone into service between Bristol and Bath.

The 40-seat “Bio-Bus” runs on biomethane gas generated through the treatment of sewage and food waste.

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Researching the implications of downsizing the human species to better fit the earth.

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Abstract

Anthropogenic climate change is arguably one of the biggest problems that confront us today. There is ample evidence that climate change is likely to affect adversely many aspects of life for all people around the world, and that existing solutions such as geoengineering might be too risky and ordinary behavioural and market solutions might not be sufficient to mitigate climate change. In this paper, we consider a new kind of solution to climate change, what we call human engineering, which involves biomedical modifications of humans so that they can mitigate and/or adapt to climate change. We argue that human engineering is potentially less risky than geoengineering and that it could help behavioural and market solutions succeed in mitigating climate change. We also consider some possible ethical concerns regarding human engineering such as its safety, the implications of human engineering for our children and for the society, and we argue that these concerns can be addressed. Our upshot is that human engineering deserves further consideration in the debate about climate change.

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Foragers: The world is running out of food – we need to produce 70% more food in the next 40 years according to the UN. Yet we continue to over-populate the planet, use up resources and ignore all the warning signs. It is completely unsustainable. In this scenario, a group of people take their fate into their own hands and start building DIY devices. They use synthetic biology to create “microbial stomach bacteria”, along with electronic and mechanical devices, to maximise the nutritional value of the urban environment, making-up for any shortcomings in the commercially available but increasingly limited diet. These people are the new urban foragers.

Stop and Scan:In this scenario the mind becomes a new site of interest for the state, requiring new protocols of ownership, access, protection and transparency. Police carry out random stop and search scans near crime scenes. Using a special scanner, people are shown images that only the criminal could know about. The device is based on brain fingerprinting technology where a scanner detects a characteristic electrical brainwave response whenever a person responds to a known stimulus. If the person being scanned appears to recognise an image, a light glows and they are taken away for further processing.

EM Listeners: Echelon is brought to the street. Em-listeners move through public spaces, they scan telephone calls, emails and anything else sent over the spectrum. Their highly visible antennae are intended to deter any subversive activities. Their presence is accepted because it means less risk from terrorists.

Afterlife: This device is intended for a time when euthanasia is far more common than it is today. Medical technologies may have extended life spans but they have not increased quality of life. It’s not too difficult to imagine a time when people opt to take their own lives at the appropriate moment. All sorts of variations on suicide machines may evolve to cater for a huge range of emotional, psychological and metaphysical circumstances. Who would have thought that doctors would eventually work with technologists to develop new and humane ways of dying?

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This work consists of a series of interventions on different scales, in pursuit of making a pigeon defecate soap.

The first intervention is on the micro-scale. With the help of biochemist James Chappell, we have used synthetic biology to design and create a bacteria that can modify the metabolism of pigeons. To achieve this, we have created a new biobrick, or standard biological part, that when added to the genetic information of the bacteria, creates lipase. We have also used a biobrick that lowers the ph. The result is a biological device that produces a kind of window-soap. We have built this device in the bacteria Lactobacillus, which is a bacteria that naturally occurs in the digestive tract. So when feeding this bacteria to a pigeon, it should produce and defecate biological soap. The biobrick we have created is freely accessible from the standard registry of biological parts.

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Journée #3 - Conception de deux scénarii. Présentation des idées, rencontre à la Paillasse avec Julien Couaillier (Hackgriculture), Quitterie Largeteau (Biohacking safari) et Hakeem Montanelli (Fly Lab).

#photos workshop

Robots an autonomy

For a robot to behave truly autonomously it will need not only to use its energy in an effective way but also extract this energy from its environment. This requires the robot to convert energy from natural raw materials and also deal with replenishing reserves and waste management.

So far, two such robots, namely EcoBot-I and EcoBot-II have been developed, which - to some extent - exhibit this type of behaviour.EcoBot-I, which was developed in 2002, employed E. coli and was fed with sugar and EcoBot-II, which was developed in 2004 used sludge microbes and was fed (amongst other substrates) with dead insects and food waste.

A major barrier to the widespread deployment of autonomous robots in remote areas (away from power utilities) is the availability of energy. The present work represents a first step towards addressing this fundamental issue. Industrial applications include those requiring ‘release and forget’robots; where robots are required to accomplish a mission usually in dangerous or undesirable for people areas (such as perimeter/pollution/predator monitoring) with minimum maintenance. The waste disposal industry will be interested in extracting energy from food waste. This new technology also offers the prospect of ‘gut sensors’ for environmental sampling. Toxins/pollutants of interest could be monitored by its effect on microbial efficiency. Long term, this new technology could be integrated with EAP/active polymers to build self-powered actuators.

In many ways the system will mimic real digestion (e.g. in the use of micro-organisms within a tubular membrane to break down the food components and produce reducing power) and respiration (e.g. using air to provide oxygen to an electrochemical half-cell to create useful energy). We believe that this robot will be the first robot capable of autonomous behaviour powered by an on-board Microbial Fuel Cell, i.e. that will employ artificial metabolism. This system is CO2 neutral; it does not utilise fossil fuels and involves no net CO2 production other than that which occurs naturally in vegetable decomposition.

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Developments in nanotechnology and planetary-scale engineering point to new possibilities for us to conform the global environment to our needs. These advances combined with a dream to make clouds snow ice cream have inspired a series of experiments that look at ways to alter the composition of clouds to make new and delicious sensory experiences. Using ice-cream as a catalyst for interesting dialogue, the project’s focus is to welcome people into a mobile space that sits outside institutions, letting new audiences experience and imagine emerging scientific developments and their consequences. www.thecloudproject.co.uk

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The Virgin Galactic crash made the mechanical risks of space tourism clearer, but the psychological effects of space travel largely remain unknown.

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Get the latest information about space travel and its impact on society and people experiencing it firsthand. View our Overview Effect gallery, read expert opinions, and more.

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Rencontre avec les acteurs de la communauté des biohackers en Amerique du nord. Reportage made in Paillasse par Daily Laurel et Quitterie Largeteau.

#projets paillasse

Journée #2 - Immersion à la Paillasse. Restitution des cartographies de représentations de la Paillasse, distribution des briques "lieu" (ex. Détroit, Masdar City, Makoko, etc.), Présentation du projet "Ghost City Lab" par Adrein Malguy.

#photos workshop

Journée #1 - Immersion à la Paillasse. Rencontre avec Thomas Landrain, président du biohackerspace, préservation du laboratoire de biologie et distribution des briques "Représentions de la Paillasse" (ex. Si la Paillasse était une école, un incubateur, un parti politique, etc.).

#photos workshop

Create GLOWING PLANTS using synthetic biology and Genome Compiler's software - the first step in creating sustainable natural lighting

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What if we could use insects’ extraordinary sense of smell to prevent and diagnose illnesses?

Scientific research has demonstrated that bees have an extraordinarily acute sense of smell and can be trained to perform health checks by detecting a specific odour in peoples’ breath.

The project consists in a series of alternative diagnostic tools that use bees to diagnose accurately at an early stage of a vast variety of diseases.

Could this revolutionise medicine as we know it?

#ressources

The accumulation of mountains of electronic waste in Nigeria - increasingly the world's PC dumping ground - has so alarmed the country's government that there is now a national committee to deal with the problem.

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