Biopunk

BillGatesrecentlytoldWiredthatifhewereateenagertoday,hewouldbehackingbiology."Ifyouwanttochangetheworldinsomebigway,"hesays,"that'swhereyoushouldstart-biologicalmolecules."ThemostdisruptiveforceontheplanetresidesinDNA.Biotechcompaniesandacademicresearchersarejustbeginningtounlockthepotentialofpiecingtogetherlifefromscratch.ChampionsofsyntheticbiologybelievethatturninggeneticcodeintoLego-likeblockstobuildnever-before-seenorganismscouldsolvethethorniestchallengesinmedicine,energy,andenvironmentalprotection.ButasthehackerswhocrackedopenthepotentialofthepersonalcomputerandtheInternetproved,themostrevolutionarydiscoveriesoftenemergefromout-of-the-wayplaces,forgedbybrilliantoutsiderswithfewresourcesbesidesboundlessenergyandgreatideas.InBiopunk,MarcusWohlsenchroniclesagrowingcommunityofDIYscientistsworkingoutsidethewallsofcorporationsanduniversitieswhoarecommittedtodemocratizingDNAthewaytheInternetdidinformation.The"biohacking"movement,nowinitsearly,headydays,aimstounleashanoutbreakofgeneticallymodifiedinnovationbymakingthetoolsandtechniquesofbiotechnologyaccessibletoeveryone.Borrowingtheiridealismfromtheworldsofopen-sourcesoftware,artisinalfood,Internetstartups,andthePeaceCorps,biopunksaredevotedadvocatesforopen-sourcingthebasiccodeoflife.TheybelieveinthepowerofindividualswithaccesstoDNAtosolvetheworld'sbiggestproblems.You'llmeetanewbreedofhackerswhoaren'tafraidtogettheirhandswet,fromentrepreneurswhoaimtobringDNA-basedmedicaltoolstothepoorestofthepoortoacurioustinkererwhobelievesatubofyogurtandajellyfishgenecouldprotecttheworld'sfoodsupply.Thesebiohackersinclude:AduowhostartedacancerdrugcompanyintheirkitchenAteamwhobuiltanopen-sourceDNAcopymachineAwomanwhodevelopedagenetictestinherapartmentforadeadlydiseasethathadstrickenherfamilyAlongwiththepotentialofcitizensciencetobringaboutdisruptivechange,WohlsenexplorestherisksofDIYbioterrorism,thepossibilityofgeneticengineeringexperimentsgoneawry,andwhethertheabilitytodesignlifefromscratchonalaptopmightcomesoonerthanwethink.