Life blog

links for 2009-07-03

• 40 tall ships will arrive in Boston next week for public viewing - The Boston Globe
  Just the week we arrive. I wonder if we'll have the time (or energy) to go visit.

  "The public will be invited to view about 40 Tall Ships in Boston Harbor and Winthrop at next week’s Sail Boston 2009 and to board ships from piers in South Boston and Charlestown, the Coast Guard announced yesterday."

  
  
  (tags: boston sailing tallships event)
  
  

links for 2009-07-02

• How to build an ark - Boston.com
  "We're in the worst recession of most people's lifetime, and in the midst of the worst stretch of summer weather that anyone can remember. Have things reached biblical proportions? Maybe not, but just in case, we thought it might help to provide instructions on how to build an ark."
  (tags: crisis funny pcitures flood ark)

links for 2009-07-01

• CloneSaver Card
  Hooray for old school. "Store sample DNA for years at room temperature Plasmid DNA stored on CloneSaver Cards is stable at room temperature for at least four years...and counting."
  (tags: molecularist oldskool biotech diybio science dna tools)

links for 2009-06-30

• Google’s Africa Strategy: Search And Trade Via SMS
  "For the majority of the world’s population, that means making it available on a cell phone, and not a fancy iPhone or Android with a Web browser either. I’m talking about $10 cell phones with not much more than voice and SMS capabilities. If Google can reach people, especially in developing nations, with SMS, it can reach everyone with a cell phone. " [via mattmiz]
  (tags: google mobile africa sms news services design)

links for 2009-06-21

• TruGenetics™, Inc. :: Enhancing Life Through Genomics
  Hmm. Free Genome Scanning (SNPs).

  [via @LaBlogga]

  
  
  (tags: genomics service science biotech trend biology)
  
  
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  PHD Comics: OMG! ROTFL!!
  
  
  Great comic on what kind of comments a science paper might get.
  
  
  (tags: science comics comic funny humor research fun molecularist publishing socialweb)
  
  
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  Online Engagement of Scientists with the literature: anonymity vs. ResearcherID at Synthesis
  
  
  A nice little discussion on commenting on scientific articles"

  "A discussion broke out recently on Friendfeed about online commentary on scientific articles. The discussions were interesting because, for the first time in recent memory, there was disagreement about something fundamental. I view this as an extremely positive sign that out community is starting to grow and incorporate people outside of our core group. In fact, if there’s no disagreement, it’s probably a sign you’re doing something wrong."

  
  
  (tags: science publishing web socialweb social molecularist)
  
  

links for 2009-06-20

• Biopunk.org - A forum
  (tags: biology biotech biotechnology culture diybio forum future genetics technology science biopunk molecularist)
• Joho the Blog » Bing, Google … and Kayak
  "I’ve been poking around Microsoft’s Bing. The short answer is that it’s not going to move me off of Google. Of course, my Google inertia is pretty much sleeping-hippopotamus-like at this point. Plus, Bing’s ripping off of Kayak.com (see below) has me pretty cheesed."
  (tags: search datamining futureofsearch google bing kayak information)
• Genzyme sees outside vendor as source of plant contamination - The Boston Globe
  "On Tuesday, Genzyme reported that it discovered a virus in one of six bioreactors at its Allston plant, where it makes Cerezyme and Fabrazyme. The drugs, made using genetically engineered Chinese hamster ovary cells in large vats filled with nutrients and other chemicals, are used to treat about 8,000 patients around the world with rare genetic disorders. "
  (tags: biotech biology industry production science pharma)

links for 2009-06-16

• Harvard classrooms, labs feel pinch of budget cuts - The Boston Globe
  Hand-wringing at Harvard.
  (tags: harvard university schools crisis budget money education research molecularist)
• Ginkgoo » Assembly standards
  A few comments by Reshma on the Biobrick standard and variations on it.

  "We only have to look to the VHS vs. betamax format wars followed by the HD-DVD vs. Blu-ray wars to know that it’s not simply the first standard or even the technically superior standard that gets adopted."

  
  
  (tags: biobricks ginkgoo standards science biology syntheticbiology synthbio molecularist)
  
  
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  Ginkgoo » Design your BioBrick systems on the go
  
  
  Hm. Mobile science comes to the iPhone.

  "Just a quick post to let you know that Cesar from Drew’s lab has released the first version of his BioBrick Studio app for the iPhone on the iTunes Store. It lets you do some basic browsing of BioBrick parts from the Registry of Standard Biological Parts."

  
  
  (tags: biology biobricks iphone app innovation interesting science synthbio syntheticbiology molecularist)
  
  
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  Frontline Club - Events: FRONTLINE: A Broadsheet Launch - Members only event
  
  
  "Join us to celebrate the launch of the FRONTLINE: A Broadsheet.
  FRONTLINE: A BROADSHEET aims to be a high-quality, quarterly publication, in some ways radical; in others resurrecting traditions lost from the British market.
  FRONTLINE will address major events and themes in international and domestic British politics, culture, conflict and lifestyle.
  FRONTLINE will be political, but party-politically-allergic, irreverent and iconoclastic in equal measure.
  FRONTLINE will offer international coverage in the best traditions of the Frontline Club and its membership, which includes some of the most esteemed reporters in the world.
  FRONTLINE has been put together by a team of Club members whose work is entirely voluntary.
  Annual subscription for £15 inc. postage. Please email broadsheet@frontlineclub.com for further inquiries."
  
  
  (tags: journalism media newspaper publications publishing new interesting trend future)
  
  
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  Opera Unite
  
  
  Is this the start of p2p social networks. (heck, phones with voice and sms are p2p networks, right?)
  
  
  (tags: opera web collaboration tools p2p server browser unite technology cool SocialNetworking)
  
  

links for 2009-06-11

• Coke's RFID-Based Dispensers Redefine Business Intelligence -- Business Intelligence
  "Coca-Cola doesn't think its customers have enough drink choices. So starting this summer, diners at some California, Georgia, and Utah fast-food joints will get to try a self-serve drink dispenser that pours more than 100 varieties of sodas, juices, teas, and flavored waters."
  (tags: innovation product marketing cool rfid)