day three of Biochymickal Arts 2013

(see maja's notes)

• languages & gestures
• culture & environment
• fermentation & metabolism
• essence & code
• improvisation & speculation

Mischka Melo

• experiments in finding ways to improve environmental footprint of electronics
• currently ~45 metals used in microcircuitry
• currently ~80% of waste → landfill. (ref. ~75% metals in landfill is from electronics)
• can we build compostable electronics?
• primary work transistor made using milk,carrot,fish,ecoflex,brocilli, sugar
  • ref. Mihai Irimia-Vladu - many papers online at http://www.jku.at/ipc/content/e166682/index_html?team_view=section&emp=e166682/employee_groups_wiss166736/employees175992 and http://www.researchgate.net/profile/Mihai_Irimia-Vladu/publications/

• La Paillasse as venue for DIY experiments with melanin as living semiconductor
• can melanin be produced in a kitchen-lab?
• created cultures using food grade materials available from supermarket
• target component is a thermistor
• using permaculture principles to enhance 'intelligence' of agricultural systems
• space and time trade off, new techniques required to use biological substrates for computation
• ref. biological computation research group mentioned in Biomimicry by Janine M. Benyus
• biomimetic kettle w. guillian graves, based on nautillus shell, spherical compartments per cup, clay using bioethanol [ref.] (note. biobutnol)

Brian Degger

ref. http://medialab-prado.es/article/interactivos10_muestra_de_proyectos

• plastics that can be made at home, can be used in the home
• what kind of domestic uses are there for plastics than can be made in the kitchen?
• based on glycerol, starch and vinegar
• cooking up toys based on templates
• why is it a plastic? a polymerised chain
• compostable?

hugo herter

• what materials do you need to program cells?
• introduction to biology, classification, molecular biology
• about ~1.5% human genome coding for proteins
• DNA, RNA, Amino Acid, Proteins, (UGC, codons)
• transcription video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D3fOXt4MrOM
• http://ensemblgenomes.org/info/data_access
• http://uniprot.org
• http://pdb.org
• http://clustal.org
• synthetic biology - engineering, molecular biology, modelling
• regulation of expression
• BioBricks (e.g Promoter, RBS, Gene, Stop) → http://partsregistry.org
• iGEM 2009 entry → E.Coli biosynthesis of superglue
• principles; chemotaxis, quorum sensing, non-proliferation
• in your garage
  • order DNA (online, CC), Insert DNA (competent bacteria, transformation device), Grow bacteria (selection, application)

• meredith (see maja's notes)
• A Biopunk Manifesto

• https://benchling.com/

discussion of recent developments in the Lithuanian beer craft/culture which grew form M.s interest in home-brewing.

post 1991 previously 'underground' semi-legal breweries became legal. ~200 then, ~60 now. commercial brewing was thus based on home-brewing style techniques and included some peculiarities (e.g. not boiling the wort, unpasteurised → target for wild bacteria, baking loaves of malt and using crumbs in brewing, ritual of sauna before brewing, starting the process in sauna) some family yeast cultures have a verifiable history around 160 yrs.

in “Lithuanian farmhouse brewing” article, beer connoisseur magazine covered 20 breweries in 4 days (hosted by T.A) surprised by distinct tastes and techniques. sequencing of the yeast DNA led to conclusion that there may be a distinct species or hybrid in the J. strain.

• http://tikrasalus.lt/2012/05/01/lithuanian-countryside-yeast-tales/
• http://tikrasalus.lt/2012/08/30/beer-connoisseur-top-secret-lithuanian-farmhouse-brewing/

(see maja's notes)

• closing loops with bio-materials
• rethink intelligent systems
• people & politics
• need time to ferment

• in three words
  • “they are hungry”
  • “time,impressive,new”
  • “inspiring social fermentation”
  • “go for it”
  • “sharing”
  • “interspecies fecundation”
  • “too much food” → “much food too”
  • “anticipating practical experiments”
  • “enzymatic historical hacking”
  • “time aware processes”
  • “fermentation releasing energy”
  • “creative, bulling reactions”
  • “micro world tourism”
  • “dexterity is hard”
  • “slow process, fast experiments”
  • “sleep. bubbling. people”
  • “more research required”