• A “patch-based” paradigm for synthetic biology was proposed, treating organisms and daily life as incremental, reversible edits rather than wholesale rewrites, emphasizing minimal, targeted changes to avoid wasteful “revisions.”

• kanzure sketched an in-vitro directed-evolution project to create four “retarded polymerases” that each incorporate only one nucleotide (A, T, G, C); laser-gated via chromophore activation, these enzymes would form a biological “writozyme” for programmable, light-driven DNA synthesis, with a wiki and diagram provided (http://heybryan.org/mediawiki/index.php/In_vitro_DNA_synthesizer, http://heybryan.org/diagrams/retarded_polymerase.png).

• Discussion extended to self-replicating “bioreactor” ecosystems that couple DNA computing with manufacturing, potentially growing macroscopic structures from seed to tank, supported by UT Austin’s robotic aptamer-selection pipeline for high-affinity RNA/DNA binders (e.g., myostatin capture for muscle enhancement) and DNA-based Turing-pattern networks that crystallize sugars into predefined shapes under military funding.

• Aubrey de Grey’s Lysosens program—enzymatic degradation of lipofuscin—was highlighted as the most under-funded yet high-impact aging intervention, with an open invitation for kanzure to join John Schloendorn’s lab; related cryonics data showed cat brains retain electrical activity after seven years of vitrification, while human vitrification remains inadequate.

• A comprehensive literature dump on artificial wombs was shared, covering parthenogenesis, oviparous humans, and the socio-technical consequences of decoupling reproduction from natural gestation.

• Covert visual attention was proposed as a low-friction BCI input: EMG electrodes on neck muscles can detect micro-potentials linked to “mind-only” gaze shifts, offering a cheap, non-invasive control channel (Nature Neuroscience paper: http://www.nature.com/neuro/journal/v11/n1/full/nn2023.html).

• Participants speculated that natural eye-saccade algorithms could be “re-cast” so the brain unconsciously solves arbitrary computational problems (e.g., protein folding) by learning to scan scenes in ways a decoder interprets as algorithmic steps.

• Practical tools and events noted: a personal “event tracker” file-format for logging life data; upcoming Austin transhumanist meetups (http://austinbrains.org/); 2008 Midwest NKS Conference; and a Craig Venter talk challenging traditional taxonomy (video: http://de.sevenload.com/videos/tpFRSrY-DLD08-Day-2-Life-a-gene-centric-view).