- The group evaluated re-using the SynBioSS (Synthetic Biology Software Suite) codebase as a backend for biological design automation, planning to graft an AJAX web interface, ikiwiki, and a git-based repository on top of its SBML (Systems Biology Markup Language) engine while retaining its use of the Python “Unum” module for units-aware quantities.

- A major architectural shift was proposed: replacing the monolithic “.repo” format (single YAML + encoded blobs) with a directory of individual YAML files—one per part—to enable fine-grained version control and collaborative editing via git.

- Participants debated how to specify biological part interfaces, weighing explicit YAML declarations of “allowable flow types” (e.g., ss-DNA, ATP) against runtime negotiation through Python duck-typing and attribute matching.

- The need for modular, domain-specific ontologies (electronics, synthetic biology, mechanical hardware) was emphasized to keep schemas manageable while still supporting automated dependency resolution and inventory control of lab reagents and equipment.

- Reverse-engineering efforts focused on Qt’s proprietary “CDD” format (zlib-compressed ConceptDraw diagrams); the group concluded that extraction requires re-implementing Qt’s qUncompress or automating the Windows ConceptDraw GUI to export to SVG, and proposed converting the resulting diagrams into a quantified graph where labeled flows become edges and artifacts become nodes.

- Relevant resources shared included the SynBioSS project page (http://synbioss.sf.net/), the Unum units library (http://home.scarlet.be/be052320/Unum.html), the 2008 Caltech “digital zebrafish embryo” paper, WikiPathways, and a 1 TB, 5 W hard drive deal on Newegg.