- A new non-invasive brain-computer-interface technique using low-intensity ultrasound to pass through the skull and modulate neural activity was reported; the PhysOrg article and a PDF copy of the paper were circulated.  
- DIYbio and open-science participants discussed the ethics of “quick-buck” newcomers who want to monetize community research without contributing, highlighting tension between openness and commercialization.  
- Olympus “Mobile Eye-Trek” head-mounted display patents were mined; links to four USPTO filings (cameras, size-reduction, information-display systems) were archived for future open-hardware replication.  
- A synthetic-biology “blinking” E. coli oscillator was noted (Nature paper referenced) as a precise biological clock, though participants argued that simple genetic oscillators are already well-known.  
- Python libSBML hacking continued: xp_prg produced a first script to generate SBML reaction models, while kanzure shared a minimal example and notes on integrating SBML with GraphSynth rule files.  
- Graph-generation heuristics were debated: kanzure sought “natural-looking” random graphs; fenn suggested scale-free (1/n edge-count) and small-world topologies, linking the Wikipedia “Scale-free network” article.  
- ScratchInput—a project that turns any surface into a finger-tap acoustic interface—was praised for its simplicity and open-source potential, though questions were raised about its advantage over accelerometers.  
- SNPedia entries correlating single-nucleotide polymorphisms (rs363039, rs363050) with IQ gains were circulated, prompting skepticism about small sample sizes and “video-game-style” stat boosts.  
- Rolling-release Linux distros (Gentoo vs Ubuntu) were compared; bkero defended Gentoo’s ease for 300-machine deployments, while others argued that hardware configuration and compile times remain barriers for newcomers.  
- ContextFreeArt.org’s algorithmic graphics gallery was revisited, with participants marveling at the apparent impossibility of some images and joking about fractal universes and cheating artists.