- A new paper on “Towards automatic generation of linear genetic regulatory networks via BioBricks” was posted to the project wiki, with the author joking that if the code is finished before publication he’ll simply drop the word “Towards” from the title.  
- Discussion of a 50-page open-access paper from BMC Systems Biology (1752-0509/2/91) as a “gravy train” opportunity for regulatory-network modeling.  
- Gene floated the idea of a four-barrel (instead of two-barrel) whole-chromosome shotgun sequencing strategy that would trade wet-lab time for extra compute power and cross-checks against the Human Genome Project data.  
- UtopiahGHML asked for studies on the fastest-changing human gene pools and current environmental selection pressures, specifically citing Bruce Lahn’s work at the University of Chicago.  
- A request was made for the book “The Mechanical Mind in History” (MIT Press, April 2008); UtopiahGHML posted the table-of-contents link and invited reviews.  
- The channel debated gamifying the SKDB open-manufacturing database: awarding points and virtual “hats” for data entry, versus the counter-argument that human data entry is inherently unreliable.  
- A long technical thread explored coupling generative CAD with coarse-mesh FEA to prune design trees early; participants considered Python/Blender pipelines, STL export hacks, and whether iterative mesh refinement beats full PDE solutions.  
- Joel “ferrouswheel” Pitt (OpenCog contributor from New Zealand) dropped in; conversation pivoted to the lack of transhumanist groups in NZ, the high cost of living in the Bay Area, and Auckland CS projects such as ThinkBase (visual Freebase wiki navigation) and Eurekster.