- A community wish-list for DIYbio calls for a curated library of step-by-step protocols for building low-cost lab gear (e.g., a home DNA sequencer) plus ultra-simple safety checklists aimed at practitioners without formal lab training.  
- Participants compared SymPy’s physics.units, the quantities package, Octave add-ons, and Maxima plug-ins to find the cleanest way to attach physical units to symbolic math in Python/Octave without rewriting existing libraries.  
- A $10 DIY thermal camera design based on ferroelectric PVDF film was rediscovered; discussion centered on sourcing pre-charged PVDF and hacking PIR sensors into a scanning imager.  
- Progress on the open-source MechMate CNC router at an Austin hackerspace includes open CAD files for laser-cut metal motor mounts, a welding fix, and a future vision of a web queue plus automated part-loading once EMC2 is installed.  
- A debate on robotics strategy contrasted “one expensive precision robot” with “many cheap, fault-tolerant robots,” referencing Rodney Brooks and proposing CO₂ or baking-soda fire-suppression bots for unsupervised CNC operation.  
- The bacterial MagA gene was highlighted as a magnetogenetic tool that turns mammalian cells into MRI-visible factories by catalyzing localized magnetic “nuggets,” enabling non-invasive, real-time imaging of gene expression in living brains.  
- Candidate BioBrick parts for a low-cost iGEM-style project were listed: the ComB gene system, MRI reporter MagA, and voltage-sensitive fluorescent dyes, with the main barrier being the high entry cost and the need for an accessible DNA synthesizer.