• A near-complete Python rewrite of the uzbl browser’s core is available on GitHub (mason-larobina/uzbl, experimental branch), providing an open-source, scriptable web engine for lab automation dashboards.

• Participants detailed a low-cost open-source PCR thermocycler using a 1 mm ceramic plate wrapped with 0.25 mm nichrome wire and a chromel–alumel thermocouple, achieving <30 W power draw and rapid cycling by minimizing thermal mass instead of the traditional aluminum block.

• A practical plan to convert an Epson inkjet with CD-printing mode into a flat-bed bioprinter was outlined: the existing “print-to-CD” hardware already supplies vertical head adjustment and linear tray motion, so only a hydrogel stage and layer-stacking firmware are needed; key references include the “Indoor Flyer” powder-bed mod and doi:10.1016/j.biomaterials.2003.10.052 on inkjet cell patterning.

• DIY microfluidics fabrication was debated, comparing PCB-based channels, water-in-oil droplet PCR, and etching 800 µm-deep Pyrex wells by DRIE (2-hour ICP plasma etch) versus HF wet etching; a microfactory concept for on-chip photolabile phosphoramidite synthesis was also floated.

• A distributed “plasmid paper” scheme was proposed: clone restriction-enzyme or Taq-polymerase genes into E. coli, dry the plasmid onto filter paper, and mail it like a postcard to circumvent bio-hazard shipping fees and patent restrictions while enabling community sharing of synthetic-biology parts.

• Nichrome wire was highlighted for multiple bio-lab uses—sub-micron conductive probe tips (doi:10.1088/0957-4484/20/39/395708), micro-thermocycler heaters, and intracerebral multi-wire electrodes (12 × 25 µm nichrome in epoxy)—though dental-allergy studies raised questions about long-term biocompatibility.

• A low-cost Atmel-based thermoluminescence reader (Lyamayev 2006, doi:10.1088/0957-0233/17/12/N01) was shared with schematics and firmware, and participants suggested modernizing it via USB-serial bridges for dosimetry and material-science experiments.

• LED-array spectrophotometers were critiqued: multi-LED designs can give quantitative absorbance if properly calibrated, yet most “educational” builds lack diffraction gratings or rigorous calibration; a Royal Society tutorial (rsc.org link) was provided as a starting point.

• EV-conversion discussions weighed keeping a manual transmission in small pickups versus direct-drive dual-motor or two-speed planetary layouts, and side threads explored range-extended 1999 Jeep Wrangler or Daewoo Lanos conversions using small diesel generators and junkyard mower engines.

• MakerBeam’s $5 k Kickstarter with no finished product was cited as evidence of rising demand for open-source hardware, paralleling the channel’s push for open bioprinting and lab automation.