• PacBio’s single-molecule real-time sequencing was used to assemble the complete genome of the Haitian cholera outbreak strain in hours, demonstrating rapid pathogen surveillance; the SeqAnswers thread and NEJM paper were circulated as key references.  
• A DIY liquid-nitrogen generator project (Ben Krasnow) shows how to build a bench-top LN2 plant from a surplus cryocooler and either a nitrogen-separation membrane or rebreather zeolites, lowering the barrier to cryogenic experimentation.  
• Electrostatic DNA synthesis schemes were debated: sub-45 nm pixel electrodes for in-situ deprotection of oligonucleotides in conductive liquid were proposed as a route to longer, higher-fidelity oligos than the 30–60-mer limits of current commercial arrays.  
• Open-source hardware bounties were floated: $2 k for a RepRap textile automation machine (Skeinosaur/Brontoraptor) and the unfunded Gada Grand Manufacturing and Water Liberation prizes, with discussion on whether winning designs will be merged upstream or forked.  
• A decentralized “paperleaks” platform was proposed after a 1,000-plus bioinformatics paper dump (http://bio.cc/Bioinformics/papers/) was shared, envisioning citation-tracking overlays to circumvent paywalls and accelerate open science.  
• diyhpl.us:9000/random was launched as an aggregated video archive for gerontology, longevity, and transhumanist talks, with plans for user reviews and MST3K-style commentary to crowd-source critical analysis.  
• Vertical farming feasibility was debated: 80–90 W LED arrays, rooftop solar, and RepRap-printed light housings were weighed against the economics of skyscraper agriculture, while fab@home’s cookie and turkey printers were cited as early food-printing proofs-of-concept.  
• General-purpose robotics (Willow Garage PR2 towel-folding) was contrasted with minimalist single-task robots (ping-pong juggling bot), highlighting the gap between research demos and deployable, low-sensing systems.