- A 500-element, 30 cm diameter hemispherical ultrasound phased-array operating at 1.2–1.8 MHz has achieved ≈1 mm focal resolution through skull CT-based aberration correction and is now in FDA-approved Phase-I human trials for non-invasive transcranial neurosurgery targeting glioblastoma and neuropathic pain.  
- Stanford/ASU researchers demonstrated that pulsed low-intensity ultrasound (0.35–0.50 MHz, tens of mW cm⁻²) can reversibly stimulate intact mouse motor cortex with 2 mm spatial selectivity, logging >50 000 sessions without histological damage.  
- Retina-on-a-chip experiments using 40 MHz, 3–30 µs ultrasound pulses on isolated salamander retina showed activation of downstream interneurons and lateral propagation of ON/OFF ganglion-cell spikes over ~300 µm, indicating ultrasound can modulate micro-circuits beyond the focal spot.  
- Optical-tweezers combined with UV-laser microdissection now enable non-contact ablation or modulation of single synapses in cultured neural networks while simultaneously recording with MEA and calcium imaging, allowing circuit editing and force-spectroscopy of cell-substrate adhesion.  
- The FDA-cleared infrared nerve stimulator “Aculight Capella” (λ≈1.87 µm) offers contact-free peripheral-nerve activation with reduced electrical crosstalk compared to DBS, though depth penetration is shallow and the device is labeled “not for human use.”  
- A curated literature dump of ~30 papers (1950-2010) on ultrasonic neuromodulation was shared, covering mechanistic studies by Fry, Hynynen, and Tyler, acoustic impedance of skull, phased-array aberration correction, and early reversible CNS effects.  
- Community discussion emphasized the need for hardware power-limiting to stay below damage thresholds and questioned the lack of tangible output from a funded DIY mass-spec project, alongside side threads on EFF-Austin contacts and moderation issues on the Open-Manufacturing list.  
- A Google-Docs “biohackturing” camp wiki (https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Lc9Hf6uQMGy7gfI2BypQE1aX31ggVlTeS5hSunnDnk4/edit) surfaced, listing open-source biology projects and “carrot ecology” references.  
- The 3-D-printable peristaltic pump mechanism at http://peristalsis.tentacleriot.eu/ was highlighted as a low-cost, open-hardware fluid-handling component for DIY bio labs.