- A Helicos DNA-sequencing patent (US 7,329,492) was spotlighted for its surprising citation of an earlier “Composite beverage coaster” patent, illustrating the tangled genealogy of biotech IP.  
- Participants compared non-invasive brain stimulation techniques, favoring low-intensity focused ultrasound over tDCS and sharing diyhpl.us/~bryan/papers2/neuro/ultrasound/ as a repository of open protocols and schematics.  
- Magnetofection—using oscillating magnetic fields to drive DNA-coated iron particles into cells—was introduced as an accessible bench method for transfection without optical traps.  
- nmz787 located a commercial GFP DNA transfection kit for cat cells and began taking tongue-in-cheek “orders” for glowing cats, while kanzure counter-offered free GFP plasmids for E. coli to anyone interested in open-source glowing organisms.  
- A New Scientist article on “cyborg tissue” built from living cells plus electronic “smart scaffolds” was circulated as a pointer to hybrid bio-electronic interfaces.  
- Stripe’s internal “journal club” GitHub repository was highlighted as a model for how tech companies systematically curate and digest academic research for engineering teams.  
- The 2012 International Workshop on Bio-Design Automation (IWBDA) wiki was scraped for synthetic-biology resources, with MediaWiki XML exports noted as an easy archival format.  
- Amazon’s 81 %-discounted OMAX 40×–2000× binocular microscope (NA 1.25 Abbe condenser) and a $185-per-month 3-D-printer leasing program were flagged as low-cost entry points for distributed bio- and micro-fabrication labs.