- A PNAS paper on “A strategy to capture and characterize the synaptic transcriptome” was retrieved and mirrored at diyhpl.us, highlighting efforts to identify RNAs involved in long-term memory storage.  
- Discussion of a Dutch Kickstarter campaign that raised >$115 k to engineer a luminescent plant via genetic modification, contrasted with strict EU regulations that halted an earlier attempt to make bacteria produce red pigment.  
- Frink, a programming language that claims to handle physical units correctly, was introduced as a tool for scientific computation.  
- Open-source resources for DNA nanotechnology were shared: cadnano and the NanoEngineer CAD suite (GitHub mirror) were recommended for designing DNA origami and molecular machines, with links to Caltech’s DNA research publications.  
- A GitHub repository containing CAD models of nano-scale planetary gears was pointed out, prompting debate over whether such devices have been physically realized at the nanoscale.  
- Debugging of the open-source Emokit library for Emotiv EEG headsets was noted as difficult without the actual hardware, alongside a tongue-in-cheek suggestion to use the device as a cryptographically secure entropy source.  
- A Cylance blog post revealed widespread scanning for publicly exposed Tridium Niagara building-automation consoles, illustrating IoT security issues.  
- The Prenda Law copyright-trolling saga was summarized: the firm allegedly extorted settlements in porn-downloading cases by exploiting high defense costs and social stigma, leading to a judge’s scathing “no-win” ruling.