• An open-source Lego-and-Arduino atomic-force microscope (lego2nano.openwisdomlab.net) offers nanometre-scale imaging at ultra-low cost, aimed at democratizing nanotech education and citizen science.

• Current consumer DNA-sequencing services still only read the four canonical bases; detecting epigenetic marks such as 5-methylcytosine or 5-hydroxymethylcytosine remains prohibitively expensive and unavailable to individuals.

• A Nature Communications paper (doi:10.1038/ncomms4026) describes “sugar-powered biobatteries” that reportedly deliver ~10× the energy density of present lithium-ion cells, suggesting a potential leap in portable power for wearables and implants.

• A live, open protocol for permanent human bioluminescence was sketched: assemble a luciferase/luciferin cassette with a constitutive promoter via the Golden Gate TALEN toolkit, purify endotoxin-free DNA, and deliver it topically with Lipofectamine-3000 (or an upcoming $700 DIY kit) while soaking in a salt bath for ≥6 h to reach basement-membrane stem cells.

• Transfection trade-offs were debated: Lipofectamine achieves ~20 % efficiency but is cytotoxic; viral vectors (AAV, adenovirus, lentivirus) reach higher efficiency yet risk immune inflammation and insertional mutagenesis; polymer-DNA complexes and DMSO-only suspensions are lower-efficacy alternatives.

• Reversibility is feasible by repeating the same topical protocol with an antisense construct, and participants recommended a small “test patch” (e.g., one finger) before full-body application to monitor off-target mutagenesis and skin damage.

• Optogenetic toggling was proposed: integrate light-activated promoters so one wavelength turns the glow on and another turns it off, drawing on Ed Boyden’s neuronal optogenetics work; muscle- or neuro-triggered control was judged significantly harder to implement.

• Promega’s bioluminescent reporter guide (promega.de) was highlighted as the go-to resource for selecting luciferase variants and emission colors, including red-shifted luciferase for saliva-based glow, despite the company’s SEO-heavy URLs.

• A philosophical split emerged over transhumanist priorities: one participant advocated universal, compulsory enhancement of all life, while others defended an individualist stance articulated in the “DIYHPL Declaration” (http://diyhpl.us/wiki/declaration).