- Nathan McCorkle’s YouTube talk “Intro to DNA, DNA synthesis, and microfluidics” proposes using photoisomerization as a novel mechanism for DNA synthesis; participants asked whether prior attempts exist.  
- Elsevier filed suit in the Southern District of New York against Sci-Hub and “John Does,” naming Alexandra Elbakyan as the primary defendant; channel members discussed the potential impact on libgen and open-access literature.  
- A Bloomberg article on AOBiome’s skin-microbiome-based cosmetics was shared as an example of consumer-facing synthetic-biology commercialization.  
- Discussion of CRISPR alternatives focused on Zinc-Finger Nucleases (ZFNs) and TALENs; participants noted ZFNs are technically viable but more cumbersome and expensive than CRISPR/Cas9.  
- DIY/home-brew insulin production was highlighted via a BattleDiabetes article, framed as an intersection of personal health tracking and open-source bioengineering.  
- Electroactive polymer (EAP) displays and actuators were introduced; a $199 memristor-in-DIP kit from bioinspired.net was linked as a tangible hardware component for experimentation.  
- Molecular-dynamics practitioner FourFire reported running GROMACS simulations and planned to recompile for GPU acceleration and latest AVX instruction sets.  
- Historical note: channel members referenced 19th-century “Resurrectionists” and the Medical College of Georgia’s use of an enslaved grave-robber to supply cadavers, illustrating early bio-resource acquisition ethics.