- An open-source ultrasound imaging project is iterating on its receiver chain: the current prototype lacks the dedicated low-noise + variable-gain amplifier IC used in the Murgen reference design, and the team is weighing discrete-component replication versus integrated chips from TI/Maxim/Analog Devices, or simply using a high-dynamic-range ADC with software gain.

- A 64-MEMS-microphone “echolocation camera” was discussed after a Ribbon Farm article showed it converting spatial audio into real-time visual overlays, effectively giving users synaesthesia-like situational awareness; participants confirmed the microphones are off-the-shelf MEMS (both PDM and analog) and noted that commercial microphone-array systems already capture every word in conference halls, indicating the tech is more mature than hobbyist builds suggest.

- Stochastic π-calculus was proposed as a formal language for modeling cellular networks; pointers included a PLoS Computational Biology paper and an MSR technical report on the SPiM simulator, with an invitation to prototype a toy emulator in Erlang/Elixir.

- The Human Genome Project–Write (HGP-write) week-long San Francisco meeting was framed as “an open-flame money pit” focused on large-scale DNA synthesis rather than sequencing, prompting a call to mine old channel logs for forgotten synthesis ideas.

- A curated literature dump covered cutting-edge neuro/recording work: CRISPR-based molecular recorders from the Church lab, scalable neural recording principles, “Rosetta brains” for connectomics, and whole-brain single-cell imaging via chemical clearing plus computational reconstruction.

- CRT “rejuvenators” were dissected: the devices reportedly restore cathode emission by overdriving the heater with high-current pulses that blast off surface contamination, a technique documented in vintage-TV forums and demonstrated in a linked YouTube video.

- arXiv’s upcoming multi-million-dollar rebuild sparked debate after Nature revealed the preprint server already runs on >$1 M per year; participants questioned the cost relative to 139 M annual downloads and half-seriously floated Reddit-style crowd peer review as a cheaper alternative.