- A new atomic-manipulation technique was reported that builds the most complex molecular wire ever created, demonstrating progress toward bottom-up nanotech assembly (Chemistry World link).  
- Participants debated algorithms for indexing and searching “shape-space,” i.e., fast similarity queries over 3-D forms or scalar fields such as DFT-derived drug shapes against biomolecule databases, with cheminformatics similarity metrics (Jaccard, 44 others) and bounding-volume trees proposed as starting points.  
- NSF and DARPA announced $12 M in SemiSynBio grants to merge synthetic biology with semiconductor fabrication for ultra-dense data storage, aiming for Library-of-Congress-scale capacity on a fingernail-sized device; DNA and polymer storage media are central targets.  
- A recent CRISPR-Cas9 “large deletion” scare was dissected: the phenomenon (DNA double-strand break repair artifacts) has been known for decades, and current ex-vivo therapies remain safe because edited cells can be screened.  
- Discussion of improving CRISPR precision included ideas of fusing Cas9 with ligase or DNA-repair enzymes to reduce off-target errors.  
- A record-breaking ptychography electron-microscopy advance achieved sub-ångström resolution, enabling direct imaging of atomic bonds.  
- Wireless optogenetic stimulators (Teleopto) were noted as a tool for freely moving animal experiments.  
- The channel shared background reading: a 2017 DNA-data-storage workshop report and NSF press releases on SemiSynBio projects.