# Key Points from IRC Log

• Fenn shared progress on their RepRap 3D printer project, showing a video of the X-axis movement which had issues with belt tension and pulley engagement, demonstrating the ongoing development challenges in DIY fabrication technology.

• JayDugger shared information about "booggie," an open-source project that brings object-oriented graph grammars to engineering, formalizing engineering knowledge to solve design tasks (https://sourceforge.net/projects/booggie/).

• Kanzure shared research on radio-controlled cyborg beetles from Berkeley's Maharbiz lab, linking to papers about neural flight control interfaces for insects and related MEMS technologies (http://www.eecs.berkeley.edu/~maharbiz/).

• The group discussed an Economist article calling for open-source biology, with conversation focusing on reliability theory principles (redundancy, diversity, transparency, reduced complexity) and the importance of "making a backup of nature" through space colonization.

• Members shared resources for knowledge management including CKAN (a CPAN-like system for datasets), SKDB (societal engineering-knowledge database), and a Reddit discussion about creating tools for learning about subjects.

• An open-source scanning-tunneling microscope project was highlighted on Hackaday, representing a significant advancement in making quantum-effect instrumentation accessible to DIY scientists.

• The group discussed inertial fusion research by Bussard labs and DARPA, sharing resources including a Google Talk from 2007 and a more recent Space Show episode from December 2009 with updates on the research.