# Key Points from #hplusroadmap IRC Discussions

• Participants discussed DIY fabrication techniques for custom CNC machines, recommending concrete-filled structural tubing with linear rails for rigidity, with bridge mills preferred for serious machining and gantries for lighter tasks.

• The group explored microfluidic device challenges, particularly PDMS porosity causing sample evaporation during thermocycling, suggesting solutions like water jackets, vacuum sputtering aluminum layers, or SU-8 coating.

• A progressive roadmap for DIY biotechnology was outlined: starting with PCR on a chip, advancing to DNA sequencing, and ultimately DNA synthesis, with the goal of creating an integrated chip capable of verifying its own synthesis output.

• Members are developing a DIY microfluidics platform for DNA synthesis with target synthesis times of one minute per reaction and an estimated six-month development timeline.

• A DIY fluorescence microscope project was shared that costs approximately $2,000—significantly cheaper than commercial alternatives but still substantial for individual researchers.

• The transhumanist community was critiqued as being fractured between technical contributors and "dreamers and sci-fi authors," though some skilled members had formed a nematode mind uploading research group in the late 1990s.

• Technical discussions covered positioning systems for microfluidics (achieving resolutions of 3 microns per full step), electrowetting on dielectrics (EWOD), and debates about using pumps versus high voltage for fluid movement.

• Open-source science instrumentation efforts were highlighted, including a DIY oscilloscope project and PyInstrumentation, a library for connecting to various communication buses.