# Key Points from IRC Discussion

• A Duke University study revealed that violence causes measurable wear and tear on children's DNA, providing biological evidence of environmental trauma's physical impact.

• DARPA is funding O'Reilly to establish "Makerspaces" (hackerspaces) in high schools, complete with playbooks and resource guides, indicating institutional support for hands-on technical education.

• The scientific community faces persistent challenges with protocol sharing, as demonstrated by platforms like MethodMint which, despite good features, struggle with adoption; researchers typically modify published protocols but rarely document or share these improvements.

• Open science hardware initiatives were discussed, including a DIY colorimeter on Kickstarter and an unsuccessful open spectrometer project, highlighting both potential and challenges in crowdfunding scientific equipment.

• Peter Thiel's CS183 startup class notes were shared, emphasizing the importance of organizational culture and team trust despite interpersonal friction.

• The FDA's approval of at-home laser hair removal treatments was noted as a significant development in consumer medical technology, representing the growing trend of medical technology entering the consumer space.

• Discussion revealed a gap between academic protocol sharing (primarily in paper notebooks) and industry approaches (standardized but proprietary SOPs), suggesting an opportunity for improved knowledge transfer systems.