# Key Points from IRC Discussion

• Microfluidic chip fabrication was discussed with quotes ranging from $500-$1500, with participants considering optimal etching depths (down to 5μm) for yeast cell experiments, noting that S. cerevisiae cells are 5-10μm in diameter.

• Steve Coles, MD, founder of the Gerontology Research Group, received immediate cryopreservation after cardiac arrest in Scottsdale, AZ, having strategically positioned himself near the Alcor cryonics facility.

• Gen9bio announced a competition offering 1 million base pairs of synthesized DNA as prizes (two 500,000 bp awards) for pre-commercial startups and academic/public-benefit organizations, with a December 31, 2014 deadline.

• Participants highlighted a fundamental challenge in neuroscience: the inability to integrate understanding across different levels of description, from micro-level neural activity to macro-level fiber tracts.

• The concept of "neural circuits" was critiqued as becoming nearly meaningless due to overuse, highlighting the limitations of simple cartography approaches to brain mapping.

• A paper on "Rendering Volumetric Haptic Shapes in Mid-Air using Ultrasound" was shared, demonstrating advanced haptic technology using ultrasound and Weighted Tikhonov Regularization.

• The relationship between deep learning and neuroscience was debated, with the suggestion that despite neural network foundations, deep learning approaches remain conceptually closer to traditional AI than to actual neuroscience.