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"A report launched by the Academy today highlights an emerging but critical new field of innovation and technology that has potential for major societal benefit and wealth creation in such areas as healthcare, energy and the environment. Synthetic biology – the insertion of carefully engineered DNA into bacteria cells to make them behave in new ways – is an emerging technology that could bring great benefits. Synthetic Biology: scope, applications and implications identifies the next steps to build on the UK's position in the field, create a regulatory framework and to explore, with the public, the ethical and societal issues involved."
via http://2020science.org/
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"Synthetic biology is a new field, but it's targeting an old question: How did life begin?"
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(same WSJ article, different title)
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"These hobbyists represent a growing strain of geekdom known as biohacking, in which do-it-yourselfers tinker with the building blocks of life in the comfort of their own homes. Some of them buy DNA online, then fiddle with it in hopes of curing diseases or finding new biofuels. But are biohackers a threat to national security?"
