Laying a broad basis for possible future prescriptions, the President's Council on Bioethics yesterday issued an analysis of how biotechnology could lead toward unintended and destructive ends.

Called "Beyond Therapy: Biotechnology and the Pursuit of Happiness," the council's report concerns present and future interventions intended not to restore health but rather to alter genetic inheritance, to enhance mind or body, or to extend life span beyond its natural limits

Bush's Advisers on Biotechnology Express Concern on Its Use

We examine how several prominent and (generally) salutary human pursuits may be aided or altered using a wide variety of biotechnologies that lend themselves to purposes “beyond therapy.” In each case, we discuss the character of the end, consider the novel means, and explore some possible implications, ethical and social.

In surveying the pertinent technologies, we take a somewhat long-range view, looking at humanly significant technical possibilities that may soon -- or not so soon -- be available for general use, yet at the same time trying to separate fact from science fiction.

Biotechnology beyond therapy deserves to be examined not in fragments, but as a whole. Yet, the "whole" that offers us the most revealing insights into this subject is not itself technological. For the age of biotechnology is not so much about technology itself as it is about human beings empowered by biotechnology

Beyond Therapy: Biotechnology and the Pursuit of Happiness

] The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) today announced
] plans to establish a major science center in Palm Beach
] County, Florida, focusing on biomedical research,
] technology development, and drug design.

Werd

The Scripps Research Institute - News and Publications

Ahhhhh science.....

In honor of Nobel prize week, I present to you the Nobel e-museum....lots of good science geeky stuff to be found here:)

Check out the virtual Biochemistry Lab....this is the kind of stuff I do all day:)

-Nano

Nobel e-Museum

seems like a /. for nanotech

News.NanoApex.com Nanotechnology MEMS News

Museum security guards stood by nervously Thursday as curators -- joking they hoped the gem's storied curse wouldn't rub off -- allowed a reporter and photographer to hold the diamond briefly after it was removed from its case for scientific study.

What does it feel like to hold such a priceless gem, one of the most famed in the world?

The first thought that comes to mind is "Wow!"

It's like holding a bit of ancient India, the French Revolution, Georgian England and Gilded Age America in one magnificent moment.
You cradle the 45.5-carat stone -- heavier than its translucence makes it appear -- turning it from side to side as the light flashes from its facets, knowing it's the hardest natural material yet fearful of dropping it.

Once part of the French crown jewels, the fabled gem is now the star of the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History. It normally resides in a special protective display case in a secure room.

For the testing it was taken to a museum laboratory, reachable down winding corridors and through three locked doors. It was only the second time in 20 years the Hope has been removed from its necklace setting, where it is surrounded by bright clear diamonds that intensify its blue color.

National Gem Collection Curator Jeffrey Post ordered the lights turned off and focused an ultraviolet beam on the Hope Diamond. Then he switched off the beam and, in pitch dark, the diamond glowed bright orange-amber.

It's that strong color, which lasts for several seconds after the diamond is exposed to ultraviolet light, that intrigues scientists. What causes the gem to fluoresce remains a mystery. Post speculates it's related to chemical impurities that give it that blue color.

But the Hope Diamond has inspired legends over the years and some may prefer those to sheer science.

Some say, for instance, that the glowing color reflects the blood of royalty spilled in the French Revolution and the trail of bad luck said to have followed the stone over many years -- including the bankruptcy of the Hope family for whom it is named and the death of the young son of later owner Evalyn McLean.

Hope Diamond glows with mystery

Be a part of scientific research (or at least, have your computer take part):)

GRID.ORG - Grid Computing Projects - Home

] Advexin is an ingenious drug that uses a disabled virus (one that
] causes the common cold, in fact) to deliver a gene called p53 to
] tumor cells. When this gene is mutated, cells can start dividing
] uncontrollably and turning into tumor cells. Advexin delivers a
] normal copy of p53 to tumor cells in order to restore order to the
] cells.

cool...

Anti-cancer drug aproved for FDA fast tracking

] The SARS-like virus found in a food market in Guangdong,
] China jumped from animals to people - and not the other
] way around - suggests new research.
]
] The study represents an important step in tracing the
] original source of the virus. However, the work still
] leaves many important questions about the route of
] transmission of the SARS virus to people unanswered.

SARS!!!!!!!!! (sorry...I feel the need to yell that every time I hear anything about this virus....strange huh?;) - Nano

New Scientist

Synthetic biology refers to both (a) the design and fabrication of biological components and systems that do not already exist in the natural world and (b) the re-design and fabrication of existing biological systems.

[*drool*....I have found my new calling.....Synthetic Biology...its an emerging field, and I am so excited to learn more about it!!!! - Nano]

Synthetic Biology