2014
Thursday Thu
The Rise of Synthetic Biology
Biosecurity Challenges
In his 2009 book, Denialism How Irrational Thinking Hinders Scientific Progress, Harms the Planet, and Threatens Our Lives,[13]Michael Specter called Endy ‘synthetic biology’s most compelling evangelist’ as he is persistent on discussing the prospects and dangers of synthetic biology on nearly any forum. According to Endy, the prospects of synthetic biology will allow programming living organisms in the same way a computer scientist program a software and computer, designing and making a disposable biological system and a manufacturing platform, even one’s own offspring or own copy with improved traits such as to prevent occurrence of disease, and bypassing evolution. The dangers lie in the unknown things that this technology will produce, who will control the technology, pay for it, the ethical and cultural impact, safety issues and how the value system works. Endy is reflective and engaged in the possible risks of this field. He advocates dialogue and a serious discussion on the ‘contract’ on engineering biology with the society. It should be a national strategic priority on advancing the potential benefits of the synthetic biology technology, while accepting that risk is inevitable rather than fixating on theoretical risk.
Location
291 Campus Dr.
Palo Alto, CA 94305
USA
Li Ka Shing Learning & Knowledge Center (LKSC)
291 Campus Dr.Palo Alto, CA 94305
Speaker
Drew Endy, PhD. Assistant Professor of BioEngineering at Stanford; Founder of BioBricks Foundation; Co-Founder of the Registry of Standard Biological Parts; Inventor of an abstraction hierarchy for integrated genetic systems.
Drew Endy, PhD: Drew Endy is one of the leaders in the field of synthetic biology. His work continues to shape and drive the development of the field, both in terms of the creation of BioBrick™ standard parts but also in terms of the human side of the field. The BioBricks Foundation was created by Endy and several close colleagues who are also scientific leaders in the synbio field.
Endy was a junior fellow for 3 years and later an Assistant Professor in the Department of Biological Engineering at MIT. In 2008, he moved to Palo Alto to become an assistant professor in the Department of Bioengineering at Stanford University. Silicon Valley's concentration of computer scientists and engineers, in addition to Stanford's broad focus on engineering as well as ethics and the humanities, are believed to be the main reason for his move according to press reports.
With Thomas Knight, Gerald Jay Sussman, and other researchers at MIT, Endy is working on synthetic biology and the engineering of standardized biological components, devices, and parts, collectively known as BioBricks. Endy is one of several founders of the Registry of Standard Biological Parts, and invented an abstraction hierarchy for integrated genetic systems.
Endy is also known for his opposition to limited ownership and support of free access to genetic information. He has been one of the early promoters of open source biology, and helped start the Biobricks Foundation, a not-for-profit organization that will work to support open-source biology. He was also a co-founder of the now defunct Codon Devices, a biotechnology startup company that aimed to commercialize synthetic biology.
Drew’s research interests are the engineering of integrated biological systems and error detection and correction in reproducing machines.