Slashdot Mirror

← Back to Stories (view on slashdot.org)

Synthetic Biology May Spawn Biohackers

Posted by michael on from the zergling dept.

nusratt writes "EE Times reports 'Design automation systems tailored to the task of genetic engineering . . . can lead to the accidental or deliberate creation of pathogenic biological components.' Design of molecular machines is analogous to doing system-on-chip work, and hackers 'will not need a detailed knowledge of biochemistry to effectively create complex biochemical machines.' A Harvard genetics professor says, 'Even if we don't have bioterrorists and teen-age biohackers, we will still create things that do not have the properties that we thought they would . . . Even if you are genetically resistant and recently immunized, you will have problems with artificial biological agents.' He also says that there are two big differences between this risk and nuclear weapons: (1) building weapons is harder; (2) synth-bio work is more accident-prone. Oh great, just great: script-kiddies with smallpox . . ."

20 of 320 comments (clear)

  1. Just what the world needs by foidulus · · Score: 5, Funny

    A 3 breasted blue haired girl with a nymphomaniac obsession for men with glasses and a fetish for Moutain Dew....

    1. Re:Just what the world needs by JPelorat · · Score: 1, Funny

      Nymphomania isn't all it's cracked up to be. It's the equivalent of flogging it every 15 minutes whether you want to or not and having to deal with it getting whiny and bitchy when you don't.

      --
      Hokey statistics and ancient misconceptions are no match for a good thought in your head, kid!
    2. Re:Just what the world needs by CodeWanker · · Score: 2, Funny

      Do you know what this means? The bad guys are going to be... ANIMAL CRACKERS!!!! Bwaaa haa haaa haaa haaa haaa

      --


      "Wow. Now THAT'S a lot of angry Indians." - Lt. Col. George Armstrong Custer
  2. Script kiddies... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0, Funny

    Did anybody else read that as "script kiddies with smallbox"?

    I need vacations.

    1. Re:Script kiddies... by wisdom_brewing · · Score: 2, Funny

      and perhaps a vaccination... ;)

      --
      I am very sucseptible to "let's have another drink"
  3. and..... by millahtime · · Score: 5, Funny

    A 3 breasted blue haired girl with a nymphomaniac obsession for men with glasses and a fetish for Moutain Dew....

    A boss that looks just like her and will let you "work" from home every day

    --
    Evolution or ID?
    1. Re:and..... by Alranor · · Score: 5, Funny

      Dear God man, if you had a boss like that, why would you want to work from home?

  4. Yikes by amliebsch · · Score: 2, Funny

    Really gives "anti-virus protection" a more sinister meaning. Hopefully the white hats can produce counter-agents as fast as the black hats can make harmful strains.

    --
    If you don't know where you are going, you will wind up somewhere else.
  5. Explain it to me by HarveyBirdman · · Score: 1, Funny
    Why the geek opbsession with three breasts?

    Is it secretly a desire for a third testicle getting projected?

    --
    --- Ban humanity.
    1. Re:Explain it to me by rhakka · · Score: 3, Funny

      what do you men plan to do with 3 breasts and 2 hands?

      Top ten things to do with 3 breasts and 2 hands:

      10.
      9. Smack side breast, watch force transfer between breasts in an organic approximation of a perpetual-motion ball toy.
      8. Use center load-bearing breast, outside breasts for stability
      7. Push in two outside breasts, watch them force middle breast into a humorous "Breast erection"
      6. Frantically twist nipples playing "mad scientist time machine" while laughing maniacally.
      5. Make a killing designing exclusive three breast bikini tops with the see/hear/speak no evil monkeys.
      4. Open fetish site to profit from thousands of three breast obsessed slashdotters
      3. Profit!!!
      2. ?????
      1. Use your mouth, dipshit.

    2. Re:Explain it to me by rhakka · · Score: 1, Funny

      doh, PREVIEW, PREVIEW POSTS before posting.

      10. Increase nipple clamp inventory and sales by 50%

  6. Dreams fulfilled by Apocalypse111 · · Score: 5, Funny

    Finally, my dream of having a large-breasted subservient cat-girl sex-drone can be a reality!

    Maybe I'm sharing too much with you people...

    --
    There is no mod option "-1: Disagree" for a reason. "Overrated" is not an acceptable substitute. Post something instead.
  7. no-one is safe by surreal-maitland · · Score: 1, Funny
    teen-age biohackers

    "yeah, man, last week i hacked into my parents genome while they were sleeping. dude, there's some fucked up shit there. did you know my mom once had the clap?"

    "dude, that's nothing. i hacked professor katz the other day. dude, that guy has had *everything*"

    --
    -ninjaneer
  8. pwn3d! by Zorilla · · Score: 3, Funny

    You got pwn3d! Now you have two cocks!

    Great, the world gets better every day.

    --

    It would be cool if it didn't suck.
    1. Re:pwn3d! by proj_2501 · · Score: 2, Funny

      i don't think that would be as big a problem as say, four asses

    2. Re:pwn3d! by liquidsin · · Score: 3, Funny

      Maybe we could give Darl four asses and lock him in a cell with the guy with two cocks...

      --
      do not read this line twice.
  9. It will never be the same again.. by RancidLM · · Score: 3, Funny

    Person:"WOW is that a New ARM!" Me:" YA.. this new version of PHP Rocks"

  10. It wouldn't be Smallpox by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

    It would be 5ma11p0x!

  11. Wait a sec... by VanWEric · · Score: 2, Funny

    Whats wrong with giving smallpox to script kiddies?

    I certainly wouldn't mind having less spam.

    --
    www.olin.edu
  12. Re:Defenses by hoggoth · · Score: 3, Funny

    > what's to stop us from engineering a better immune system?

    Good luck. We can't even stop SPAM.

    --
    - For the complete works of Shakespeare: cat /dev/random (may take some time)