Synthetic Biology Ethics

Palmer Fliss shares his ethics & society case study, which he completed as part of our Young Scientist Program. When one hears the phrase “synthetic biology”, images of clone soldiers, designer babies, cyborgs, and GMOs spring to mind. With the cost of genetic sequencing dropping precipitously thanks to advances in the technology, coupled with the rise of increasingly specific genetic manipulation techniques, synthetic biology has developed from a field only touched upon in science fiction to a real scientific field […]

Talking Exoplanets with Elementary Schoolers

NASA/BMSIS research intern Palmer Fliss engaged a group of thirty 5th graders at Fammatre Elementary School in San Jose, CA. Nina Hyatt, the teacher of the class, expressed “It was so great for my fifth graders to have an opportunity to talk to a “real live scientist! So many fascinating questions were asked, and conversations shared! And, after the bell rang, they were so immersed in their drawing projects that I needed to practically chase them out of the classroom!”. […]