genome

Uncovering the DNA of successful start-ups

If you spend much time with Web entrepreneurs or investors these days, it quickly becomes clear that "pivot" is the hottest term in Silicon Valley. It signifies a young company's shifting of focus, and everyone has an opinion about whether it's something start-ups should be doing or not.

The answer, it seems, is yes. And as long as it's done at the right pace, it can even be an extremely lucrative and important step. In fact, young Web outfits that pivot once or twice can raise two-and-a-half times as much money, see 3.6 times … Read more

LED Genome watch is 'uncool proof'

A couple of weeks ago we served up the Kisai Wasted Watch, one of those crazy Japanese LED watches, in our Crave giveaway of the week. Well, for all of who entered the contest and didn't win but are fans these types of gadgets, we thought we should point this bargain out: the Genome LED watch.

This is another special from the folks at brandsdragon.com, which has this guy going for $6.26 (shipping not included). Now, normally we wouldn't post a description of the watch verbatim, but this one is just too wacky not to:

Introducing … Read more

Want a prescription? 'X-ray' your genes first

You know that stern voice at the end of drug advertisements that runs through the list of possible side effects as quickly (and sometimes comically) as possible? "Possible side effects include nausea, anxiety, an erection that lasts more than four hours, and in rare cases, death."

This wide range of possibilities exists in large part because drugs and dosages have yet to be personalized, and while there are established standard reactions to those drugs and dosages, our bodies are ultimately genetically unique.

Enter the emerging realm of personalized medicine, a method that uses information about an individual to … Read more

IBM setting up cloud for genome research

IBM is looking to help genome experts further their research by providing a cloud where they can better share information with their colleagues.

IBM and the University of Missouri announced Friday a new initiative to develop a cloud-computing environment where universities and medical professionals could work together on genome research on a large-scale, regional basis.

Tapping into Big Blue's high-performance computers, the joint IBM-Missouri cloud would let researchers share their findings and discoveries with each other more quickly and efficiently than they do now. Such an advancement would push the university's current bioinformatics research even further, potentially improving … Read more

Scientists to map Ozzy Osbourne's DNA

We all have some kind of relationship with our bodies.

Sometimes, let's admit, it can be abusive. We put cupcakes, cocaine, cognac, cauliflower, and cigarette smoke in there (well, not always all at once), and we somehow expect our bodies to love it.

One man, though, has perhaps stood above all others when it comes to testing the body's limits. That is Ozzy Osbourne, former lead singer of Black Sabbath, husband of Sharon, and one-time spokesman for World of Warcraft.

Osbourne has, at least in the past, thought nothing of a live bat as hors d'oeuvre, a … Read more

Buzz Out Loud 1233: Synthetic life is oh so blue (podcast)

We have synthetic life! Craig Venter's new bacterium is alive and is blue... because that's what it's programmed to be. Also, Google says Happy 30th Birthday Pacman by putting a playable game into the Google banner. Tech support calls ensue.

Lemelson-MIT prize goes to man of many talents

This year's Lemelson-MIT Student Prize has gone to a man who has his intellectual fingers in the pots of biotechnology, genetics, sensor technology, applied mathematics, and even evolutionary linguistics.

Erez Lieberman-Aiden, graduate student at the Harvard-MIT Division of Health Sciences and Technology, has been awarded the 2010 Lemelson-MIT Student Prize. His body of work to date includes inventing a 3D mapping tool and using it to discover new info about the inner workings of the human genome, developing a sensor-laden sneaker to assist the elderly, and co-developing a mathematical method for tracking widespread and complex evolutionary changes in things … Read more

How much would you pay to see your future?

My dad used to say technology is advancing so quickly that, by the time a product reaches market, it is already obsolete. Moreover, if you wait just a little longer, you can pay a lot less. The sequencing of the human genome takes the advancement of technology, and its fast reduction in cost, to an entirely new level.

The Human Genome Project, which officially completed the mind-boggling achievement of sequencing Jim Watson's genome in 2006, carried the equally mind-boggling price tag of $3 billion. If I may be so bold as to use that word thrice in one paragraph, … Read more

ExxonMobil to make fuel from algae

Will you be pumping up your car of the future with algae-bred fuel? Possibly, if ExxonMobil's latest venture is successful.

ExxonMobil and biotech firm Synthetic Genomics (SGI) announced on Tuesday a new alliance to produce alternative fuel made from photosynthetic algae. ExxonMobil expects to spend more than $600 million on the project--$300 million internally and another $300 million to SGI if key R&D milestones are met.

Under the partnership, SGI will research and develop systems to grow large amounts of algae and convert them into biofuels. ExxonMobil will provide engineering and scientific talent throughout different phases … Read more

Pandora adds classical

Pandora has added classical music to the Music Genome Project, the extensive music database and engine that powers its DIY Internet radio site.

If you were addicted to Pandora before, just wait until you can actually figure out what kind of classical music you like.

The addition is significant as more than any other DIY Internet radio site, Pandora is known for its ability to figure out what listeners like based on a musical genetic code for each song. Nowhere is a song's musical genetic code more relevant to figuring out what you like than in the complexities of … Read more