May 2010

The Global Redesign Initiative and the need for up-front investment in sustainable technology innovation

by Andrew Maynard May 31, 2010

The global financial crisis of 2008-09 laid bare the inadequacies of global systems in an increasingly interdependent world, and highlighted the need to rethink the “architecture of global cooperation” – the idea at the core of the World Economic Forum Global Redesign Initiative.  As the World Economic Forum publishes and discusses the outcomes of this [...]

Read the full article →

What’s “I’m A Scientist…” all about? Check out the video

by Andrew Maynard May 29, 2010

The good folks at I’m A Scientist, Get Me Out Of Here have just posted a new video on YouTube about the event.  It gives a great overview of what I’m A Scientist is all about, and what makes it special: I particularly like the comment “It’s different from a normal science lesson because you [...]

Read the full article →

Nano Dispersants and nano hysteria – time to think about the science folks!

by Andrew Maynard May 28, 2010

Catching up with my email after a long day off the net, I see that a group of Non Government Organizations (NGOs) are urging EPA not to allow the use of an alleged nanotechnology-based dispersant in the Gulf of Mexico.  The letter from thirteen organizations was covered in a piece by Andrew Schneider on AOL [...]

Read the full article →

As scientists create the first synthetic cell, the future safety of synthetic biology will depend on sound science

by Andrew Maynard May 26, 2010

Last week’s announcement from the J. Craig Venter Institute that scientists had created the first-ever synthetic cell was a profoundly significant point in human history, and marked a turning point in our quest to control the natural world.  But the ability to use this emerging technology wisely is already being dogged by fears that we [...]

Read the full article →

Want advice? Never trust your family!

by Andrew Maynard May 25, 2010

As you’ll have realized from my post last week, I will be competing in I’m A Scientist, Get Me Out Of Here in in a couple of weeks’ time.  I’m going to be attempting to capture the event from my perspective through a series of rather shorter, more informal blogs than I usually post – [...]

Read the full article →

Deja vu and synthetic biology – will we learn the lessons of nanotech and genetic modification?

by Hilary Sutcliffe May 25, 2010

A guest blog by Hilary Sutcliffe, Director of MATTER, a UK think tank which explores how new technologies can work for us all. The other day, I wrote a piece on the implications of synthetic biology where I  suggested that we “need to place discussions on a science basis, and not get over-distracted by ethical [...]

Read the full article →

It’s life Craig, but not as we know it!

by Andrew Maynard May 22, 2010

Typical.  One of the most anticipated technological breakthroughs in years hits the streets, and I’m completely off the web – holed up in an Italian hotel with no internet and no phone. I’m talking of course about J. Craig Venter’s team’s breakthrough in synthesizing a living organism, almost from scratch – published in the journal [...]

Read the full article →

I’m a scientist – and I’m going to be hanging on for dear life’s sake!

by Andrew Maynard May 17, 2010

I can’t sleep, I’m distracted, I keep breaking out in a cold sweat.  And the reason?  I have a deceptively simple question going my head – and I don’t know the answer! The question… well, I’ll come to that in a minute.  I’d rather put the moment of embarrassment off for at least a few [...]

Read the full article →