Aggregated News
Cowell is part of an effort called DIYbio - short for do-it-yourself biology - that aims to move science into the hands of hobbyists. It is starting by holding sessions where amateurs extract DNA, and attempt genetic fingerprinting using common household items and the kitchen sink.
"It shows you how much science can be about duct tape and having a few screws in the right place," Cowell said. "It shatters that clinical image."
What Cowell and crew hope to achieve is a democratization of science that could propel the field of biology into the mainstream, much as computer hackers fueled computer development a generation ago. After all, Silicon Valley's Homebrew Computer Club...