Tag: science

BioVisions at Harvard : Inner Life Of A Cell [Animation]

This is absolutely mind blowing!  I remember back at TEDxNicosia, Myrtani Pieri, during her talk, mentioned the complexity of the processes inside a human cell (around 4:10, but the whole thing is good).  So, I knew it wasn’t simple.  But this video takes “not simple” to a totally new level.  It’s like a universe within itself.  And we consist of gadzillions of such cells!

Software emulates a living organism

The New York Times covers the story of the first ever living organism simulation in software.

Scientists at Stanford University and the J. Craig Venter Institute have developed the first software simulation of an entire organism, a humble single-cell bacterium that lives in the human genital and respiratory tracts.

The scientists and other experts said the work was a giant step toward developing computerized laboratories that could carry out many thousands of experiments much faster than is possible now, helping scientists penetrate the mysteries of diseases like cancer and Alzheimer’s.

[…]

The simulation of the complete life cycle of the pathogen, Mycoplasma genitalium, was presented on Friday in the journal Cell. The scientists called it a “first draft” but added that the effort was the first time an entire organism had been modeled in such detail — in this case, all of its 525 genes.

The simulation, which runs on a cluster of 128 computers, models the complete life span of the cell at the molecular level, charting the interactions of 28 categories of molecules — including DNA, RNA, proteins and small molecules known as metabolites, which are generated by cell processes.

Super super cool!

In search of the sasquatch

I’m listening to the Joe Rogan’s podcast today.  And one of the things that they talk about on the show is sasquatch.  That’s basically a fancy name for  large hairy humanoid creature said to live in wilderness areas of the United States and Canada.  Also known as a bigfoot.

One of the websites mentioned was Olympic Project:

This web site showcases our research in the Olympic Mountain Range in Washington State.  The Olympic Project is a comprehensive, systematic camera trap program consisting of fifty plus cameras placed along predatory travel routes throughout the Olympic Mountains.  Our primary focus is to obtain a series of crystal clear photographs of Sasquatch in their natural environment.

They have a bunch of pictures of footsteps and such, but none of an actual sasquatch so far.  What they do have is an amazing photo gallery with a bunch of animals in their natural habitat.   Check it out.