Taking Science to the People

Last week, I presented illustrations for yeast and a microalgal species of Chlamydomonas. Today I will expound on part of this. Ongoing research is working to identify ways to circumvent the need for fresh water, a precious commodity, and costly fertilizer to cultivate microalgae for biofuel production. These microorganisms are a rich source of oils […]

    Related articles Illustration of the world of synthetic biology: a new phase in science (mhrussel.wordpress.com) Bees, Biofuels and Blennies: A Glimpse of Ecological Research at UCSD (saltmanquarterly.wordpress.com) A little things about algae (seaweed) (godwincommodities.wordpress.com) New Illustration: Yeastie Boys, a powerhouse for synthetic biology (mhrussel.wordpress.com) An introduction to diatoms. (paleonerdish.wordpress.com) Filed under: Bacteria, Bioenergy, […]

When it comes to synthetic biology, two species of microorganisms should automatically come to mind; E. coli and the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae.  Both have been used extensively for proof of principle research. Thanks to these investigations, both are able to synthesize a drop-in biodiesel.  More Yeastie Boys images available here.   Related articles Illustration of […]

First, there was biology which began in earnest in the 19th century. Then came molecular biology in the 1920s and the foundation of mutagenesis set forth by Herman Muller in 1927. Then, genetic engineering was first applied in 1972 the lab of Paul Berg. Finally, humans had the ability to manipulate living organisms in a […]

  Sorry it has been so long since my last post. Lots of ‘fun’ at Disney World and a big pickup in stuff to do at work. From what I have been working on, I am seeing lots of great things coming out of the Department of Energy’s Bioenergy Research Centers (BRCs). I wasn’t aware […]