Thanks for the summary, Nancy! One small correction - It was Martin Zand. Alicia
On Feb 4, 2009, at 6:58 AM, [email protected] wrote: > > Last night's R-Spec meeting was fascinating -- it was too bad that > only seven people could make it. Mark Zahn, Alicia's boss, spoke > about Biodefense. He slanted his talk toward practical knowledge > for SF writers who want to include weaponized genemods in their > stories, and he did a wonderful job. > > He talked about which pathogens best lend themselves to modification > (Ebola, for instance, has a very small genome and produces only > eight proteins, which means there's just not room enough in the cell > to fit a lot of extra, genetically engineered stuff.) Mark covered > the assembly of viruses using sequencing data and "off-the-shelf" > sections of DNA. He talked about the origins and spread of > epidemics. I hadn't known that the natural host for influenza was > an Asian species of duck, and that the way vaccine makers guess at > which strains of flu will hit in a given winter is by examining > ducks in late summer. > > The talk also covered what you need for a rogue genemod lab to > weaponize pathogens: off-the-rack equipment, experienced talent, and > no more than a few million dollars. What the Russians may or may > not have been doing in this regard was discussed, including a > recommendation for Ken Alibek's scary book BIOHAZARD (which I have > read -- it's horrifying). Mark finished with an overview of > surveillance techniques used to spot and track epidemics so that > appropriate measures can be taken, including quarantine if necessary. > > Thank you, Alicia. It was terrific. > > > Who's never won? Biggest Grammy Award surprises of all time on AOL > Music. > > > --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "R-SPEC: The Rochester Speculative Literature Association" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected] To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected] For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/r-spec?hl=en -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
