TTT 2007 MIT

From 2007.igem.org

Revision as of 23:24, 8 June 2007

please feel free to expand on these rough notes

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May 26, 2007

0900 - Randy Rettberg Introduction
Overview of the iGEM program evolution, goals, and challenges
[http://video.google.ca/videoplay?docid=9207088093106819074 watch the video!]

Notes: For 2007, about 55 schools
Earlier preparations
Three teachers workshops
Jamboree November 3 and 4

Goals: High quality parts and descriptions
Automatic assemblies
Modern internet experience
Prepare to scale to hundreds of teams
New ideas

New things:
Sponsorship!
BioBrick Part Program
iGEM and Registry in Europe
New registry workshop (Fall @ MIT)
iGEM Steering committee

0930 - Team Summaries
[http://video.google.ca/videoplay?docid=-8449369087740507338&hl=en-CA watch the video! (part 1a)]

Tom Richard, Penn State
Continuation of last year's project, 1 returning student, 5 new students (freshman), good diversity
iGEM is recruiting judges
Fundraising:
Tom is involved in IBE
Previously, not much funding, but not a high burn rate
This year, more proactive -- $22K
IBE has run a special session for iGEM presentations > consider this for sharing team projects as well as the jamboree

Beth Beason, Rice University
Last year: started late
2006 goal was to combine quorum sensing and chemotaxis > quorumtaxis!
Learned that projects should not depend completely on novel biobricks<br? 2007: Courses were offered, 500 level but no prerequisites
Overview of Bios590 course -- interesting! (contact Beth for details)
Support: Last year, not much money. This year, full support! Wow!<br?

Ron Bauerle, Virginia
Bottom up approach
Funding is a major challenge

??, MIT
Whole new slate of team and advisors
New project as well
Funding is dependent on MIT's undergraduate programs, media lab, other sources
Outside sponsorship is being sought
Aim low! Get the basics to work and then make it more advanced.

Sergio Peisajovich, UCSF
[http://video.google.ca/videoplay?docid=-2598108797213656136&hl=en-CA watch the video! (part 1b)]

UCSF has long history in iGEM
No undergraduate at UCSF. Makes for some interesting recruitment challenges.
Six students -- other universities and high schools, about 10 graduate students and advisors helping this group
Fundraising: stipends to all the students. Respectful and prevents biases as to who can participate.
Potential for biotechnology industry support

Rosaura Palma Orozco, Fabiola Ramirez-Coronto, Elias Samra-Hassan, Mexico Team
There are several institutes participating in Mexico
Long term research goals: creation of new biobricks, VR in biological systems, etc.
5 instructors, 10 students with about half biology, half comp-sci backgrounds
Facilities and support have been provided by the various schools, grants are being sought

Kari Clase(?), Purdue
Really want to change the way teams communicatate > electronic laboratory notebooks?
Funding: support for team travel has been provided
Supplies and reagents, facilities is internal
High school students are joining here too!

Sonja Georgijevic, Calgary
Second year that Calgary has been participated
Started to organize early
Six undergraduate students, diverse backgrounds, 2 from last year
Weekly lab meetings have been held
No formal courses yet
Lab facilities are provided
Reagents and supplies are provided by other departments
NSERC awards for several of the students (federal funding source)
Stressing interdisciplinary approach, better intercommunication

Hongtao Qin, Cold Spring Harbor
First time at iGEM
Some interesting programs at CSH, some funding available
2 postdocs as supervisors

Katie Shannon, UMR
Engineering school primarily, lots of engineering challenges
Expectations and hopes include getting people interested, having fun, a foundation for biology on campus in future years
8 students, came up with their own design projects, small stipends and supplies budgets provided
4 advisors Projects: biological timer, biological breathalyzer

Noah Davidsohn, Princeton
Weekly meetings for 2 months, team selected
9 undergrads, 2 high school students
Stem cell project this year
Many different sources of funding
Expectations: crash course in synbio, stem cells, design of a small cell fate regulation system, etc.

end of part 1 -- break for lunch

more introductions
[http://video.google.ca/videoplay?docid=6586667309652907783&hl=en-CA watch the video! (part 2)]

??, Harvard
9 undergraduates, 5 faculty advisors, 4 teaching ellows, 2 lab advisors
Large pool of interested people

??, ?? Check!!
5 students, in the process of organizing their projects
3 faculty members

Andy Mendelson, California
Private institute, small
Volunteer students, highly motivated
Running lab like a "micro iGEM" already
Projects haven't been selected yet
Realistic expections
Space and supplies have been acquired, but real dollar funding has been a challenge.

Stephen Schneider, Boston University
4 undergraduates, everyone is a volunteer, new organism
Funding: stipends are provided. Facultative anerobe is the organism, interesting for fuel cell, water treatment

Andrew Hessel, AIF
Overview of iGEM in the Great White North

11:30 Randy Rettberg, Organization, Registration, Rules, Judging, Prizes, Posters
[http://video.google.ca/videoplay?docid=3132729358644893032&hl=en-CA watch the video!]

DNA synthesis -- $0.25! Thank you GeneArt!
Sponsorship
Overview of iGEM websites
Overview of Jamboree organization
The Hotel@MIT is already fully booked. Arrangements with other hotels will be made.

12:20 Meagan Lizarazo, Parts and What to Do With Them!
[http://video.google.ca/videoplay?docid=6249668103395017940&hl=en-CA watch the video!]

13:30 Reshma Shetty, OpenWetWare
[http://video.google.ca/videoplay?docid=3734227004933487863&hl=en-CA watch the video!]

OWW: It's a wiki for biological engineers. It helps flatten the learning curve.
About 100 labs globally. Lots of information and tutorials about everything biological. Fantastic resources and tools that really expand the limits of collaborative bioscience.

13:50 Reshma Shetty and Melissa Li, Hands-on iGEM team experience
[coming soon! watch the video!]

In this step-by-step example, Reshma and Melissa walk the instructors through how a team might go about planning, designing, and constructing a vanilla-scented E. coli with iGEM and Registry tools.

16:00 Tom Knight, BioBrick Standard Assembly
[coming soon! watch the video!]

Engineering and Bioscience
Role of Standards in Engineering

16:30 Pam Silver, Beyond Prokaryotes
[coming soon! watch the video!]

Synthetic biology. It's not just for E. coli anymore. An awesome presentation for those that would like to explore working with other organisms

17:00 Randy Rettberg, TTT Wrap Up
[http://video.google.ca/videoplay?docid=-2020140440804540173&hl=en-CA watch the video!]

Comments and questions at the end of the session.

Digital video filmed, trimmed, and uploaded by Andrew Hessel. Many apologies for the low production quality, but it really does give the feel of "being there" at TTT doesn't it? To really complete the effect, stop every few hours and gorge yourself on pastries and fruit, coffee, and heaps of mediterranean food. As usual for MIT, there was so way too much food ordered. No worries, though: nothing went to waste. As soon as the food tables were left unsecured, nanotechnological matter replicators moved in and consumed everything organic (or a team of unseen, magical trolls). Filmed on location at the Stata Center, MIT, Cambridge, MA. Special thanks to Mac Cowell for a couch and lots and lots of beer, and to Melisssa Li for suggesting we watch TK's copy of [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Forbidden_Planet Forbidden Planet]. Oh my god, science is so cool! I can't wait to see what team totally kicks ass this year at the Jamboree in November! No yeast were harmed in the filming of these videos. Copyright iGEM Labs 2007. ajh