Category Archives: Uncategorized

Tracking science news across the web

I studied engineering, not journalism, so the way science research enters the mainstream has always been mysterious to me, like wondering how migrating birds find their way thousands of miles to another continent. I wonder how journalists decide what topics get covered and when to break the news, since the process of doing research tends [...]
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Worth a thousand words

Sometimes there’s no substitute for a demo. In experimental work, techniques are commonly passed on from person to person. (I somehow ended up pipetting left-handed for years because of the single time my left-handed advisor showed me how to do it.) But what if you want to try a protocol that’s new to your lab? [...]
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Microfluidics tackles HIV

In recognition of World AIDS Day today, here’s a highlight of some of the microfluidics work addressing HIV. In particular, Harvard-MIT Health Sciences and Technology professor Utkan Demirci has published several recent papers on using microfluidics for HIV, in addition to work from the Toner lab, Rodriguez lab, Whitesides lab and others. Using microfluidics for [...]
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Dec 3rd: The Social Responsibility of the Scientist

I’ve been interested in technology and culture issues for a long time. I remember as a kid reading a speech by Richard Feynman on the value of science. In it, he tells a story about how science is like a key that can open the gates of heaven or hell, depending on how we use [...]
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Dec 1st CIMIT Forum: Life Science Innovation

I’ve posted about the CIMIT forum before — it’s a terrific series of talks on the integration of technology and medicine.  This week there’s an especially cool program on investing in life science innovation, including speakers Juan Enriquez of Excel Medical Ventures and Biotechonomy and Luis Barros of the Massachusetts Life Sciences Center. In addition, [...]
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Global microfluidics map

I’ve continued adding to the list of microfluidics/lab-on-a-chip companies and wanted to get a sense of where these efforts are located (similar to the Nanotechnology Map). To do this, I’ve created a Google Map to help visualize commercial microfluidics activity worldwide:
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No Small Matter: Science on the Nanoscale from Felice Frankel and George Whitesides

The multi-talented George Whitesides has once again teamed up with scientific photographer Felice Frankel to lead us on a tour of the nanoworld through their latest book, No Small Matter: Science on the Nanoscale. From the publisher, Harvard University Press: A small revolution is remaking the world. The only problem is, we can’t see it. [...]
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BioMEMS by any other name

In researching microfluidics companies to add to the list, I’ve realized that outside of academia almost no one uses the term BioMEMS when discussing microelectromechanical systems applied to biology. Instead it’s “microfluidics” or “lab on a chip.” The term BioMEMS is a spin-off of the acronym MEMS (Micro-Electro-Mechanical Systems), itself a term that has not [...]
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Joel Voldman on microfluidic manipulation of cells and their environment

Recently I ran across a video of my former advisor at MIT, Joel Voldman, speaking as part of the 2008 CIMIT Summer Education Series: Frontiers of Microfluidics and Microsystems in Biomedical Sciences and Clinical Medicine. In the video below (and available directly from CIMIT here), Joel highlights his group’s work using microfluidic technology and BioMEMS [...]
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Listing of microfluidics and lab-on-a-chip companies

To get a better handle on what’s happening in commercial microfluidics / lab-on-a-chip / BioMEMS, I’ve started putting together a list of companies worldwide specializing in those areas. Sometimes the definition of lab-on-a-chip can be fuzzy; some companies also work on nanotech and not just micro, some companies are working on medical sensors but not [...]
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