Biohacking Hello World!

A class to quickly get you familiar with the lab and some of the equipment and terms you might hear around the lab! We will make media, pour plates, grow bacteria and even do a transformation (inserting DNA from one organism into bacteria)!

This is a great way to jump start your project, learn lab basics, and to ask hard questions. The best way prepare is to read the class outline, here (https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Tf76Nz__J5IWZmnn4SeD4qHovQgotLoVUzVQE0CyFRc/edit?usp=sharing).

After this class you are encouraged to explore some more in the lab and try fun stuff like PCR, gel electrophoresis, and cloning (copying DNA, not the mad science cloning). Or you can start your own project (no matter how simple it is).

If you have a question not answered by the FAQ, please send me a message!

FAQ:

I am not a scientist/engineer, should I take this class?

If you are interested in molecular biology, but you don't have any practical or theoretical experience, this class is for you. You should however, have a vague idea that DNA is a chemical that encodes information, and that bacteria are really small.

I AM a scientist/engineer, should I take this class?

If you don't have any hands-on biology experience, this class is for you! It's another area you can tinker/build things for, and biological systems are relevant to any field of engineering or science.

Can my take this class?

Generally, yes. This class is appropriate for high school students, although younger people have taken it. Please check with me to see if it is a good fit, before registering.