The engineers at Cell Free Tech are concerned about a growing need in technology fields. They say that applications like bio-fabrication of human tissue and computational biology require a new set of skills that isn’t fully developed yet. If biotechnology is going to shift the way we think about sustainability and technology, then Cell Free wants to make bio tech tools and education more available. Their first move into the bio-STEAM field is Bixels, a DNA Bio-Display technology education tool. A Kickstarter campaign is currently running to support the first product launch.
Bixels is an 8x8 pixel display that teaches users about DNA programming, biological circuits, and basic programming and electronics. Inspiration for the coloring and light components of the DNA comes from jellyfish and their green fluorescent proteins. An LED matrix can excite the proteins and make them glow through an app control. Many different proteins and colors can be used with the Bixels system when the user gets bored of the standard green.
The campaign video shows a student building an LED display system and then activating the proteins to create a custom display. The page also outlines the main education aspects of the tool, focusing on biology, physics, computation, and digital fabrication. Curriculum is said to be in process for easier integration with the system into classrooms or fab workshops. My favorite application shown in the campaign video is DNA tetris, where the cardboard case is fashioned as a GAMEG/RL controller. The entire construction sequence shown in the video is fascinating.
Innovation here comes from taking what might be a standard maker / electronics education kit and adding the biology component. I like the fact that there’s a standard cookbook setup for some experiments but the whole kit encourages users to take these experiments and add their own components. It’s not necessarily open source but Cell Free definitely wants to develop a tool that people can use instead of a canned STEM experiment. This campaign ends on January 18 and if successful kits are expected to ship in June 2018.