Smithy I like you were blown out by the possibilities of manmade bio genetics, and it came to me buried as a news filler item. This is monumental but expected, and perhaps that is why it has had a ho hum reaction overall.
When we manufacture a human from bio material and dna, I wonder if the creature will have a conscience.

This is the one that blew me away.

http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn18523-dna-20-a-new-operating-system-for-life-is-created.html

It is one thing to create a synthetic life form making use of the existing mechanisms. But to design a whole new genetic "operating system" is... - well the only word that comes to mind is INCREDIBLE!

stevenl, check this out, Bonnie Bassler on ted. This is her bio "Bonnie Bassler studies how bacteria can communicate with one another, through chemical signals, to act as a unit. Her work could pave the way for new, more potent medicine".

When I came across this in 2008 I thought about its application in regard to the creation of a synthetic cell, and then getting that cell to interact with others towards a pre determined goal.

http://blog.ted.com/2009/04/discovering_bac.php

It takes a while to load, so start it up then minimize it until it loads up a bit.