Donate Your Code! How Your Genome Can Be Open-Source - Technorati Technology

Donate Your Code! How Your Genome Can Be... Donate Your Code! How Your Genome Can Be Open-Source
Author: William Murakami-Brundage
Published: November 26, 2010 at 9:32 am

How can your genome be part of the open-source movement? The next huge project could be humanity's source code - Linux meets the human genome.

Open-source: From Android to mySQL, the open-source movement is everywhere. The simple concept of technological democracy has a beautiful simplicity: everyone can participate, anyone can benefit.

Even the basic act of deciding on open-source methods takes a certain humanitarian perspective. For example, anyone using Ubuntu or Firefox is putting their faith in thousands of anonymous donors. Now, take things one step to the left and visualize the ultimate human-genome project: Gattica meets Firefox.

With today's cloud technology, open-source database systems, and genome research, it is possible to create freely accessible human genome databases on a grand scale. Before you start screaming ‘Brave New World’, read on!

The bounty of free genomic data would be immediately evident. There are several human genomes already available for public use. Unfortunately, the datasets are both old and smallish, with private ventures having provided most of the backing. A human genome can be parsed cheaply in minutes using today’s methods, and the resulting database can be stored on a medium-sized Flash drive.

Here is the key concept: having thousands of genomes available, which would effectively be genomic crowd-sourcing. The immediate goal is to have the data available for public use; while other data could be collected, it could lead in into the kind of medical/bureaucratic quagmire that prevents good projects from happening.

There are currently several projects involving organizations focused around this goal. Currently, several of them are looking for individuals willing to donate their genetic code for the greater good. At the core they are selecting for specific audiences - many of these groups were founded by scientists, and remain tightly bound to their scientific programs


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Donate Your Code! How Your Genome Can Be Open-Source - Technorati Technology