The Era of Personal DNA Technology is Here: What are the Implications?

From diagnosing disease to modifying crops to solving crimes, DNA technology keeps transforming our world. Thanks to inexpensive portable devices, for the first time in history anyone can experiment with DNA at home, in school classrooms, and almost anywhere. We will discuss how this personal DNA revolution is empowering everyone to unlock the secrets encoded in DNA, and at the end of the discussion you will have an opportunity to get hands on with DNA technologies too.

Lecture by Katy Martin. Hand's on demo lead by Ezequiel (Zeke) Alvarez-Saavedra, both of MiniPCR. 

Katy Martin earned her Ph.D. in neuroscience from Emory University, but always knew her true passion lied in science education. After leading multiple K-12 outreach initiatives as a graduate student, Katy began her career teaching high school biology and leading precollege programs for science students. Through her work, Katy strives to make every science classroom a place for exploration and fun.

Ezequiel (Zeke) Alvarez-Saavedra, Ph.D. is a Co-Founder at miniPCR. Zeke is a geneticist trained at MIT and Stanford. He has conducted biomedical research alongside two Nobel laureates and is an inventor of gene detection technologies. His work has been cited thousands of times and profiled in The New York Times, National Public Radio and the BBC. In his spare time, Zeke digs soil in search of new species (one so far!).

Presented as part of Horizons: Exploring Breakthroughs in Science & Technology and Their Impact on Society, a lecture series of the STEAM Initiative at the Cambridge Public Library.