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Bento Bio looks pretty cool. But it also produces nothing tangible or fun. Much of molecular biology is so abstract - the mixing of particular amounts of clea
by toufka 11y ago
Bento Bio looks pretty cool. But it also produces nothing tangible or fun. Much of molecular biology is so abstract - the mixing of particular amounts of clear liquids to get a band to show up on a gel. It's difficult to ground those abstractions into every-day tangible lessons. Making a blue paint from some sugar, water and cells is, on the other hand, a supremely tangible product. Whether it works and is actually fun and productive is another question. But it seems to be targeting a different kind of audience.
- jamessb 11y agoIt's seems confused about who it is pitched at: the founder's personal site refers to it as "the tamagotchi for synthetic biology" [0]; but the main landing page [1] says that it enables "anyone to create and grow living cells for research, education or domestic life", and the about page [2] refers to use "at home, in labs or in schools" and says it "can be used in pro labs too". I think it would be better to market this as a purely fun thing, rather than as a serious, useful tool. I doubt many will sell: this may have been better left as an art/design project, without an associated company. [0]: http://julielegault.com/amino http://julielegault.com/amino [1]: http://www.amino.bio/intro/ http://www.amino.bio/intro/ [2]: http://www.amino.bio/what/ http://www.amino.bio/what/
- zemouth 11y agoAs a molecular biologist, I think Bento aren't doing enough to pitch the possibilities of molecular biology. Amino has stuff that glows. With the equipment, Bento can pretty much make that stuff too, but they're not making that clear. Also, you're right - different audiences. I think Bento is more about DNA barcoding.