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How close are we to DIY viruses? If I was a teenager interested in biology, and I wanted to maybe build a "harmless" virus just to see if I could do it, how ac
by anon9001 6y ago
How close are we to DIY viruses?
If I was a teenager interested in biology, and I wanted to maybe build a "harmless" virus just to see if I could do it, how achievable might that be?
I watched computer viruses go from:
researchers -> tinkerers -> vandals -> criminals -> governments
At this point we just assume every computer is compromised, and we carve out enclaves of varying security for whatever risk level we're willing to assume.
I can imagine a future where pandemics happen at the same frequency as school shootings do today. How far away is that?
- XorNot 6y agoYou can make a superflu with a ready supply of ferrets and warehouse. It does not take genetic engineering to do.
- robbiep 6y agoWith the COVID vaccine, we’re now very close to being able to infect someone with vCJD through a pinprick, with technology that within a couple of years someone will be able to make at home. The difficulty with what you’ve asked is we don’t have the API in the same way as with computers. I suspect that for many many iterations of computing power and biological understanding we are going to be a long way from being able to determine how to make something dangerous from scratch (although it should be easier to make something dangerous become more dangerous)
- sergiomattei 6y agoThe bats do it for free.