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Canada cannot be left behind when it comes to tapping into the infinite promise of synthetic biology. It is up to us to invent our future now.
Canada’s research and business communities have an opportunity to become world leaders in a burgeoning field that is fast shaping how we deal with everything from climate change to global food security and the production of lifesaving medications. The science of synthetic biology has the transformative capacity to equip us with novel technology tools and products to build a more sustainable society, while creating new business and employment opportunities for the economy of tomorrow.
We can now decipher the code of life for any organism faster and less expensively than ever before. Canadian scientists are producing anti-malarial drugs from organic materials that increase the availability and decrease the cost of lifesaving medicines. They are also developing energy efficient biofuels to dramatically reduce environmental and manufacturing costs, helping Canadian industry to thrive in the global marketplace. Put simply, synthetic biology applies engineering principles to biology to build biological systems that can benefit humankind. It takes the biological information encoded in DNA from one system and renders it functional through its transition and manipulation to another system.
To realize the exponential potential of such innovations, develop them efficiently and deliver them responsibly requires an ecosystem of research and investment that crosses academic disciplines, the public and private sectors. Both the United Kingdom and United States have made synthetic biology a national priority. In January, the U.K. invested over £40-million to establish multidisciplinary research centres that combine innovative science with industry training to form a new generation of bioscience researchers and entrepreneurs.
The groundwork has also been laid for a Canadian revolution in the field. Canada’s scientific community is internationally recognized for its leadership in genomics research and strong partnerships with key industries. Since 2000 Genome Canada and partners have invested more than $2.3-billion in deciphering the genomes of economically important plants, animals and microbes in order to understand how they function. A significant proportion of these funds has been invested in building the technological toolkits that can be applied to synthetic biology.
But science cannot do it alone. Innovation on this scale requires multiple forms of expertise in order to be successful. Research in law, business, social sciences and humanities is vital to addressing questions of ethics, supply chain management, social innovation and cultural adaptation to new technologies.
Industry knowledge and investments, as well as the capacity to incentivize entrepreneurship are key to devising business models that will enable new products to thrive. Governments and funding agencies also need to do their part by supporting multidisciplinary research, training and infrastructure.
From Nov. 24-26, Genome Canada hosted a gathering of more than 300 Canadian parliamentarians, senior public servants as well as representatives from industry, academia and research agencies. The conference will explore how genomics and synthetic biology can help leverage Canada’s traditional resource sectors, while protecting and preserving the environment. In late October of this year, Concordia University—which houses Canada’s flagship synthetic biology research centre—Genome Canada, Genome Québec, the Fonds de Recherche du Québec and the U.K. Science and Innovation Network hosted a workshop assembling some of the major British and American players in the field. The result was the commitment to draft a white paper meant to lay the groundwork for Canadian innovation in the field. Designing and delivering a Canadian blueprint for synthetic biology will take vision, hard work, cross-sectoral collaboration and money.
The success of genomics research illustrates the foresight of committing resources to compete in areas with truly transformative potential. Canada cannot be left behind when it comes to tapping into the infinite promise of synthetic biology. It is up to us to invent our future now. Rémi Quirion is the chief scientist of Québec, Fonds de recherche du Québec. Vincent Martin is Canada Research Chair in Microbial Genomics and Engineering and a professor in the Department of Biology at Concordia University in Montreal. Pierre Meulien is president and CEO of Genome Canada. Marc LePage is the president and CEO of Génome Québec. Graham Bell is the president of the Royal Society of Canada.
originally posted by: AnuTyr
a reply to: bobs_uruncle
It's not up to the Government tho. It will be up to the people if they purchase the new bio-fuels.
And that's all nice and everything making the road scam obvious.
But the fact remains, If we have to pay less on fuel then yes road maintence prices will go up. But not by much. Nothing that Taxs can't cover.
Besides. This exodus is already happening now. And there is nothing that will stop it from coming.
In fact it may even bankrupt a lot of rich pricks who need to be dethroned from their Oil Empire.
Let them buy the thousands of gallons of Oil they want Lmao. It won't make a single difference. The gas companies don't want to rely on a sketchy product such as oil for revenue. I mean look at it now. It costs to much to pull out of ground. Its getting to the point where the profit margin is so slim. For energy empires to stay float. They either adapt or die off.
Because with new Bio-fuels. Made from renewable sources. The need to pay so many oil workers to pull the resources out will be destroyed by the low income pools generated by scientists that would be manifacting this bio-fuel in mass quantities.
Much less dangerous work and less employees to pay sound 100% better than Oils current Up and down strain on the market.
This will happen because such companies as chevron will be the first to pump out bio-fuels. Right now i believe their *gasoline* is part gas, part bio-fuel specifically ethinol right now.
I wouldn't put em past em to ditch oil completely if they had the choice.
So this really has nothing to do with the governments needs and demands A I Harper is a dick and he does not matter.
This is completely dependant on what the people and the consumer/Sellers want. They want a secure fuel that garentees at least a 50% increase in profits.
But slashing Oil worker jobs, Ontop of that with production costs dropping everyday.
It's the next logical conclusion even for the most buisness savy. Which is why Oil prices are dropping so hard right now because these bio-fuels will be released in the next year or 2.
You are right about canada lacking Ethics for Bio-technology.
This Article is about Canada create the blueprints for bio-Ethics. Someone needs to start the parade i'd figure it would of been another country but not Canada. Well with a bit more research. Many Scientists and entrepreneus are supporting these ventures with massive ammounts of funding.
This problem is. this isn't public knowledge. Everyone is Oblivious to this aproaching paradigm shift.
We need to wake the population up and make synthetic biology a real issue, just as much a terrorism or Iran or w.e people complain about nowadays. EBOlA. Taxs. lol.
originally posted by: prisoneronashipoffools
a reply to: bobs_uruncle
Of course it will happen . It's inevitable. Technology progresses and always has regardless of whether people are ready for it or think it will. Eventually some scientists somewhere will develop alternative forms of energy that are cheaper then gas and the genie will be out of the bottle.
To argue against it simply because lots of people make profit off gas now; to me at least, would be like someone in the early eighteen hundreds arguing against the invention of the steam and combustion engine because to many people make money off horses.
As far as taxation, the governments will simply develop new forms of taxation. Many governments have been floating the idea of a mile tax for ages and even on ats just recently was an article about Washington state testing such a program.
WA State likely to approve pilot program to charge drivers per mile
So don't worry about the government getting their tax money, they will always find a way. And a mile tax will be no problem since the majority of people believe driving is a privilege not a right.
Just my opinion though.