Ottawa galvanizes citizen science with do-it-yourself biology summit
VANCOUVER — In a community laboratory she co-founded, Alaina Hardie isolates and sequences sections of her own DNA though she has no formal education in biology.
The Toronto software developer believes that “citizen scientists” like her have potential to make breakthroughs as significant as universities or big corporations. It appears the federal government thinks so too.
“I sure hope they capitalize on us,” Hardie said ahead of a do-it-yourself biology convention in Ottawa scheduled for Wednesday. “In some garage, or DIY hackerspace, or after-hours in some university lab, the next big thing is coming.”
The Public Health Agency of Canada has invited 60 DIY-biology leaders, academics and police to attend the first-ever “Do-It-Yourself Biology Summit.” It will also host 300 videolinks at a total conference cost of $15,000, said Marianne Heisz, a director with the agency’s centre for biosecurity.