What happens when biology becomes programmable? At my new co-working space, I stumbled across something called the RoboRoach, which is a kit that allows you to control a cockroach using Bluetooth. Yes, really. Read the full story:

Hijacking a Cockroach

The other day, I was at my new co-working space, Frontier Tower, and I saw the RoboRoach control kit by Backyard Brains on the table in my new home in the bio lab.

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Tree Sensor…looks like a Hand. Building on the tech of the Tree Sensor, I built a sensor that looks like a hand, and detects human touch. Maybe we could make a human-tree hybrid interaction. #Trees #Sensors

Getting mucky with Bacteria! On the shores of Lake Abert (SE Oregon), I collect bacteria samples for later data sonfication projects. #bacteria #datasonification #LakeAbert #Oregon

The First Breathers: Rise of the Cyanobacteria Long before plants where around, the Earth was a dim, reddish world. Imagine metallic seas, toxic (to humans) air, and microbial mats glowing purple in the haze. Read the full piece: biosymphonic.substack.com/p/the-first-...

Rise of the Cyanobacteria

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What are these Critters in the Microscope?

More strange critters in a drop of water, taken from Summer Lake, OR. What are they?

I made a very crude Tree Synth using p5.js. It's experimental, and hey, I included GitHub links to the code, too! #data #science #sensors #trees #synth

Checking out tree data from several different trees: Alder, Cedar, Maple and more. It's slow! What should I make from them? #data #science #sensors #alder #cedar #maple #trees

Can’t find the SAP I made a "Tree Sensor" which detects sap flow on trees. But data is inconclusive. What's next? I don't know #data #science #sensors #sap #trees

I made a "Tree Sensor" which detects sap flow on trees. How does it work? Let me show you what I did to my poor trees. #data #science #sensors #sap #trees

A snippet of the "Bacterial Beats" performance with live music generated from Purple Bacteria. It was a full house this evening, and this video shows some of the sounds the microbes made. #data #science #sensors #microbes #bacteria

Music from Microbes! I prepare the "Bacterial Beats" installation, where I make music from live electrical data from Purple Bacteria. Whoa, what mad scientist stuff is happening here? #data #science #sensors #microbes #bacteria

Another book for the Xenoform Labs library! Building it up, one book at a time. #drkarenbakker #karenbakker

A new read! Thanks Denise, my friend and coworker from ages, ago from the Exploratorium. Now I can learn about the bacteria that I’ve been cultivating. #exploratorium

This cherry tree looks pretty, but not a good cherry for humans, or for maybe, squirrels, either. #LutherBurbankFarm #CherryTree #EvergreenCherryHybrids #Prunushybrid

I joined Frontier Tower, a co-working space in SF. The bio-punk-lab, headed up by Elliot Roth will be my landing pad. Excited to have a spot to work that aligns well with my art-science interests! #FrontierTower

The plight of the American Chestnut Tree is a sad tale in botanical history, and the hidden consequence of an invasive fungus. This was an attempt to make a blight-resistant species. #AmericanChestnutTree #LutherBurbankExperimentFarm #HybridChestnut #Castaneahybrid

Electrical Data from Microbes! After putting sensors in the microbial samples of Purple Bacteria that I collected, I got some compelling results. Actual electricity from them. Whoa! #data #science #sensors #microbes #bacteria

Can you get data from microbes? I collected microbial samples from the Salton Sea near Bombay Beach, California. After incubating in the sun for about 4 weeks, Purple Bacteria emerged. I got curious and placed sensors in them. Will they produce data? #data #science #sensors #microbes #bacteria

So many beautiful trees here. Would love to do a tree data sonification project here some day, or maybe just plants. This place is special. Western Hills Garden, want to collaborate? #WesternHillsGarden #SnakeBarkMaple #Acerdavidii

25 apples in one tree at Luther Burbank Experiment Farm in Sebastopol. Picking one would be like an apple roulette while. #LutherBurbankExperimentFarm #Sebastopol #MultigraftedApple #Malusdomestica

A special variety of apple at Luther Burbank Experiment Farm in Sebastopol. Not all apples are “successful” as far as humans go. #LutherBurbankExperimentFarm #WintersteinApple #Malusdomestica

Can I read bioelectric fields from earthworms? Here are my results. #worms #sensors #data

I set up soil bins in Nevada City with compost, native soil, and biochar (yep, even had to “activate” it). Then I dropped in sensors to see if they could pick up earthworm activity. Can the sensors detect the bio-electric fields of earthworms? #worms #sensors #biology

A human-successful variety of avocado at Luther Burbank Experiment Farm. This one is adapted to a cooler environment. #LutherBurbankExperimentFarm #AvocadoSeedling #Perseaamericana

Could cells be communicating with photons? The latest BioSymphonic article, I dive into the strange science of biophotons: weak-light emissions produced by all living cells. All cells emit light. #microscopes #cells #photons biosymphonic.substack.com/p/cells-make...

Cells Make Light?!?

Also, microscopes are fun

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bat-a-thon! They are curious creatures indeed, with all the pathogens they can carry without being harmed themselves

American Physiological Society@apsphysiology.bsky.social · 10mo ago

🦇What kind of secrets do you think bats have? Researchers are finding out: https://ow.ly/ymVM50V5m6J via NPR #ISpyPhysiology #ComparativePhysiology #Halloween #HalloweenCountdown 🧪

Beautiful pond with active algae life. Love these active ecosystems, so underrated. Seen at Western Hills Garden. And no invasive bullfrogs, right Maria Finn? #WesternHillsGarden #MariaFinn

Purple bacteria once ruled Earth. This was before oxygen filled the atmosphere. Some scientists even imagine a “Purple Earth,” when the planet itself may have glowed magenta from horizon to horizon. Full article here:

The First Light Eaters

And maybe a purple world

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Really enjoyed the walk through Western Hills Garden this weekend, with the post-rain and the changing of the seasons, yes, even in California. #WesternHillsGarden