Two Lectures on Bioengineering Free to Public

CHICAGO --- A free lecture titled "Building a New Biology" will be held at two Northwestern University locations on Monday Oct. 27 and on Tuesday Oct. 28.

The lectures begin at 7 p.m. (receptions at 6:30 p.m.) The Oct. 27 event will take place at the McCormick Tribune Center, 1870 Campus Drive, Evanston campus. The Oct. 28 event will take place in the Hughes Auditorium at the Robert H. Lurie Medical Research Center, 303 E. Superior St., Chicago campus. No tickets are required.

The lecture will be presented by Drew Endy, an assistant professor at Stanford University and a pioneer in the field of bioengineering, These lectures will explore the powerful new technologies that allow researchers to design DNA and construct organisms to perform exciting functions. These new, engineered organisms are being created to help cure cancer, produce renewable energy and assemble living computers. Teenagers can now learn to program DNA just as they learn to program computers.

But who will control these new biotechnologies? What good and bad events could result from them?

Endy will discuss the science behind this new biology and the many factors that must be considered as research progresses, from practical issues like patents and copyrights to the weighty implications of essentially creating life.

These events are part of the Center for Genetic Medicine's Silverstein Lecture Series, designed to bring advances in genetics research and medicine to the general public. Funding for the Silverstein Lecture Series is provided by the Herman M. and Bea L. Silverstein Medical Research Fund for Genetic Medicine. For more information, please visit the Center for Genetic Medicine's website, www.cgm.northwestern.edu, or call 312-503-5600.