Oxford Nanopore: The Internet of Living Things is closer than you think

The Internet of Living Things (“IoLT”) is a concept that connects living organisms, such as humans, animals and plants, to the Internet, enabling the exchange of data and information. This concept is an extension of the Internet of Things (“IoT”), which focuses on connecting devices and objects.

In short, the IoLT enables real-time monitoring of biological functions, such as vital signs, genetic data and environmental factors.  The collected data is analysed to provide insights into the biological state of the organism, enabling early detection of diseases and personalised healthcare. The data is transmitted to the cloud, where it can be accessed and analysed by healthcare professionals, researchers and other people. The biological state of an organism becomes an extension of the internet, enabling the creation of new intelligence about natural systems.

Examples of how the IoLT will collect data are:

  • Wearable sensors, such as fitness trackers, which can monitor vital signs and transmit data to the cloud for analysis.
  • Smart contact lenses, contact lenses with embedded sensors that can monitor glucose levels and transmit data to the cloud for diabetes management.
  • Portable genomic sequencers, portable devices that can sequence DNA and transmit data to the cloud for genetic analysis.
  • Internet-enabled biocyber interfaces, biocyber interfaces which can connect living insects to the internet, enabling control of their behaviour and communication with the environment.

The topic of this article is portable genomic sequencers; in particular Oxford Nanopore Technology devices.

In 2015, 9 years ago, when Clive Brown, Chief Technology Officer of Oxford Nanopore Technology was asked what the likelihood was of portable DNA sequencers becoming reality, he answered: “It is already a reality. The technology is now in the optimisation phase and will only get better. If you are asking how long before it reaches a clinic – then I think that is a different question, but it will be in many other non-clinical environments first.”

The DNA sequencer he was referring to was Oxford Nanopore’s MinION.  Any living thing, or system of living things, can be connected to the internet via the MinION or by any similar real-time DNA sensing devices, Brown said.

“Healthcare is just one application [ ]; equally, water sources, food supplies, hospital air and many other systems can be frequently sampled and sequenced – also allowing their state to be trended, tracked and predicted,” Brown said.

A few years later, in 2019, an article published by International Defence, Security and Technology (“IDST”) described MinION as small as a USB stick and easy to use. “Oxford Nanopore has designed an intelligent cloud lab, Metrichor, to be used for genomics data storage in conjunction with smartphone apps that interpret the meaning of DNA sequences. Researchers around the world now use pocket-size genomic sequencers to rapidly detect resistant pathogenic strains in hospitals, and diagnose infectious agents in food supply and aboard spaceships,” IDST wrote.

In early 2020, Oxford Nanopore’s technology was put to use in the surveillance of the coronavirus outbreak

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They Are Using Lab-Grown Human Brains Called “Organoids” To Run Computers

When I first started researching this, I could hardly believe that it was true. A company in Switzerland known as “Final Spark” has constructed a bizarre hybrid biocomputer that combines lab-grown miniature human brains with conventional electronic circuits.  This approach saves an extraordinary amount of energy compared to normal computers, but there is a big problem.  The lab-grown miniature human brains keep wearing out and dying, and so scientists have to keep growing new ones to replace them. 

Stem cells that are derived from human skin tissue are used to create the 16 spherical brain “organoids” that the system depends upon.  I realize that this sounds like something straight out of a really bad science fiction movie, but it is actually happening.

Scientists at Final Spark are calling their hybrid computer “the Neuroplatform”, and it is being reported that it only uses “a fraction of the energy required to power a traditional set up”…

Swiss tech startup FinalSpark is now selling access to biocomputers that combine up to four tiny lab-grown human brains with silicon chips.

This new bioprocessing platform, called the Neuroplatform, uses small versions of human brains to do computer work instead of silicon chips. The company says it can fit 16 of these mini-brains onto the Neuroplatform and use a fraction of the energy required to power a traditional set up.

The platform, currently adopted by nine institutions, integrates hardware, software and biology to construct a processing system that is energy-efficient and high-performing.

This “breakthrough” is being hailed as a way to save a gigantic amount of energy.

But what about the lab-grown human brains that are being enslaved to run the Neuroplatform?

Each of the 16 mini-brains is made up of approximately 10,000 living neurons, and they are kept alive by a “microfluidics system that supplies water and nutrients for the cells”

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Pentagon Wants to Feed Troops ‘Experimental’ Lab-Grown Meat to ‘Reduce CO2 Footprint’

A Pentagon-funded company is seeking proposals to feed America’s soldiers lab-grown meat in a bid to “reduce the CO2 footprint” at Defense Department outposts.

BioMADE, a public-private company that has received more than $500 million in funding from the Defense Department, announced earlier this month that it is seeking proposals to develop “innovations in food production that reduce the CO2 footprint of food production at … DoD operational environments,” according to an online announcement.

These include “novel cell culture methods suitable for the production of cultivated meat/protein,” or lab-grown meat, a product that is still in its experimental phases. This type of meat is grown in a lab from animal cells with the aid of other chemicals, and has emerged as a flashpoint in debates about the efficacy and morality of manufacturing meat products without slaughtering animals.

BioMADE—which earlier this year received a $450 million infusion of taxpayer cash—maintains that lab-grown food products will reduce the Pentagon’s carbon footprint, a priority for the American military as it pursues a Biden administration-mandate to address climate change and other cultural issues that critics describe as “woke.”

“Innovations in food production that reduce the CO2 footprint of food production at and/or transport to DoD operational environments are solicited,” the company says in an informational document and accompanying press release. “These could include, but are not limited to, production of nutrient-dense military rations via fermentation processes, utilizing one carbon molecule (C1) feedstocks for food production, and novel cell culture methods suitable for the production of cultivated meat/protein.”

BioMADE is also soliciting proposals for “processes that convert greenhouse gasses” and “projects that develop bioproducts useful in mitigating the negative environmental impacts either regionally or globally,” including “bioproducts that can be used to prevent or slow coastal erosion.”

Critics of the DoD’s partnership with BioMADE say that U.S. troops should not be used as test subjects for lab-grown meat products that are still in their experimental phase.

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HPV Shot Test Subjects were Injected with MASSIVE Amount of Aluminum Causing Serious Side Effects — Study

case study on medical ethics revealed that when Merck conducted their Gardasil Human Papilloma Virus (HPV) clinical trials, they injected both the test and the placebo groups of girls and young women with a proprietary aluminum adjuvant which was extra potent, causing chronic disabling symptoms, despite the ‘informed consent’ information not mentioning the dangerous ingredient.

“The informed consent forms for Merck’s Gardasil vaccine trials appear to be seriously misleading, as a highly reactogenic adjuvant with a questionable safety record was described as an inactive placebo,” the case study said in the ‘Conclusion’ section.

An adjuvant is a vaccine ingredient that agitates the immune system into eliciting an immune response to the vaccination agent, in this case HPV.

“Merck used their proprietary amorphous aluminum hydroxyphosphate sulfate (AAHS) adjuvant as the “placebo”. The V501-018 trial however, did not use a saline placebo either, but rather the Gardasil vaccine’s carrier solution which includes L-histidine, polysorbate 80, sodium borate and residual yeast protein which is a potential allergen [7,8]. Moreover, only 1,781 children between 9 and 15 years of age were included in this trial; both male and female who were randomized in a 2:1 ratio to receive either Gardasil or the “placebo” [8]. By contrast, the largest pre-licensure Gardasil trial V501-015 (the FUTURE II trial), recruited 12,167 subjects, all females between 15 and 26 years of age, who were randomized in a 1:1 ratio to receive either Gardasil or the AAHS injection [9],” the case study said in section 1 of the ‘Background’ section.

The researchers said that four years after vaccination, the test subjects had “reduced HPV-related carcinoma in situ, external genital lesions, and HPV-related treatment procedures. However, the HPV vaccines increased serious nervous system disorders and general harms.” They went on to detail the specifics.

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The “Family Jewels” Collection (CIA)

The CIA’s “Family Jewels” is a compilation of documents that expose a series of controversial and often illicit activities conducted by the agency from the 1950s to the 1970s. First released to the public in 2007, this 702-page dossier reveals the depths of the CIA’s covert operations, which included assassination plots, illegal surveillance, and experiments on unwitting subjects.

Origins and Release

The Family Jewels documents were originally compiled in response to a 1973 request by then-CIA Director James Schlesinger, who wanted to know if there were any agency operations that might be considered illegal or improper. This internal investigation was prompted by the Watergate scandal and increasing public scrutiny of government agencies. The resulting reports were intended to be kept confidential, but they eventually became part of the public record due to the persistent efforts of journalists and researchers, along with Freedom of Information Act requests.

In 2007, under pressure from a lawsuit filed by the National Security Archive, the CIA finally declassified and released the Family Jewels. The release was significant, not only because it shed light on past abuses but also because it marked a rare instance of transparency for an agency known for its secrecy.

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Assassination Plots

One of the most shocking revelations in the Family Jewels was the CIA’s involvement in plots to assassinate foreign leaders. The documents detail various attempts to eliminate Cuban leader Fidel Castro, including collaboration with the Mafia to poison him and plans to use exotic devices like exploding cigars. In one instance, the CIA even considered using a contaminated diving suit to kill Castro.

The agency’s involvement in assassination plots was not limited to Cuba. The documents also reveal efforts to target leaders in the Congo, the Dominican Republic, and other countries. These revelations raised significant ethical and legal questions about the extent to which the United States was willing to go to influence foreign governments and political outcomes.

Illegal Surveillance

The Family Jewels also uncovered extensive illegal surveillance operations conducted by the CIA within the United States. Despite its mandate to operate only outside U.S. borders, the agency engaged in domestic spying activities, including the monitoring of American journalists, political activists, and dissidents. Operation CHAOS, one of the programs detailed in the documents, aimed to uncover foreign influences on domestic protest movements during the 1960s and early 1970s. However, it quickly expanded to include broad surveillance of American citizens, violating their constitutional rights.

Human Experimentation

Perhaps the most disturbing revelations in the Family Jewels are related to the CIA’s human experimentation programs. The documents detail Project MK-Ultra, a clandestine program focused on mind control and behavioral modification. Under this program, the CIA conducted experiments on unknowing subjects, including administering LSD and other drugs, subjecting individuals to sensory deprivation, and using psychological manipulation techniques. These experiments were often conducted without the informed consent of the participants, leading to severe psychological and physical harm in many cases.

One of the most infamous incidents involved the death of Frank Olson, a CIA scientist who was secretly dosed with LSD and later fell to his death from a hotel window under suspicious circumstances. The Family Jewels documents shed light on the agency’s attempts to cover up the true nature of Olson’s death and the broader unethical practices of the MK-Ultra program.

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World’s first bioprocessor uses 16 human brain organoids for ‘a million times less power’ consumption than a digital chip

A Swiss biocomputing startup has launched an online platform that provides remote access to 16 human brain organoids. FinalSpark’s Neuroplatform is claimed to be the world’s first online platform delivering access to biological neurons in vitro. Moreover, bioprocessors like this are claimed to “consume a million times less power than traditional digital processors.”

FinalSpark says its Neuroplatform is capable of learning and processing information, and due to its low power consumption could reduce the environmental impacts of computing. In a recent research paper about its developments, it claims that training a single LLM like GPT-3 required approximately 10GWh – about 6,000 times greater energy consumption than the average European citizen uses in a whole year. Such energy expenditure could be massively cut following the successful deployment of bioprocessors. 

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Chinese scientists move closer to bringing cryogenically frozen humans back to life – after brain tissue is thawed without damage

Scientists have moved a step closer to preserving our brains forever. 

They are one of the first to successfully thaw brain tissue that has been cryogenically frozen – without damaging it.

Further, after being frozen, their neurons were still able to send signals as normal.

This has been a major challenge for science, because freezing the ultra-delicate, spongy brain usually damages it, making it useless when it’s thawed. 

Not only is it a breakthrough for neuroscientists looking to study new drugs, it could also advance the sci-fi idea of bringing people back to life in the future. 

The idea is that people could freeze their bodies, preserving them indefinitely, in hopes that in the future, science will be advanced enough to bring them back to life, healthy. 

Professor Zhicheng Shao, a Harvard trained neuroscientist who works at Fudan University in Shanghai China, developed a complex chemical mixture nicknamed MEDY which protects neurons from being damaged while frozen. 

He is not shying away from the idea that the research could be used for cryonics, which has been a fantasy among futurists for decades. 

‘MEDY could be used for the cryopreservation of human brain tissue,’ Dr Shao said in his study, published in the journal Cell Reports Methods.

For a range of future-minded people, from the likes of Peter Thiel to Steve Aoki, who are banking on preserving their bodies in ice after they die, this should be welcome news. 

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Toddler Dies in Pfizer Gene Therapy Trial

Yesterday I republished a video and article entitled, “What Happened to Their Babies,” describing the lack of ethics and grossly inhumane experimentation that Pfizer conducted on babies and toddlers with their COVID-19 mRNA gene-editing injections.

Just a few hours ago, multiple industry outlets began breaking this official statement from Pfizer that a toddler died of a cardiac arrest in an investigational trial of boys, aged 2 to 4 year olds, to treat a rare form of muscular dystrophy with a recombinant adenovirus gene editing technology.

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DISTURBING FDA LOOPHOLE ALLOWS SCIENTISTS TO DO EXPERIMENTS ON HUMANS WITHOUT INFORMED CONSENT

An FDA rule change published on December 21, 2023 solidifies that scientists are allowed to conduct human experiments without informed consent, as long as the research poses “minimal risk” and includes “appropriate safeguards to protect the rights, safety, and welfare of human subjects.” Investigation by ICAN’s legal team revealed that efforts to undermine informed consent protections have long been in the works, going back to at least 1962. ICAN has filed a FOIA request to dig deeper into this violation of one of our most basic human rights.

Informed consent is one of the bedrocks of human rights. It requires that (1) you be fully informed of the risks and benefits of any intervention or procedure and (2) that you consent to participate without coercion of any kind. Unfortunately, it turns out that Congress and our federal health authorities have been working to weaken informed consent protections for over 60 years!

On the heels of FDA’s new draft guidance which further weakens the already paltry clinical trial requirements for vaccine approval, FDA is once again implementing rules that take aim at informed consent protections. On December 21, 2023, FDA issued a final rule that “allows an exception from the requirement to obtain informed consent when a clinical investigation poses no more than minimal risk to the human subject and includes appropriate safeguards to protect the rights, safety, and welfare of human subjects.”

An investigation by ICAN’s attorneys revealed that back in 1962, Congress passed an amendment to the Food, Drug, and Cosmetics Act which directed HHS to create regulations that required researchers to “obtain the consent of such human beings or their representatives, except where they deem it not feasible or, in their professional judgment, contrary to the best interests of such human beings.” (Emphasis added.)

In 1981, both the FDA and HHS issued updated federal regulations regarding “The Protection of Human Subjects.” HHS’s regulations for example “exempt[ed]  broad categories of research which normally present little or no risk of harm to subjects,” such as “study of data, documents, records and specimens.”

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Personalised medicine will make drug experimentation on populations the norm

In June 2023, the UK’s Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (“MHRA”) announced it will be the first drug safety regulator in the world to pilot its own genetic “biobank,” to better understand how a patient’s genetic makeup can impact the safety of their medicines.

“The Yellow Card biobank, which will contain genetic data and patient samples … forms part of a long-term vision for more personalised medicine approaches … [to] enable doctors to target prescriptions using rapid screening tests, so patients … receive the safest medication for them, based on their genetic makeup,” a press release said.

In February 2024, as a personalised medicine project, the MHRA began recruiting patients who have experienced excessive bleeding after taking blood thinners to establish whether they have any special genetic traits which predispose them to excessive bleeding.

It may sound exciting however, personalised genetic medicine is a step towards an era where drug use and experimentation on populations become the norm.

As Dr. Guy Hatchard notes, whilst most pharmaceutical drugs entail adverse reactions and unanticipated side effects, drugs that are tailored to genetic characteristics may potentially have even more serious consequences and long-term adverse outcomes. This is because genetic systems are involved in all the functions of the physiology, its organs, bio-molecular messaging and overall immunity.

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