Science Fair: first place!

I have to brag on my children now.

First my daughter. She's in first grade and has been promoted in her karate class to an "orange belt." This is the third color belt in her dojo. Great job Ivy!

Now my son. Judging for my son's school science fair took place last night. He cultured some E. coli bacteria and inserted jellyfish DNA into the E. coli to make them glow in the dark using plasmid transformation. The purpose of this project was to show that children can do genetic engineering in their home kitchen. I am absolutely serious about this. This was all done with about $40 worth of material. My son tied for first place in the science fair.

The judges at first thought that the parents must have done the project until they interviewed my son as part of the judging. My fifth-grade son demonstrated a good knowledge of DNA, genetics, the use of plasmids for gene transfer in bacteria.

Ian wanted to build a nuclear reactor at first but I didn't allow that; there's a clause in our HOA covenants about basement nuclear power generation. I tried to come up with something bicycle-related, but my son insisted on doing genetic engineering instead.

Or perhaps this is bicycle-related. I'm sure there's a future for creative genetic engineers who are willing to push the envelope for athletes who can pay for performance-enhancing gene therapy.

Tags: science+fair, genetic+engineering, e+coli, karate, dna