BioDesign Studio

Brief: The man-made creation and alteration of lifeforms is a complex topic. We broke it down for visitors to the Tech Museum, demystifying one of the least-understood and most controversial topics in modern science. Because the permanent exhibition will last for a decade, we knew we couldn't focus on current examples of innovation in synthetic biology- those would soon be outdated. Instead, we focused on the basics, letting visitors manipulate DNA, create actual new lifeforms, and create camouflage. Exhibition Type & Location: Permanent Exhibition at The Tech Museum of Innovation in San Jose, CA. We are presenting the whole exhibition. Solution & Unique Features: Visitors can change the color of real bacteria using vials of loose DNA. An augmented reality tutorial guides visitors through the process, explaining what’s happening at a microscopic level. Visitors can also design new camouflage patterns on life-size animal sculptures, and create their own virtual lifeforms by snapping flexible building blocks that represent DNA segments.