While I have no doubt at all that my current line of work is far more socially useful than my previous employment as a government servant, I am still sometimes niggled by, what shall I say … perhaps a lack of gravity in what I do. Sure, my aim is to guide people towards getting maximum value for their dollar in home entertainment equipment, but it isn’t exactly saving the world, or even saving lives.
So it is somewhat heartening to read an article entitled CD Player Turned Into Bioassay Molecule Detection Instrument over atFuturePundit.com:
Scientists at the University of California at San Diego have adapted an inkjet printer and a CD player to make a scientific instrument that detects types of proteins molecules present in a solution …Compared to the $100,000 price tag for a fluorescent protein chip reader … a CD player costs as little as $25.