Biohackers are developing a vegan cheese

The researchers have engineered yeast to produce casein, a milk protein

Many people say they can’t go vegan because of their addiction to dairy. But that excuse could soon be past its sell-by date if a team of biohackers in California succeeds in scaling up production of a cheese that contains no animal by-products. They call it Real Vegan Cheese. Their aim is to offer a sustainable food alternative with the same nutritional value – and taste – as non-vegan cheese.

The collective, open-source effort is made of members of two biohacker collectives called Counter Culture Labs (Oakland) and BioCurious (Sunnyvale). The research group is using synthetic biology to engineer brewer's yeast into a casein (milk protein) production unit.

The process starts with yeast being grown in a bioreactor, followed by the purification of the protein that the yeast produces. The casein is then combined with oil, vegan sugar (refined sugar may contain cow bone) to feed the ripening bacteria, and water to produce a sort of vegan milk. This milky mix is the raw material for the vegan cheese, which is then processed using a traditional cheese-making technique.

In order to turn the yeast into an efficient casein production unit, the researchers have studied animal genomes to create their own casein genetic sequences, which are optimized for use with the yeast. There are difficulties in using yeast as a protein production unit, because the proteins the researchers want are designed by nature for animal systems. Yeast's cellular machinery is less efficient compared with that of some milk-producing animals. To solve that problem, the researchers intend to incorporate kinase enzymes that could make yeast-derived milk proteins perform like animal milk proteins.

Another aspect of the project is that, being in total control over the DNA sequences, the researchers can play around with the variants of the four main proteins found in cheese, and design the product according to the health needs of consumers. One of the possibilities the researchers are contemplating is narwhal cheese, presumably mostly for the novelty factor. The genome of this type of whale has not been sequenced yet, but the University of California at Santa Cruz has sent an expedition to the Arctic to do just that. The real vegan cheese teams hopes to work with the narwhal researchers and study the mammal's casein genes.

The reference to animals does not mean the cheese is not 100 percent vegan, though. The genes are inspired by mammals, but the organisms and growth mediums are completely animal-free.

For those who worry about safety issues and who are averse to the idea of genetically modified organisms (GMO), the researchers say they have taken those concerns into account. They explain that no GMO goes into the cheese, as the milk protein is separated from the GM yeast.

Besides those concerns and technological hurdles to produce the right type of milk to make the cheese, there are several regulatory requirements that the researchers will have to deal with before they deliver any vegan cheese to the world, which is their ultimate goal.

Right now they are in Phase I, working on the production of an initial cheese sample. Next they will take their project to the International Genetically Engineered Machine competition (iGEM) taking place in October.

They hope to brew a big batch of yeast at the end of the project, and have enough cheese protein for one small cheese, which they will send to supporters of their current Indiegogo campaign. Funding packages offer a range of perks from T-shirts (US$35) to a biohacker lab coat ($100) as well as a nut-based vegan cheese-tasting session ($300 for two), among others.

The research is being made available on a wiki as it happens and licensed under free and open licenses. Any patents will be released into the public domain. The researchers are volunteers and proceeds from the funding campaign cover material costs and work space.

Besides ethical vegans, animal-free cheese is good news for people who suffer from lactose intolerance but appreciate cheese. Also, plant-based cheese is more sustainable than its animal equivalent as animal agriculture is cited by the UN as a major source of greenhouse gas emissions.

The vegan cheese team explain their plans in the video below.

How to share a hard drive across your Wi-Fi network

Here's a look at sharing a hard drive across your network using your Wi-Fi router

Have you ever wondered what that USB port on your Wi-Fi router is for? Most modern routers have at least one or maybe two, and today we'll take a look at how to set it up with a hard or flash drive that you can use to share content across your local network.

Note: For this article I'm using a Cisco Linksys E4200 Wi-Fi router. The interface for each router manufacturer will, of course, vary, and have different options for sharing the drive. Here's a look at using Windows to access the drive, which is the same process for any router with a connected USB drive, despite its internal software features.

Choose a hard or flash drive to share

The first thing you'll want to do is find a hard drive or flash drive that you want to use to hold data that you're going to share with everyone. One thing to consider before selecting a drive is to check your router's documentation to see if there are any storage limitations – certain routers do have a storage cap.

Of course you'll be able to get more data at a cheaper price if you use an external hard drive. But if you only have a few things to share, then a flash drive will do. In this example I'm using a Centon 64 GB DataStick Pro.

After settling on a drive, I recommend formatting it using Windows. Some routers offer the ability to format the drive using built-in software, but I've had the best luck formatting it with Windows.

To format the drive in Windows, connect it to an open USB port on your PC, find it in Computer (called This PC in Windows 8), right-click on the drive, and select Format. A quick format should do in most cases, and while you're at it, give the drive a memorable name so you know what it contains. This step isn't entirely necessary, but if you can, it's nice to start with clean gear.

Access the router

To get to the router settings, open any browser on a computer connected to your Wi-Fi network. Then type in the appropriate IP address of the router to get into it. Usually it will be something like 192.168.1.1 – again, if you're not sure, check the router's documentation.

Then you should be asked for the router's login information. If you're still using the default settings like "admin" for both the username and password, take this opportunity to set it to something more secure. You don't want just anyone being able to access your network or the drive you add to it.

Now, in the router's settings, look for a heading called drive storage, file sharing, or something similar. There you will see the information on the drive that you connected to your router.

Access the drive connected to router

To be able to read and write to the attached drive, open the Network folder on Windows. Then clear the path at the top of Windows Explorer and enter \\ followed by the router's IP address. For example: \\192.168.1.1 as shown below. The drive will show up in Windows Explorer as a shared folder with the name you gave it. You will need to enter the router path for each computer you want to connect to the drive. If you're prompted for a username and password, use the same credentials you used to log into the router.

You'll be able to use the drive exactly like one connected to your PC. You can create folders, copy videos, music, documents, and more. And you can do this from any computer as long as you open Network and type in the router path address that you did in the step above.

If you're going to keep the drive attached to your router and continue to use it, you're not going to want to enter in the router path each time. To make things much easier, just map it as a network drive – it's not as complex as it sounds.

Right-click the drive and select "Map network drive" and give it a drive letter that isn't already being used, make sure "Reconnect at sign-in" is checked, then click Finish. After that, any time you restart and connect your desktop or laptop computer to the network, the drive connected to the router will appear.

Also, if you want easier access to the drive, you can create a shortcut on the desktop.

Remember that everyone connected to your Wi-Fi network will be able to access that drive (provided you've mapped it on all systems), so make sure you aren't putting anything too sensitive on it. This is a great solution for families who want to share music, videos, and photos among all computers in the house. It provides yet another way to back up your data, too.

Samsung and LG put 105-inch curved UHD TVs up for pre-order

Samsung's UN105s9W is now available for pre-order in the US for US$120,000

Following LG and Samsung both unveiling their contenders for the world's largest curved Ultra HD TV at CES earlier this year, the game of one-upmanship between the Korean electronics giants continues. Samsung announced last week that it was starting to take pre-orders for its model, and LG has quickly followed suit.

Both 105-inch offerings support 3D content and boast 5K resolution of 5,120 x 2,160 pixels, outdoing the 4K standard of 3,840 x 2,160 by around three million pixels and leaving the 1,920 x 1,080 pixels of Full HD sets far behind. With 4K content, let alone 5K content, still thin on the ground, both sets make use of up-scaling technology to increase the quality of lower-resolution content.

And being 21:9 aspect ratio screens, everything other than CinemaScope content will leave some space at the sides. However, both models allow that unused space to be put to use, with LG's 105UC9 allowing the space to be filled with additional info or programming details, while Samsung's UN105S9W features the company's Quad Screen Multi-Link feature that allows the screen to be split into four to display live TV, streaming video and the web all at the same time.

LG's unit also incorporates a 7.2 channel, 150 W sound system and surround sound system developed in partnership with Harman Kardon, while its Smart TV features are powered by LG's webOS platform.

Samsung is attempting to future-proof its model with a swappable One Connect Box that will allows users to maintain compatibility with future standards without needing to buy a whole new TV. Buyers will also be eligible for the "Samsung Elite Service," which will see Samsung Field Engineers pay a visit to set up the TV and explain its features.

Samsung's UN105S9W TV is built to order for US$119,999.99, with US customers able to place an order for it now. LG's 105UC9 will be available for pre-order to customers in South Korea from this week, with exact pricing and availability to be announced locally. There's no word on wider availability for Samsung's set, but LG plans to roll its unit out in other markets in Q4 of this year.

Silent Power PC ditches the fan for a "cool" copper afro

The Silent Power PC uses an open-air metal foam heatsink for passive cooling

The Silent Power PC is claimed to be the first high-end PC able to ditch noisy electric fans in favor of fully passive cooling. In place of a conventional fan, the unit uses an open-air metal foam heatsink that boasts an enormous surface area thanks to the open-weave filaments of copper of which it is composed. The Silent Power creators claim that the circulation of air through the foam is so efficient in dissipating heat that the exterior surface temperature never rises above 50° C (122° F) in normal use.

Whilst a little unusual in appearance with what looks like a large metallic fiber kitchen sponge sitting on top of it, the hardware the Silent Power PC claims to contain is conventional enough. With an Intel quad-core i7-4785T 2.2 GHz processor, 8 or 16 GB of RAM, an NVIDIA GTX 760 graphics card, and the usual array of USB, Wi-Fi, Ethernet, HDMI, DVI, and audio ports, along with Windows 8.1 as standard, the Silent Power PC certainly has the specifications of a "normal" machine.

The real innovation is in the cooling system. With the copper foam sitting on top of the chassis, the Silent Power PC’s heat dissipation is claimed to be 500 times greater than that offered by conventional fin-type heatsink systems and is more than sufficient to maintain adequately low operating temperatures. The design also features a reverse-layout compared to normal PCs – the CPU and GPU are on the top of the stack, rather than in the bottom of the case – to aid in heat dissipation.

And it is small. At just 160 mm (6.2 in) wide, 100 mm (4 in) deep, and 70 mm (2.75 in) tall, the case is very compact – without its bouffant coppery locks, of course. To achieve these compact dimensions, the designers had to ditch the machine’s internal power supply in favor of an external one, but it also means that the unit is claimed to weigh a mere 1.5 kg (3.3 lb).

One more feature to differentiate the Silent Power PC is an inbuilt sensor that the team says can detect movement to wake the unit up from standby as the user approaches. Conversely, if the user leaves the proximity of the device, the sensor detects the lack of movement and automatically locks the system after a predetermined amount of time.

Currently still only a prototype, German startup Silent Power is running its own crowdfunding campaign with a goal of €45,000 (US$60,000) to get the unit into production. Funding is sought via donations or by pre-ordering of one of three versions of the PC: €699 (US$930) gets you the base 8 GB RAM, 500 GB HDD version, €769 (US$1,030) gets the 26 GB RAM, 500 GB HDD model, whilst €1,159 (US$1,550) will land you the top-of-the-range 16 GB RAM, 1,000 GB SSD PC.

Provided everything goes to plan, the Silent Power PC team says that production should begin sometime in the European spring of 2015.

Edison offers affordable and Lego-compatible robotics education

Easy-to-program Edison is a palm-sized bot, compatible with Lego bricks and packing a suite of sensors

With robots set to play a more prominent role in society in the coming years, it makes sense to find fun ways to educate youngsters on the technology. To that end, Thomas Alva has developed Edison, a palm-sized, bright orange, programmable robot compatible with Lego bricks that is intended as an affordable introduction to programming and robotics.

Named to reflect its "inventive spirit," Edison features a host of sensors and runs on open source software. Each small bot is programmable and interacts with the world via IR transmitters and receivers, line tracking, barcode reading, playing sounds and music, and sound detection. One Edison can communicate with another over IR, with the units also able to be programmed to by controlled via TV and DVD remotes.

It’s in Edison’s open source programming tool where the micro action really happens. Edware, similar to Scratch and other graphical drag-and-drop programming languages, allows users to create programs for Edison that users can upload to the bot via their computer’s headphone jack and a cable that ships with the robots. Edware is already available for download for Windows only, though Linux and Mac versions will be provided later.

While Edison can only store one program at a time, driving over barcodes can trigger pre-programmed functions, such as following a flashlight, avoiding obstacles, staying within a border, following a line and driving by sound, thereby providing a simple way to chain up interactions for the bot.

Along its faces are Lego-compatible plates that allow the robots to be scaled up into a fancier creation, or even combined into a train or double-decker bot for a more complicated system. Each bot is powered by a set of AAA batteries, which should keep them going continuously for over an hour.

Edison is being developed by Australian company Microbric, which previously produced other lines of robots, including a modular set that clipped together, and has turned to Kickstarter to bring Edison to market. And the pledge price does seem affordable: AUD$39 (US$36) for a single bot and cheaper for multiple units for a family or classroom. If all goes well, the company plans to begin shipping Edison to backers by December.

In the company’s Kickstarter pitch video below you can see Edison get run over by a car and still move – and also educating children.