For All the Mad Scientists

Science fiction blog io9 is hosting a Mad Science Contest for researchers to design their own lifeform. "Building new lifeforms is the science of the future and therefore you can never have too many garage laboratories and mad scientists devoted to it," writes Annalee Newitz at io9. The winners get an all-expenses-paid trip to Hong Kong for the Synthetic Biology Conference, or $1000, and a drawing of their lifeform. The judging will be harsh as the judges include Drew Endy, Michael Eisen, Spore game developer Jasin Shankel, and Berkeley's Terry Johnson.