Introduction: The film looks into synthetic biology as a new paradigm for biological research and innovation within the superstructure of evolving biotechnology. The film explains the scientific principles of synthetic biology and considers how 'open source biology' conjures some of the fundamental ethical, philosophical, security, and social changes of the 21st century. As biologists become engineers creating artificial living machines, will industry embrace decentralized forms of scientific innovation and will society accept a destabilized concept of the natural world? The first person narrative documentary presents content ranging from documentation of the iGEM jamboree at MIT [where undergraduates from around the world compete and showcase their biological machines], to interviews with Drew Endy, the de-facto leader of synthetic biology, Laurie Zoloth, a bioethicist at Northwestern University, Terence Taylor, a biosecurity expert, and Evelyn Fox Keller, Professor of the History and Philosophy of Science at MIT. Themes: Synthetic biology offers a novel approach to genetic manipulation, exploiting ever-cheaper DNA synthesis and sequencing techniques in order to harness the genetic code, and construct new systems with viable practical and instructive functions. The design and execution of synthetic biology depends on three basic concepts: 1) the use of well characterized parts, 2) standardized construction methods, and 3) abstraction. Synthetic biology is evolving in an open environment. The Biobrick Foundation's Registry of Standard Biological Parts (www.parts.mit.edu) is a genetic library containing over two thousand unpatented, standardized genetic parts. This has enabled undergraduate teams to compete in the International Genetically Engineered Machine (iGEM) competition and come together at the annual Jamboree to share ideas and techniques. The iGEM program creates an open community of young scientists, and offers evidence of the efficacy of this new field. Synthetic Biology involves using biological parts to build systems, which calls upon the disciplines of engineering, chemistry, computer science, and biology. Synthetic biology therefore hinges on collaboration and openness. It is no small task managing the complexity of the cell, one of the great mysteries in science, as synthetic biology attempts. Nor is the closed, secretive biotechnology industry poised to welcome an open source model for development. Synthetic biology is in its infancy and it remains to be seen if the engineering theory behind it is workable, and if openness in the generation and application of scientific knowledge can become a reality. Daniel Weisberg and Phillip Gara Bio Logic: The Synthetic Frontier (2008) Less