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Responsible access to genetic sequences
In most places, to buy a gun, you have to have a licence. Such a licence certifies your need to have a gun and a clean criminal record. In contrast, anyone can currently access any genetic blueprint, including those of deadly pathogens. I think we need to build responsible access systems, so that certain genetic…
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Record-keeping for strong attribution
In most places, if you buy a gun, its serial number is registered. This enables law enforcement to link guns used in crimes to their owners and thus deter their misuse. We should create a similar system for attributing biological agents – agents that also have the potential to kill people – to their creators.…
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Consensus-finding on risks and benefits of research
One of the reasons for the debate around so-called “gain of function research”, the enhancement of potential pandemic pathogens, having stalled is the fact that researchers disagree over the benefits and risks of research. However, this does not mean that we should not try to calculate the expected value of a given experiment; rather we…
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Information loops to steer funding to less risky projects
Imagine there are two sets of identical houses which only differed by one factor: in one set of houses the electricity metre was in the basement, in the other set it was in the front room. Where do you think electricity consumption would be less? Arguably, the houses with the electricity metre in the front…
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Jonas Sandbrink 