Now Reading: US teen uses AI and CRISPR to boost microalgae biofuel
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US teen uses AI and CRISPR to boost microalgae biofuel
Millie Pradawong, a 14-year-old in the United States, is one of ten finalists in the 3M Young Scientist Challenge. She has created MACRO, Machine Learning-Augmented CRISPR Reprogramming Optimisation, a computational tool that…
The Story in Brief
Millie Pradawong, a 14-year-old in the United States, is one of ten finalists in the 3M Young Scientist Challenge. She has created MACRO, Machine Learning-Augmented CRISPR Reprogramming Optimisation, a computational tool that combines machine learning and CRISPR gene editing. The tool predicts genetic changes to increase oil production in microalgae without slowing their growth.
Microalgae absorb carbon dioxide and produce oils convertible to fuel, but boosting oil output typically hampers growth. Millie's project aims to solve this trade-off. She hopes to become a physician scientist. The Times of India reports that CRISPR, discovered by studying bacteria, is her favourite invention of the past 100 years because it allows precise DNA editing.
The Indian Opinion
The story of a 14-year-old finalist in a US science contest is made to seem world-changing. Yet the MACRO tool is computational, not a working biofuel plant. The real test is whether predictions from her model survive lab experiments at scale. Biofuel breakthroughs have been promised for decades. A machine-learning algorithm, however clever, does not mean algae-powered cars are around the corner. Watch for papers rather than press releases.
Source: timesofindia.indiatimes.com
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