Just a general heads-up: the rest of the world hasn't quite noticed this yet, but it seems like biology has turned into a blink-and-you'll-miss-it science of rapid breakthroughs in the last decade.
I mention this to people and they stare sort of blankly at me. I point out that computers started taking the process in the 70's with the advent of new ways to make them cheaply. But it wasn't until the 90's, 20 years later, that "regular" people started seeing a benefit in owning a computer and how many things they could do. Then over the next 20 years that changed nearly everything about our world and continues to this day although it is slowing down a bit.
Similarly with cell biology which now has enough tools in the toolchest to do amazing things, and every year there is a new technique, a new finding, a new way of putting together the tools.
I really think this will materially change everyone's quality of life when we've got much of the cell manipulation down to engineering rather than science. Organ replacement, cures for illnesses that are incurable, and generally better health for everyone. But its 40 years away at this point before its "common for everyone"
Probably at least a decade. I remember hearing about it towards the beginning of the century. It is one path towards a less controversial acquisition of stem cells.
"Common"? Like you can actually just transform differentiated cells into stems cells into other differentiated cells willy-nilly? I thought this was still being worked on.
