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From 2011.igem.org

Coming up with an actual 'big idea' looks to be one of the hardest parts, so it seems to be a good idea to get as many wacky ideas down on paper / up on the web as possible, and now seems like a good time to start.

Contents 1 Asking People 2 Cool Ideas 2.1 Carbon Sequestration 2.2 Catalytic Converters / Removing chemicals from emissions 2.3 Water Treatment / Filtration 2.4 Soil Fertilisation / Monitoring 2.5 Malaria Diagnosis (or other diseases) 2.6 Curing Cholera 2.7 Diabetes

Asking People

We have the advantage of being in the middle of Cambridge - there are lots of people doing extraordinary research right here. Asking people for ideas and problems in their area that need solving should be a good way of generating ideas.

Person	Date	Response
No one asked as yet	27/06/2011	none

Cool Ideas

In no particular order. Please add in explanation / expansion as you feel necessary.
Seeing as none of us are really sure of the boundaries, don't worry about making silly suggestions!

Carbon Sequestration

i.e Removing carbon from the atmosphere

Catalytic Converters / Removing chemicals from emissions

Current catalytic converters use a platinum catalysts - quite expensive.

Water Treatment / Filtration

Or even a way of detecting whether water is contaminated or not.

Soil Fertilisation / Monitoring

Release of Nitrogen when necessary

Malaria Diagnosis (or other diseases)

Many diseases are hard to diagnose in the field - they require at least rudimentary lab skills & equipment.

Curing Cholera

(I may have to leave this explanation to a biologist.)

Diabetes

Implant to release insulin on demand based on blood sugar levels.