Glow, Grow, Engineer: Real Synthetic Biology for Teens

Hack life over 2 Saturdays! Engineer bacteria, make glowing GMO art & build your own synthetic organism. Teens 13–16, no experience needed.
About this Event

SYNBIO101: Introduction to Biohacking

Scientists can now reprogram living things, and over two Saturday mornings, so will you.

SYNBIO101 is a hands-on synthetic biology lab for curious 13–16 year olds. No experience needed. Over two Saturdays you'll do what most people only read about: insert new DNA into living bacteria, grow your own engineered cells, work with the same tools real biologists use, and turn your modified organism into living art. By the end, you won't just understand how life gets engineered—you'll have done it yourself.

The details

• Two Saturdays: August 22 & August 29
• 9:30 AM – 12:30 PM both days
• One ticket covers both sessions
• Ages 13–16, no prior experience required

Reserve your spot for both Saturdays.


Session 1 — Build & Transform (May 23) This is where you become a biohacker.

• Discover what synthetic biology and biohacking actually are
• Gear up and learn to work safely in a real lab
• Perform a bacterial transformation—physically insert new DNA into living cells, the core move behind modern biotech
• Culture your engineered bacteria using genuine lab techniques
• Start an incubation so your cells grow into visible results next week

Session 2 — See & Create (May 30) Come back to see what you made.

• Master the micropipette, the tool every biologist depends on, in a hands-on workshop
• Reveal and interpret the results of your own experiment
• Create liquid cultures from your transformation
• Turn your genetically modified organism into living art