The Arc of the Scientific Universe is Long... | David Deamer | TEDxSantaCruz

This TEDxSantaCruz talk is part of 22 surrounding our theme of “the Art of Hope.” Defined as the anticipation of something desired happening, hope is ferocious, persistent, necessary; hope is a powerful force for invention, change, and social justice. To hope is to be human.

Our fifth TEDxSantaCruz event was held on December 7, 2019, at the Rio Theatre in Santa Cruz, CA. http://www.tedxsantacruz.org/ David Deamer is a Research Professor of Biomolecular Engineering at the University of California, Santa Cruz. In 1989, Deamer proposed the idea that it may be possible to sequence a DNA molecule by passing it through a nanoscopic pore embedded in a membrane. Mark Akeson and Deamer investigated the technique over the next 15 years, and in 2014 commercial devices were marketed that utilize nanopore sequencing concepts and patents developed by the Akeson and Deamer research groups. In a second research area, Deamer investigates how nucleic acids and primitive cells could have emerged on Earth 4 billion years ago, which is the topic of his TEDx talk. Deamer's research is described in Assembling Life (2019), published by Oxford University Press, and was featured in a cover article in the August 2017 Scientific American. This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at https://www.ted.com/tedx