Summary: DARPA, program manager, Biological Technologies Office (BTO), Insect Allies, Advanced Plant Technologies (APT), Bio-complexity,Bio-systems,Disease, Syn-Bio, Engineered Living Materials (ELM)<br> Leave Review and nomintion information<br> https://www.podcastawards.com/<br> https://www.webbyawards.com/winners/<br> http://www.academyofpodcasters.com/<br> About Dr. Blake<br> “Dr. Blake Bextine joined DARPA as a Program Manager in March 2016. He is interested in novel approaches to addressing issues facing agricultural biotechnology and biosecurity, including nucleic acid-based anti-pathogen/anti-pest strategies, insect and plant transformation strategies for rapid trait selection, and innovative approaches for altering insect behaviors.<br> Dr. Bextine came to DARPA from the University of Texas at Tyler where he was a Professor of Biology and Assistant Vice President for Research and Technology Transfer. Prior to his arrival at UT Tyler, Dr. Bextine was a post-doctoral fellow in the Department of Entomology at the University of California, Riverside.<br> He received his Doctor of Philosophy degree from Oklahoma State University, Master of Science in Entomology from Texas Tech University, and Bachelor of Arts in Biology from the University of Northern Iowa.<br> Dr. Bextine is a recipient of the University of Texas System Regents’ Outstanding Teaching Award and has also won the UT Tyler President’s Scholarly Achievement Award, White Fellowship for Teaching Excellence Award, and multiple UT Tyler Researcher of the Year Awards. He received the 2014 USDA Partnership Award along with other members of the Zebra Chip Research group. In 2014, he appeared on the Discovery Channel Television Show “Tethered.”” <a href="https://www.darpa.mil/staff/dr-blake-bextine">Source</a><br> Programs (<a href="https://www.darpa.mil/staff/dr-blake-bextine">as seen on darpa website</a>)<br> <a id="dnn_ctr447_DispItemDetail_mySideBarType2_dlItems_SidebarLink_2" href="https://www.darpa.mil/program/engineered-living-materials">Engineered Living Materials (ELM)</a><br> The goal of the Engineered Living Materials (ELM) program is to develop living materials that combine the structural properties of traditional building materials with attributes of living systems, including the ability to rapidly grow, self-repair, and adapt to the environment. Living materials represent a new opportunity to leverage engineered biology to solve existing problems associated with the construction and maintenance of our built environments, as well as new capabilities to craft smart infrastructure that dynamically responds to the surroundings.<br> <br> <a id="dnn_ctr447_DispItemDetail_mySideBarType2_dlItems_SidebarLink_1" href="https://www.darpa.mil/program/advanced-plant-technologies">Advanced Plant Technologies (APT)</a><br> The Advanced Plant Technologies (APT) program seeks to develop plants capable of serving as next-generation, persistent, ground-based sensor technologies to protect deployed troops and the homeland by detecting and reporting on chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear, and explosive (CBRNE) threats. Such biological sensors would be effectively energy-independent, increasing their potential for wide distribution, while reducing risks associated with deployment and maintenance of traditional sensors. These technologies could also potentially support humanitarian operations by, for example, detecting unexploded ordnance in post-conflict settings.<br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <a id="dnn_ctr447_DispItemDetail_mySideBarType2_dlItems_SidebarLink_0" href="https://www.darpa.mil/program/insect-allies">Insect Allies</a><br> The Insect Allies program is pursuing scalable, readily deployable, and generalizable countermeasures against potential natural and engineered threats to the food supply with the goals of preserving the U.S. crop system. National security can be quickly jeopardized by naturally occurr...
