Summary of "What is Synthetic Biology?"

Key concepts

Life vs. non-life Both living and non-living matter are made of atoms and chemicals. Living systems are distinguished by how those atoms are organized into complex biological molecules and interactive systems.
DNA as the informational molecule DNA’s double helix carries a four-letter chemical alphabet — A, C, T, G — that encodes instructions for growth, reproduction, and development.
Genome The genome is the complete DNA sequence of an organism. “Reading a genome” refers to sequencing that complete DNA sequence.

Genome sequencing progress Scientists learned to read entire genomes across many organisms, from bacteria to fruit flies to humans.
Gene transfer and genetic modification Individual genes (for example, a gene that causes jellyfish to glow) can be moved into other organisms to confer new traits.
Synthetic biology A newer field that moves beyond reading and editing genomes to designing and writing genomes and creating new biological systems:

Synthetic biology is a new field that goes beyond reading and editing genomes to designing and writing genomes to create new biological systems.

Genome synthesis and reconstruction Researchers have rewritten and rebuilt the entire genome of yeast and plan to insert that synthetic genome into a cell to “boot” it and produce a living organism. Conceptually, a successfully booted synthetic genome could create an organism discontinuous from the existing evolutionary chain — a life form based on a human-designed genome.

Sequence/read genomes (genome sequencing).
Modify or transfer genes between organisms (genetic engineering).
Design and synthesize entire genomes (genome writing/reconstruction).
Insert the synthetic genome into a cell and attempt to “boot” it so it becomes a living, reproducing organism.