Sophia Roosth
STS
Interests
- Synthetic Biology
- Cellular Acoustics
- FS/OS and biology
- Bioart
Personal
Bio
I went to high school in Dallas, TX. At Rice University, I pursued a degree in anthropology. My honors thesis, "Exhibiting Life: Biotechnological Media and Materiality in Bioart," examined the artistic use of biological materials to critique the biotechnology industry, offering laypeople with immediate and tactile representations of biotechnical entities. After graduating in 2003, I began working for Natalie Jeremijenko, writing for the Biotech Hobbyist Magazine, doing research for the Feral Robotic Dogs project, and helping organize the Clear Skies project and the OneTree(s)/TwoWheels Bike Tour.
I am currently a second year graduate student in the Science, Technology, and Society Program at MIT. My current research focuses on the anthropology of the contemporary life sciences, specifically biotechnology, bioart, and synthetic biology. Within these fields, I’m interested in examining biological materials as social, technical, and aesthetic objects. I am particularly interested in the intersection of biology research with engineering practices, and the influence of the Free Source/Open Software movement on the design and dissemination of engineered biotic systems. I talk to these guys: Synthetic Society. My recent work dealt with the role of Material Transfer Agreements in standardizing and privatizing the exchange of biological materials. In addition to this project, my other current research explores the use of acoustic technologies in biology and nanotech laboratories (sonocytology). I am also interested in the anthropology and philosophy of mathematics.
Contact
Phone: 617.388.9226
Email: sroosth at mit dot edu.
Postal:
77 Massachusetts Ave.
E51-098
Cambridge, MA 02139
