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All live coordination and relevant information sharing happens in our WhatsApp community: https://chat.whatsapp.com/FP3uehZBQvB06uIoQ3aM4E

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Biosecurity reading group is a student initiative at ETH D-BSSE aiming to create a space for learning about risks posed by biological threats and approaches to protect against them.

BiosecurityĀ refers to measures aimed at preventing the introduction or spread of harmfulĀ organisms ā€” Wikipedia

We aim to facilitate monthly discussions of relevant scientific and policy publications in Spring Semester 2025. The final format is very open to be influenced by you ā€” the members of this group!

We encourage reading the assigned resources beforehand, but happy for anyone to join regardless of level of preparation or familiarity with the topic.

Logistics

Dates: 10 April/ 8 May 15 May/ 5 June 12 June/ 3 July/ 31 July/ 28 August

Time: 18:00

Place (in-person): BSS D65.2 (under the ground floor bridge, near student workplaces)

Place (online): https://ethz.zoom.us/j/64473712209

What to expect: Overview of the reading, followed by an open-ended discussion and socializing.

Snacks (in-person): included

Content

In our planning meeting on 20 March, we have decided on the list of topics for the semester. The table below summarizes the plan as voted in the collaborative Google doc.

Date Resources Short Description
20 March Reading list doc Kick-off meeting. Fixing the reading list
10 April Delay, Detect, Defend: Preparing for a Future in which Thousands Can Release New Pandemics Policy publication proposing strategies to mitigate catastrophic biological risk.
8 May
15 May Toward A Global Pathogen Early Warning System Report that covers the current landscape in pathogen early warning and biosurveillance.
5 June
12 June [readings are to be voted-in by 1 May] Intersection between biosecurity and CRISPR (specifically, gene drives).
3 July Agnostic Sequencing for Detection of Viral Pathogens Overview of techniques, applications and challenges of metagenomic sequencing.
31 July 1. Dual use of artificial-intelligence-powered drug discovery
  1. Will releasing the weights of future large language models grant widespread access to pandemic agents? | Experimental reports detailing potential risks of AI misuse. | | 28 Aug | 1. The biosecurity benefits of genetic engineering attribution
  2. Analysis of the first genetic engineering attribution challenge | Introducing an approach to enhance accountability by tracing the origins of genetic engineering products. |

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The initiative is supported by Effective Altruism Zurich, a VSETH-recognized organization, and BSA, an association of Biotechnology Master students at BSSE.