Measuring just three-inches, that strange plastic doohickey the woman is holding there can detect 3,000 different viruses in under a day. This bio-detector could end up saving your life, in other words.
388,000 individually-sequenced probes are contained in the glass slide, and are capable of analyzing and detecting over 2,00 viruses and 900 different forms of bacteria. It's being worked on by the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, with the Lawrence Livermore Microbial Detection Array (or LLMDA) placed under exactly 107.6 Fahrenheit degrees of heat, after a sample of DNA or RNA has been mixed with fluorescent dye and smeared onto the device. Then, a fluorescent scanner can reveal the nasties (or goodies) that lurks within the DNA sample, with the dye becoming visible when strains are present.
The obvious use for the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory's work is in the medical region, but Science Daily is reporting that it could also be used for hygiene checks with food production. I suggest that all fast food outlets be outfitted with one LLMDA per fryer immediately. [Science Daily via PopSci]