I keep a wine fridge in my spare bedroom, and it’s full of fruit flies. On purpose.
Figure 4-1. The author’s Drosophila storage system
Just a few feet away from these unsuspecting flies is the prototype of a machine designed to efficiently isolate, image, and classify them, all in the name of science.
Drosophila melanogaster—commonly referred to as fruit flies or vinegar flies—are one of the most frequently used model organisms in biological research (Dietrich et al, 2014), in no small part because they are easy to keep and care for. They need little besides an inexpensive food source (which also serves as hydration) and space to grow, and then they multiply quickly. A 12” x 12” tray of small plastic vials can hold thousands of flies, each fly a tiny experimental subject. For under $100 total—for flies, vials, food, and, if you’re feeling rich, a $70 wine fridge from Craigslist—anyone can work with Drosophila.
Flies were first used to study genetics over 100 years ago, and researchers have developed powerful tools and systems that allow them to learn about disease, development, behavior, neuroscience, and much more, all using the humble fly (Stephenson & Metcalfe, 2013). For all the tools at scientists’ disposal, however, there is still a great deal of manual labor involved in fly experiments (Greenspan, ...
Become an O’Reilly member and get unlimited access to this title plus top books and audiobooks from O’Reilly and nearly 200 top publishers, thousands of courses curated by job role, 150+ live events each month, and much more.
O’Reilly covers everything we've got, with content to help us build a world-class technology community, upgrade the capabilities and competencies of our teams, and improve overall team performance as well as their engagement.
Julian F.
Head of Cybersecurity
I wanted to learn C and C++, but it didn't click for me until I picked up an O'Reilly book. When I went on the O’Reilly platform, I was astonished to find all the books there, plus live events and sandboxes so you could play around with the technology.
Addison B.
Field Engineer
I’ve been on the O’Reilly platform for more than eight years. I use a couple of learning platforms, but I'm on O'Reilly more than anybody else. When you're there, you start learning. I'm never disappointed.
Amir M.
Data Platform Tech Lead
I'm always learning. So when I got on to O'Reilly, I was like a kid in a candy store. There are playlists. There are answers. There's on-demand training. It's worth its weight in gold, in terms of what it allows me to do.
O’Reilly covers everything we've got, with content to help us build a world-class technology community, upgrade the capabilities and competencies of our teams, and improve overall team performance as well as their engagement.
