Monday 27 August 2007

DNA Assembly

It has happened a couple of times now. I have found myself with a bundle of boards, brackets, rods, nuts, bolts, fittings and fixtures. They usually come out of a box with a page or two of instructions.

I built a bookshelf for my sister in law, Bins. I built two CD racks for myself and I've been building a greenhouse for my wife.

We take it for granted, but it is amazing to consider that this flat packed stuff can be transformed into useful 3-dimensional structures. Of course, it is all relatively hi-tech and is in effect a short cut - no cutting, no screwing, no pain - only the steady step by step of assembly. My advice - read the instructions (or 'destructions', as we like to call them).

The greenhouse is built now. Ready for seedlings and germination, grafting and propagation. And it is a perfect little environment for growth - warm and moist already even though it is less than a day old.

We were talking the other day at work about the DNA of organisations. I wondered whether the DNA of a flat pack is in fact the instruction sheet. Its a cheap analogy of course, but a flaw at this level can cause major structural problems later........

Of course, when we talk about DNA in a real sense, we are talking about the biological imperative - genetic material and the survival of the species through evolution.

It is sensitive territory, and possibly offensive to some. I mean to move from flat pack assembly to reproductive processes. Is there really a difference? Obviously its all a lot more complicated, but essentially there is an assembly template , some raw materials and a third party who is providing the energy to make it all happen as intended. The mother.

In pregnancy you have scans at regular intervals. A sense check on how the foetus is developing. There are measurements which let you know that all is well - the nucal fold scan for example. You can check the heart beat and the progress of the organs at twenty weeks. You can know the sex - although this is an arbitrary characteristic at the feotal stage. It is all very reassuring.

My point is that at one level it is all about assembly and process, on another it is an overwhelming biological and emotionally complex process. Or maybe just self-assembly.

An analogy will only stretch so far.

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