I'm going to ditto the critical comments.

Viruses are not self-replicating. They rip-off much of the host's replication and raw material supply capability.

However, we are developing relatively robust capabilties for adding chromosomes to bacteria, e.g. "Assembly of large genomic segments in artificial chromosomes by homologous recombination in Escherichia coli" and "A highly efficient Escherichia coli-based chromosome engineering system adapted for recombinogenic targeting and subcloning of BAC DNA". So we will soon be able to engineer bacteria in ways that are significantly beyond the current state-of-the-art.

Creationists should be careful. They might get what they wish for.

Of course scientists can create life! What do you think life is, — some kind of miracle?

Not quite. The virus relies upon the host replication machinery to multiply. They patched together a very long strand of DNA, transcribed it, and injected mice with it. It wasn't quite as potent as wild type virus, but did cause paralysis.

IMO, the research is both very cool and very scary.

Ken

Correct me if I am wrong but

By creating this, we have basically built a replicating system…is this not the first step we have been waiting…see if indeed we can build something so small and self replicates?

granted its a virus…no control over it…but its a step in the right direction…right?