It’s official: multiple sources (The New York Times, CNN, LiveScience) are reporting that Dr J Craig Venter and other US researchers have created the first synthetic life form. While it literally as simple as can be — a cell membrane encasing a single artificial chromosome — it is also the first of many more to come. Innovative microscopic chemical processors will be the next to arrive doing everything from processing toxic waste to producing mass quantities of essential medications and other chemicals. Eventually we may see the creation of multicellular species that will both aid and challenge us. Some may say the End approaches (Judgement Day, The Singularity, etc) but as the birth of this Adamic cell attests, every moment is yet another brave new beginning.