I saw it on slashdot, but I'm sure it'll be all over the news tonight. It would seem scientists have figured out how to make viruses:

[A]n important technical bridge towards the creation of such life was crossed Thursday when genomics pioneer Craig Venter announced that his research group created an artificial virus based on a real one in just two weeks' time.

Predictable "oh my God! Pretty soon they'll be making people!!!" hysteria followed. However, what nobody addressed was something I thought of right away: If a lab can make one kind of harmless virus, just how hard would it be to make a harmful virus, like smallpox? I'm not making a judgement here, I'm just wanting to know how, or how not.

And don't give me any of that "what hath man wrought" crap. Science should always be done, never ignored. Sticking your head in the sand and farting "immoral!!!" just because you don't like the implications of a discovery isn't going to prevent someone else from exploiting it. Better to stay ahead of the game and understand the implications so you can better defeat them.