The Alfred P. Sloan Foundation of New York has funded a synthetic biology initiative to examine societal issues associated with the field, wherein researchers strive to construct novel organisms from base DNA. The effort, which began with grants totaling more than $1.6 million awarded to The Hastings Center of Garrison, N.Y., the J. Craig Venter Institute of Rockville, Md., and the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars in Washington will investigate the potential benefits and risks, and the regulatory and ethical questions raised by developments in the field.