The Brooklyn tech community came out to meet up and hear a fascinating speaker.

Acclaimed reporter Gideon Lewis-Kraus came to Downtown Brooklyn for DBP’s Make It in Brooklyn meetup series, where he revealed the story behind his New York Times Magazine feature on how advances in genetic sequencing are allowing us to understand more about ancient human history.

Interested Brooklynites came to Spaces, a new co-working space in the Pioneer Building, at 41 Flatbush Ave. Set against the backdrop of the historic former bank vault in the center of the room, Lewis-Kraus discussed the 7 months it took him to work on a story that took him from Germany to the South Pacific island of Vanuatu. Listeners were particularly interested in the behind-the-scenes of how a long-form story comes to be, and the future of genetic sequencing and archaeology to try to better understand the activities and movements of our ancient forbears.

The pre- and post-talk wine and cheese reception brought together the founders of several local startups, workers from tech companies in the area, journalists, and the general public. It was a great opportunity to meet people with similar interests, and to feel a part of the Downtown Brooklyn community.

We thank Spaces for their hospitality and dedication to building this Downtown Brooklyn community, and to NYU Tandon and JPMorgan Chase for providing the funding to allow us to put on the meetup, and the many events of the Make It in Brooklyn calendar.

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