Popular Science
When is it ok to edit the genome of a human embryo? Americans have mixed opinions
We’ve reached the point in scientific and technological advancement that editing our own genomes, or those of humans not yet ...
Editing the brain? CRISPR and gold nanoparticles could make it possible
Add this to the list of possible applications for the seemingly-magical gene editing technology CRISPR: helping people with neurological disorders edit ...
Human womb transplants are possible. But do we need them?
As gynecologist and surgeon Liza Johannesson prepped to deliver the child via cesarean section, she was nervous. Not for the ...
Patenting the genes of marine creatures and why it could matter for research
From the tiniest microbe to the biggest whale, the ocean is teeming with life. For corporations and researchers, that biodiversity is ...
How purebred dogs are helping us fight cancer in humans
Roughly a quarter of all purebred dogs die of cancer, and 45 percent of those who live past the age of ...
Viewpoint: Why California labels everything a carcinogen—and why it should stop
You may have heard that coffee gives you cancer. Or that everything gives you cancer—if you live in California. The reason: Proposition 65. It’s ...
Viewpoint: US may be losing CRISPR race against China, but FDA regulations are worth it
[H]ow did China edge out the United States to become the first to use CRISPR in humans? American researchers were, ...
Ranch fights to preserve rare pre-hybrid US chickens and their unique genetics
Every bird on [Good Shepherd Ranch] was hatched there, from an egg that was laid there, from parents that were ...
Armor of tomorrow could be derived from these 3 animals
Scientists are investigating what makes conch shells and fish scales so tough and designing their own versions. They’re even turning to materials ...
How glyphosate-resistant weeds led to Monsanto’s dicamba herbicide crisis
[In] the 1990s, Monsanto began selling a series of patented, genetically modified, “RoundUp”-ready seeds. Monsanto had altered crop seeds...to be ...
Could discovery of boron on Mars bring us closer to finding alien life?
Using data from NASA’s Curiosity rover, a team of interdisciplinary scientists has found boron in the Gale Crater. Gale was probably once a lake, and ...
Truth about genetic tests: ‘They don’t seal your fate’
Once difficult and expensive even for the most technologically advanced labs, genetic testing is fast becoming a cheap and easy ...
Anti-aging hormone boosts cognitive abilities in mice – could humans be next?
[Klotho is] a naturally occurring hormone in the body. More than two decades ago, Japanese researchers discovered that this hormone ...
Melting Greenland ice sheet could release pollution—and beneficial microbes evolved to ‘chow down’ toxins
As the Greenland ice sheet melts due to climate change, a new study in journal Environmental Letters suggests, pollution trapped inside could ooze back into ...
Independent health agencies disagree with IARC’s glyphosate cancer designation
The list of [Proposition 65] labeled substances [in California] includes marijuana smoke (but eating marijuana is fine, by California standards), ...
‘Doomsday’ arctic seed vault ‘flooded’ because of global warming? Not so fast
A failure at a fail-safe vault. The irony is delicious, but that’s not the whole story. On its website, the ...
Why we sleep less as we age
It’s a known fact that as we age, we sleep less. But the reasoning behind this phenomenon is poorly understood ...
Octopuses can manipulate their own genes, perhaps to solve problems
Cephalopods...can solve a shocking number of complex puzzles, suggesting a cognition that rivals those found in the vertebrate world—even though ...
What are natural flavors and scents? Biotechnology blurs the definition
A company in the United Kingdom can transform chemicals found in oranges into the coveted flavor of grapefruit. By mixing ...
Genetically engineered killer zombie mice? Not quite
Neuroscientists at Yale University published a paper [On Jan. 12, 2017,] in the journal Cell showing how they could trigger a ...
Human-on-a-Chip: Future clinical drug trials may stop relying on humans altogether
Disasters [in human drug trials] are rare. But also rare are clinical trials that go well: Ninety percent of drugs ...
CRISPR democratizes biotechnology
The biggest mistake we can make... is to prematurely vilify CRISPR and the food it makes. We should instead push ...
Nutrition company ‘Habit’ will tell you what to eat based on your DNA
Over the past few decades, there have been diets that focus on increasing protein, eliminating fats, lowering calories—you name the ...
Genetic switch may dictate if you crave more high-fat or high-sugar foods
We all love eating junk food even though we know it's not part of a healthy diet...Now a team of ...
CRISPR corn: Dupont’s non-transgenic drought-tolerant gene edited corn could be on sale soon
[R]esearchers at DuPont Pioneer. . . have published a study about a strain of corn engineered with CRISPR to be ...
Video: Science and ethical wariness about CRISPR gene editing should not limit its transformative capabilities
Among the various technological advances in the twenty-first century, CRISPR is perhaps the scientific breakthrough with the most potential. However, ...
Machine learning helps uncover genetics of autism
Researchers at Princeton and the Simons Foundation turned the traditional approach on its head, teaching a machine learning algorithm to ...
Germs found on transit system barely pose threat, despite popular belief
The GLP aggregated and excerpted this blog/article to reflect the diversity of news, opinion and analysis. The subway is crowded--and ...