Science of the Future
Nanofabrication: Technology to manufacture almost anything
James Burke has a vision for the future. He believes that by the middle of this century, perhaps as early as ...
How CRISPR gene editing is revolutionizing the world–and why we need to cautious about it
Until recently, gene editing used to be relegated to science fiction novels and movies. The idea of being able to ...
Navigating the ‘promise and peril’ of bioengineering
We’re standing on the threshold of extraordinary capability in synthetic biology. CRISPR-Cas9, the genome editing technique discovered in 2014, is ...
Personalized piglets could offer insights into disease progression in children
To better understand [incurable inherited disease neurofibromatosis type 1, Charles] Konsitzke learned, you need a species that’s closer in both ...
How tricking mosquitos into thinking they’ve already mated could fight disease
If you thought the sex lives of humans were complicated, consider the case of the female Aedes aegypti mosquito, bringer of Zika, ...
Yeast-grown synthetic spider silk could be the next luxury fabric
The elusive science behind crafting synthetic spider's silk is no longer elusive. In fact, it’s scalable enough that customers can ...
Isolating DNA for research inexpensively in 30 seconds
The ability to extract DNA from cells is a cornerstone of molecular biology. Without the ability to isolate pure DNA, there ...
Astroplastic: Making tools from human feces could aid space travel
A University of Calgary team has flushed the competition with a project that sets out to convert astronaut poop into ...
How DNA can be manipulated to recreate the Mona Lisa
Researchers from Caltech have developed an inexpensive, facile technique for creating very large self-assembling DNA origami structures with customisable patterns ...
First US baby born from living donor uterus transplant
For the first time in the United States, a woman who had a uterus transplant has given birth. The mother, ...
‘Living tattoo’ made with 3D-printed bacteria responds to stimuli
A team at MIT has genetically modified bacteria cells and developed a new 3D printing technique to create a "living ...
Quest to find aliens boosted by new technology and funding
The Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence is bigger than ever, thanks to a big cash infusion from Russian billionaire Yuri Milner ...
Future of heart medicine: Stem cells to grow cardiac muscle and smaller medical implants
If heart transplantation - 50 years after Christiaan Barnard carried out the first operation - has become routine, what exactly ...
Building and coding your own video games with jellyfish DNA
[Engineer Helene Steiner] has developed a bio-pixel display that can play games such as Tetris, Snake or Pong using the ...
Genomics AI tool: Google’s DeepVariant released as open source
A novel artificial intelligence tool that can accurately call out variants in sequencing data was released as open source on the ...
Video: World’s tiniest tape recorder made with CRISPR and built from microbes
[H]ere’s a use for the bacteria we bet you’ve never considered: Scientists at Columbia University Medical Center have created the world’s ...
Should we ‘genetically modify’ humans to fit the demands of space travel?
It takes something special to be an astronaut – an extraordinary combination of bravery, fitness, intelligence, lightning-fast decision-making and calmness ...
So much data to store: Can DNA solve our problem?
Many pundits predict it’s just a matter of time till DNA pips magnetic tape as the ultimate way to store ...
How gene therapy could help fight methamphetamine addiction
Gene therapy, which modifies a person’s DNA, has long been thought of as a way to treat genetic diseases—and, more recently, ...
Nano-mapping DNA mutations with CRISPR could transform disease treatment
A team of scientists led by Virginia Commonwealth University physicist Jason Reed, Ph.D., have developed new nanomapping technology that could ...
Evidence ancient humans not ‘violent apes’ but distinctly compassionate
[Editor's note: Penny Spikins is an archaeologist who specializes in early prehistory and human origins.] Yes, there is evidence of interpersonal violence ...
Should we populate other habitable worlds with life from Earth?
Our galaxy may contain billions of habitable worlds that don’t host any life. Should we attempt to change that? Claudius ...
Fighting aging: Mutation found in Amish population adds 10 years to lifespan
New research now shows that some humans possess a genetic equivalent to [an anti-aging] drug. A small number of Amish people in ...
Searching for extraterrestrial life: Finding the right communication technology
Scientists are looking for evidence of extraterrestrial communication across interstellar space. But what if other intelligent life forms are using ...
Viewpoint: Ethical arguments against gene-edited embryos will crumble as technology advances
[Editor's note: Michael White is a genetics professor at Washington University in St. Louis.] [S]cientists have developed an easy way to ...
Can gene tweaking lower our cholesterol? Using CRISPR and nanotechnology in mice
U.S. researchers have used nanotechnology plus the powerful CRISPR-Cas9 gene editing tool to turn off a key cholesterol-related gene in ...
Video: CRISPR gene editing in real time
[Researcher Osamu] Nureki’s paper was published in Nature Communications Friday, and by early morning, the video that astonished the room in [a CRISPR ...