Science of the Future
Below is the complete archive of related articles sorted by date.
Fluoride flipping: Hidden RNA regulator could help create new antibiotics
So much of what happens inside cells to preserve health or cause disease is so small or time-sensitive that researchers ...
Biofabrication: Using living organisms to make every day products, from shoes to silk
Biofabrication [is] the science of using living organisms to build with biology and make everyday products. For the first time, ...
Viewpoint: Can yoga ‘reprogram’ our DNA? Don’t bet on it
One of the most persistent narratives latched on to by advocates of “integrative medicine” is that the “mind” can somehow ...
Could astronaut urine be the key to safer space travel?
Yeast strains of Yarrowia lipolytica that naturally like to feed on urine have been bioengineered to produce omega-3 fatty acids, which are ...
Australian scientists chasing genetic links to clinical depression
Two-thirds of Australians with clinical depression have used multiple antidepressants to manage their condition, the nation's largest study on depression ...
22 genes linked to increased intelligence
Genome-wide association studies—GWAS, for short, […] search for differences in people’s genetic makeup—their “genotypes”—that correlate with differences in their observable ...
Do we need mandatory genetic screening of sperm donors?
The multibillion-dollar sperm donation business has shockingly little oversight, leading to false promises of anonymity, insufficient medical testing and high ...
Peak athletic performance: What are our human limits?
Athletic performance follows a normal distribution, like many other quantities in nature. That means that the number of people capable ...
Lesson for gene editing: How do we regulate a technology when we ‘can’t imagine’ the consequences of its use?
Humanity has a method for trying to prevent new technologies from getting out of hand: explore the possible negative consequences, ...
Male sterility may be correctable through stem cell treatments, if mice studies lead to human cure
A common genetic cause of male infertility has been overcome in mice using a technique that creates healthy sperm in ...
If gene editing had been approved, my brother would never have been born
[Editor's note: Joel Reynolds is a postdoctoral fellow in bioethics at the Hastings Center..] For the first time in the ...
Use of embryo selection in China is soaring: Is that a good thing?
Early experiments are beginning to show how genome-editing technologies such as CRISPR might one day fix disease-causing mutations before embryos are implanted ...
Bodybuilder’s death offers warning about genetics and rising use of protein supplements
The death of an Australian bodybuilder with a rare genetic disorder should serve as a cautionary tale for those who ...
Americans shedding their skepticism of human genome editing
Earlier surveys of Americans (here and here) have found a reluctance to support human genome editing...But the new survey, conducted by social ...
It’s time to talk about the ethics of CRISPR-edited human embryos
With groundbreaking human gene editing research moving forward, and human enhancement becoming a reality, decisions need to be made about ...
5 companies leading the personal genomics revolution
As gene sequencing technology gets faster and cheaper, companies are finding more ways to commercialize DNA, from offering disease-specific genetic ...
Cancer treatment uses genetically engineered biomaterial to deliver drugs and block resistance
[M]any chemotherapeutic agents […] cause serious side effects because they kill healthy cells in addition to cancer cells; some forms ...
Mapping the complex wiring of our brains
Marta Zlatic owns what could be the most tedious film collection ever...the neuroscientist has stored more than 20,000 hours of ...
Three-person IVF as an infertility solution has a long way to go
The procedure is typically targeted at parents who want to avoid passing a potentially fatal mitochondrial disease to their child ...
Cerebral organoids: How can we know if cells collected as ‘mini-brains’ are conscious?
[Editor's note: Mike Klymkowsky is a Professor of Molecular, Cellular & Developmental Biology at the University of Colorado Boulder.] The ...
Healthcare inequality and genetic screening: Will the poor be left behind?
Today in America, if you are poor, you are also more likely to suffer from poor health... Imagine now, that ...
How can the human race survive? By overcoming biological urge to procreate
Physicist Stephen Hawking adds to a growing chorus of catastrophists in claiming that humans could face extinction in the next ...
3D printed brain-like tissue made from stem cells offers hope to address neurological disorders
Scientists in Australia have used a 3D printer to create nerve cells found in the brain using a special bio-ink ...
Viewpoint: Racial IQ gap debate stirs mischief
Suppose it's true. Suppose that, at the end of the day, people of African descent have lower IQs on average ...
Are transfusions of ‘young blood’ the answer to longer, healthier lives?
The blood of young animals, it seems, may be able to ameliorate at least some of the effects of ageing ...
Genetics of pandemics: How can we prevent future flus?
The scientific textbook depiction of the flu virus is about to get a facelift, due to a University of Pittsburgh ...
Sunburn savior? High doses of vitamin D may jumpstart skin repair
Anyone who has ever had bad sunburn understands the agonizing discomfort associated with too much sun exposure and would probably ...
