Featured in Weekly Newsletter
Antibiotic resistance may be dangerous—but it’s hardly new
Despite media reports, antibiotics always faced microbe resistance. Can studying their genetics show us a path to new drugs ...
Organic vs conventional food fight: Focus on pesticides distracts from real environmental problems
Has GMO use really led to a “flood” of pesticide use, as critics contend? That’s not what the data show ...
Mythbusting gone wrong: How the ‘dangerous’ organic pesticide myth began
One of the things that surprised me in researching this story was that I could not find a single organic-approved ...
Who owns the DNA of ancient humans—and do they have rights?
The remains of a 6-inch long mummy from Chile are not those of a space alien, according to recently reported ...
A behind the scenes look at pesticide use in organic orchards, vineyards and fresh produce
This is part three of a four-part series attempting to separate fact from fiction regarding pesticide use on organic farms ...
Debating the need for genetic engineering of humans—there’s ‘nothing special’ about our DNA
One day in early spring, I received a unique email. Would I accept an invitation from Oxford University’s student debate ...
4 things that led to the myth that organic farmers use more pesticides than conventional farmers
This is part two of a four-part series attempting to separate fact from fiction regarding pesticide use on organic farms ...
Do organic farmers really use more pesticides than conventional farmers? Not even close.
This is part one of a four-part series attempting to separate fact from fiction regarding pesticide use on organic farms ...
Sudden Infant Death Syndrome may be linked to genetic mutations
It’s been called a parent’s worst nightmare, and one that very few of us have ever needed words to describe ...
‘The Farm Project’: Actress Zooey Deschanel’s advice on organic food, pesticides is short on science
The actress Zooey Deschanel cites pesticide use in advising Facebook users to avoid certain non-organic produce. Is that scientifically sound ...
Sex in space? An awkward talk we will need to have
As the prospect of Mars colonization grows on the public radar screen, sex talk is not as much taboo that ...
Viewpoint: Here’s what’s wrong with study suggesting glyphosate damages our gut health
Can glyphosate impact gut health? The Guardian reports on a team of scientists who claim to have demonstrated that it ...
Making sense of crowdfunding for unapproved stem cell treatments
When FDA approval for a technology or treatment lags behind demand, crowdfunding steps in. Desperate patients or their families launch ...
Viewpoint: How the Environmental Working Group and ‘Big Organic’ manipulate pesticide data to scare people
Consumers have a legitimate desire for transparency when it comes to their food - particularly when it comes to the ...
Does ‘brain stress’ play a key role in our obesity epidemic?
Keeping off weight is harder than it seems, but it could be due to how our brains are wired ...
USDA’s hands-off approach to gene-edited crops could revolutionize research and development
The US Department of Agriculture’s recent decision to stay out of the business of regulating gene-edited crops could be a ...
Gene Drive Files ‘cabal’—and biotech rejectionist efforts to derail research on technology with potential to fight crop pests
The email came from Roylan Saah, coordinator of Genetic Biocontrol of Invasive Rodents at Island Conservation, a non-profit dedicated to ...
Delving into our dreams—and why they evolve as we age
Although radically different in terms of their content and feel, the range of dream states are just as complex as ...
‘Substantial equivalence’: Are GMOs as safe as other conventional and organic foods?
GMO critics claim that US regulations rely too much on the concept of “substantial equivalence” when evaluating if food is ...
The ‘Big O’: How and why evolution brought us the female orgasm
Female orgasms aren’t necessary for reproduction. A comparative evolution study suggests they once might have been ...
Are you responsible for bad behavior caused by a brain implant?
Mr. B loves Johnny Cash, except when he doesn’t. Mr. X has watched his doctors morph into Italian chefs right ...
Viewpoint: European organic industry’s obsession with ‘natural’ threatens CRISPR innovations and hurts the environment
What is nature? What is natural? Philosophers have been arguing about this since antiquity. Supporters of organic farming seem to ...
Are we in danger of losing blue-eyed redheads? Not likely
For every 100 people in the world, only one or two will have red hair. And when you meet a ...
Ugandan farmers struggling with cassava viruses await GMO solution
Cassava is a major staple food for millions of people in the tropical regions of the world. In Uganda it ...
Viewpoint: North American scientists, IARC officials conspired to misrepresent glyphosate health risks
On March 20, 2015, the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) announced that it had classified glyphosate, the active substance ...
Synthetic biology’s ‘promise and potential’ capture investor attention
Synthetic biology has become the new frontier of genetic engineering, promising to radically change the way we make clothes, fragrances, ...
Mapping everything we know about Parkinson’s
The possible causes of Parkinson's disease are incredibly varied. A new team of researchers is building a Parkinson's disease map ...
