Human Features
The GLP tackles innovations in human genetics and biotechnology. We highlight the work of our own writers, as well as that of contributors from around the Web. The GLP does not take a position on genetics-related issues; any opinions expressed belong to the authors.
Categories include:
- CRISPR and gene editing
- Gene therapy
- Stem cell research
- Genetic diseases
- Synthetic biology
- Epigenetics
- Biodrugs (pharmacogenetics)
- Personal genomics
- Ancestry and evolution
- Ethics and regulations
GLP podcast: ‘Spatula Gate’—The black plastic chemical scare collapses
In early October a small study published in an obscure science journal went viral for alleging that cookware and children's ...
It’s been 25 years since the first draft of the human genome. What’s next?
As 2025 approaches, we can expect the silver anniversary announcements on the completion of a draft of the human genome to ...
Viewpoint: A physician who peddles pseudoscience and profits off health disinformation. Perfect Trump pick to oversee Medicare and Medicaid
Mehmet Oz has a net worth of over $100 million because of his career-long grift. Mehmet Oz is the OG ...
Childhood vaccines are under fire. Here’s what you need to know
Vaccines are objectively one of the most impactful scientific interventions in human history. Today, we have vaccines that protect against ...
Viewpoint: Trump’s health and science cabinet nominees: What a disaster
Evidence-based government policymaking should not be politicized but should strive to promote progress and benefit all Americans. Unfortunately, the expertise ...
‘Warrior gene’: If we genetically screen children to protect them from diseases, why shouldn’t we investigate their proclivity to act agressively
“Some people have real problems right out of the starting block. We can't dodge the responsibility for social action." ...
WHO outlines new principles for ethical human genomic data collection and sharing
The World Health Organization (WHO) has issued a set of principles for the ethical collection, access, use, and sharing of ...
‘Language Puzzle’: Exploring the mystery of how humans learned to communicate
According to Guinness World Records, the world’s fastest talker is one Sean Shannon, capable of unleashing a staggering 665 English words per minute ...
In a parallel universe, here are qualified scientists president-elect Trump would have nominated for top science agencies
As the United States prepared for a new presidential administration, Nautilus, and the Aspen Institute asked eminent scientists from across ...
GLP podcast: ‘You were going to watch 2-3 people die every day.’ ICU doctor recounts his harrowing pandemic experience
In December 2019 US doctors began to hear anecdotes coming out of China about a novel respiratory virus that caused ...
One third of Americans believe we’ve been visited by aliens and our government hides the evidence. How these delusions could spur conspiracy theories
The idea that aliens may have visited the Earth is becoming increasingly popular. Around a fifth of UK citizens believe ...
The ridiculous, endless, tedious mask debate (Believe scientists, not pundits or ideologues)
The folks at the City Journal must not be aware of the quip, “When you’re in a hole, stop digging.” They ...
Podcast: ‘Shot In The Arm’—documentary exposes anti-vaccine movement’s underhanded tactics during COVID pandemic
When SARS-CoV-2 swept across the world in late 2019, nobody was prepared for the disaster that unfolded. Physicians tried to ...
Viewpoint: Does peanut oil in vaccines cause an allergy to peanuts? That’s the latest RFK, Jr. health claim and like most others he’s wrong
I want to address this recent excerpt from RFK Jr.’s appearance on Mikhaila [Peterson's] podcast, so let’s get into it ...
The ‘tangled web’ of aging
Aging is far more complex than just an advancing clock. It's a tangled web of molecular changes that don’t play ...
Only cyber-humans could settle on other planets. Creating them is possible.
When considering human settlements on the Moon, Mars, and further afield, much attention is given to the travel times, food, ...
GLP podcast: Processed food doesn’t speed aging; Ozempic may treat addiction; When science journals won’t retract junk research
Does processed food speed up the aging process? A recent study says yes, but we have our doubts. The blockbuster ...
“I really want to take control over how I leave this world” — More terminally ill patients are deciding how they want to die
In the 18 months after Francine Milano was diagnosed with a recurrence of the ovarian cancer she thought she’d beaten ...
Psychedelic drugs offer healing potential, but slow legalization stalls wider use
An operations manager finds relief from her depression with the help of psilocybin, the primary psychoactive component of “magic mushrooms.” A ...
Much of what we’ve been told about secondhand smoke is wrong
In 2003, UCLA epidemiologist James Enstrom and I published a study of environmental tobacco smoke (ETS)—also called "secondhand smoke" or "passive ...
Viewpoint: Why the entrenched environmental movement is incapable of solving the climate change crisis
Photo credit to Seaver Wang Every now and again, a series of events unfolds in such serendipitously perfect succession as ...
Human consciousness: How and why it evolved?
Why did the experience of consciousness evolve from our underlying brain physiology? Despite being a vibrant area of neuroscience, current ...
Viewpoint: Promotion of social science drivel by Science magazine editor-in-chief Holden Thorp undermines the credibility of his preeminent journal
Holden Thorp, the editor-in-chief of the prestigious journal Science, described on Substack a discussion that occurred during the recent meeting of the American Association ...
No-burp syndrome: 20,000 people on Reddit’s “I can’t belch” subreddit spread the word of a Botox cure
In a video posted to Reddit this summer, Lucie Rosenthal’s face starts focused and uncertain, looking intently into the camera, before ...
Viewpoint: The story of RP11, whose DNA mostly defines the first genetic blueprint of humanity
It sounds as if the donor knows who he is,” wrote Francis Collins, former director of the then-called National Center for ...
Humans are adapting to global warming. What are the policy implications
On [September 23rd, 2024], the New York Times ran a David Wallace-Wells column called “Our Adaptation to Global Warming Is Largely Fictional” featuring ...
Viewpoint: Elle MacPherson claims she cured her cancer using ‘intuitive and holistic’ alternative medicine. She’s ‘lying’ and why it matters
I’ve been wanting to start to dig into cancer pseudoscience for a long time, and in my other pieces, I’ve ...
