Daily Human Digest
Every day, the staff of the Genetic Literacy Project scours the Web for stories on a range of human genetics issues, including gene editing, regulations and bioethics, gene therapy, epigenetics, personal genomics, evolution, ancestry and artificial intelligence. We publish excerpts of those stories and encourage our readers to visit the original publications for the complete stories.
Anti-aging elixirs: As search for life-extending drugs expands, ethical questions emerge
Scientists are now researching drugs in many places around the world that might enable us to live even longer ...
Humans have been chewing gum for nearly 10,000 years
A new study of the DNA in a chewing gum shows that one of the individuals had severe problems with ...
Elon Musk’s Neuralink implanted in a human, who is recovering well, billionaire tweets
Elon Musk said on the social media platform X on January 29 that the first human patient has received a brain implant developed ...
Viewpoint: Can AI chatbots understand the words they’re processing?
Far from being “stochastic parrots,” the biggest large language models seem to learn enough skills to understand the words ...
‘The edge of chaos’: Why switching tasks makes our brains go haywire
Study shows that our brains exist between chaos and stability—a finding that could be used to help tweak them either ...
Can cannabis make your workout more productive?
A bit of weed before a workout can boost motivation and make exercise more enjoyable. But if performance is the ...
Ear-ringing tinnitus is unrelenting and untreatable. Here’s a new strategy on how to live with it
An innovative treatment offers hope to the millions of people who hear sounds that others don’t. Here’s how it works ...
Video: Tyrannosaurus rex probably didn’t roar like a lion. Here’s how they might have sounded
Ask a researcher: Tyrannosaurus rex probably didn't roar like a lion. The sound it made might have been even scarier ...
Here are genetic reasons why some people age more quickly than others
Which genes are involved in aging and longevity? How are they involved? What are the therapeutic implications? ...
Understanding memory: Solving the puzzle of how the brain keeps recollections in order
Norwegian researchers are on the trail of a new and important piece in the large puzzle that is our brain ...
Maybe the Black Death did not reshape human evolution after all
An ancient-DNA study of medieval Cambridge found no sign of genes that helped people to survive the plague ...
Empathy and anticipation of desires: Children have it, but apes do not
Have you ever guessed what dish your significant other would order at a restaurant before they even picked up the ...
Genetically modified pigs livers could save human lives. Here’s how
Organ transplants save lives, but specimens from the right donors are in short supply, and scientists are searching for more ...
How might sharply curtailing calories slow the aging process?
Restricting calories is known to improve health and increase lifespan, but much of how it does so remains a mystery, ...
‘There is no sound I don’t like’ — In gene editing breakthrough, Lilly’s 30-day gene therapy restores hearing of 11-year old boy, with more deafness treatments on the way
The genetic treatment targeted a particular kind of congenital deafness and will soon be tried in children who are younger ...
‘Overly sanitized’ environments? Unraveling why diseases tied to chronic inflammation are spiking in the developed world
Research suggests that people raised in developed countries tend to have higher levels of chronic inflammation than those in developed ...
Viewpoint: Hard-wired gender — Don’t believe claims that there are almost no differences between male and female brains
Men’s and women’s brains are biased to notice and process different aspects of the social and physical world ...
Political psychology: Democrats and Republicans exist on polarized extremes
The United States, though politically fractious since its founding, is more polarized than ever, the rhetoric more inflammatory, the rage ...
UK scientists support loosening restrictions limiting embryo research
Scientists are calling for a review of the UK's 14-day rule on embryo research, saying that extending the limit could help ...
In wake of 23andMe DNA data breach, privacy concerns reemerge
A new data breach is highlighting the risks of having your ancestry information stored online — and what it might ...
Viewpoint: An increasing number of Americans are rejecting vaccinations, and dying as a result of it. Can we reverse the trend?
Despite vaccines saving lives and improving population health, an increasing number of people are declining vaccinations ...
AI tools are already supercharging online harassment and hate campaigns. Can they be stopped?
A glimpse at how nefarious internet users could employ sophisticated AI tools to supercharge online harassment and hate campaigns ...
Whether you use Ozempic, Wegovy, Mounjaro or Zepbound, you’re going to hit a weight-loss plateau. Then what?
Everyone hits a weight-loss plateau, but the race is on for next-generation drugs that can help patients lose even more ...
Unraveling the mystery of why cancer is soaring among people under 50
Researchers are trying to figure out what is making more young adults sick, and how to identify those at high ...
Viewpoint: COVID vaccine rights waiver would allow developing countries access to formulas and manufacturing details, jeopardizing America’s biotech race with China
With support from the U.S, the World Trade Organization in 2022 waived global intellectual property protections for COVID-19 vaccines — ...
Culture, art and war: 15 biggest discoveries in 2023 that changed our understanding of human evolution
2023 could likely be viewed as a coming-of-age story for our Neanderthal cousins, as they further shed their brutish image ...
‘No other drug has ever alleviated symptoms of traumatic brain injury’: Psychoactive ibogaine reduces PTSD, anxiety and depression in veterans
Researchers have discovered that the plant-based psychoactive drug ibogaine can safely and effectively reduces PTSD, anxiety and depression ...
