Science Controversies
New era of fast genetic engineering
Sequencing genomes has become easy. Understanding them remains incredibly hard. While the trickle of sequence information has turned into a ...
Fears about technology and food are misplaced
If fire was the first technology, then farming was the first applied science. For thousands of years, farmers and inventors ...
FDA and 23andMe dance around evidence that isn’t there
On December 6, 2013, "the leading health and ancestry DNA service" rebranded itself as "the largest DNA ancestry service in ...
$1000 Genomes for $2000
Illumina claimed they can achieve the $1000 genome at the annual JP Morgan investor conference when they introduced their new ...
Ancient bacterial DNA suggest black death might not be gone for good
DNA analysis of the bacteria strains behind two black plague pandemics emerged, independently, from the black rat. That means another ...
GMO resources and the science surrounding them
The GMO Skeptic-Forum has gathered a broad selection of popular websites, databases, and subreddits containing information on GMOs and the ...
Anti-GMO groups don’t understand: GM Cheerios are as dangerous as GM insulin (not at all)
The recent decision of General Mills to produce GMO-free Cheerios is interesting from marketing, political, and biological angles. However, what ...
GMOs matter most where climate change and population growth are challenges
The question of how we produce food, as the global population heads for nine billion in 2050, must be addressed ...
Corporate DNA testing could put our genetic privacy at risk
There is another aspect of 23andMe’s business, one which has received less attention from the media (with the exception of ...
This may be the kickoff year for genetically-altered humans
By the middle of 2014, the possibility of altering DNA to produce a genetically-modified human could move from science fiction ...
Building a better baby
In 2014, BGI, a Chinese company, is hoping that it will soon be able to offer parents a similar option—choosing ...
Pakistan draws biotech policy map
The Ministry of National Food Security in Islamabad has started process to formulate a ‘national biotechnology policy’, and was working ...
Genetically-modified purple tomatoes edges closer to market
The prospect of genetically modified purple tomatoes reaching the shelves has come a step closer. Their dark pigment is intended ...
Fish oil without the fish
Fish oil, used as a health supplement and feed for fish, could soon come from a GM crop rather than ...
Number of home DNA testing kits in Britain doubled in last two years
Sales of DNA tests for everything from the risk of developing life-threatening diseases to catching out cheating partners are booming. The ...
China continues to block GM corn from U.S.
China is set to keep rejecting U.S. corn shipments containing an unapproved genetically modified strain at least until the end ...
Why does the debate on GMOs matter?
Nathanael Johnson's six-month "Panic-Free GMOs" series at Grist recently ended with a whimper -- claiming "none of it matters" -- ...
Is 2014 the year of the thousand-dollar genome?
For this “TechKnow,” our contributors were given the option to test their genetics through a mail-order DNA kit from personal ...
Extinguishing the memory of fear, with a drug that changes the epigenome
A new drug changes the chemical markers that attach to DNA, making it possible to treat even old traumatic memories ...
Preventing hunger: Biotechnology can only help
If African countries can’t plant genetically modified crops to produce more and healthier food, vulnerable populations will be at risk, ...
Junk food lobby brings bag of dirty tricks to New Hampshire GMO labeling fight
In secret documents that I uncovered in November, the Grocery Manufacturers Association (aka food industry lobbyists) laid out its five-point plan for opposing the ...
New test can reveal GMOs in food
The first comprehensive test to detect genetic modification in food has been unveiled. As the abundance of genetically modified (GM) ...
Grain groups request Syngenta stop selling some GMO corn seeds
U.S. grain industry groups are urging Syngenta AG to stop selling new genetically engineered corn varieties that aren't approved in ...
GMO activists stage protest outside Greenpeace’s Brussels office
GMO activists launched a campaign to get EU approval for genetically engineered crops, staging a protest outside the Brussels office ...
GM crops could help to solve the problem of over-fishing
One of the thornier questions we face is how to feed a global population heading towards 10 billion and beyond ...
Will new lawsuit delay commercialization of AquaBounty’s GM salmon?
AquaBounty Technologies, makers of a GE salmon nearing approval, says a new lawsuit is just the latest attempt by opponents ...
Change in Right to Farm Act would reverse Big Island GMO ban
Hawaii state legislators have introduced a bill that – if passed – will overrule Hawaii County’s ban on new GMO ...
