Science Controversies
As Uganda’s farm economy languishes, political forces block agricultural biotech innovation
A maize breeder, with his team at the National Crop Resources Institute, Namulonge, [Dr. Godfrey Asea] has been researching on ...
Learning from the healthcare revolution: How CRISPR and other biotechnologies could help protect our food system from a future plant pandemic
Across farms worldwide, there are now warning signs of a pandemic in food crops. More than 600 pest species have ...
Pressure mounts on FDA to grant full approval to COVID-19 vaccines
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is under pressure to swiftly grant full approval to Covid-19 shots, as vaccine mandates ...
‘These headlines are so goddamn irresponsible in an incredibly dangerous, cynical way’: Backlash hits NY Times, Washington Post, NBC News for ‘hysterical’ Delta COVID coverage
“Breakthrough Covid cases are on the rise among the vaccinated,” blares a headline on an NBC News article published [July ...
OCD relief: A genetic-based therapy for obsessive-compulsive disorder could be within reach
[OCD], which affects 1–2% of the population, commonly runs in families, and genes are known to play a large role ...
Is genetic engineering unleashing threat of increased bioterrorism and biological warfare?
As the realm of genetic engineering has advanced, tailored development of lethal and contagious pathogens is feasible, rendering biodefense a ...
Viewpoint: Just 12 people are responsible for 76% of Facebook vaccine misinformation. Should the ‘Anti-Vaxxers Disinformation Dozen’ be shut down?
Covid-19 has already killed millions, and millions more may die before we get it under control. The only realistic way ...
China’s xenotransplantation boom: Gene editing providing modified pig organs for human transplant
While forced organ harvesting of prisoners of conscience in China has drawn worldwide condemnation, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has ...
Viewpoint: Neuriva Plus nonsense — The Big Bang Theory star Mayim Bialik doubles down on ‘snake oil’ brain supplements
I wrote about the brain supplement Neuriva over a year ago. I thought their claim to have proof from clinical ...
‘Pandemic of the unvaccinated’: 99.5% of COVID deaths are among those who forgo the shot
The surge in Covid-19 cases fueled by the Delta variant and vaccine hesitancy has now led to increasing rates of ...
After decades of stumbles and mis-starts, a cure for many cancers is finally on the horizon: Injecting patients with a genetically engineered virus
Infecting a cancer patient with a virus — a procedure that once would have raised eyebrows, if not malpractice lawsuits ...
With treatments for COVID still elusive, CRISPR offers promise in preliminary tests
Scientists have harnessed CRISPR gene-editing technology to block the replication of the novel coronavirus in human cells — an approach ...
Gene doping on the horizon for global athletics but Tokyo Olympics are still genetic-manipulation free
[The World Anti-Doping Agency, or] WADA has long banned genetically modified cells and alterations of genome sequences or gene expression ...
Still unsure about the COVID shot? Here are 10 common vaccine myths dispelled
Here are some of the most popular arguments for not getting vaccinated and why doctors want to set the record ...
In search of sustainability: EU scientists urge policymakers to embrace both organic farming and genetically engineered crops
For more sustainability on a global level, EU legislation should be changed to allow the use of gene editing in ...
Genetic wildcard: Naturally higher testosterone levels and subjective regulations derail elite runner’s Olympic dreams
After securing a top-three spot in the 800 meter and 1500 meter categories, in four international competitions, the Ugandan athlete ...
Can artificial intelligence (AI) be ethically regulated?
Who has the responsibility to care about implementing ethical AI? Who might enforce ethical regimes once they are established? How? ...
If you’ve received a COVID vaccine, how worried should you be about catching the Delta variant?
[Y]ou may have heard about Olympic athletes who are fully vaccinated getting positive Covid tests or people in Provincetown, Mass., ...
Philippines approves GMO insect-resistant Bt eggplant, rejecting Greenpeace objections
[On July 23, the Philippines Bureau of Plant Industry found] Bt eggplant, locally called Bt talong, to be as safe ...
California and New York City mandate COVID vaccines or regular testing for government workers
Political leaders in California and New York City on [July 26] ordered government workers to get vaccinated against COVID-19 or ...
Podcast: Reparations approved for survivors of 20,000 Californians forcibly sterilized in early 20th century
In the first half of the 20th century, California forcibly sterilized more than 20,000 people in state hospitals and other ...
Philadelphia zoo rolls out plan to vaccinate gorillas, big cats and other animals at risk of contracting COVID
The Philadelphia Zoo is gearing up to vaccinate its highest-risk animals with an experimental vaccine developed by Zoetis, a former ...
Reckoning with lingering sluggishness from ‘pandemic brain’
Beginning in the spring of last year, with the first lockdown, I’d often get distracted and overwhelmed, then lose the ...
Viewpoint: Might CRISPR gene editing ‘unleash dangerous mutants, designer babies and new weapons of mass destruction?’
Mankind has been manipulating genetics since early civilizations realized that certain traits of crops, animals and humans themselves were hereditary ...
Is doping in sports unfair? Here’s how drug and tech enhancements could level the playing field
Sports regulators have a tough job sniffing out the latest enhancement technologies because coaches, trainers, and athletes are so adept ...
Viewpoint: Still believe that GMOs and gene edited crops pose more harm than good? Time for a rethink
Since their introduction in the mid-1990s, G.M.O.s have remained wildly unpopular with consumers, who see them as dubious tools of ...
New one-and-done DNA-based blood test that can detect as many as 50 different types of cancer is on the verge of approval
[Grail's prescription diagnostic] test is designed to help spot as many as 50 different cancers and uncover their original organ ...
