Science Literacy Project Daily Digest
AI’s promotion of ‘fake news’ erodes everyday thinking, MIT study reveals
Yet another study shows that the more you let artificial intelligence do the thinking for you, the less capable you ...
Viewpoint: RFK, Jr. ignores oversight of vast HHS programs to focus on his pet obsessions—and gets much of the science wrong
Mr. Kennedy has shown little interest in managing the details of work in his department, according to multiple colleagues. Instead, ...
Trump and climate change skeptics misrepresent updated climate-emissions scenarios to claim projections were bogus
In a May 16 Truth Social post, President Donald Trump cited updated climate change scenarios to misleadingly claim that experts ...
Anti-vaxxers falsely claim chronic disease study of 22 diseases ‘proves’ that vaccinated children are sicker than the unvaccinated
The analysis is based on a 2020 draft study that was never published because an internal review identified "serious flaws ...
‘Plasticity’: Can psilocybin support healthy aging by transforming the brains of older adults?
The study, known as PLASTICITY (Psychedelic Longitudinal Aging Study In Cognitively Healthy Older Adults), is the first psychedelic neuroimaging study specifically ...
Treat measles with cod liver oil and vitamin A? RFK, Jr.’s recommendation has led to a surge in poisonings
Vitamin A became a highly searched topic around the time Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. touted ...
Trump administration pushes to bring AI “doctors” into U.S. healthcare. The promise — and the risks.
Today, chatbots can only legally offer medical guidance with a disclaimer attached: Neither the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, nor ...
Viewpoint: The booming longevity anti-aging skin care hoax
Historically, anti-aging has been rooted in prevention (think sunscreen or retinoids for wrinkles), not instant results. ... Driven by the broader ...
Texas Air Force base flu outbreak soars to over 220 cases, and one soldier has died after Secretary Hegseth scrapped mandatory military flu shots
In a new social media post, a U.S. Congressman is demanding answers about what led to a major flu outbreak ...
Which is better for building healthy farm soil? Organic offers no special edge.
Soil health is driven by soil organic matter, which is driven by plant biomass inputs, which are driven by photosynthesis ...
Viewpoint: How the Trump administration is thwarting the will of Congress and starving American science
Although research has bipartisan support in the US Congress, and trust in science is above 75% across the country, the ...
The American Medical Association doctors declare war on RFK, Jr.’s attack on safe vaccines
At the American Medical Association’s annual meeting ..., members of the group’s House of Delegates are sending a clear message ...
COVID lab leak? Making a case that the Wuhan market origins theory is wrong
It is imperative that those of us who support and defend biotechnology confront the strong possibility that a foolish and ...
Viewpoint—Protecting baloney science: Far right senators move to protect the phony homeopathy industry
Senators Mike Lee (R-UT) and Tommy Tuberville (R- AL) have recently introduced a bill that would limit the FDA’s ability ...
Can illegal social media content be stopped before it goes viral? UK is going to try.
Social media companies have been ordered to have emergency measures in place to stop illegal content going viral, as regulators ...
Activist organization accuses Trump of protecting methane-generating stripper wells to benefit billionaire and donor Jeffrey Hildebrand
This story was originally published by ProPublica. It was before dawn on a Friday in January when a Gulfstream G600 ...
Viewpoint—Recursive self-improvement: AI leader Anthropic calls for AI slowdown
For most of AI’s history, humans drove every step in its development cycle. But at Anthropic, we are delegating a ...
What’s behind Anthropic’s warning about the accelerating development of AI
Recursive self-improvement is when an AI system designs, builds, and trains a better version of itself without humans involved. Put ...
Trump-appointed cancer panel head backed by supplement and anti-vaccine companies promotes discredited support for ivermectin as a potential cure
The chair of the President’s Cancer Panel is a co-author on a new paper promoting ivermectin as a cancer treatment ...
AAP v. Kennedy: While a court challenge grinds on, RFK Jr. quietly advances his anti-vaccine conspiracy agenda
The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) v Kennedy litigation is now running on two parallel tracks. Legal actions are under way both ...
Viewpoint: Raw milk and the myth of safety—ProPublica exposes the growing anti-homogenization movement
This story was originally published by ProPublica. McAfee isn’t any ordinary farmer. He is a raw-milk zealot who has escaped ...
In a rebuke to RFK, Jr.’s anti-vax crusade, journal retracts study claiming hepatitis B vaccine–autism link
A 2010 paper that linked the hepatitis B vaccine in infant boys to an increased risk of autism diagnosis was ...
Kennedy accused of trying to ‘bully’ science journal that retracted study linking vaccines to infant deaths
Robert F Kennedy Jr, the US health secretary, is demanding answers from a medical journal that recently removed a paper ...
Who’s responsible when AI lies? Google challenging court ruling that search results are not protected from legal liability
Google said it will appeal a German court ruling that holds the company directly liable for false statements produced by ...
Viewpoint: “Dead Wrong”—Understanding healthcare’s misinformation epidemic
Misinformation in healthcare isn’t slowing down, and Dr. Geeta Nayyar says it’s causing more problems. Nayyar is the author of ...
Glucosamine alert: Alzheimer’s progresses faster among those taking the popular supplement
Glucosamine -- a popular supplement used for joint pain -- was associated with faster progression to Alzheimer's disease and worse ...
Viewpoint: Behind the effort to re-purpose the tobacco attack strategy to fight ultra-processed foods
Tobacco companies spent decades honing marketing strategies, flavor engineering and processing technologies that helped addict consumers to cigarettes. Then, in ...
