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.
Natural ‘antifreeze proteins’ added as a polymer can make concrete more durable
Because concrete is porous and absorbs liquid, [temperature] changes often make its surface flake and peel. But researchers say a ...
Ketogenic high fat diet could prevent and even reverse heart failure, study finds
In an animal model, drastic heart failure in mice was bypassed by switching to high fat or “ketogenic” diets, which ...
Quack or fact: Can a copper bracelet cure arthritis or other pains?
Although people have adorned themselves with copper since prehistory, the marketing of copper bracelets as a treatment for arthritis pain appears to date back only to ...
Experiencing happiness likely contributed to the dramatic growth and complexity of the human brain
The neocortex enables us to speak, dream and think. In search of the causes underlying neocortex expansion, researchers at the ...
New tool allows researchers to map complexity and intensity of dreams
Before the twenty-first century, we used to think dreams only occurred during rapid eye movement (REM) sleep, but more recent ...
Hardware modeled on the brain could revolutionize computing
A challenge for researchers developing applications of neuromorphic [or human brain-inspired] hardware is that a formal hierarchy such as Turing ...
Concussion biomarkers: Cutting edge advances to protect brain from sports injuries or just pseudoscience?
It's no secret that football players of all ages regularly experience head impacts and are at elevated risk for a ...
Can dementia be cured?
Dementia is not just one disease – it has more than 200 different subtypes. Over the past decade neurologists have ...
How to choose the best DNA tests to understand your health risks
The at-home genetic testing market for health conditions is soaring, and the kits are more affordable than ever. The process ...
The lure of conspiracy theories and how to protect yourself
[I]n the same way that our immune system can leave us more vulnerable to pathogens, our emotional state can make ...
CRISPR can transform bad fat into good fat, helping us stay lean and fighting diabetes
Too much of the bad white [fat], which stores energy, makes us obese. The brown type burns energy, helping us ...
How to assess your risk of pancreatic cancer
Previously, it was thought that someone’s risk for pancreatic cancer was increased only if two or more family members were ...
CRISPR-based diagnostic tools will be able to rapidly diagnose future pandemics
Although [CRISPR] gene-editing technology [COVID] tests are still being developed and won't be ready in the United States this year as the weather ...
There is water on the moon!
[New] research confirms long-standing theories about the existence of lunar water that could someday enable astronauts to live there for extended periods ...
Video: Elixir of life? If you want to live longer, consider injecting yourself with 3.5 million-year-old bacteria
People have been hunting down the legendary fountain of youth since antiquity. Does it exist? Could it ever, even theoretically, ...
Gene therapy may be able to restore vision
In a normal eye, opsins are expressed by the rod and cone photoreceptors in the retina. When activated by light, ...
Are all anti-vaxxers kooks? Here is one couple’s journey to vaccine rejection and what might change their minds
Anti-vaccine parents are deeply concerned with being good parents. They are college educated and usually members of the middle class ...
Interactive: How Pomeranians, Poodles, Great Danes and 158 other dog breeds are genetically related to each other
In the mid-18th century there was a period of intense innovation and codification in dog breeding, giving rise not only ...
Republican vs Democrat brains: Either ideology shapes the brain or brain structure drives our political views
On the whole, the research shows, conservatives desire security, predictability and authority more than liberals do, and liberals are more ...
Childhood trauma leaves signs in our blood and can be inherited, studies suggest
[Researchers] identified a biological mechanism by which traumatic experiences become embedded in germ cells. People who live through traumatic experiences ...
Here’s when and how the biotechnology revolution first got lift off
Early in the morning of Tuesday, October 14, 1980, the phone rang at Paul Berg’s house in Stanford, Cal. The ...
Scientists taking partisan stands on the coronavirus: Here comes the political backlash
Today, although most Americans trust information from physicians and medical scientists, public trust in the scientific community has become increasingly partisan, and conservatives and ...
Infographic: The mental health of millennials continues to track downward
The Blue Cross Blue Shield Association’s 2019 report on the Health of Millennials revealed a downward trend in the health of this ...
How extreme environmental changes spurred early human evolution
[A]fter hundreds of thousands of years of stability, dramatic shifts occurred [in the East African Rift Valley] beginning about 400,000 ...
Klotho: Is prescribing a drug to supercharge the brain a good idea?
One of the most intriguing molecules out there is called Klotho. Identified in , it’s named for the Fate of ancient Greek ...
Matrix redux: It’s actually possible that we are virtual beings living in an AI computer simulation
Some have tried to identify ways in which we can discern if we are simulated beings. Others have attempted to ...
Lazy brains: How can we avoid falling for misinformation
Our brains are lazy. The more effort it takes to process information, the more uncomfortable we feel about it and ...
