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.
10% of the human genome is made up of viruses. Here’s how they helped shape our species’ evolution
Devastating pandemics, viruses have also played an important role in human evolution – and without them you wouldn't be here ...
What, me worry? The era of AGI (Artificial General Intelligence) is rapidly approaching — when ‘fake people’ will outthink humans
Technologists warn about the dangers of the so-called singularity. But can anything actually be done to prevent it? ...
Blood dinner: Why are you targeted by mosquitoes but some lucky few are spared?
Researchers built the ‘world’s largest perfumery for mosquitoes’ to test why some people get eaten alive while others do not ...
Would you donate some of your eggs to a stranger if it means you could freeze and keep half of them — for free?
Freeze-and-share models have a different method of attracting clients compared to traditional egg donation programs ...
Viewpoint: ‘AI could upend war, cyber conflicts — and in the most extreme case — the use of nuclear weapons.’ What might happen if the military embraces artificial intelligence tools?
U.S. national security officials are warning about the potential for the new technology to upend war, cyber conflict ...
Intergalactic travel: If we want to explore deep space, humans will have to ‘hibernate like bears’
Scientists said that human beings need to learn how to shut our bodies down like hibernating bears if we ever ...
Here’s how CRISPR gene editing is already revolutionizing medicine
A number of genetic disorders are caused by a mutation in a single gene. The power (and precision) of CRISPR ...
Chimpanzee ‘language’ deciphered by scientists
Scientists have moved one step closer to decoding the languages that animals like chimpanzees use to communicate ...
Earliest human footprints ever discovered trace back 300,000 years to first human species to live in cold weather and build shelters: Homo heidelbergensis
Archaeologists connect world's oldest footprints to humans: Scientists believe these footprints helped depict the ecological makeup of the area at ...
Fear of unintended consequences slows adoption of embryo gene editing
As gene-editing technology advances, we take a look at how debate about its application has evolved in recent years, and ...
What kick-started the evolution of our complex human brains?
A chance rearrangement of the human genome over a million years ago probably kick-started the evolution of modern humans from ...
Marijuana and psychosis: Cannabis use linked to 30% of diagnoses in young men
A huge Danish study shows that up to 30 percent of psychosis diagnoses in young men could have been prevented ...
Neanderthal links: Here’s how nose shape evolved in modern humans
Humans inherited genetic material from Neanderthals that affects the shape of our noses, finds a new study led by UCL ...
Viewpoint: Trump of the left? Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. traffics in vaccine misinformation, much like the hard right
It doesn’t surprise me at all that a Trumpian candidate would emerge inside the Democratic Party, someone trying to run ...
Got the marijuana munchies? Innovative worm study may help solve the mystery
University of Oregon neuroscientist and professor Shawn Lockery recently published a paper on the impacts of cannabis on worms ...
Psychological differences between women and men are often the largest in gender egalitarian cultures. Why?
Psychological differences between women and men are often the largest in cultures that are the most gender egalitarian ...
Prehistoric jewelry: Scientists pull 20,000-year-old human DNA from necklace made from deer teeth using new extraction technique
The innovative method for obtaining genetic material allows us to link archaeological artifacts with the people who touched them ...
Viewpoint: Nuclear codes — ‘The temptation to automate nuclear weapons with AI will be great. The danger is greater’
The world’s major military powers have begun a race to wire AI into warfare. For the moment, that mostly means ...
70% of gambling behavior may be driven by genes. A new genetic test may show whether you’re at risk
Studies have shown that our genes may be up to 70% responsible for gambling behavior. Now a new genetic test ...
Does TikTok and other social media adversely affect kids’ brains? We still don’t know
The relative newness of platforms like Snapchat and TikTok means little research is available about their long-term effects on teen ...
Human evolution may have more to do with genetic material we lost from our primate ancestors than what we gained
A new study explores the significance of the genetic information absent in the human genome compared to other primates ...
Viewpoint: Yes, we have a national mental health crisis. No, it’s not a significant driver of gun violence as Republicans claim
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott wants more mental health resources after the Allen mall mass shooting. It’s not a real solution ...
Viewpoint: Pandemic tribalism — Why shreds of COVID origin evidence are hailed by some as incontrovertible proof
Over the past year, we’ve been treated to a series of lab-leak news cycles prompted by vague intelligence reports and ...
A flash of intense consciousness after breathing stops, but before a person dies? What’s happening?
In their last minutes of life, some people's brains generate a surge of surprisingly organized-looking electrical activity that may reflect ...
‘Groundbreaking IVF procedure’: First three-parent baby born in the UK through mitochondrial donation treatment
The first UK baby created with DNA from three people has been born after doctors performed a groundbreaking IVF procedure ...
‘Enforcers and regulators must be vigilant’: Federal Trade Commission Chair outlines strong AI regulations
The full extent of generative A.I.’s potential is still up for debate, but there’s little doubt it will be highly ...
Longer chromosome telomeres mean longer life? The truth may be just the opposite
The longer a person’s telomeres, researchers found, the greater the risk of cancer and other disorders, challenging a popular hypothesis ...
