Science Literacy Project Daily Digest
Citrus greening antidote in the works: AI deployed to figure out how to fight deadly plant disease
Scientists have uncovered the first known natural defense mechanism against citrus greening disease, a deadly plant illness that has devastated ...
12 far out theories of how the universe works
12. The Ekpyrotic Universe Theory Providing an alternative to the widely accepted Big Bang theory, the ekpyrotic universe theory suggests ...
National security challenge: China poised to overtake the U.S. as the global leader in biotechnology innovation
The comprehensive report from the bipartisan National Security Commission on Emerging Biotechnology (NSCEB) delivers a “sobering, even frightening,” conclusion: that China is ...
Food industry moves to reformulate spices, dyes and other products in response to RFK, Jr.’s controversial attacks on safe additives
United States Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s influence is already being felt throughout the food ...
99.7% sure says one scientist but others hedge: A distant watery planet possibly brimming with life
"These are the first hints we are seeing of an alien world that is possibly inhabited," [Nikku Madhusudhan of the ...
AI therapy shows promise in addressing depression at less expense and equal efficacy than a human therapist
uaThe first clinical trial of a therapy bot that uses generative AI suggests it was as effective as human therapy ...
Where, when and how did humans develop the capacity for language?
[A]ccording to a new study, for a huge chunk of the time that our species has roamed the Earth, we ...
Organic produce now costs as much as 53% more than conventional alternatives, and the price disparity is getting worse
Clean eating is important to many Americans, and that often goes beyond fruits and veggies. The quality of those products ...
The FDA’s new definitions of ‘healthy’ foods takes effect at the end of April—Here’s what you need to know
All of us have probably had the experience of browsing the aisles at the grocery store looking for healthy foods ...
Marriage is bad for your health? The widowed, divorce and never-married have a 50% or lower risk of dementia
For the most part, science has found that marriage comes with health benefits—lower heart disease risk, longevity (especially for men), lower risk ...
Swamped by lawsuits targeting its weedkiller paraquat, Syngenta reaches mass settlement but reaffirms global regulatory consensus that the chemical is safe-as-used
Besieged by thousands of lawsuits alleging that its paraquat weedkiller causes Parkinson’s disease, its manufacturer, Syngenta, has entered into an agreement aimed ...
Building a fattier—and healthier—future: How AI could revolutionize the food industry
Food manufacturers are desperate for high-performance fats that meet ESG targets. As meat consumption rises, they’re increasingly concerned about supply ...
Fighting over the science facts: Legislative battles over PFAS ‘forever chemicals’ intensify
As health and environmental concerns about forever chemicals mount nationally, New Mexico joins a small but growing number of states ...
Viewpoint: We have a successful playbook to beat measles. RFK, Jr. is doing mostly the opposite
There is well-known playbook for stopping measles outbreaks. It takes hard work, because measles is so contagious that 9 of out of ...
Tribalism and politics: America, a surge in xenophobia and a path forward
I wish that xenophobia were not a foundational characteristic of our evolved psychology, But it is (see Wilson, 2019). To the best ...
Music lover? It’s in your genes
A new twin study published in Nature Communications provides evidence that how much people enjoy music is partly influenced by genetic ...
The coming generation of gene edited foods are engineered to address consumer needs not just farmers’
['O]ne of the great benefits of using genome editing is we can do more than one thing at a time: ...
CRISPR offers unique food safety tools
At its core, CRISPR works like a genetic search-and-replace tool. The system uses guide RNA to locate specific DNA sequences ...
What causes autism? It’s not vaccines, but a new study finds one driving factor
Just as Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has called for an investigation into debunked claims of vaccines causing autism, a massive new study ...
What’s the recipe for healthier food? Healthier soil?
Greater biodiversity is the key to healthier soil. And healthier soil is the key to a range of environmental and ...
Viewpoint: ’He’s wrong’—RFK, Jr. invokes pseudo-science, falsely claims single target antigen vaccines ‘never worked’
Health secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has expressed another unorthodox view on vaccines, with the long-time vaccine critic declaring that ...
Combinations of some sweeteners and food additives slightly increase health risks
Food additives are widely used by the agri-food industry and are especially common in ultra-processed products found in supermarkets. Scientific ...
‘Tariffs on China could put me out of business’: Trump-supporting farmers panicked by erratic trade flip flops pleads for a quick deal
Amid an escalating trade war, President Donald Trump announced a 125 percent tariff on China while the country hit back ...
Foreign entities are partnering with American tort forms to fund environmental lawsuits that undermine science and U.S. national security
One of the most insidious threats today is not on the battlefield, but in our courtrooms—where foreign entities are using ...
Human ‘bodyoids’: We will soon be able to manufacture brain-less human bodies to generate replacement organs
Why do we hear about medical breakthroughs in mice, but rarely see them translate into cures for human disease? ...
Viewpoint: ‘It’s going to get worse’: More than 12.6 million infants and children are highly susceptible to getting measles
The current measles outbreak, with more than 480 cases, largely in unvaccinated children, is gearing up to be the worst ...
Sahara Desert was once a lush oasis and home to a human mysterious lineage
The Sahara desert, once lush and green, during a time between 14,500 and 5,000 years ago, was also home to ...
