Science Literacy Project Daily Digest
Exploring the sustainability challenges of genetically modified crops
Genetically modified (GM) crops are widely used around the world, but their effects on the environment need to be explored ...
Why bottled water is a bad choice for your health and the environment
When it comes to getting your daily fill of water, the safest option is from a store-bought bottle, right? Well, ...
Asteroids could make a ‘tasty treat’ in space
Astronauts embarking on long-haul journeys in deep space can’t pack all the calories they will need in the form of ...
‘We’ve not found evidence that Neanderthals wore clothes
Braving the cold weather in Northern Europe required Neanderthals to have robust bodies and a facility for making fire. But did ...
Doctor’s say a single concussion could dramatically raise a person’s risk of developing Parkinson’s. Bret Favre estimates he had “thousands” of them
Hall of Fame quarterback Brett Favre’s announcement that he has Parkinson’s disease is bringing renewed attention to the potential links between ...
Fearful of a Republican rollback of Washington state’s reproductive rights, state stockpiles abortion pills
Washington state's first-in-the-nation stockpile of abortion drugs will serve as insurance against future lawsuits seeking to ban the procedure nationwide ...
Did Neanderthals go extinct or were they absorbed?
Ever since the first Neanderthal bones were discovered, people have wondered about these ancient hominins. How are they different from ...
Scientists racing to save disease-threatened bananas see potential in genetically modified varieties
Chiquita Brands International [has] bred a new banana called the Yelloway 1 that is resistant to [Tropical Race 4 disease] ...
Industrial intelligence: ‘A paradigm shift comparable to historic innovations like the horse-drawn seed drill in agriculture’
Industries across the board are on the cusp of a revolution driven by technological changes like AI, analytics and digital ...
Africa fights rising hunger by looking to foods of the past
In Africa, like anywhere, hunger is driven by many interwoven factors, not all of which are a consequence of farming ...
Was Christopher Columbus Jewish? Geneticists battle over contentious claim
The documentary Columbus DNA His True Origin, broadcast on Spain’s National Holiday suggests that [Christopher Columbus] was not Genoese and ...
A call to lift Switzerland’s moratorium on genetically modified crops
The moratorium banning the commercial cultivation of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) in Switzerland will expire at the end of 2025 ...
On agricultural tech innovation and agro-chemical regulations, Canada has it right while the European Union is still flailing
Earlier [in 2024], Brussels was rocked by the publication of a secret legal opinion written by advisers to the European ...
Are weeds destined to win their escalating assault on agriculture?
Since the 1980s, more and more plants have evolved to become immune to the biochemical mechanisms that herbicides leverage to ...
Viewpoint: Trump-RFK, Jr. commercial promotes bizarre, conspiracy-laden plan to ‘make America healthy’
In the first four minutes of a recent video for his “Make America Healthy Again” campaign promoting Donald Trump for ...
Video: Should we recognize AI robots as human? Here’s why it’s not so farfetched.
Artificial intelligence already exhibits many human characteristics. Given our history of denying rights to certain humans, we should recognize that ...
Are vaccines the future of cancer prevention?
Researchers are making progress toward vaccines that train healthy people’s immune systems to eliminate signs of cancer before it develops ...
Richard Dawkins’ reverie on the twists and turns of evolution is a ‘do not miss’ book
What, do you suppose, is the closest living relative of the hippopotamus? The rhinoceros, perhaps? The pig? In fact, it’s ...
‘The Japanese population isn’t as genetically homogenous as everyone thinks’
By studying the genomes of more than 3,000 people across Japan, researchers have shed light on the population’s complex ancestry ...
Science-based advice on how to talk to your dog to deepen your connection
Your pooch may already be your best friend, but changing the way you talk to them could make your bond ...
Prawn lover? Gene edited giant crustacean should soon be widespread
Researchers in Israel claim to have bred the world's first gene-edited giant river prawn. The breakthrough was made by researchers ...
Salinity crisis: With salt affecting 30% of arable land worldwide, salt-loving plants may help enhance production
Budding new plant biology research is paving the potential to produce food crops that not only survive but thrive in ...
How AI is already optimizing food production
[A]rtificial intelligence, or AI, is already being harnessed to optimize food production. Technology products that are currently on the market ...
New Zealand poised to soften restrictions on genetically modified crops by the end of the year, green light gene editing
For nearly three decades, New Zealand’s strict regulations around genetic modification have more or less confined research opportunities to the ...
What can farmers do to mitigate the impact of rising global temperatures
Dire warnings of the terrible effects of changes in our global climate seem to be all around us these days ...
AI is helping farmers sequester more carbon in soil, improving agriculture’s sustainability profile
Our soil ... holds about double the amount of carbon that’s in the atmosphere, and almost three times the volume ...
Were Neanderthals violent and territorial? That’s the stereotype but that better describes Homo sapiens
Throughout the 19th century, when the theory of evolution was struggling to land in the public imagination, discussions about Neanderthals were ...
