Washington Post
Challenging the claim that a sex robot is the ‘perfect companion’
Sex doll maker Realbotix, in its marketing materials, bills [sex doll] Harmony as “the perfect companion.” But healthy companionship is too ...
Reviving the American chestnut: Genetic modification can save the iconic tree from extinction
We’re using the tools of biotechnology to produce fully American chestnut trees that successfully tolerate blight infections, protecting the tree ...
Bayer’s takeover of Monsanto approved by US Justice Department after $9 billion spin-off agreement
Federal antitrust regulators have granted agribusiness giants Bayer and Monsanto permission to merge after the two companies agreed to spin ...
Meet the doctor leading research on ethically fraught ‘three-parent’ babies
When future historians look back on the 21st century, one of the most iconic photos may be of a smiling, ...
Organic foods have less pesticide residue than conventional produce—but does it matter?
I’ve been following these issues for a long time, and I’ve seen a lot of evidence that organic foods have ...
FDA moves against stem cell clinics selling unapproved procedures in Florida, California
The Food and Drug Administration is asking federal courts on opposite sides of the country to permanently stop two stem ...
Viewpoint: Food companies’ non-GMO advertising has a human cost
In keeping with our era of ideological boycotts, I will no longer be purchasing Kind bars. Or Barilla pasta. Or Triscuit crackers. Or Del Monte diced tomatoes. Or Nutro dog ...
Controversial biohacker found dead in sensory deprivation tank
A controversial biotech engineer was found dead Sunday [April 29] in a sensory deprivation tank at a spa in downtown ...
Treating lung cancer with combination of chemotherapy, immunotherapy
Patients with newly diagnosed advanced lung cancer who received an immunotherapy drug plus standard chemotherapy lived significantly longer than those ...
Babies begin making logical reasoning decisions by the age of one
In intriguing research, a team of scientists may have discovered the earliest age at which a person can reason logically: 12 months ...
‘Dangerous precedent’: Former FDA commissioners oppose ‘right to try’ legislation providing access to experimental treatments
Four former commissioners of the Food and Drug Administration are expressing opposition to congressional “right to try” legislation, just as ...
Humans mated with the mysterious Denisovans more than once, as well as with Neanderthals
We rarely portray Neanderthals, our close relatives, as telegenic...But to mock Neanderthals is to mock ourselves: Homo sapiens had lots of sex with Homo neanderthalensis. Neanderthal genes supply ...
Viewpoint: Why we shouldn’t describe any autistic people as ‘high functioning’
My 10-year-old son can change from an adorable, quirky little dude to an aggressive screamer in a second. He sinks ...
Saturn’s frigid moon Enceladus boasts ‘chemical buffet’ needed for life
Life as we know it needs three things: energy, water and chemistry. Saturn's icy moon Enceladus has them all, as ...
Video: DNA ancestry tests can change the identity of those who see themselves as ‘white’
As more Americans take advantage of genetic testing to pinpoint the makeup of their DNA, the technology is coming head ...
Do cell phones cause cancer? Long-awaited study offers mixed results, no definitive answer
The long-awaited results of a $25 million National Institutes of Health study on the effects of cellphone radio-frequency radiation exposure on animals is ...
In vitro fertilization planning: How many eggs do you need to freeze?
[W]hen you freeze a batch of eggs, that's no guarantee any or all of them will make it through the ...
Sunshine and green spaces could be prescription for teen depression
Exposure to trees and other greenery has been shown to stave off depression in adults, and a new study finds ...
Lay off the ibuprofen? Painkiller may lower male testosterone
In recent decades, prompted by concerns that men's sperm quality is declining, researchers have looked at things they suspect of ...
Viewpoint: GMO debate’s name-calling, death threats and ‘anti-science’ rhetoric bad for agriculture
What has the world come to when people get death threats for expressing an opinion about agriculture? The toxicity of ...
‘Cruel and inhumane for rich nations to deprive developing world of GMO technology’: Purdue president Mitch Daniels
Of the several claims of “anti-science” that clutter our national debates these days, none can be more flagrantly clear than ...
Gene therapy could be ‘ideal cure’ for hemophilia B
[L]ast year, [Jay] Konduros enrolled in a clinical trial, receiving an experimental gene therapy at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia [to ...
Asteroid that killed dinosaurs had only 1-in-10 chance of causing extinction
The smack of the asteroid against Earth released energy on the order of billions of atomic bombs. Dinosaurs were the cataclysm's most famous ...
USDA allows ‘organic’ label for soil-less farming, upsetting movement’s founders
The pioneers of the sustainable farming movement are mourning what they call the downfall of the organic program, following a Wednesday ...
Video: Coffee’s status as world’s favorite drink threatened by climate change, shallow gene pool
Climate change could spell disaster for coffee, a crop that requires specific temperatures to flourish and that is highly sensitive ...
Human extinction could come within 5,100 years
Every day, it seems, brings with it fresh new horrors. Mass murder. Catastrophic climate change. Nuclear annihilation. It's all enough to make a ...
Fighting malaria: Genetic modification offers two promising tools
In the annals of deadly diseases, few have plagued humankind as viciously as malaria. ...But the disease continues to take ...
Challenging food movement: Small, organic farms not key to fixing food system
[Buying food from small, local, organic farms] cannot fix that chemical-intensive system that crowds out biodiversity, depletes the soil, pollutes ...
