Andrew Porterfield
Blood test can prevent suicide? How to prevent “biomarker porn”
Biomarker testing is the shiny new thing. Some scientists claim they can predict complex mental disorders. It would be nice ...
Precision medicine–Next new thing or over hyped bust? (Or both?)
Precision medicine struggles to fulfill its promise as a next generation solution to disease prevention ...
Activists blame scientists, GMOs for dying iconic Italian olive trees, block GM solution
Olive trees in Italy are falling victim to a new bacteria. Scientific solutions are being replaced by hysteria, blocking GMO ...
Genetic testing lags for mental illness, forces parents to internet
Genetic counseling for potential mental illness in children should be just as responsive as counseling for "physical" disease. Right now, ...
Full IARC glyphosate report released; Anti-GMO target may have health benefits
Glyphosate is well known as a comparatively mild pesticide but has become a target of anti-GMO activists. They may be ...
Will sugar, sweetener, salt, cholesterol, fat, HFCS, (fill in blank) kill you?
Scientists, the media and policymakers often make glib connections between certain foods, nutrition and disease. The links are a lot ...
Anti-GMO myth busted—We’re not losing plant genetic diversity after all
Anti-GMO activists and even some science publications claim GMOs are accelerating the trend toward a drastic loss in biodiversity. They ...
ADHD mystery: Claims of no attention deficit disorder in France challenged
Some say low French ADHD rates reflect poor diagnoses. Others say they show ADHD isn't biological. Geneticists say they're working ...
Seed bank advantages lost in fog of anti-GMO war
While anti GMO activists push for organics, a complimentary answer to feeding the world may lie in seed banks. Only ...
Genetics may open door to new treatments of mental disorders
Mental disorders are notoriously hard to treat. We now know that many psychological diseases are rooted in our DNA. That's ...
Why regulators conclude glyphosate safe while IARC, alone, claims it could cause cancer?
Glyphosate joins apples, coffee, sunning and night shift work as an IARC "probable" carcinogen. But the real risk to humans ...
Fraud or drift? USDA finds 43 percent of organic foods contain ‘prohibited’ substances
Pesticides have been found in nearly half of organic fields. Is this a case of accidental drift, or fraud? ...
Neuroscience of free will: Does reaching for beer with robotic arm mean free will doesn’t exist?
If we can predict a person’s intentions by picking up brain signals then how 'free' is our will and are ...
Farm to boardroom: US organic industry dominated by mega corporations
According to the anti-GMO narrative, organic is frail David fighting for its life against the Goliaths of Big Ag and ...
Can aging be treated with drugs?
Geneticists have found several genes that seem to affect longevity. Are we on the verge of finding "treatments" for aging? ...
Brain confusion: Why it’s so difficult to find cures for mental disorders
Many mental illnesses still defy treatment. The problem may be that we do not "know" how the brain functions very ...
Farmers abandoning organic farming despite lure of higher price premiums
Organic food sales are booming and some studies claim it's more profitable for farmers because of cprice premiums. But costs ...
Epic FBI DNA database may reveal private health information
Database behind nearly all DNA-based forensic investigations may also have our health information. Or not. Should we be concerned? ...
Asthma and Atopic March Syndrome caused by GMOs? Science says ‘No’
Anti-GMO activists have lumped together a lot of allergic reactions into a syndrome caused by GMOs. Asthma shows how wrong ...
Genetic modification of trees faces forest of protests
Genetic modification of trees could help mitigate climate change and increase wood and paper production. But opposition to even basic ...
Anti-GMO stance by Greenpeace, other environmental activists, worsen climate change
The evidence suggests that GM crops can and do contribute to reducing global climate change. But high profile environmental groups, ...
