Biotech
Human history has been all but defined by death and disease, plague and pandemic. Advancements in 20th century medicine changed all of that. Now advancements in 21st century medicine promise to go even further. Could we bring about an end to disease? Reverse aging? Give hearing to the deaf and sight to the blind? The answer may be yes. And soon.
Featured
Are microplastics really destroying our health?
Scientists still don’t know how microplastics impact human health, but they do have ideas for stopping their spread.
The exciting research that may cure Parkinson’s
GeneCode is developing a drug it hopes won’t just alleviate Parkinson’s symptoms but also protect and restore patient’s neural health.
This $400 genetic test could save your life
Nucleus Genomics’ new whole genome sequencing and analysis service promises to reveal the secrets hidden in your DNA.
Psychedelics & Mental Health
AI chatbots may ease the world’s loneliness (if they don’t make it worse)
AI chatbots may have certain advantages when roleplaying as our friends. They may also come with downsides that make our loneliness worse.
Beyond screen time: Rethinking kids’ tech use with the “Goldilocks hypothesis”
The “Goldilocks hypothesis” asks parents to think beyond screen time and consider the habits that teens build around technology use.
Potato chips or heroin? The debate on social media and mental health
Experts disagree on whether social media causes mental health issues in adolescents despite looking at the same data. Here’s why.
Biohacking
Boosted Breeding and beyond: 3 tech trends that could end world hunger
A world without hunger is possible, and the development and deployment of new farming technologies could be one key to manifesting it.
New AI generates CRISPR proteins unlike any seen in nature
An AI that generates CRISPR proteins is opening the door to gene editors with capabilities beyond what we’ve found in nature.
The threat of avian flu — and what we can do to stop it
Avian flu is infecting cows on US dairy farms, and now a person has caught it — but new research could help us avoid a bird flu pandemic.
Ray Kurzweil explains how AI makes radical life extension possible
Life expectancy gains in developed countries have slowed in recent decades, but AI may be poised to transform medicine as we know it.
Vaccines
Personalized cancer vaccines are having a moment
Personalized cancer vaccines were a recurring theme at the annual meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research in 2024.
One shot recreates younger immune systems, in mice
An antibody treatment designed to revitalize an aging immune system delivers “surprising” results in elderly mice.
A protein found in human sweat may protect against Lyme disease
Human sweat contains a protein that may protect against Lyme disease, according to a study from MIT and the University of Helsinki.
More
Life’s stages are changing – we need new terms and new ideas to describe them
The arc of adult development has changed over the past several decades, in ways that our psychological theories are still catching up with.
One-shot gene therapy for liver disorder works in a small trial
A new gene therapy for the rare liver disorder Crigler-Najjar syndrome was highly effective in a small trial.
A Pink Floyd song was reconstructed from listeners’ brain waves
Training an AI to reconstruct a song from listeners’ brain activity revealed insights about the brain that could lead to better speech BCIs.
Breakthrough creates stem cells without any “memories”
A new method for creating induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells includes a memory reset that puts the cells in a more embryonic-like state.
“Light sculpting” chip can rapidly test for thousands of diseases
Stanford researchers have developed a new type of molecular test that works without a cumbersome amplification step.
Scientists discover a gel that whitens teeth and kills 94% of bacteria
Scientists have found that light-activated oxidizing nanoparticles can whiten teeth without causing damage.
A pig kidney is still working in a person after 32 days
A gene-edited pig kidney has been functioning in a person for a record-breaking 32 days and still shows no signs of failure.
Can you manipulate your brain to stop your food cravings?
Research suggests it may be possible to “switch off” the pleasure we experience from eating certain foods, which could curb cravings.
Brain scans reveal the mystery of “hidden consciousness”
Newly identified patterns of injury linked to “hidden consciousness” could lead to better outcomes for people in comas or vegetative states.
Extreme treatment for alcoholism slashes drinking by 90% in monkeys
An in-development treatment for alcoholism dramatically reduced consumption in monkeys that previously drank heavily.
Mental illnesses affect brain structure, but in surprisingly different ways
A new brain mapping study identified commonalities in the brains of people with mental illnesses, and it could lead to better treatments.
“I’ve been here before”: DMT study explores a strange memory phenomenon
DMT can induce a sense of profound familiarity, making users feel as if they have entered an alternate reality they have visited before.
Brain stimulation helps people with Parkinson’s walk
A noninvasive form of brain stimulation developed by Japanese researchers improved the symptoms of Parkinsonian gait in a small trial.
Too much body fat isn’t the problem — malfunctioning body fat is
When fat cells are overloaded with excess nutrients, they become too big and don’t receive enough oxygen, causing them to die.
With “thanabots,” ChatGPT is making it possible to talk to the dead
ChatGPT is making it possible to digitally resurrect the dead in the form of thanabots: chatbots trained on data of the deceased.
Vaccine for common virus could prevent MS
An experimental vaccine designed to prevent an EBV infection might also prevent cancer and multiple sclerosis.
This unique human brain structure may have given us speech
Speech is unique to humans, yet most brain structures involved in speech are also present in Old World monkeys and other primates — except this one.
Existing heart drug may boost treatment for skin cancer
The FDA-approved heart medication ranolazine boosted the efficacy of a BRAF inhibitor in mouse models of melanoma, the deadliest skin cancer.
Scientists make pain relievers like Tylenol from pine trees rather than fossil fuels
Chemists have shown how to manufacture ibuprofen and acetaminophen using a waste product from the forestry and paper industries.
Scientists tweak Meta VR headset to measure brain activity
A modified VR headset that records brain activity reveals how being immersed in VR impacts people on a neurological level.
Special Collection
Collection
The Science of Death
Explore the journey from life to death and beyond. Near-death experiences, death doulas, digital immortality, and more – join us for a thoughtful exploration of one life’s most intriguing and inevitable phenomena with stories from the frontlines of death.
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