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
The next era of psychedelics may be precision-designed states of consciousness
A look inside Mindstate Design Labs’ effort to design drugs that reliably produce specific states of consciousness.
What is The Great Progression: 2025 to 2050?
We have a historic opportunity to harness AI and other transformative technologies in order to make a much better world in the next 25 years.
Progress happens because solutions create new problems to solve
Solutionism means fully accepting what’s in front of us and enthusiastically stepping up to meet the challenge.
Psychedelics & Mental Health
How to reclaim meaning in a changing world
What if the barrier to a fulfilled life isn’t technology, it’s culture?
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.
Biohacking
We’re able to create new creatures through gene editing. What’s stopping us?
The question isn’t whether we can sculpt new life. The question is what comes next.
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.
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.
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.
One shot recreates younger immune systems, in mice
An antibody treatment designed to revitalize an aging immune system delivers “surprising” results in elderly mice.
More
Doctors fighting deadly climate change
These doctors are coming together to address their collective carbon footprint, explore new solutions, and improve sustainability in healthcare.
Yale study: asthma and allergies may actually protect children from severe COVID-19
The interplay of asthma, children, and COVID-19 is complex. A new study suggests that kids’ asthma immune response may help protect against COVID-19.
Super bright X-ray lets doctors see the atoms inside viruses
The x-ray beams produced by the Extremely Brilliant Source, a new synchrotron, are so bright, they can be used to create images with atomic-level detail.
Symptoms of Parkinson's are the only way to diagnose it. But not for long.
Researchers discovered a new way to diagnose and track Parkinson’s disease progression — even before the first symptoms of Parkinson’s appear.
U.S. troops test wearables for early detection of COVID-19
The Department of Defense wants to use wearable sensors, Dutch AI, and thousands of personnel to develop markers for early detection of COVID-19.
Can genetic engineering stop the fall armyworm invasion?
The fall armyworm is devastating African agriculture, eating millions of pounds of crops. Can a genetically modified version control their advance?
Help scientists figure out whether brain training apps work
To figure out how people might benefit from brain training apps, researchers are looking for 30,000 volunteers willing to play brain games science.
Dogs that can smell coronavirus screen travelers at airport
Detection dogs that can smell coronavirus in a person’s sweat are now screening travelers for COVID-19 at Helsinki Airport.
Are microbes called protists our only virus eaters?
Despite their abundance, nothing we know of eats viruses. But new research suggests microbes called protists might.
Truffle pomme fondue sound tasty? Visit this fine-dining drive-thru.
The Resy Drive-Thru could help the restaurant industry survive the pandemic by serving as a creative new revenue stream for fine-dining chefs.
Johnson & Johnson’s COVID-19 vaccine reaches final trial stage
Johnson & Johnson’s COVID-19 vaccine isn’t the first to reach the final human trial stage, but it may have several advantages over its predecessors.
“Antibody inhaler” could rapidly treat—and prevent—COVID-19
Scientists have discovered a new antibody therapy that can be inhaled to provide treatment and temporary immunity to the coronavirus.
CRISPR’d male “surrogates” can produce another animal’s prized sperm
High-quality sperm means high-quality animals, but the process can be expensive or inaccessible. CRISPR-edited “surrogate sires” may provide a solution.
“Candy flipping” — mixing MDMA and LSD — is hitting the lab
A clinical trial of mixing LSD and MDMA, known as “candy flipping,” wants to see if molly can take a trip’s edge off and make LSD therapy more effective.
Antivenom scientists are using horse antibodies for COVID-19
In Costa Rica, horse antibodies for COVID-19 are about to enter human trials.
Studying pig sh*t to prevent the next pandemic
A pilot program in North Carolina offers one solution to scanning for a potential pig virus in our farm system – slurry testing.
“Google Maps for the human body” offers a deep view inside our trillions of cells
Researchers are creating an interactive, 3D map of the human body to help identify and prevent disease.
The future of vaccines may be injectable gels
Scientists have designed a slow-releasing vaccine that can more accurately match the timeframe of a natural infection.
Scientists are developing a coronavirus breathalyzer test
Fast, accurate, cheap, and easy to use, a coronavirus breathalyzer could be a game changer — and multiple research teams are racing to get them approved.
MIT can now monitor your sleeping position with radio waves
A new sleep monitor out of MIT uses reflections from radio signals — not cameras or body sensors — to track a person’s sleeping positions.
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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