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 left–right twist that could rewrite tech
Scientists are harnessing chirality — the left- and right-handedness of molecules — to build better batteries, sharper displays, and more.
Longevity progress is real. So are the scams.
Longevity is in a paradoxical place at the moment, with anti-aging influencers misrepresenting real progress in order to make money.
How a dog’s life could extend yours
Studying animals — from long-lived clams to everyday dogs — is helping scientists understand aging and design therapies to slow decline.
Psychedelics & Mental Health
Living longer — and healthier — starts with boosting your brain
Science is beginning to unravel the reasons behind age-related cognitive decline — and what we can do about it.
Why AI gets stuck in infinite loops — but conscious minds don’t
Anil Seth suggests the difference is that living beings are rooted in time and entropy, a grounding that may be essential for consciousness.
Inside a neuroscientist’s quest to cure coma
Thousands of Americans are trapped in disorders of consciousness. Neuroscientist Daniel Toker is searching for a way out.
Biohacking
Three founders look to the future at Freethink’s inaugural Great Progression event
The tech community came together for the launch of the Great Progression event series, curated by Peter Leyden and produced by Freethink.
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.
This conservationist is trying to bring extinct species back to life
Ryan Phelan, co-founder of Revive & Restore, talks about the future of conservation at Freethink’s Great Progression event.
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
We purged worms from our bodies — and may have made ourselves sick
Biotech labs are mining worm chemistry to design medicines that calm the immune system without the risks of live infection.
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.
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Crossing the Divide
Having your views challenged is a good thing
When we encounter ideas we don’t like, we often shut them down. Professor John Inazu explains why that’s a bad thing and what we can do to fix it.
Could growing vaccines in plants save lives?
Vaccines for influenza, polio, smallpox, even Ebola have all be grown … in plants.
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DIY Science
Treating diabetes with a DIY pancreas
A group of coders created an open source, DIY pancreas to help people with diabetes manage their condition.
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Crossing the Divide
The conservative radio host urging people to break out of their bubbles
Charlie Sykes, a conservative radio host and author of “How the Right Lost Its Mind”, explains the dangers of…
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DIY Science
Can coding prevent overdoses?
A group of teenagers in Baltimore have created an app that can notify the public about heroin overdoses and save countless lives
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On the Fringe
Freezing bodies for the future
Alcor CEO Max More knows most people don’t believe cryonics will work. But More thinks we can’t afford not to try.
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On the Fringe
Growing human organs in pigs
Twenty people die every day in the U.S. waiting for an organ transplant. There aren’t enough organs for the 100,000…
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On the Fringe
Can snot help stop the flu?
The flu is a really tough target. The virus evolves far too fast to really pin it down. If only they could slow it…
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On the Fringe
A stranger's poop could save your life
is pretty gross. We do everything we can to avoid it. But thanks to the burgeoning field of fecal transplants,…
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On the Fringe
Searching for cures in a sewer
Yale researcher Ben Chan spends a lot of time doing what most people would avoid at all costs. He travels the world…
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Wrong
Is vitamin C a total sham?
In the heart of cold and flu season, it’s natural to reach for the Vitamin C. But we may want to think twice. While…
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Wrong
Did rats start the drug war?
Much of our shared understanding about drugs and addiction came from a series of studies done in the 1950s and 60s…
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Superhuman
3D printing prosthetics for kids
The incredible movement of shared designs and tech that’s making prosthetics better and cheaper for everyone.
How virtual reality is changing medicine
From virtual hearts to immersive battlefields, doctors and scientists are using virtual reality to transform medicine
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Superhuman
Stem cells give paralyzed man movement
Could an injection of embryonic stem cells into the spinal cord reverse paralysis?
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Superhuman
Brain implant gives quadriplegic movement
A brain implant connected to electrodes could offer hope to those who have lost function in their limbs.
Could this revolutionary football helmet protect players and save the game?
As more and more former football players exhibit symptoms of CTE, one company thinks their new helmet can address…
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Crossing the Divide
How to negotiate the nonnegotiable
Insights on working through conflict with Harvard’s top negotiation expert.
Can a single conversation really change someone's mind? This research says yes.
After studying a team of canvassers, two researchers found that a single conversation can have a significant and…
The mom who will stop at nothing to save her daughter's life
Doctors told Karen Aiach her daughter had a rare and fatal disease. So she decided to invent a cure.
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.
Get inspired with the most innovative stories shaping the world around us.