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
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.
How consensus can undermine science
The main objective of consensus statements appears to be to reduce doubt, which may stifle scientific inquiry.
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.
Psychedelics & Mental Health
Pac-Man turned 45 today. The surgeon general once warned that playing it could make kids violent.
Officials’ warnings about the impact of video games on kids were never proven true. They may be making the same mistake with social media.
Flexible brain implant takes major leap forward
The FDA’s clearance of Precision Neuroscience’s flexible electrode array pushes the startup ahead in the race to BCI commercialization.
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.
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
Brain-zapping tech improves memory by more than 50%
A brain-zapping “memory prosthesis” funded by DARPA improved trial participants’ ability to retain new information by more than 50%.
I’ve had COVID and am constantly getting colds. Did COVID harm my immune system?
Does COVID somehow weaken the immune system to make us more prone to other infectious diseases? Here’s what scientists know.
Scientists discover animal that doesn’t need oxygen to live
The parasite infects salmon and lives within the fish muscle, though scientists aren’t quite sure how it breaks down nutrients for survival.
Creatine, a popular exercise supplement, might help treat depression
Creatine shows promise as a treatment for depression, boosting the effects of SSRIs and potentially working as a standalone medication.
Axolotls can regenerate their brains
Axolotls are a model organism researchers use to study a variety of topics in biology because of their regenerative abilities.
World’s first cloned arctic wolf is now 100 days old
After two years of effort, China’s Sinogene Biotechnology has created the world’s first cloned arctic wolf.
New treatment “starves” aggressive brain tumors in mice
A treatment that “starved” aggressive glioblastoma tumors in the brains of mice suggests a way to finally fight the deadly cancer in humans.
Are near-death experiences just psychedelic trips?
One possible explanation of near death experiences is that our brains are flooded with a hallucinogenic, DMT.
Meth addiction treatments are finally on the horizon
New antibody and drug therapies may soon help treat meth patients, who currently have no pharmacological interventions.
Identical twins were raised in different countries. Here’s how they differ today.
After being separated as toddlers, two identical twins were raised apart in the US and South Korea.
When remains are found in a suitcase, forensics can learn a lot from the insects trapped within
The investigation of human remains in a suitcase can often represent a Pandora’s box, full of complicated problems.
Blood test can find dozens of types of cancer, with few false positives
Grail’s Galleri multi-cancer blood test found multiple cancers in a study of over 6,000 patients.
ARPA-H: High-risk, high-reward health research is the mandate of new, billion-dollar US agency
A new multibillion-dollar federal agency was created with a goal of supporting “the next generation of moonshots for health.”
Americans are becoming more likely to cooperate with strangers, not less
Americans are more likely to cooperate with strangers today than they were in the 1950s, according to the American Psychological Association.
Long COVID: Self-targeted immune attacks may lurk behind it
Researchers are working to get a more complete understanding of the cells and antibodies behind long COVID.
San Francisco decriminalizes plant-based psychedelics
San Francisco joins Oakland, Santa Cruz, DC, and Denver in decriminalizing some psychedelics.
How NASA is planning to prevent a Martian plague
When Mars samples arrive, they may carry more than knowledge. To offset the chance of a Martian pandemic, NASA is learning to contain a Red Planet plague.
Breakthrough drug could save hundreds of thousands of children’s lives
A booster dose of the University of Oxford’s malaria vaccine demonstrated up to 80% efficacy in children over a year of follow-up.
How to be happy: Aristotle’s 11 guidelines for a good life
In his Nicomachean Ethics, Aristotle proposed that humans are social, rational animals who seek to “live well.”
Newly discovered antibody neutralizes all variants of the coronavirus
Using modified mouse models originally designed for HIV, researchers have discovered an antibody that stops all known strains of COVID-19.
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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