Contributor

Kristin Houser

Managing Editor

Contact

[email protected]

Kristin Houser is the Managing Editor of Freethink. Her articles on science and technology have been featured in NBC News, RealClearDefense, and the World Economic Forum’s Agenda, among other publications, and Stephen Colbert once talked about a piece on “The Late Show,” to her delight.

Kristin is currently based in Pittsburgh, and prior to joining Freethink, she was a staff writer for Futurism, launched an LA-based music blog, and wrote several animated and live action web series.

a statue of a woman holding scales of justice that incorporates computer code

Hackers get AI to share credit card info and endorse hate speech

At DEFCON 2023, ethical hackers targeted generative AIs by OpenAI, Google, and other tech leaders to aid responsible AI development.

Kristin Houser

A glass of water with a green splash on a blue background.

Addiction

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.

Kristin Houser

A series of brains on a colorful background

Mental Health

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.

Kristin Houser

Engineering

Scientists see metal heal itself for the first time

The first example of metal healing itself, repairing tiny cracks caused by metal fatigue, could lead to an engineering revolution.

Kristin Houser

An image of a man wearing a system for delivering brain stimulation

Neuroscience

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.

Kristin Houser

An abstract image of a blue circle with blue dots representing particles

Physics

Discovery of “demon” particle could aid superconductor hunt

The elusive “demon” particle has been discovered in a superconductor-like metal nearly 70 years after it was first predicted to exist.

Kristin Houser

Two men in lab coats studying a drawing of coronaviruses, specifically focusing on the possible connection between EBV infection and the development of an EBV vaccine.

Vaccines

Vaccine for common virus could prevent MS

An experimental vaccine designed to prevent an EBV infection might also prevent cancer and multiple sclerosis.

Kristin Houser

Aerospace

NASA is sending a team of autonomous robots to the moon

NASA is sending three autonomous mobile robots to the moon where they’ll have to work as a team under challenging conditions.

Kristin Houser

An image of blue tumor cells and green immune cells

Cancer

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.

Kristin Houser

An artist's rendering of the Psyche mission spacecraft near 16 Psyche, an asteroid.

Asteroids

NASA mission to a $10,000-quadrillion asteroid is two months from launch

NASA hopes to get a glimpse at Earth's core by sending a spacecraft to 16 Psyche, an metal-rich asteroid 280 million miles away.

Kristin Houser