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 person is cultivating lab-grown chicken in a petri dish.

Food

Lab-grown meat is finally approved in the US. Here’s how you can get some.

Two startups from California have received regulatory permission to begin selling lab-grown chicken in the US.

Kristin Houser

a gif with streaks representing muons raining down on a beach

Physics

New navigation system works even when GPS fails

A new navigation system that tracks subatomic particles called “muons” could help us get around indoors, underground, and underwater.

Kristin Houser

a person looking at Earth out the window of a spacecraft

Aerospace

Virgin Galactic sets dates for first commercial space flights

Virgin Galactic is finally ready to begin commercial space flights, with tickets currently going for $450,000 each.

Kristin Houser

a head of lettuce on a colorful background

Medicine

Insulin grown in lettuce can be taken orally

New synthetic insulin harvested from lettuce plants can be made cheaply, taken orally, and transported at room temperature.

Kristin Houser

mars' surface with the left side of the image toned yellow and the right side blue

Astronomy

NASA shares colorful “postcard” of Mars’ surface

NASA has used photos taken by the Curiosity rover to create a gorgeous “postcard” of the Martian landscape.

Kristin Houser

a grid of models of various shapes and size wearing the same shirt

Google unveils AI try-on feature for shopping

Google’s AI-powered virtual try-on feature lets shoppers see what an article of clothing would look like on a wide range of models.

Kristin Houser

Brain

Cancer med appears to prevent brain aneurysms

Japanese researchers have discovered that the cancer drug sunitinib can prevent the formation of brain aneurysms in mice.

Kristin Houser

an illustration of a capsule reentering Earth's atmosphere

Aerospace

SpaceX successfully launches world’s first “space factory”

SpaceX has successfully deployed a “space factory” developed by startup Varda Space Industries to manufacture drugs in microgravity.

Kristin Houser

an illustration of another planet with Earth-like features being added to it

Aerospace

Can “terraforming” turn Mars or the moon into Earth 2.0?

Terraforming — the hypothetical process of making another place “Earth-like” — offers the hope of turning Mars or the moon into Earth 2.0.

Kristin Houser

a colorful image of a human embryo at Day 11 under a microscope

Biology

Model human embryo, created from stem cells, survives past two weeks

A model human embryo capable of developing past day 14 could revolutionize our understanding of human development.

Kristin Houser