People are so opposed to GMOs that such food has often been banned, though studies find zero evidence it harms people. But paradoxically, when it comes to editing human genomes, many are eager to press forward. Yet here scientists themselves mostly call for caution, because little is known about long-term ramifications. More
Tag Index / Showing 1 - 12 of 12 results for “science”
Ladies, Consider a Career in Science
American women have made tremendous strides in science—in some areas they earn half of all doctorate degrees. But women remain at a significant disadvantage to men on a host of metrics, such as likelihood to win federal funding. The perception that science isn’t cool for girls remains rampant in grade schools. But we too often focus only on certain archetypes, when in fact myriad career paths are available. So let's celebrate International Day of Women and Girls in Science, Saturday February 11. More
Bio & Life Sciences Healthcare
Ethical Issues Abound with Fast-Growing Prenatal Genetic Testing
In the last few years, the standard tests for fetal abnormalities have been largely replaced with new genetic tests. Since they launched, traditional procedures that confer a small risk of miscarriage have dropped by about 70 percent. Now we face a big ethical issue: these tests reveal much more about future diseases than those they replaced. What information should parents know, and what can and should they do about it? More
Bio & Life Sciences Healthcare
New Study: Meditation Literally Changes our Genes
People who practice meditation know it resets the mind and body, and there have been claims about its healing powers for centuries. Now scientific evidence backs them up. Researchers recently found that meditation does more than just relieve stress. It can literally change our DNA. More
Bio & Life Sciences Healthcare
Dear Scientists: This Is Why People Hate You
Editors of the New England Journal of Medicine called scientists who make discoveries from publicly-shared data “research parasites.” Outrage ensued. Too many scientists believe they get a competitive advantage from data no one else has access to. More
Bio & Life Sciences Finance Startup Culture
How Crowdsourcing Can Help Fund Science
This morning, I helped analyze fish scales to better track migration patterns, by giving the scientists some cash. Crowdfunding has made a difference in all sorts of initiatives, so it’s no surprise to see it pop up in science. Experiment was built by scientists who believe alternative funding could fill a key gap in research. More
Why It’s So Hard for Americans to Talk About Science
Talking about science is a lot harder than it should be. We talk all the time about things we don’t fully understand: the polar vortex, how footballs can get underinflated during games, why the Kardashians still get so much attention. We’re not experts in these areas, but we’re happy to weigh in with theories and opinions. But when it comes to scientific topics, both scientists and lay people hide behind the excuse that the general public in this country simply doesn’t have the education to process such complex information. More
Are Scientists Selfish?
We often hear that scientists hoard data, refusing to share information even when doing so might speed advances to patients in dire need. It’s not just about sharing results on the fly—once a project has been completed and findings published in a journal, most of us observers outside major institutions still can’t get access due to expensive subscriptions. The situation is made all the more unpalatable since most biomedical research is funded by taxpayer dollars. Yet the average taxpayer has little ability to see what comes of that funding. More
Bio & Life Sciences Global Tech
No PhD Required: Science Goes Grassroots
“Citizen science” is trendy. From keynote presentations at major scientific conferences to official recognition from the White House, citizen science seems to be everywhere. But what exactly is it? Broadly defined, citizen science covers any activity by which regular people are contributing to scientific research, or integrating science more closely in their day-to-day lives. (We’ve already seen how people are getting involved through crowdsourcing; this new trend goes a step further.) Citizen scientists are those who believe in the power of technology and research—and are finding ways to advance their lives and those of others by embracing a scientific approach. More
With $35 Million and a Fan in Bill Gates, ResearchGate Tackles Social Networking for Scientists
Social networking for scientists has been tried before, but not until recently have we seen investors placing big bets in this area. Earlier this year, the academic networking site Mendeley was acquired by scientific publisher Elsevier for somewhere in the ballpark of $70 million. And today brings a new data point: Berlin-based ResearchGate, a site designed to facilitate collaborations and data sharing among scientists around the world, has raised $35 million in a series C round from investors including Bill Gates. More
Why Techonomy?: A Manifesto
We believe in the potential of technology to make the world a happier, healthier, wealthier, and more peaceful place. Techonomy's name embodies our beliefs and our mission—it combines the words "technology" and "economy" because technology has become a central part of the economy in which we operate and the society in which we live. Today technology is inextricably entwined with just about every activity that humans undertake. We embrace that fact, and seek as a company to help the world take advantage of it. More
Scott Cook on Scientific Experimentation in Business
In this video from the "Revolutions in Progress" session at Techonomy 2011, in Tucson, Ariz., Scott Cook, Founder and Chairman of Intuit, tells two stories about how scientific experimentation helped institutions find innovative solutions to complex problems. First, he describes how junior-level staff at his company created a text-message notification system for farmers in India to alert them about crop prices in nearby markets. Senior management initially doubted the tool's viability, but it went on to significantly improve the livelihood of over 400,000 Indian farmers. Second, he profiles the Chinese city of Shenzhen, where in the 1980s government officials allowed local markets, instead of communist government regulations, to dictate economic growth, providing a successful model for the rest of China. More
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