Category Archives: Science News

Seeking truth, learning how things work, using that knowledge to make new tools

Sweet Potatoes, Genes, and Long Life

One woman decided to take a road trip after learning she had a terminal illness. Another switched careers. Both choices make sense, given the circumstances. This year’s World Food Prize goes to a team who developed a new sweet potato, … Continue reading

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Elastic Brains and New Tech

Maybe ‘you can’t teach an old dog new tricks,’ but apparently the adult brain isn’t nearly as rigid as scientists thought. I’ll be looking at neuroplasticity, the idea that brains can change; research that may lead to better neural interfaces; … Continue reading

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Bioethics and a Three-Parent Baby

A Jordanian couple have a baby boy: who does not have a lethal genetic disorder, thanks to DNA transplanted from a third person. Four of his siblings did not survive the procedure. I’ll be talking about the decisions involved in … Continue reading

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Europa, Mars, and Someday the Stars

Scientists think they’ve detected more plumes of water, shooting up from near Europa’s south pole. It’s early days, but we may have found a comparatively easy way to collect samples from the Jovian moon’s subsurface ocean. Stephen Hawking says humanity … Continue reading

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The Minden Monster, What Killed Lucy

The ‘Minden Monster,’ a whacking great carnivore that lived about a hundred million years before T. Rex, is in the news again. Studying it will help scientists work out details of megalosaur development. I’m fascinated by that sort of thing. … Continue reading

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