SCIENCE AND CIVIL RIGHTS
A recent study by Mark Regnerus claimed to find that children raised by same-sex couples turn out to have more problems as adults than those raised by heterosexual parents. Ilana Yurkiewicz explains why policymakers should ignore it.
BIOTECHNOLOGY
Here’s a reboot of our popular timeline of stem cell research and policy over the past 40 years. From early fetal tissue research to the first successful human treatments, this timeline documents the progress in stem cell science, and the policies that have impeded or promoted it.
BIOETHICS
In Brüstle v. Greenpeace, the highest court in the European Union ruled that processes requiring the destruction of human embryos cannot be patented in the European Union. The shaky ethical footing of the decision will only muddy the water for stem cell research going forward.
NEUROSECURITY
Mind control, truth serums, and “guilt-free” super soldiers. Experts discuss the past, present, and future of brain research in the military and counterintelligence and the paper back edition of “Mind Wars.”
BIOTECHNOLOGY
The White House today released the long-awaited National Bioeconomy Blueprint, which summarizes emergent trends in biotechnology, and contains five strategic imperatives for government policy moving forward.
INTERNATIONAL COMPETITIVENESS
The Chinese Army’s announcement of an alertness drug, dubbed “Night Eagle,” probably says more about China’s desire to expand its presence in the pharmaceutical industry than it says about China’s ability to develop truly novel drugs.
INVESTING IN SCIENCE
The failure of the deficit reduction “super committee” to come up with a compromise last fall triggered drastic automatic cuts to federal programs across the board. Gordon F. Tomaselli examines how these cuts will impact vital medical research.
LIFE SCIENCES
We can’t let the search for “sexy” new drugs distract from the need for process improvement and supply chain security of old ones that have stood the test of time.
INVESTING IN SCIENCE
The genetic testing industry, with its great potential to not only improve health care outcomes but also create jobs, is a prime example of a government investment with positive return.
PODCAST
We need to rethink the legal framework that allows new industrial chemicals to enter the market every day without being tested for potential health impacts on humans.
BIOETHICS
The complementarity of sword and shield, arrow and armor, bullet and vest, and bomb and shelter is represented today by engineered viruses and engineered immune systems.
BIOETHICS
The National Science Advisory Board for Biosecurity asked two leading life science journals not to publish certain details about experiments done on the bird flu virus to make it even more contagious and potentially deadly, citing public safety concerns.
BIOETHICS
The federal decision to prevent teenagers from obtaining emergency contraception over the counter cuts to the core of the progressives idea that science should always trump politics.
BIOTECH INNOVATION
A new report reviews the status of biotech innovation clusters across the country and the world. The report shows potential for biotech innovation and job creation in emerging clusters from Houston to Atlanta to Indianapolis if we can get the policy right.
BOOKS
Rooted deeply in historic fact, Dr. Jason Karlawish’s marvelous new book traces the peculiar career of 19th century clinician-turned-scientist Dr. William Beaumont, who became a scientific one-hit-wonder by exploiting the body of the man whose life he saved.
BIOMEDICAL RESEARCH
Ever wonder how many mice have to die to produce one peer-reviewed medical journal article? Or one new drug? And how much can we really learn about human physiology from mice or other animal experiments anyway? Daniel Engber has authored an excellent, three-part expose at Slate that answers these and other questions about the animal research industry.
BIOETHICS
Why do we have trouble defining what a “person” is? The answer may lie in human evolutionary antiquity, writes Jonathan Moreno in a Huffington Post op-ed.
BIOPOLITICS
Arthur Caplan reports on a closed-door meeting at the Vatican, where Church leadership made it clear it will continue to throw its ethical might and even its money into the debate about where to get stem cells and how best to study them.
BIOETHICS
So-called “personhood” efforts that are active now in all 50 states represent an attack not only on women’s reproductive rights but also on science.
BIOETHICS
The challenges to testing a new anthrax vaccine on children probably outweigh the benefits, argues Arthur Caplan.
Science Progress and American Progress's Doing What Works project teamed up to produce a set of policy proposals that the Obama administration and Congress can adopt to reinvest in the building blocks of American science, innovation, and economic competitiveness. Read the overview of the five reports.
Science Progress proceeds from the propositions that scientific inquiry is among the finest expressions of human excellence, that it is a crucial source of human flourishing, a critical engine of economic growth, and must be dedicated to the common good. Scientific inquiry entails global responsibilities. It should lead to a more equitable, safer, and healthier future for all of humankind.