PODCAST

Interview With Youth Stem Cell Research Advocate Cody Unser

Jonathan Moreno interviews Cody Unser, a youth advocate for science-based healthcare policy with an inspiring story.

AGRICULTURAL SCIENCE

Informing the Genetically Engineered Crop Debate

Why what you think you know about agricultural biotechnology may be wrong.

LIFE SCIENCES

Thrown Back to the 90’s

The misguided human embryonic stem cell research ruling by a U.S. court would discontinue amazing gains made over the past 12 years in regenerative medicine.

LIFE SCIENCES

One Small Step for Embryonic Stem Cells

The Food and Drug Administration approves the first clinical trial for embryonic stem cell treatment in patients with recent spinal cord injuries—creating a much needed regulatory pathway.

AGRICULTURE

Igniting Agricultural Innovation

Agricultural innovations through modern biotechnology have delivered significant economic, environmental, health and consumer benefits in recent years, but the full potential is even greater.

AGRICULTURE

Genetic Engineering Comes Up Short

Crops yields must improve to feed a hungry planet amid global warming, but that will require more ecology-based farming and less biotechnology.

AGRICULTURE

Can Agricultural Biotechnology Help the Poor?

Biotechnology can help the poor, but whether it will depends on people of good will taking the time to understand and consider the arguments in some detail.

Data Bank: U.S. Reproductive Biotechnology Regulation Falls Behind

Last week, Jonathan Moreno called for international standards governing reproductive technologies. But if we want to ensure that frightening decisions about genetic modification are not being made around the world, we should first focus on developing strict regulatory standards here [...]

FINANCING SCIENCE

Pittsburgh’s Targeted Incubator

The Pittsburgh Life Sciences Greenhouse was formed in 2000 as a focused incubator to provide capital investments and customized company formation. A focused incubator provides deep knowledge of global industry trends, national networks, and corporate collaborations to identify investment opportunities.

No Virtue In Fatalism

Refusing to pursue recent and possible future developments in medical research is itself a morally momentous decision—and that inaction has consequences Cohen and other right-wing thinkers refuse to acknowledge.

Six Easy Pieces

Americans know that the future fortunes of the country rest on scientific and technological advances, so Mr. President, let’s take biomedical science policy seriously.

Seeds of Discontent

Recent reports indicate that Europeans seem to be moving towards acceptance of genetically modified foods, as long as they are properly labeled. Conflict surrounds discussions on GM crops, but there are many facets of the debate over these seeds.

The Ethics of Enhancing Brain Power

In a briefing yesterday for Capitol Hill staffers, neuroscientist Martha Farah explained that new technologies that enhance the power of the brain also raise questions about safety, economic fairness, privacy, and personal freedom.

Storing Plant Seeds, Sequencing Plant Genomes

Two stories this week describe two different approaches to plant genetic resources. Tuesday, researchers from Washington University and Iowa State university announced a completed draft of the corn genome. The same day, the Svalbard Global Seed Vault, which will store seeds from around the world in the event of catastrophic loss, opened on a remote Norwegian island.

Bridging the “Valley of Death”

The U.S. government has poured money into this experimental new vaccine alongside private investors. The effort just might carry the vaccine all the way to the marketplace.

The Dish: Sampling Today’s News – February 15, 2008

AAAS president critiques U.S. science and tech policy; researchers map human impacts on ocean ecosystems; new materials for carbon capture; harnessing the tides and waves for energy; biodefense watchdog shuts down.

National Academies Explore Interdisciplinary Research

The National Research Council of the National Academies convened a symposium Wednesday to explore approaches among “Future Directions in Research at the Intersection of the Physical and Life Sciences.” The intersections up for discussion ranged across the research spectrum: from synthetic biology to geoengineering to bioterrorism.

Blog Roundup: Dec 3, 2007

NASA has a new face on the web; the NIH says gene therapy wasn’t the cause of death in a recent trial; open-source standards and net neutrality can improve global health; and more.

Stem Progress

Researchers working independently in Japan and the U.S. published papers this week announcing the creation of non-embryonic pluripotent stem cells. The method side-steps the ethical concerns over the destruction of embryos and could open the doors for federal funding of research on stem cells and the medical breakthroughs they promise.

Snap Observations: Labor-HHS Veto, One Laptop Per Child, Rewarding Drug Development, “Right to Dry”

President Bush vetoed the Labor-HHS-Education appropriations bill, which would have increased funding for the National Institutes of Health from $29 billion to $30 billion and required open access to published NIH-funded research.