A major scandal has erupted further regarding FDA monitoring of its scientists’ emails as reported by the NY Times. The FDA spied on the emails of its own scientists and other scientists. Some of the emails also involved correspondence with Congress and even the White House. Regardless of one’s position on what the FDA did, …
Does science need some kind of version of a Dr. Oz to tell the world about science in simple, easy-to-understand ways that don’t distort the science? I’ll admit I’m not a fan of Dr. Oz for a number of reasons, but I know he has legions of fans including my mom. One of the reasons …
Dr. Oz vs Carl Sagan: risks & rewards of pop-sci media and writing Read More »
U.S. presidential candidate Mitt Romney is reaching out to the evangelical community here in the U.S. and there’s a stem cell connection. Apparently he’s been doing this for a half dozen years…. How’s that going? What do they talk about? Romney, himself of the Mormon faith, has been working hard to convince American evangelicals that …
Radical Islam, stem cells, & Romney Mormon faith Read More »
I’ve been doing a series of blog posts about scientists called “The elephant in the lab” in which I discuss taboo, but important topics in science. Today we are focusing on the top 10 dumbest things that scientists do…and hence today’s entry in this series might be called “Dumbo in the Lab” instead of “Elephant in …
Stupid scientist tricks: what we do that we shouldn’t Read More »
Celltex is a clinic down in Texas most famous for isolating and growing up the stem cells that were given as a transplant to Texas Governor and one time GOP candidate for president, Rick Perry. The FDA audited Celltex in April for two weeks. Based on the audit of Celltex, the FDA issued a 483 form …
Do you feel frustrated with the current peer review system in science? I have an idea that might help and it involves the revolutionary idea of reviewer accountability. In other words, authors and grant writers in essence review their reviewers. I’ve made this all the easier for you with templates that you can simply and …
Transformative idea for peer review: reviewing & grading the reviewers Read More »
I was critical earlier this week in a post of what I perceived to be the over-the-top reaction to the whole Higgs Boson situation and press fest. I went so far as to call it “hysteria” or one could say “Higgstery“. In turn, I was criticized for that blog post for being too critical and spoiling people’s …
A stodgy old scientist once said to me that he was skeptical of scientific social media with its “twitting and the blobs” …..uh, you mean blogs? But maybe he wasn’t so off track in what he said, talking about a blog as “The blob”, reflecting his thinking of blogs as akin to monsters. Is blogging …
The Blob versus the blog: arguing how social media is changing science Read More »
For the first time to my knowledge, patients have sued a dubious stem cell clinic (RNL Bio) for fraud. As one stem cell expert has put it (see below), now there is “blood in the water”. RNL Bio of Korea has reportedly (hat tip to Leigh Turner) just been sued for fraud by patients related to stem …
Korean stem cell clinic sued by patients in U.S. for fraud Read More »
As I’ve been writing this blog for the last couple years it has served as a catalyst for me to meet dozens of really interesting people. One such person is Lee Buckler, a true stem cell industry guru. Given all the complex events of late in the stem cell field, I asked Lee if he …
Great interview with Lee Buckler on stem cell industry, regulatory issues, and Celltex Read More »