I talked last year about human genetic modification by CRISPR with George Church a year ago. Now we’ve followed up with a long chat on this topic going into much more detail and with questions on recent developments. Each question is listed numerically and then there is a back and forth on that question with George […]
George Church chat: CRISPR people, Zika, weapons Read More »
One of the rewarding things about being a scientist is the opportunity to connect and even collaborate with other scientists around the world., but at the same time there is nationalism in science too. Some nations, perhaps most of them, and some scientists feel a sense of competition against others at least some of the time.
A role for nationalism in science? Read More »
My youngest kiddo and I went to Picnic Day today, which was as always a lot of fun. Not so fun was that the college student right behind us on the bus on the way there started vomiting like crazy (think splash risk) probably from too much drinking the night before, but we didn’t let
Fun Photos from UC Davis Picnic Day 2016 Read More »
It’s been a busy few weeks for the CRISPR arena so I’ve made a CRISPR Update. I’ve listed below links to some commentaries and key developments. Fun Video interview on Read Science! with Joanne Manaster on my new book on CRISPR in humans, GMO Sapiens. CRISPR: Pursuit of profit poisons collaboration, Nature piece by Jacob Sherkow
CRISPR Update: Patents, Embryos, & IPOs, oh my Read More »
The number of people around the world being injected with stem cells every day has never been higher and the heterogeneous group of medical providers doing these procedures is also at or near its highest level ever. The cells used are also highly variable as are the procedures themselves, but most of these cells fall under the
Review of Centeno MSC safety paper: without controls, conclusions muted Read More »
A new paper was recently published on CRISPR of human embryos for genetic modification. I’ve got to read this publication more carefully, but here’s a quick initial take on this human CRISPR 2.0 study. The paper is Kang, et al. and is entitled “Introducing precise genetic modifications into human 3PN embryos by CRISPR/Cas-mediated genome editing”.
New Paper on CRISPR of Human Embryos Highlights Serious Tech Problems Read More »
We’ve heard of payphones, pay toilets, and other services for which people have to pay for access, but what about pay clinical trials? In a pay clinical trial, patients have to pay anywhere from $10K to over $100K to get in the door. I asked readers of this blog about how they feel about patients
Pay clinical trials? 70% negative polling Read More »
Donald Trump wants to build a ‘great wall’ to keep Mexicans out of America and charge for it. I’ve heard many scientists criticize this plan. But if you think about it, in science we already have our own “great” harmful walls related to money and Trump would probably love them. One such wall is the paywall
Trump Would Love The Great Walls of Science & Medicine Read More »
In science we often use equipment, methods, or units that are named after accomplished scientists of the past without even thinking about it. Originally, this piece was going to be dedicated to those pioneering scientists, but then I realized they are essentially all men with disturbingly few possible exceptions. Is there rampant sexism in science naming at work
Sexism in Science Naming of Stuff? Bunsen, Petri, Southern, & More Read More »
There’s a growing trend whereby patients have to pay to be in a clinical trial. This is now widely referred to as “pay-to-play”. Proponents of this idea point toward potential benefits in the form of patients gaining access to innovative therapies. They also argue that this approach provides a much-needed funding mechanism for the trials
Poll: How do you feel about ‘pay-to-play’ clinical trials? Read More »