Despite many claims, nobody knows for sure how the environmental footprint of lab-grown meat compares to livestock. An animal scientist says the issue is not black and white.
Interested in a juicy burger grown in the lab?
Oliver Sjöström/Unsplash
Cultured meat comes from cells in a lab, not muscles in an animal. While regulatory and technological aspects are being worked out, less is known about whether people are up for eating this stuff.
Imagine using synthetic DNA as a sensor recording device.
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In 2003 the Human Genome Project "cracked the code of life", yet parts of our DNA remained unidentified. A new study fills out our genetic blueprint by using a nanotechnology-based technique.
Victor Frankenstein’s mistakes serve as cautionary lessons.
Etienne Marais/Pexels
If Mary Shelley wrote the book today, Victor would surely be a synthetic biologist. But those fiddling with living things in 2018 have hopefully learned from her cautionary tale.
CRISPR provides a very targeted tool for editing DNA in plants.
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Research institutes and "centres of excellence" exist around the world to draw talent and to share resources - all with the aim of solving important problems.
Delivering genetic material is a key challenge in gene therapy.
Invitation image created by Kstudio
One big challenge for gene therapies is delivering DNA or RNA safely to cells inside patients' bodies. New nanoparticles could be an improvement over the current standard – repurposed viruses.
Modern advances come with new liabilities.
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Biologists' growing reliance on computers advances the field – but comes with new risks. The first step toward improved cyberbiosecurity is increasing awareness of possible threats.
Pools at an algae farm in Borculo, east Netherlands.
AP Photo/Arthur Max
Scientists and government agencies have been studying biofuel production from algae for years. Research points toward a more affordable and efficient production process that recycles water.
A noninvasive brain-computer interface based on EEG recordings from the scalp.
Center for Sensorimotor Neural Engineering (CSNE), Photo by Mark Stone
Brain-computer interfacing is a hot topic in the tech world, with Elon Musk's announcement of his new Neuralink startup. Here, researchers separate what's science from what's currently still fiction.
Armed forces around the world are exploring technological and biological enhancements to their soldiers. But this raises a number of serious ethical concerns, before, during and after conflict.
A scientific breakthrough in a vacuum may be free of ethical implications. But many developments can be used for good or evil, or both. There's a fine balance on what to control and to what extent.
Will your cellphone be able to communicate with bacteria in your body?
Bacteria image via www.shutterstock.com.
New research works out how to translate between the language of biology – molecules – and the language of microelectronics – electrons. It could open the door to new kinds of biosensors and therapeutics.
Photosynthesis can teach scientists a lot about solar technologies.
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Individual light-harvesting protein complexes have a remarkable ability. Light, which is normally effectively harvested, is also used to finely control how much of it should be harvested.
The black mamba is one of the most notorious venomous snakes in the world.
Flickr
One way to tackle the snakebite antivenom crisis may be through biotechnological innovation to make antivenoms more cost-effective, easier to produce, and more efficacious against snakebites.
Science communication puts research under the microscope.
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Science communication has grown in leaps and bounds over the past 60 years. It plays a crucial role in democratising science and making it less mysterious.
Will China be the first to genetically enhance future generations?
Jianan Yu/Reuters
Regulations, funding and public opinion around genetically enhancing future generations vary from country to country. Here's why China may be poised to be the pioneer.
Director, Walter and Eliza Hall Institute & Professor of Medical Biology, and an honorary principal fellow in the Department of Zoology at the University of Melbourne, Walter and Eliza Hall Institute