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Well-being isn’t merely a condition of life, some sort of personal happiness rating. According to many of today’s biggest thinkers, it’s a definable state that one can make practical steps toward achieving. To explore approaches that bring calm, happiness, and increased productivity, meditate on a few of these great sessions.
Thanks to the genius of biochemists such as Jennifer Doudna, who’s credited with the co-discovery of CRISPR, our biggest scientific advances in the near future may easily come by way of the genome-editing technology. CRISPR enables scientists to change or remove genes quickly, with a precision only dreamed of just a few years ago. But just how far are we willing to go to e...
Anyone who has ever had a pet understands how deeply connected human beings are to the animals who serve as our companions, lessen our stress, and perhaps offer a buffer against cognitive decline. Puppy play date, anyone? Honeybees help to protect our food supply, vision-impaired people rely not only on seeing-eye dogs but also on seeing-eye horses, and animal research has...
Civilization was a byproduct of humanity’s need to feed ourselves, but we still haven’t figured it out. World population continues to grow even as developing economies demand more resource-intensive food. And though we face the prospect of long-term crop-antagonistic weather, we still throw away a tremendous amount of food. Take a look at the challenges of today — and the...
Williams, Jordan, James, Brady. They’re among a growing class of the superstar athletes delivering career-best performances well past what's been considered peak age for their sports. As this phenomenon becomes more common, it begs the questions how and why now? How are experience and maturity winning out over inevitable, natural physical decline? Athletes in the 30s and 4...
For health researchers, space is proving to be a unique laboratory to explore stem cells, pharmaceuticals, 3D bioprinting, food science, and more. TRISH's Dorit Donoviel, an Aspen Ideas: Health 2023 speaker, explains how collaboration and open science can help advance these "out-of-this-world" discoveries for all mankind.
New insights into human biology and the ability to manipulate molecules both large and small are rapidly accelerating medical innovations. By employing genetic engineering to empower immune cells, scientist-physicians are bringing new treatment options to people with cancer. Mapping the neural circuitry involved in mood disorders points the way towards deep brain stimulati...
Suddenly, CBD is everywhere – it’s being sold in major drugstore chains and showing up in skin lotion, smoothies, baked goods, lozenges, pet food, and Ben & Jerry’s ice cream. Some people swear by CBD to treat inflammation, anxiety, pain, sleep disorders, epilepsy, diabetes, high blood pressure, and just about everything else. Derived from the cannabis plant, it is part of...
What does neuroscience have to offer education? A panel of leading developmental neuroscientists and master educators explain how a deepening understanding of interdependent neural processes can revolutionize teaching and learning. Emotions do not interfere with learning, as we once believed, but rather are crucial to our ability to engage complex ideas, process and retain...
Neurologist Anjan Chatterjee explains why humans evolved to enjoy beauty, how sociocultural contexts shape our aesthetic preferences, and the "beauty is good" stereotype.
Generation after generation, we’re doing a pretty good job at regeneration. Yet sex continues to be a confusing subject — laden with ignorance, taboo, and shame — and the addition of technologies for connection, gratification, and reproduction are changing the landscape of intimacy. What do we really know about sex, and will we ever be good at talking about it?
Whether you love setting New Year’s resolutions or ignore them entirely, there’s still a certain mix of nostalgia and excitement over the ending of one year and the possibilities that lay ahead. We’ve gathered five big ideas that offer some food for thought as you head into 2024, including a new mindset for thinking about careers, a glimpse into the history of the cosmos,...
Trillions of bacteria inhabit the human gut, working in close and complex symbiosis with our cells. Novel analytic methods offer new insights about those complex biochemical interactions, and help us understand how disturbances in their equilibrium can undermine well-being. Researchers are also learning how the gut microbiome responds to the food we eat, influencing obesit...
As the world continues to grow, there are more mouths to feed. With emerging markets, biotechnology in the agricultural sector contributes to market stability and aids in providing the resources necessary to continue economic growth in the developing world. On every continent, these shifts are apparent and farmers and the agribusiness are striving to adapt accordingly. Fro...
Dozens of physicians, health consultants and other medical experts have gone on the payroll at Apple and Google to drive research. Amazon’s secret health team – called 1492 – is exploring new platforms for electronic medical records, virtual physician visits, and health apps. Predictive analytics, automated diagnoses, and wearable sensors are other areas of digital opportu...
As scientists work to develop a vaccine to battle the coronavirus pandemic, many people question whether the process has been rushed and if the results will be effective and safe. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is responsible for approving new vaccines in this country. FDA commissioner Dr. Stephen Hahn and former FDA commissioner Dr. Peggy Hamburg say the agency use...
For years, dogs have been getting the short end of the stick — so to speak — when it comes to research. Dolphins and primates get lots of attention. Now, it’s the dog’s turn. Two experts, Alexandra Horowitz and Brian Hare, are part of a growing number of scientists researching canine cognition. They study what a dog knows, understands, and believes. Sure, it’s nice to know...
Human survival depends on an extraordinarily complex dance with animals. From the bees whose pollinating habits give us much of our food supply to the primates who testify to the power of evolution, from the animals that transmit diseases to humans to those that contribute to therapeutic research, our lives are completely intertwined with the millions of other species inha...
Aromas can trigger memories more forcefully than any other sense. The ability to smell allows us to enjoy nature’s riches, protects us from food gone bad, warns of gas leaks, and provides the perfume of intimacy. It is also the primary communication tool that animals use in the wild. Yet the superpower of smell has historically been under appreciated, the sense people gene...