Search results

Tony Robbins is a motivational speaker and self-help guru who believes in "magic moments." He encourages guests to walk over a pit of burning coals, which often isn't as magical as planned.

Vermont's somewhat capricious GMO labeling law is set to go into effect next week and one company intends to comply with it by removing its products from store shelves. Coca-Cola is advising stores that individual cans and bottles will no longer be available to Vermont consumers, at least according to one tiny local outlet I had never heard of before today.

A recent paper in JAMA Internal Medicine was essentially little more than a hit piece on physicians. The authors claim that doctors will write prescriptions for more expensive drugs if they attend a seminar about that drug, and get a cheap meal. But the only thing cheap here is the standards of the authors. Their paper is a travesty.

First, Pepsi bought into anti-science claims about aspartame. But after making a change there was no mass exodus from Coke, and sales of Diet Pepsi actually went down over 10 percent in the first quarter of this year. So now Pepsi executives are swallowing hard, and doing the scientific "Walk of Shame" back toward aspartame.

Anything that reminds people to get up and move is a good thing, but will they actually do it? And once the novelty wears off, do we slide back into our lazier ways?

Would you douse a scalpel in alcohol and cut yourself open just for the purpose of implanting a piece of technology under your skin? Probably not, but there is a community of people -- "biohackers" -- who do just that. And they may be important to the future of science and technology.

Now that a Vermont law requiring labeling of GMO foods is about to take effect on July 1, the Senate has decided to act to prevent a plethora of state laws to confuse the issue. But wait! We can't really say that the Senate's bill will necessarily clarify anything.

Credit: Shutterstock

You never think it can happen to you, until it does. I just spent the greater part of this morning being gently ridiculed by my colleagues here at the American Council on Science and Health. Why? One word: Zika.

As a society, we never grew up beyond high school. Not being smart continues to be cool. Rejecting the collective wisdom of scientists, economists, academics, and journalists is applauded. Spurning the "establishment" has become the new national pastime.

A group of researchers is attempting to make coffee roasting more science than art. The team wants to improve consistency by using the tools of analytical chemistry to monitor the coffee roasting process in real-time.

It’s that time again: the possibility of penalty shoot-outs looms large in Euro 2016 now that we are entering the knockout phases. We kick off on Saturday June 25 with Switzerland v Poland and Wales v Northern Ireland, though those with a taste for blood sports might prefer to look forward to the possibility of another England vs. Germany penalty showdown in the semi-finals.

1. Discussing Vermont's bizarre and arbitrary GMO warning label law, set to take effect July 1st, Congressman Bob Gibbs of Ohio takes the evidence-based approach, and notes that thanks to biotechnology, the lives of the world's poorest are being saved - and the lives of everyone are being made better:

Flu vaccine given by nasal spray is a godsend to parents of kids who fear "shots." But for the next flu season they may well have to revert to the injectable version, since experts fear the spray is not very effective against the most prevalent strains of the inluenza virus.

We have been writing and testifying about fentanyl — a much more powerful version of heroin — for years. We've termed it "The Devil in the Room" and we're pleased that mainstream media and government policy makers finally started to pay attention to the advance thinking we've brought to the national discussion of this important topic.

Many factors feed into food consumption choices. The bigger the plate, for example, the greater the amount eaten. A new study examines whether or not giving people feedback on the number of bites they take can effectively alter eating behavior.

If shark fin trade is banned, would you miss it? It's illegal to engage in sharkfinning in the United States but not illegal to buy fins. But a new bill being considered would change that. The bipartisan group wants to reduce sharkfinning by banning imports.

Is nothing sacred anymore? We are constantly bombarded by chemical scares, so much so that even labels of our childhood icons aren't able to avoid ridiculous scrutiny. Since Mr. Potato Head's arrived back in 1952, he clearly needs a new label to reflect the toxicological wisdom and sensitivity of modern times.

The Toxic Substances Control Act has been amended for the first time in 20 years. It includes parameters that prioritize chemicals for risk assessment while focusing on particular-use scenarios, rather than lazily analyzing epidemiology papers and declaring "hazards." The measure appears to be a win for everyone.

Old science could be a new way to kill salmonella in meat. Research shows that treating meat products infected with four types of salmonella using Myoviridae bacteriophages during mixing led to the bacteriophages invading the cells of the bacteria and destroying them.

Rory McIlroy's decision Wednesday to skip the Olympics in Brazil due to concerns over possibly contracting the Zika virus is equivalent to him having carded a horrific, sextuple bogey from a series of fearful half-swings on the easiest of par-3's. There are many ways for the world's No. 4 golfer to nearly eliminate all risk, but instead he chose to ignore them.

There's a yellow fever outbreak taking place in West Africa, and disturbingly it has all of the markings of the next global health emergency. We have the tools to stop this one, but it's spreading quickly and it may soon be out of control. That is, unless essential measures are taken immediately.

Researchers have genetically engineered human T cells to produce a CAR protein that recognizes a glycopeptide found on various cancer cells but not normal cells, and then demonstrated its effectiveness in mice with leukemia and pancreatic cancer.

Internet billionaire Sean Parker, of Facebook and Napster fame, is behind a clinical trial of CRISPR that may have jumped ahead of competitors. He has agreed to give $250 million in funding to six centers.

Time for a colonoscopy? Many want to shun this screening for colorectal cancer, but according to the US Preventive Services Task Force, having the procedure is the best way to go. This and other modalities were evaluated in their latest recommendations on CRC screening.

If you couldn't tell from all of the joyous children running around, the summer has begun. Unfortunately, this also means that it's the start of West Nile Virus season. How much should we worry? To answer that let's examine three outcomes from a West Nile Virus infection, and someone's likelihood of getting each.