“Hoffman rolled up his sleeve and pressed the container—mesh side down—to the inside of his forearm. He felt a tickling sensation as the mosquitoes pricked his skin. Five minutes later, he removed the canister; an Army scientist examined the mosquitoes to confirm that each had sucked Hoffman’s blood. Five other volunteers did the same. “For […]
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Posted inIllustrated Title, Story
After Water
The illustrated story of California, and what happens when the water runs out.
Posted inEditor's Pick
How Malaria Defeats Our Drugs
Anti-malarial drugs are quickly becoming ineffective as Plasmodium parasites from western Cambodia evolve resistance to them. The writer travels to the Thai-Burmese border to interview a French researcher named François Nosten who is working to eliminate malaria before the resistant parasites spread to other countries: Nosten thinks that without radical measures, resistance will spread to […]
Posted inEditor's Pick
Dr. Hoffman vs. the Mosquito
Dr. Stephen Hoffman has been searching for a way to eradicate malaria for the past 30 years. He may have found a vaccine to do it: There was no way Hoffman was going to ask US Marines to line up for a thousand mosquito bites each. But he decided to repeat the irradiated-mosquito experiments to […]
Posted inEditor's Pick
Medical Research: Cell Division
Fifty years ago, a microbiologist named Leonard Hayflick developed a strain of cells named WI-38 from the lungs of an aborted fetus. The strain of cells have been used to produce life-savings vaccines worldwide, but have also had a history riddled with controversy: “The cells have played ‘a very critical role in studying cellular senescence,’ […]
Posted inEditor's Pick
With Vaccines, Bill Gates Changes The World Again
While Gates’ vaccine-based giving—closing in on $6 billion to fight measles, hepatitis B, rotavirus and AIDS, among others—is part of the largest, most human-driven philanthropy in the history of mankind, what’s missing in his language are the individual humans. In many ways that’s the point. Gates’ clipped manner in discussing the children he and his […]
Posted inEditor's Pick
Flu Warning: Beware the Drug Companies!
The predicted dire emergency [with H1N1] did not occur. In the 2009–2010 “influenza season” about 18,000 people died from the disease worldwide, fewer than in previous years, and the vast majority of victims had serious underlying conditions such as cancer, lung disease, AIDS, or severe obesity, which can impair breathing.7 Since one influenza strain usually […]
Posted inEditor's Pick
A Broken Trust: Lessons from the Vaccine–Autism Wars
Researchers long ago rejected the theory that vaccines cause autism, yet many parents don’t believe them. Can scientists bridge the gap between evidence and doubt?
Posted inEditor's Pick
An Epidemic of Fear: How Panicked Parents Skipping Shots Endangers Us All
The underlying argument has not changed: Vaccines harm America’s children, and doctors like Paul Offit are paid shills of the drug industry. To be clear, there is no credible evidence to indicate that any of this is true. None. Twelve epidemiological studies have found no data that links the MMR (measles/mumps/rubella) vaccine to autism; six […]
