Jun 18 Watch 9:04 Why another flu pandemic is likely just a matter of when By William Brangham, Rachel Wellford Despite the availability of vaccines, the flu still kills tens of thousands of people in the U.S. each year, and hundreds of thousands more worldwide. But public health officials fear that an even graver threat lies ahead: the emergence of… Continue watching
Jun 18 How bad is the measles comeback? Here’s 70 years of data By Nsikan Akpan, Vanessa Dennis PBS NewsHour breaks down the U.S. fall and rise of the measles in 3 charts. Continue reading
Jun 17 The key to better childhood vaccines might be in our DNA By Nsikan Akpan A new study reminds us of how much vaccine effectiveness hinges on one thing: our personal genetics. Continue reading
Jun 13 Canada wants to ban single-use plastics. Would it make a difference? By Vicky Stein From Vancouver to Halifax, plastic plates, plastic bags and plastic straws may be on their way out. But critics say other products are problems too. Continue reading
Jun 12 Watch 9:37 Why ‘deepfake’ videos are becoming more difficult to detect By Miles O'Brien Sophisticated and inaccurate altered videos known as “deepfakes” are causing alarm in the digital realm. The highly realistic manipulated videos are the subject of a House Intelligence Committee hearing on Thursday. As Miles O’Brien reports, the accelerating speed of computers… Continue watching
Jun 11 A ‘dead zone’ the size of Massachusetts could hit the Gulf this summer By Nsikan Akpan Here is what a "dead zone" the size of Massachusetts could mean for the Gulf of Mexico and seafood prices. Continue reading
Jun 09 Watch 6:07 With rise in wildfires, prescribed burns may be a solution One of the worst wildfire seasons in U.S. history took place in 2018, including catastrophic blazes in California that killed nearly 100 people. As this year's fire season ramps up, a new report shows how the use of prescribed fires… Continue watching
Jun 09 ‘Jumping genes’ could help CRISPR replace disease-causing DNA, study finds By Sharon Begley, STAT Researchers describe combining a "jumping gene" with CRISPR enzymes to deliver a a package of DNA to precise addresses in the E. coli genome. Continue reading
Jun 07 Did the birth of the solar system make meteorites? Here’s a tell-tale clue By William Herbst, James Greenwood, The Conversation Despite decades of intense study, there is no general consensus on how most meteorites formed. An astronomer and a geologist offer a new theory of what happened during the solar system's birth to create these valuable relics of our past. Continue reading
Jun 06 Watch 6:39 How 2020 Democrats plan to address climate change In a year when floods, hurricanes and wildfires have devastated parts of the United States, climate change has been polling as a top issue in the 2020 Democratic primaries. All 23 of the party’s current candidates agree that this global… Continue watching