Illumination 2.0

Dr. Stephanie Seneff is famous for her observation that autism rates track glyphosate, leading her to the conclusion that glyphosate causes autism and that 50% of children will be autistic in 2025 .  At that rate, and logic, every kid will be autistic in 2045.  In looking at statistics, I found another confounding contributor.  Enjoy.  The trend is undeniable. The numbers of UFO sightings are increasing, no doubt brought on by the use of glyphosate.  Or maybe UFOs make kids autistic.  Or UFOs cause glyphosate. It is so hard for me to think wrong!  When you look at a heat map of where the most sightings occur, look what is at the end of that yellow arrow.... You guessed it.  Monsanto World HQ.  Coincidence? Happy Friday. Enjoy the weekend, listen to the podcast... covering the NAS Report with Dr. Neal Stewart. 

A subset of the panel that met to synthesize the science on genetic engineering in crops convened at the American Society of Plant Biologists 2016 conference in Austin, TX.  Drs. Robin Buell, Rick Dixon and Neal Stewart discussed the results and process of the panel's conclusions. There were 20 people on the committee from diverse backgrounds and looked at a wide variety of literature and testimony.  Testimony came from "individuals who have been directly involved in, or who have special knowledge of the question" and they were charged to examine "all credible views". The committee examined relevant literature, over 1000 publications, saw ~80 personal interviews. Interviews were conducted with many non-scientists with strong anti-GMO views. The entire process was transparent and all information presented was available to the public. Any member of the public could access the information.  All of this was a first for a National Academies Report.  The central

For years I've had to make that clarification.  I'm not pro-GMO.  I never would characterize myself as pro-GMO .  Last week Mark Lynas and I answered questions for an audience in Belfast, Northern Ireland. At the end the moderator polled the audience for who was "anti-GMO" and who was "pro-GMO". Mark and I sat quietly and did not raise our hands.   That's me, Mark and Prof. Chris Elliot at the event in Belfast. The moderator quipped, "Obviously both of you are pro-GMO."  Mark and I both rejected that categorization.  As a scientist, I find such terms of ideological grounding quite troubling.  Genetic engineering is a technology.  I can think of good applications, I can think of evil applications.  My synthesis of four decades of literature and a deep understanding of the technology says that the applications have been overwhelmingly positive.  Consistent with the recent interpretations of the National Academies of Science,

This morning I was fortunate to have breakfast with Mark Lynas in Belfast, Northern Ireland.  He discussed his idea for a blog, based on the idea that 107 Nobel Laureates have asked Greenpeace to change their position on Golden Rice. He prepared a nice piece with a quick turnaround. It's here! Go read that now if you haven't.  I'll wait.  I could never put that so eloquently.  So instead, I'll focus on the idea that changing one's mind is not a bad thing, and maybe Greepeace should do that.  While politicians scream of "flip-flopping" and "waffling", in reality changing one's mind is an act of courage. It comes after a time evidence re-evaluation.  It is a sign of growth, a sign of personal improvement.   Head toward the light!! Greenpeace is in a difficult spot.  They do some things well and have a solid brand to inspire change.  However, they are not taken seriously because of their denial of fundamental science, and their trash

Sometime early Sunday morning my office suite was broken into.  My office has two areas, my assistant's area, and then my office.  The two are connected by locking doors, and there are two keys to the offices, mine and my assistant's. Nobody has access to these areas because they contain sensitive personnel records and other student information. My assistant came in at 7:30 on Monday morning to find coffee spilled everywhere, files a mess, and all of the drawers gone through. Someone was at the computer and records show an "unknown device" was hooked to her computer at 1AM on Sunday.  We do not know what was up- or downloaded. We see how they broke in.  It was a rather simple move that probably took place during business hours.  They basically rigged the locking mechanism so that it would be easy to enter after hours.  My office is an adjacent room, and there's no evidence yet that it was entered.  We're still examining the contents and computers.  It is

Sometime early Sunday morning my office suite was broken into.  My office has two areas, my assistant's area, and then my office.  The two are connected by locking doors, and there are two keys to the offices, mine and my assistant's. Nobody has access to these areas because they contain sensitive personnel records and other student information. My assistant came in at 7:30 on Monday morning to find coffee spilled everywhere, files a mess, and all of the drawers gone through. Someone was at the computer and records show an "unknown device" was hooked to her computer at 1AM on Sunday.  We do not know what was up- or downloaded. We see how they broke in.  It was a rather simple move that probably took place during business hours.  They basically rigged the locking mechanism so that it would be easy to enter after hours.  My office is an adjacent room, and there's no evidence yet that it was entered.  We're still examining the contents and computers.  It is

This week's Talking Biotech Podcast interviews Dr. Jude Grosser.   If there ever was a wizard of science, Dr. Grosser might just be it.  For 30 years he's used the most cutting-edge techniques in an attempt to improve citrus trees, not an easy feat.  Trees grow slowly, and genetic changes are difficult.  Dr. Grosser uses non-"GMO" methods as well as genetic engineering to produce new trees that just may save the industry from citrus disease.