May 16 2012
Genetics and the Risks from Traumatic Brain Injuries
23andMe founder and CEO Anne Wojcicki talks about new research into genetic factors correlated with risk for degenerative brain disease in response to traumatic brain injury.
Archive for the 'recommended reading' Category
Jan 12 2012
Being a Part of Personalized Medicine
Last week, we announced the winner of our essay contest for a free ticket to this month’s Personalized Medicine World Conference. Today, we feature an essay by finalist Nicole Mosher, who is just beginning her scientific career.
Dec 28 2011
Our Top 10 for 2011
We thought 2010 would be hard to top but we’re happy to say that 2011 has been even better. Here’s our list of some of the most intriguing developments from 2011.
Jul 01 2011
Biopunks, Science and Discovery
Marcus Wohlsen is on to something. An Associated Press science and biotechnology writer, Wohlsen is the author of the book BioPunk: DIY Scientists Hack the Software of Life. The book, which came out in April, outlines the parallels between the current community of upstart amateur scientists working in makeshift kitchen labs and garages with the [...]
Apr 21 2011
Pulitzer Prize for Sequencing Story
Kathleen Gallagher and Mark Johnson are good reporters but it didn’t take a lot to figure out that the tip they got was big news. Doctors, Gallagher heard, had used genetic sequencing to crack the mystery behind an illness slowly robbing a young boy of his life. “The tip that she had was that they [...]
Jan 12 2011
Warm-up to PMWC: More Poetry
The 3rd annual Personalized Medicine World Conference is less than one week away, so we thought we’d share a few more of our favorite poetry contest entries. Double Dactyl for a Double Helix by Mark Cackler SNPity, SNPity, Personalized medicine Looks at our DNA; Tells us our traits. Multimendelian Phenotype research can Give us our [...]
Nov 24 2010
Here is a Review about Here is a Human Being
Even as a curious scientist and a 23andMe employee, I hesitated before opening my genetic test results and wondered…Do I really want to know? Misha Angrist asks himself a similar question in his new book, Here is a Human Being. Then again, he had a really good reason to give pause. As subject number four [...]
Oct 07 2010
My $0.02 about The $1,000 Genome
Taken individually, the letters A, G, T, and C seem relatively harmless. However, when arranged three billion strong into a human genetic code, these letters have instilled fear of discrimination, disease risk, and a genetically engineered super race of humans (à la the 1997 film “GATTACA”). Once only a subject for science fiction movies, whole [...]
Jun 10 2010
Understanding GINA
The Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act, or GINA, is U.S. federal legislation that protects Americans from discrimination (in health insurance and employment decisions) on the basis of genetic information. GINA was signed into law by President George W. Bush on May 21, 2008. The Genetic Alliance, the Genetics and Public Policy Center at the Johns Hopkins [...]
Apr 29 2009
Recommended Reading: The Stuff of Life
I spent the better part of my undergraduate career lugging around massive biology textbooks. General biology, genetics, embryology: It didn’t matter, they all weighed a ton. I pored over endless chapters of text, highlighting the important sentences, always wishing for more photos, more diagrams, more graphs. A single well-made diagram or image was easier to [...]
