There has been a lot of election “post-mortem” talk about living in bubbles. Urban bubbles, academic elite bubbles, blue state bubbles — all out of touch with and perhaps at times dismissive of rural America, no college degree America, red state America. [For a concise articulation of the problem, see November 8th New York Times Read More…
Category: Consumer Genetics
Thoughts on Translation
I recently spent 12 days vacationing in Italy with my mother and two older sisters. While my body is still processing large quantities of delicious cheeses, pasta, and gelato, my mind is digesting the experience of touring a foreign country with different norms, cultural nuances, and of course — a different language (though the diversity Read More…
The Contradictions of Consumer Genomics
Through numerous conversations I’ve had with scientists, ethicists, and health care providers over the past few years, I’ve picked up on an odd and seemingly contradictory view of consumer genomic testing: it is both meaningless and dangerous. Not to paint a picture of complete professional consensus, as there is none, but from what I hear Read More…
Acronymity
I was recently sitting across from my financial adviser, at his desk on the floor of a busy bank in Seattle. I panicked as I realized that, through a slippery stream of acronyms and jargon, I had lost track of the conversation. ETFs, A-shares, C-shares, rights of accrual…I had even studied up on mutual fund Read More…
Infophile, Infofull, Infofool
Infophile Infophilia: love of information. I think we’re all involved in that romance a bit these days, given the abundance and 24/7 availability of information. Anything we want to know is just one Google search away, and we need only to reach for our smartphones to complete that search. It is seductive, this draw to Read More…
Through the DNA Looking Glass
There is an allure to making the invisible visible, especially when it is about us. We carry many things around with us every day, beneath the surface: stories, histories, thoughts, and beliefs. Our bodies also carry around a total of several trillion copies of our genome, two per cell and these, too, remain invisible to Read More…
Over-the-Counter Genetics
Genetic testing has been around for decades. Early examples include state-run newborn screening programs, the first of which was for the metabolic disorder phenylketonuria (PKU). Whether you know it or not, in the first few hours of your life a little heel prick of blood was taken from you and tested for probably a dozen Read More…