News

Surrogacy goes more mainstream

By Carly Mallenbaum, Axios [cites Emily Galpern] | 03.29.2026

More Americans are turning to surrogacy to build their families, as the practice becomes more common and more publicly discussed.

Why it matters: As surrogacy becomes more visible and accessible, ethical, legal and cultural tensions become harder to ignore...

U.S. Federal

Eugenics and the Modern Synthesis, Part I

By Jessica Riskin, Los Ángeles Review of Books | 03.23.2026

This is the first part of the 14th installment in the Legacies of Eugenics series, which features essays by leading thinkers devoted to exploring the history of eugenics and the ways it shapes our present. The series is organized by...

Civil Society

Surrogacy laws are all over the map

By Carly Mallenbaum, Axios [cites Surrogacy360] | 03.29.2026

Without a federal law, surrogacy in the U.S. is governed by a patchwork of state regulations/

Why it matters: Confusing...

Policies

Project Eugenics: The Rollback of Disability Rights

By Kiana Jackson and Shannon Stubblefield, New Disabled South | 02.09.2026

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This report documents a deliberate assault on disabled people in...

U.S. States

Representation of sperm surrounding an egg on a pink background

When treating and researching infertility, let’s not forget the men

By Vardit Ravitsky and Sarah Kimmins, The Globe and Mail | 08.24.2018

Vardit Ravitsky is an associate professor of bioethics at the University of Montreal.

Sarah Kimmins is an associate professor at...

Assisted Reproduction

A Harsher Look at California's Stem Cell Program: No More Cash Without Changes

By David Jensen, California Stem Cell Report [cites CGS' Pete Shanks] | 08.23.2018

California's $3 billion stem cell experiment received a host of accolades last week at a state legislative hearing, but one...

U.S. States

The letters A C T G repeat in primary colors descend down a screen

Ancestry Tests Pose a Threat to Our Social Fabric

By John Edward Terrell, Sapiens | 08.23.2018

I have never understood why anybody would think humans are by nature violent, warlike creatures. True, we have all surely...

Genomics

With Embryo Base Editing, China Gets Another Crispr First

By Megan Molteni, Wired | 08.21.2018

Scientists in the US may be out in front developing the next generation of Crispr-based genetic tools, but it’s China...

Human Genetic Modification

A bronze plaque describes the history of Shockley semiconductor lab

Mountain View Commemorates Lab of William Shockley, Acclaimed Physicist and Vocal Racist

By Sam Harnett, The California Report | 08.21.2018

Last week, nearly 400 people crowded in front of 391 San Antonio Road in Mountain View to commemorate what was...

Biotech & Pharma

Illustration of a DNA strand inside a syringe

Officials remove special rules for gene therapy experiments

By Marilynn Marchione, Associated Press [cites CGS' Marcy Darnovsky] | 08.15.2018

U.S. health officials are eliminating special regulations for gene therapy experiments, saying that what was once exotic science is quickly...

Policies

A cradle and a rocking chair occupy a baby room painted pink.

Why Are So Many Parents Picking Their Baby’s Sex?

By Rebecca Gale, Dame [Cites CGS' Marcy Darnovsky] | 08.14.2018

In our on-demand era of reproductive liberty and technology, a child’s sex isn’t always left up to chance. As more...

Genetic Selection

Image of a scientist in a dark lab room cutting agarose gel used in electrophoresis.

DNA ancestry tests may look cheap. But your data is the price

By Adam Rutherford, The Guardian | 08.10.2018

In 1884, at the International Health Exhibition in South Kensington, four million punters came to view the latest scientific...

Society