We’re likely over-consuming the world’s most profitable nutrient – and it’s wrecking our waistlines. BBC | October 29, 2026

https://geneticliteracyproject.org/2026/10/29/were-likely-over-consuming-the-worlds-most-profitable-nutrient-and-its-wrecking-our-waistlines/ Protein has become the darling of the grocery aisle, stamped on everything from cereal to snack bars. But as BBC Science Focus’s Jessica Bradley reports, most of us already eat more protein than we need — and the surplus is more likely to widen waistlines than build muscle.

Genetics of IQ: At what age do various forms of intelligence peak? Aporia Magazine | October 28, 2026

https://geneticliteracyproject.org/2026/10/28/genetics-of-iq-at-what-age-do-various-forms-of-intelligence-peak/ Bad news for anyone counting on getting sharper with age: once a few statistical quirks are corrected, overall IQ most likely peaks in your thirties, not your seventies. That’s the case Adam Rochussen, a fellow at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies and the Roots of Progress Institute, makes in Aporia Magazine.

Viewpoint: How to rebuild trust in public health in an age of misinformation, political division, and media fragmentation Emily Gaines Buchler | Johns Hopkins University | October 29, 2026

https://geneticliteracyproject.org/2026/10/29/viewpoint-how-to-rebuild-trust-in-public-health-in-an-age-of-misinformation-political-division-and-media-fragmentation/ In the Facebook group Crunchy Moms: Natural Living & Clean Products, a debate rages over childhood vaccines amid posts about breastfeeding and artificial preservatives. One mom gets fed up and announces her departure: “I joined expecting conversations about organic food, holistic tips, and thoughtful ways to support our children—not the promotion of refusing routine childhood vaccinations.”

Viewpoint: AI pioneer Anthropic is going public. Should we embrace its transformative ambitions and safety promises, remain wary—or both? MIT Technology Review | October 29, 2026

https://geneticliteracyproject.org/2026/10/29/viewpoint-ai-pioneer-anthropic-is-going-public-should-we-embrace-its-transformative-ambitions-and-safety-promises-remain-wary-or-both/ Anthropic has filed to go public, and its IPO paperwork reads less like a sales pitch than a warning label. As MIT Technology Review’s Will Douglas Heaven reports, roughly 100 pages of the company’s 335-page IPO prospectus filed with the SEC focus on risks, including the chance its AI could “pose catastrophic or existential risks to humanity.”

Viewpoint: RFK Jr. gives MAHA health grifters a green light to sell six peptides the FDA previously removed over safety concerns Ars Technica | October 29, 2026

https://geneticliteracyproject.org/2026/10/29/viewpoint-rfk-jr-gives-maha-health-grifters-a-green-light-to-sell-six-peptides-the-fda-previously-removed-over-safety-concerns/ Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has overruled his own agency’s scientists, issuing a rule that lets compounding pharmacies make and sell six peptide drugs the FDA pulled from its approved list in 2023 over safety concerns, as Beth Mole for Ars Technica reports. The peptides — BPC-157, Epitalon, KPV, MOTS-c, Semax and TB-500 — are hugely popular in the Make America Healthy Again movement, and several prominent MAHA figures sell them.

Viewpoint: How badly is the U.S. food-safety net fraying? FDA’s bungled handling of the tainted lettuce crisis deepens concerns over cuts to disease tracking and response Henry Miller, Jon Entine | October 27, 2026

https://geneticliteracyproject.org/2026/10/27/viewpoint-how-badly-is-the-u-s-food-safety-net-fraying-the-fdas-bungled-handling-of-the-summers-tainted-lettuce-crisis-deepens-concerns-over-administration-cuts-to-disease-trackin/ This summer, a Cyclospora outbreak linked to iceberg lettuce sickened almost 13,000 people in 21 states, killing two. Investigators traced the illnesses to lettuce supplied by Taylor Farms de Mexico, but the FDA closed its investigation on October 2 without determining how the food became contaminated, leaving questions about how to prevent similar outbreaks in the future.

Race against food rot: How AI and gene editing could slash fruit and vegetable waste Juliet Wilcox | October 28, 2026

https://geneticliteracyproject.org/2026/10/28/race-against-food-rot-how-ai-and-gene-editing-could-slash-fruit-and-vegetable-waste/ Every year, between a quarter and half of all the fruits and vegetables grown on Earth never reach a hungry mouth. They rot in transit, succumb to fungal disease, or simply age past the point of sale, wasting billions of dollars along with the water, land, labor and energy that went into producing them. A sweeping new review published in Current Research in Food Science argues that this chronic hemorrhage of food is finally meeting its match, as artificial intelligence and modern biotechnology converge to transform postharvest handling from a reactive scramble against decay into a predictive, precision-driven science.