We know that genes shape human cultures and human societies: The DNA we inherited from our ancestors makes certain foods taste better, affects the way we care for children, influences what colors we find vibrant, and contributes to our love of socializing, among other examples. Sam Kean affectancestorcare share on social
Atoms of Element 118 fill an outer shell with electrons, creating a special type of element called a noble gas. Noble gases are natural turning points on the table, ending one row and pointing to the next. Sam Kean atomcallcreate share on social
X-rays revealed that some people were born without a corpus callosum, and they seemed just fine. Sam Kean bearcallosumcorpus Change image and share on social
I didn't mind staying home from school and medicating myself with vanilla ice cream and chocolate sauce. Being sick always gave me another chance to break an old-fashioned mercury thermometer, too. Sam Kean breakchancechocolate Change image and share on social
The most profound change that genetics brings about might not be scientific at all. It might be mental and even spiritual enrichment: a more expansive sense of who we humans are, existentially, and where we came from, and how we fit with other life on earth. Sam Kean bringchangeearth share on social
Even if we never cure a single disease, the Human Genome Project and other ventures will have been worth it. Sam Kean curediseasegenome Change image and share on social
Cancer is really a DNA disease... We have these certain genes that prevent our cells from growing out of control at the expense of the body. And it's a pretty good, robust system. But if a couple of these genes fail, then that's when cancer starts, and cells start growing out of control. Sam Kean bodycancercell share on social
Polonium is, frankly, pretty useless, and no country in the world except Russia bothered to refine it by the late 2000s. Sam Kean 2000sbothercountry Change image and share on social
Genes are like the story, and DNA is the language that the story is written in. Sam Kean dnagenelanguage Change image and share on social
The body tends to treat elements in the same column of the periodic table as equivalents. Sam Kean bodycolumnelement Change image and share on social
