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Following the much appreciated budget increases for scientific agencies in December, science and health advocates alike were ecstatic at the mention of a “cancer moonshot” in President Obama’s final State of the Union Address to the House of Representatives. It is reported that the White House  plans to request $755 million for cancer research funding as…

A worrisome habit is arising among some American politicians. They don’t like what scientists conclude about some supposedly controversial topic so they try to defund the research. A good example of this tactic is climate change—in recent months, we’ve heard of efforts to limit NASA, EPA, NOAA, and NSF funding for research in geoscience. But…

If you’ve ever watched a procedural crime-solving show on television, you’re sure to have seen a lab tech magically produce results from a complicated assay in mere minutes. If you’re a wet lab scientist, you’ve probably found yourself wishing that “CSI technology” were real so you didn’t have to spend your whole day running PCRs…

The January cover of GENETICS commemorates the journal’s 100th anniversary and the 1916 publication of Calvin Bridges’ proof that genes lie on chromosomes. The artwork was created by Alexander Cagan, a graduate student at the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology studying the genetics of domestication in rats. We spoke to Alex about the cover, his art, and his…

GSA member Krista Dobi, new faculty and former Trainee Advisory Representative to the GSA Board of Directors, tells Genes to Genomes about the importance of an Individual Development Plan (IDP). January: a time to consider resolutions for the upcoming calendar year. Since it’s the midpoint of the academic year, it’s also a great time to assess…

Chickens that “chicken out” in unfamiliar surroundings may shed light on anxiety in humans, according to research published in the January 2016 issue of the journal GENETICS. Domestic chickens are much less anxious than their wild cousins, the red junglefowl. The new research identifies genes that contribute to this behavioral variation and reveals that several…

When sharp-eyed 20-year-old Calvin Bridges entered Columbia University in 1909, the word “gene” had just been coined. At that time, the term was profoundly abstract, referring to “factors” or “conditions” that could be glimpsed only through the window of statistical analysis. Seven years later, Bridges and his colleagues had brought these mysterious factors firmly down…

  In 1916, in the very first issue of GENETICS, Calvin Bridges published his proof that genes are carried on chromosomes. One hundred years later, genetics is again at the brink of a major transformation, as efficient genome engineering becomes a reality. During this century of incredible advances, GENETICS, published by the Genetics Society of…

An article in the most recent issue of Science highlights a growing concern about the continued support of the biological databases on which our community depends. Indeed, 2015 GSA President Jasper Rine was quoted as saying these resources are “critical for our daily life as geneticists and biomedical researchers.” Many of the model organism databases (MODs) used…

When I was a little kid and my mom asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up, I would tell her: “I want to be President ––– of the Genetics Society of America”….uh….maybe not. But electoral success came my way anyway. Think of the perks: the fancy house, the private plane, the…