Архив рубрики: Здоровье Америка

A new study claims that AI models like ChatGPT and Claude now outperform PhD-level virologists in problem-solving in wet labs, where scientists analyze chemicals and biological material. This discovery is a double-edged sword, experts say. Ultra-smart AI models could help researchers prevent the spread of infectious diseases. But non-experts could also weaponize the models to create deadly bioweapons.

The study, shared exclusively with TIME, was conducted by researchers at the Center for AI Safety, MIT’s Media Lab, the Brazilian university UFABC, and the pandemic prevention nonprofit SecureBio. The authors consulted virologists to create an extremely difficult practical test which measured the ability to troubleshoot complex lab procedures and protocols. While PhD-level virologists scored an average of 22.1% in their declared areas of expertise, OpenAI’s o3 reached 43.8% accuracy. Google’s Gemini 2.5 Pro scored 37.6%.

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Seth Donoughe, a research scie..

Eons ago, humans living in the wild were exposed to every germ nature could throw at them—mud, microbes, and whatever drifted around the communal waterhole. We’ve traded tree canopies for roofs, but the germs are still showing up, hiding in our household possessions.

We often overlook the dirtiest items in our homes because grime is invisible (think bacteria) or accumulates too gradually for us to notice. Another factor: our brains tend to tune out the appearance of familiar, everyday objects, in a phenomenon called attentional blindness. This means we’re least likely to scrutinize the things we touch the most, even as they become swamped by bacteria.

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Some argue that chronic immune conditions that plague modern humans stem in part from our tendency to avoid beneficial germs that would train the immune system to fight off pathogens. (This is called the hygiene hypothesis.) “There’s some truth to that,” says Kelly Reynolds, professor of environmental r..

Amid the measles outbreak that started in Texas and is now believed to have spread to four other states, many people might be wondering: do I need to get a measles vaccine booster?

Measles is a highly contagious airborne disease that can lead to severe complications, including death. It’s also vaccine preventable through the measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccine, which is typically administered in childhood in two doses. More than two decades ago, measles was declared eliminated from the U.S., thanks in large part to a successful vaccination program. But in recent years, vaccination rates have declined and measles cases have soared. In 2024, there were 285 reported measles cases in the country, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Four months into 2025, the agency has received reports of 800 confirmed measles cases. Of those, 96% were in people who were either unvaccinated or had unknown vaccination status.

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So f..

In an hour-long meeting at Eli Lilly and Company’s headquarters in Indianapolis on April 15, the pharmaceutical company’s top executives met, like they had dozens of times before, to hear the long-awaited results of a study involving a new drug.

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There’s always a lot riding on these presentations, called readouts. But this one, for Lilly’s first diabetes and weight-loss pill based on the GLP-1 hormone, was particularly fraught. Days before, rival pharma giant Pfizer had announced it was abandoning its oral weight-loss drug after worrying side effects involving liver problems were reported in one participant in the trial. It was the second drug in its class that had failed for Pfizer.

So, David Ricks, Lilly’s CEO, was understandably cautious. It was the latest in a string of milestone moments for the understated leader of the country’s most dynamic pharmaceutical company. Lilly executives took TIME inside the complex process of developing the new pill ..

About half of Americans have a gun in the home, and hunting is a major reason why. When hunting season rolls around each fall, guns suddenly become more visible: hunters take firearms out of storage, clean and maintain them, and go to the store to purchase more guns and ammunition. As researchers, we wondered if this has any effect on gun injuries: not just during hunting, but overall. To our surprise, it did—in a big way.

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Published April 16 in the BMJ, our study of four consecutive deer-hunting seasons used data from the Gun Violence Archive, which records firearm incidents from police reports and news outlets and has proven useful for epidemiological study. We looked at different types of firearm incidents across both rural and urban settings. Despite hunting being an activity that is often associated with rural communities, about 75% of deer hunters actually live within metropolitan areas.

We found that across 10 states, the start of deer hunting..

Not all apologies are created equal. While a good one can’t always fully undo the damage that’s been done, apologies help people on the receiving end feel validated, emotionally heal, and even ease a desire for revenge, says Seiji Takaku, a professor of psychology at Soka University of America in Aliso Viejo, Calif., who has researched forgiveness. If you’re on the receiving end of a sorry attempt to make amends, on the other hand, it might feel just as offensive as the original transgression.

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How someone apologizes will determine how you respond. We asked experts what to say in a variety of situations—including when you want to accept the apology, when you definitely don’t, and when you simply need more time to forgive.

“Thanks for explaining why you did what you did without making an excuse.”

A genuine apology includes a number of ingredients, Takaku says: The person has to clearly note what they’re apologizing for, explain their actions without m..

Whooping cough has been on the rise in the U.S. for years—and cases are continuing to soar in 2025. Meanwhile, fewer Americans are getting vaccinated against it.

Here’s what to know about the ongoing surge in whooping cough cases.

A bad year for whooping cough

In 2021, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported 2,116 cases of whooping cough. In 2024, it reported 35,435 cases. So far this year, there have been 7,111 reported cases of whooping cough, according to an analysis by ProPublica. That’s more than double the number of cases reported by the same time in 2024.

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Read More: Measles Is Back. And a Lot More People Are at Risk

Vaccination rates for whooping cough have fallen since the COVID-19 pandemic, according to ProPublica’s analysis of the most recent federal kindergarten vaccination data. Far fewer people are getting routine childhood vaccinations against other diseases as well, such as hepatitis B, polio, and measles..

The number of abortions provided in most of the U.S. increased slightly in 2024 from the year before, according to new data released on April 15.

The research was conducted by the Guttmacher Institute, which studies and supports sexual and reproductive health and rights. The organization uses both a statistical model and survey responses from providers to estimate the number of abortions provided by clinicians in states without near-total bans for its Monthly Abortion Provision Study. The data released on April 15 show that nearly 1,038,100 abortions were provided in 2024 across all states without near-total bans—a less than 1% increase from 2023 to 2024.

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While that number is relatively steady compared to the year before, researchers noted that the finding “masked substantial variability across individual states,” with some states experiencing significant decreases and others seeing notable increases. For instance, there were roughly 12,100 fewer ab..

If you’re really into the TV show you’re bingeing, you might spend an entire weekend afternoon tearing through episodes—taking stretch breaks or refreshing Reddit or ordering takeout while you’re at it.

Now, imagine taking it up a level. If you’re hyperfixated on that show, you’ll be so engrossed you’ll forget to eat or get up to go to the bathroom; you won’t check for new messages on your phone or collect the groceries the delivery guy dropped off, emerging only after you’ve finished the entire series.

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“Hyperfixating is focusing on something with intensity,” says Saba Harouni Lurie, a licensed marriage and family therapist in Los Angeles. “It could be an interest, it could be a person, it could be a hobby, it could be a place—and when you’re very involved with it, often that means other things are going to be disregarded or won’t be as interesting.”

We asked experts what it really feels like to hyperfixate, and how to address it.

An extreme level ..

Pfizer is ending the development of its potential once-daily pill treatment for obesity after venturing into the biggest and most expensive level of clinical testing.

The drugmaker said Tuesday that it would stop studying danuglipron after a participant in one of its trials experienced a possible drug-induced liver injury that ended once the person stopped taking the drug.

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Danuglipron was in phase three testing, which is generally the last phase of development before a company submits the potential treatment to government regulators for approval.

A company official said in a statement that Pfizer still plans to develop other potential obesity treatments in earlier stages of testing.

Read More: Weight-Loss Drugs Like Wegovy Are Linked to Hair Loss

Obesity treatments have become one of the more promising and lucrative sectors of drug development for pharmaceutical companies. Eli Lilly and Co.’s Zepbound, for instance, brought in nearly $5 billion in..