Contributor

Kristin Houser

Staff Writer

Contact

kristin.houser@freethink.com

Kristin Houser is a staff writer at Freethink, where she covers science and tech. Her written work has appeared in Business Insider, NBC News, and the World Economic Forum’s Agenda, among other publications, and Stephen Colbert once talked about a piece on The Late Show, to her delight.

Prior to joining Freethink, Kristin was a staff writer for Futurism and wrote several animated and live action web series.

a head of lettuce on a colorful background

Medicine

Insulin grown in lettuce can be taken orally

New synthetic insulin harvested from lettuce plants can be made cheaply, taken orally, and transported at room temperature.

Kristin Houser

mars' surface with the left side of the image toned yellow and the right side blue

Astronomy

NASA shares colorful “postcard” of Mars’ surface

NASA has used photos taken by the Curiosity rover to create a gorgeous “postcard” of the Martian landscape.

Kristin Houser

a grid of models of various shapes and size wearing the same shirt

Google unveils AI try-on feature for shopping

Google’s AI-powered virtual try-on feature lets shoppers see what an article of clothing would look like on a wide range of models.

Kristin Houser

Brain

Cancer med appears to prevent brain aneurysms

Japanese researchers have discovered that the cancer drug sunitinib can prevent the formation of brain aneurysms in mice.

Kristin Houser

an illustration of a capsule reentering Earth's atmosphere

Aerospace

SpaceX successfully launches world’s first “space factory”

SpaceX has successfully deployed a “space factory” developed by startup Varda Space Industries to manufacture drugs in microgravity.

Kristin Houser

an illustration of another planet with Earth-like features being added to it

Aerospace

Can “terraforming” turn Mars or the moon into Earth 2.0?

Terraforming — the hypothetical process of making another place “Earth-like” — offers the hope of turning Mars or the moon into Earth 2.0.

Kristin Houser

a colorful image of a human embryo at Day 11 under a microscope

Biology

Model human embryo, created from stem cells, survives past two weeks

A model human embryo capable of developing past day 14 could revolutionize our understanding of human development.

Kristin Houser

a crowd of young people with their backs to the camera watching a rocket fly through the air in the distance

Aerospace

Students build reusable rocket, win $5,000 from NASA

The University of Alabama in Huntsville has won Student Launch 2023, NASA’s annual rocket-building competition.

Kristin Houser

Coronavirus

Cheap drug appears to cut long COVID risk by 41% in small study

The diabetes drug metformin cut COVID-19 patients’ risk of later developing long COVID by 41% in a small study.

Kristin Houser

a white powder with a scooper on a blue background

Aging

Taurine appears to reverse aging in animals. Can it do the same for us?

Animals given taurine lived longer, healthier lives, suggesting that the compound may also increase human longevity.

Kristin Houser