Marriage is a major milestone for many people, but how has the institution influenced human evolution? A growing list of Silicon Valley billionaires has endorsed Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. (RFK, Jr.) for president. Why does this incendiary figure attract support from so many tech luminaries? A new study shows that milk's positive nutritional impact more than offsets its contribution to climate change.
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Join hosts Dr. Liza Dunn and GLP contributor Cameron English on episode 228 of Science Facts and Fallacies as they break down these latest news stories:
* Pair bonding: How wedding vows have contributed to human evolution
Marriage is an important cultural and legal institution around the world, and every society throughout history has maintained the custom in some form. It's universality prompts an important question: how has marriage impacted human evolution? A large but often overlooked body of research indicates that marriage has helped maintain order in society by encouraging monogamy, promoting stability at home and improving individual well being. What insights can we glean from these observations about marriage and evolution today?
* Prominent tech-investors throw support behind vaccine-rejectionist RFK, Jr.’s campaign for Dem nomination
RFK, Jr.'s outsider presidential campaign has generated broad support from people across the political spectrum. But Kennedy has attracted endorsements and donations from one group that seems puzzling to many observers: Silicon Valley billionaires, or 'tech bros' as they're sometimes called. This demographic is wealthy, well educated and intimately familiar with the latest developments in biomedicine, a field which RFK, Jr., has harshly criticized as a leading vaccine critic. Why does this group of science-literate investors have a soft spot for a rebellious character like Kennedy? His anti-establishment rhetoric may lead us to the answer.
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* Rethinking sustainability: Does nutritional value of dairy offset environmental impacts of milk production?
Animal agriculture is routinely lambasted for its supposedly significant contribution to climate change; many high-profile figures have even declared that we must end our dependence on animals as a food source to slow climate change. However, recent research could throw a wrench in their plans, in particular a new study showing that the dairy industry produces more than enough nutrients to offset its actually modest greenhouse emissions. Ridding the world of dairy would yield insignificant climate benefits while depriving billions of people of an important source of esse...