Contributor

Kristin Houser

Staff Writer

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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.

Neuroscience

Blood test for Alzheimer’s now available at doctors’ offices

For the first time, a blood test for Alzheimer’s disease has received approval to be used in doctors’ offices in the U.S.

Kristin Houser

Robotics

Disney gives humanoid robot a “lifelike” gaze

To escape the uncanny valley, Disney created a humanoid robot that mimics the minor eye and head movements people make during interactions.

Kristin Houser

Coronavirus

Cough-analyzing AI detects asymptomatic COVID-19 infections

MIT has developed an AI that can detect asymptomatic COVID-19 infections from the sound of a person’s forced-cough with incredible accuracy.

Kristin Houser

Entertainment

Deepfakes shine in South Park creators’ new show

The creators of South Park have released a web show, Sassy Justice, that makes use of incredibly realistic deepfakes.

Kristin Houser

Clean Energy

Nuclear fusion machine turns on for the first time

A new spherical tokamak in the U.K. could overcome one of the biggest hurdles to nuclear fusion power: the “exhaust problem”

Kristin Houser

Urban Living

Green space at daycare gives city kids an immune boost

Adding a green space to an urban daycare’s playground can boost a child immune system after just 28 days.

Kristin Houser

If you train robots like dogs, they learn faster

The dog-inspired SPOT framework effectively trains an AI robot more quickly than other reinforcement learning methods.

Kristin Houser

Coronavirus

How to safely celebrate Halloween during COVID-19

People celebrated Halloween during the 1918 flu pandemic and you can still celebrate Halloween during COVID-19 — just maybe not the way you usually do.

Kristin Houser

Coronavirus

Can flu vaccines prevent COVID-19?

Researchers suspect that flu shots could prevent coronavirus infections, giving people yet another reason to get vaccinated.

Kristin Houser

Aerospace

NASA confirms existence of water on the moon

A study confirmed the existence of water on the moon the same day another provided evidence that the lunar surface could be rife with water reserves.

Kristin Houser