B. David Zarley

B. David Zarley

b. david zarley
B. David Zarley is a senior staff writer for Freethink, where he covers health and medicine, including infectious disease, psychedelic research, mental health, and the brain. A graduate of SUNY Fredonia, his work has also appeared in The Atlantic, The Verge, Jezebel, Frieze, Sports Illustrated, VICE, Paste Magazine, and numerous other publications. He lives in Chicago.
a building with a sign that says lilly.
Retatrutide, Eli Lilly's innovative "triple g" drug, is setting new standards in the fight against obesity.
underwater map
An un-crewed sailing drone discovered the unusually shaped, slumbering seamount.
a digital painting of a woman floating in the air.
End of life patients face mental health challenges uniquely existential and spiritual in nature — but psychedelics are emerging as a possible solution to relieve the suffering.
neuron illustration
New research shows psychedelics activate receptors inside brain cells that other compounds, like serotonin, cannot.
3d printing illiustration
Using shaped ultrasound, researchers can 3D print objects in one shot.
dmt
The initial study lays the groundwork for another larger, longer phase 2 trial.
asteroid city
The authors call it "wildly theoretical" — but let's take a look, anyway.
covid drug
A new drug inhibits a human enzyme that coronaviruses hijack in order to replicate.
herpes cancer
Biotechnology can convert enemy viruses into anti-cancer mercenaries.
metastasis
Most patients with cancer die from metastasis. Stopping it would be a major advance in cancer therapy.
Fluphenazine, once used to treat schizophrenia, is capable of blocking a compound connected to chronic pain.
covid nasal spray
The spray uses snippets of DNA to gum up virus replication.
uranium seawater
The new material may make marine uranium extraction economically feasible.
type o kidney
By creating a type O kidney, they hope to make more organs available for transplant.
cartilage
The synthetic cartilage was made from cellulose fibers — the stuff found in wood — mixed with a goo called polyvinyl alcohol.
heart muscle
Heart muscle is shaped like a spiral, a mystery that has eluded scientists since 1669. New research has recreated the structure.
The world is aging, and with age comes vision decline. New research may have found how to improve eyesight in an accessible way.
NicoBoard is an app that helps parents make sense of a frightening time.