One man burdened with medical bills said selling his kidney would give his family "a chance to improve our lives and move away from our current living conditions."

People are selling human organs on Facebook

Last Resort

People in the Phillipines are selling organs on Facebook, supplying an illegal human organ trafficking ring in exchange for some desperately-needed cash.

People Are Selling Human Organs on Facebook

READ MORE: <a href="https://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/asia/kidney-organs-for-sale-on-facebook-in-philippines-12007964">Kidney for sale: How organs can be bought via social media in the Philippines</a> [Channel News Asia]

More on Facebook trafficking: <a href="https://futurism.com/the-byte/traffickers-facebook-sell-endangered-bird">Traffickers Are Using Facebook to Sell Endangered Bird Skulls</a>

Developments

Desperate for cash, people are advertising their own kidneys on Facebook.

FITTER. BETTER. HAPPIER.

But she's still on the fence about the procedure.

A Russian scientist wants to gene edit this woman’s next baby

Mom Genes

Russian biologist Denis Rebrikov is trying to get approval to create the next gene-edited baby — and this deaf woman could be its mother.

A Russian Scientist Wants to Gene Edit This Woman’s Next Baby

READ MORE: <a href="https://www.sciencemag.org/news/2019/10/deaf-couple-may-edit-embryo-s-dna-correct-hearing-mutation" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Deaf couple may edit embryo’s DNA to correct hearing mutation</a> [Science]

More on the experiment: <a href="https://futurism.com/neoscope/russian-biologist-more-crispr-babies" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Russian Biologist Confirms He’s Working on More CRISPR Babies</a>

Genetics

He thinks he can ensure the baby won't inherit her deafness.

"The brain does not accept that death is related to us."

New research explains why we don't live in constant fear of death

Good Guy Brain

Your brain is hardwired to prevent you from considering your fear of your own death, according to a new study set for publication in the journal NeuroImage.

New Research Explains Why We Don’t Live In Constant Fear of Death

READ MORE: <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/science/2019/oct/19/doubting-death-how-our-brains-shield-us-from-mortal-truth" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Doubting death: how our brains shield us from mortal truth</a> [The Guardian]

More on mortality: <a href="https://futurism.com/the-byte/venture-capitalists-immortality-investment" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Major Bank: The Immortality Industry Is the Next Hot Investment</a>

Neuroscience/Brain Science

Think happy thoughts.

And their nation's government is footing the bill.

Phone-addicted teens are now enrolling in detox camps

Put Down the Phone

To help teens battle their smartphone addiction, South Korea's government now funds more than a dozen detox camps every year.

Phone-Addicted Teens Are Now Enrolling in Detox Camps

READ MORE: <a href="https://edition.cnn.com/2019/10/20/asia/smartphone-addiction-camp-intl-hnk-scli/index.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">The teenagers so addicted to cellphones they&#8217;re going to detox centers</a> [CNN]

More on smartphone addiction: <a href="https://futurism.com/screen-time-smartphone-obsession" target="_blank" rel="noopener">I Tried Apple’s Screen Time Tool. The Results Were Not Heartening.</a>

Mental Health

They're taking a 12-day breather from their phones. 

Mice bred with chromosomes that featured twice-as-long telomeres showed a "significant increase of 12.74 percent in median longevity."

Scientists made mice live 12% longer by hacking their telomeres

Age Hacking

Researchers managed to extend the lifespan of lab mice significantly, making them live longer by cultivating embryonic cells without genetic modification.

Scientists Made Mice Live 12% Longer by Hacking Their Telomeres

READ MORE: <a href="https://www.sciencealert.com/researchers-have-made-long-lived-mice-with-extended-chromosomes-inside-all-of-their-cells">Scientists Dramatically Extend The Lifespans of Mice in a Genius New Telomere Study</a>  [Science Alert]

More on ageing: <a href="https://futurism.com/neoscope/study-drug-cocktail-reverse-genetic-age">In One-Year Study, Drug Cocktail Appears to Reverse “Genetic Age”</a>

Amazingly, the mice were also less likely to develop tumors and other age-related effects.

But scientists say they're not trying to bring about the downfall of sex.

Scientists grew living mouse embryos using only stem cells

Mice From Scratch

Scientists used stem cells to grow a living mouse embryo in a lab without using any sperm or egg cells whatsoever for the first time.

Scientists Grew Living Mouse Embryos Using Only Stem Cells

READ MORE: <a href="https://onezero.medium.com/scientists-grew-a-mouse-fetus-without-sperm-or-eggs-51180f11f504">Scientists Grew a Mouse Fetus Without Sperm or Eggs</a> [OneZero]

More on reproduction: <a href="https://futurism.com/neoscope/grow-babies-artificial-womb">Scientists Want to Grow Babies in Giant, Liquid-Filled Balloons</a>

Studies

This may be the first-ever animal created without sperm or eggs.

Utah state investigators found traces of K2 and other synthetic marijuana compounds in Yolo!'s products back in 2018.

A CBD vape called "Yolo!" contained a psychosis-inducing drug

Bad Trip

By the end of 2018, 50 Salt Lake City-based users of a CBD vape product called Yolo! experienced "an intense high of hallucinations and even seizures."

A CBD Vape Called “Yolo!” Contained a Psychosis-Inducing Drug

READ MORE: <a href="https://www.latimes.com/world-nation/story/2019-10-20/california-woman-faces-prison-yolo-vaping-investigation"> Illegal vapes traced to California woman who was CBD pioneer</a> [Associated Press]

More on CBD: <a href="https://futurism.com/neoscope/tainted-cbd-substance-causes-death-comas-insanity">Some CBD Tainted With Substance That Causes Death, Comas, Insanity</a>

Investigators found traces of synthetic marijuana — not the advertised CBD — in the vapes.

He plans to edit the embryos of deaf parents to ensure their children can hear.

Russian biologist confirms he's working on more CRISPR babies

Edited Eggs

Russian biologist Denis Rebrikov has begun editing human eggs, putting him one step closer to his goal of creating CRISPR babies.

Russian Biologist Confirms He’s Working on More CRISPR Babies

READ MORE: <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-019-03018-0" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Russian &#8216;CRISPR-baby&#8217; scientist has started editing genes in human eggs with goal of altering deaf gene</a> [Nature]

More on Rebrikov: <a href="https://futurism.com/five-couples-crispr-babies-avoid-deafness" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Five Couples Agree to CRISPR Their Babies to Avoid Deafness</a>

He's already editing donated human eggs and bodily cells. 

The bottom line, he says: more research is necessary.

Researcher warns that 5G might actually cause cancer after all

Nothing but a 5G Thang

Public health researcher Joel Moskowitz argues that we don't yet understand the risks of 5G, such as causing cancer, and that more research is necessary.

Researcher Warns That 5G Might Actually Cause Cancer After All

READ MORE: <a href="https://blogs.scientificamerican.com/observations/we-have-no-reason-to-believe-5g-is-safe/">We Have No Reason to Believe 5G Is Safe</a> [Scientific American]

More on cell phones: <a href="https://futurism.com/the-byte/cell-phone-cancer-rats">Your Cell Phone Could Cause Cancer — Under Very Specific Conditions</a>