Throw out what you learned in 9th grade biology class. The age old idea that your genetic profile is static and there is nothing you can do to change the DNA hand you’ve been dealt, is likely not true. A new article in the American Psychological Association’s magazine the Monitor on Psychology nicely reviews the cutting edge research UCLA professor Dr. Steve Cole and his colleagues.  It’s a hot and controversial new area of research that is definitely worth learning about: how the environment influences gene functioning. Check it out at: http://www.apa.org/monitor/2011/05/cells.aspx