3d render of DNA
3d render of DNAiStock

As DNA testing becomes more sophisticated — and widely available — consumers have new access to all kinds of genetic information, from whether they're likely to sneeze when exposed to sunlight to whether they carry the BRCA genes that increase the risk of breast cancer.

Some of that information is having a positive — maybe even life-saving — impact on people. But two researchers at Stanford University wondered, what if knowing you had certain genetic material led to you creating a mindset about your capabilities, or even a physiological reaction?

Alia Crum and Bradley Turnwald set out to test this hypothesis, gathering 200 volunteers and briefly giving them false information about whether they had a gene that either limited their ability to exercise, or made them more hungry.