Something in the Sewage: What watching our wastewater can tell us about infectious diseases
by Ya’el Courtneyfigures by MacKenzie Maugeredited by Yuli Lily Hsieh January 2023 marked the third anniversary of the discovery of SARS-CoV-2, the virus responsible for the COVID-19 pandemic that halted life as we knew it. It overwhelmed hospitals worldwide, and is still infecting around 250,000 people daily across the globe in February 2023. Over these three years, many countries have struggled to monitor the rapidly … Continue reading Something in the Sewage: What watching our wastewater can tell us about infectious diseases
Know your gene editing technology: CRISPR-CAS9
What is environmental DNA?
by Arianna Lord Continue reading What is environmental DNA?
What is….the human microbiome?
by Abby Knecht Continue reading What is….the human microbiome?
How does your brain make you feel sick?
by Courtney Whildenfigures by Arianna Lord Imagine this: it’s the peak of winter, and you wake up not feeling well. You touch your face, it feels warm, and your thermometer tells you that you have a fever. As the day goes on, you don’t have much of an appetite, you’re exhausted, and you crave the warmth of a blanket and a cup of hot tea. … Continue reading How does your brain make you feel sick?
Illicit fentanyl pushes caregivers to go rogue in the new frontier of treating opioid use disorders
Getting people on medication treatment for opioid use disorder has gotten harder by Claire Wilcox Healthcare providers who treat addictions are pushing medico-legal boundaries in ways they never did before thanks to the arrival of illicit fentanyl over the last decade. While pharmaceutical fentanyl is an effective prescribed pain treatment, illegally manufactured fentanyl has taken over the illicit opioid market, largely replacing heroin. It has … Continue reading Illicit fentanyl pushes caregivers to go rogue in the new frontier of treating opioid use disorders
Can assisted colonization save endangered species?
by Isle Bastillefigures by Allie Elchert In an episode of the BBC show Planet Earth there is a harrowing scene depicting thousands of freshly hatched baby sea turtles scuttling away from the sea towards a busy highway. A somber voice-over relays that the hatchlings are misguided by the nearby city lights. Paradoxically, while this was a human-driven habitat disruption, the turtles will not survive without … Continue reading Can assisted colonization save endangered species?
Assisted Reproductive Technologies for Biodiversity Conservation
by Arianna Lord Earlier this year, the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium performed artificial insemination on two of their female polar bears in hopes that the procedure would produce cubs. Polar bears greatly rely on Arctic sea ice for hunting, traveling, mating, and resting. However, because of the continued shrinking of sea ice due to climate change, polar bears have been listed as a threatened species … Continue reading Assisted Reproductive Technologies for Biodiversity Conservation
Rethinking Autism: Neurodiversity and Academic Research
by Rachel Davisfigures by Xiaomeng Han The Academy Award-winning performance of Dustin Hoffman as an autistic savant in the movie Rain Man brought the condition of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) sharply into the spotlight. While the movie helped raise awareness and research funding for the condition, it also created a misconception that autism is, at its core, tied together with genius. To this day, our … Continue reading Rethinking Autism: Neurodiversity and Academic Research
What it Takes to Make a Brain: Cellular diversity in cortical development
by Olubusola Olukoyafigures by Corena Loeb Our ability to take in information from the world around us, make inferences, and execute appropriate reactions is generated by our brains. The brain, which weighs about 1.5 kilograms in the average adult, takes up 20% of our body’s energy expenditure to power a network of roughly 86 billion cells. Ongoing research in the field of neuroscience utilizes various … Continue reading What it Takes to Make a Brain: Cellular diversity in cortical development