Margaret Strickland Collins: Civil rights activist and “termite lady”
by Olivia Foster Rhoades Termites are more than just pests. With over 2,800 species in the world, termites keep soils healthy, can communicate through vibrations, and termite queens can live upwards of 30 years. Equalling humans in their biomass, these six-legged wood-eaters are an integral part of our world. Much of our understanding of termites, also known as Isoptera, comes from the work of one … Continue reading Margaret Strickland Collins: Civil rights activist and “termite lady”
Margaret Strickland Collins: Civil rights activist and “termite lady”
by Olivia Foster Rhoades Olivia Foster Rhoades is a fifth-year Ph.D. student in the Biological and Biomedical Sciences program at Harvard & is pursuing a concentration in STS at the Harvard Kennedy School. You can find her on Twitter as @OKFoster. Cover image by GimpWorkshop from Pixabay. This biography is part of our “Picture a Scientist” initiative. To learn more about the amazing men and … Continue reading Margaret Strickland Collins: Civil rights activist and “termite lady”
Treating Osteoarthritis the Smart Way
by Beatrice Awasthifigures by Aparna Nathan Every day, our joints successfully bear huge amounts of force as we move about. For example, jogging and stumbling produce forces of up to 550% of a person’s body weight, respectively. Even walking generates forces as high as 480% of the body’s weight! To successfully bear these massive forces without pain, joints must be healthy and intact. Deterioration of … Continue reading Treating Osteoarthritis the Smart Way
April 28 – More than meets the eye: shedding light on medieval manuscripts with imaging science
Time: 6:30 p.m., Wednesday, April 28th Join us on: Zoom (password: science) or YouTube Live Speakers: Maggie Anderson Graphics: Iryna Stryapunina Centuries ago, before the printing press, books and other documents were painstakingly hand-crafted. Over their lifetime, these ‘manuscripts’ were edited, reused, cherished, and neglected. Imaging science can shed light on these documents’ secret pasts. Though invisible to the naked eye, scientists are able to … Continue reading April 28 – More than meets the eye: shedding light on medieval manuscripts with imaging science
Solar-Powered Water Purification
Researchers have developed a water purification device that is powered only by the sun. Continue reading Solar-Powered Water Purification
James E. Bowman: Making history in science and society
Tian Lu is a graduate student in the Harvard Biological and Biomedical Sciences. He uses fluorescent microscopy to study spatial-multiomics. Xiaomeng Han is a graduate student in the Harvard Ph.D. Program in Neuroscience. She uses electron microscopy to study neuronal connectivity. Cover image, by H. Alexander Talbot via Wikimedia Commons, is licensed under CC BY 2.0 This biography is part of our “Picture a Scientist” … Continue reading James E. Bowman: Making history in science and society
James E. Bowman: Making history in science and society
by Tian Lu James Edward Bowman was born in Washington, D.C. on February 5, 1923. He grew up in a segregated environment which he described saying “there was complete segregation. … One could only go to theaters, movies, restaurants in the black neighborhood.” He graduated with honors from Dunbar High School and earned his bachelor’s degree in Biology from Howard University in 1943. Inspired by … Continue reading James E. Bowman: Making history in science and society
Cephalopod Resting Cycles Provide Evolutionary Insights
Research has revealed distinct sleeping pattern in octopuses, providing new evolutionary insights into speciation. Continue reading Cephalopod Resting Cycles Provide Evolutionary Insights
Mutation Madness: How and why SARS-CoV-2 keeps changing
by Sophia Swartzfigures by Shreya Mantri The first reports of a mysterious, pneumonia-like illness surfaced in early December 2019. Fast-forward to 2021, and the culprit—SARS-CoV-2, a virus a thousand times smaller than a speck of dust—has sickened more than 111 million people, infected all seven continents, and killed approximately 2.5 million. The toll of COVID-19 is heart-wrenching and borders on dystopian. Our pandemic present is … Continue reading Mutation Madness: How and why SARS-CoV-2 keeps changing
April 14 – Different Shades of Green: Climate Change in Tropical Regions
Time: 6:30 p.m., Wednesday, April 14th Join us on: Zoom (password: science) or YouTube Live Speakers: Tianning Zhao Graphics: Jovana Andrejevic Have you ever been stunned by the wonder of nature? Amazon rainforest, one of the “New 7 Wonders of Nature of the World”, will definitely be a WOW moment for you. Amazon rainforest is the paradise for millions of plant and animal species. Beyond … Continue reading April 14 – Different Shades of Green: Climate Change in Tropical Regions