November 8 – This Is How We Do It: From Sex Evolution to Sex Education
Time: 7-9 p.m., Wednesday, November 8th Location: Armenise Amphitheater at Harvard Medical School, 200 Longwood Avenue, Boston (link to directions) Speakers: Michael Miyagi and Malinda McPherson At first glance, it seems like we all know what sex is. But there are many scientific subtleties to sex. In this lecture we will begin by providing an evolutionary context for sex, probing why sex drive is so strong and important, … Continue reading November 8 – This Is How We Do It: From Sex Evolution to Sex Education
Neutron star collision provides a glimpse of the future of astrophysics
Albert Einstein predicted the observation of gravitational waves from the merger of black holes over a century ago. This astrophysical phenomenon remained elusive, however, until their detection at the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory (LIGO) in the summer of 2015. This Nobel Prize-winning discovery added a new technique to the observational astronomy tool box and propelled LIGO onto the public scene. Since their initial discovery, gravitational waves have been … Continue reading Neutron star collision provides a glimpse of the future of astrophysics
Ripples in Spacetime from Colliding Stars detected by LIGO-Virgo Collaboration
The LIGO collaboration has reported the merger of two neutron stars. Another collaboration (Virgo) was able to detect the signal. Scientists were able to make a tighter estimate on where the merger happened. The merger suggests gravity propagates at the speed of light, proves that photons (light particles) are even closer to massless than previously measured, and heavy elements like platinum might primarily come from colliding stars instead of supernovae. Continue reading Ripples in Spacetime from Colliding Stars detected by LIGO-Virgo Collaboration
November 1 – What Genes Cannot Tell: The role of epigenetics in determining who we are
Time: 7-9 p.m., Wednesday, November 1st Location: Armenise Amphitheater at Harvard Medical School, 200 Longwood Avenue, Boston (link to directions) Speakers: Nava Gharaei, Kalki Jukreja, and Jenny Zheng All the cells in our body have the same DNA, and yet a stomach cell is able to digest food while a heart cell pumps blood. Similarly, genetically identical individuals have the same DNA, yet they develop into unique individuals … Continue reading November 1 – What Genes Cannot Tell: The role of epigenetics in determining who we are
October 25 – Here Comes the Sun: Harnessing the power of renewable energy
Time: 7-9 p.m., Wednesday, October 25th Location: Armenise Amphitheater at Harvard Medical School, 200 Longwood Avenue, Boston (link to directions) Speakers: Emily Kerr and Justin Teesdale Over the last few years, electricity generation from renewable sources has grown at a remarkable pace and is projected to almost double by 2025. As we rely more on these green energy sources, how do we transform a power source that only … Continue reading October 25 – Here Comes the Sun: Harnessing the power of renewable energy
Bacteria May Help Protect Cancer Cells
Developing cancer drugs is challenging. Often, scientists will find a drug that kills cancer cells in a petri dish but fails to act on an actual tumor. Ravid Straussman from the Weizmann Institute of Science and Todd Golub from Harvard Medical School think that in situ, bacteria can protect cancer cells from drugs. To test their theory, Staussman and Golub mixed some healthy skin cells with cells from a … Continue reading Bacteria May Help Protect Cancer Cells
Harvard and MIT are making tattoos to monitor your health
Tattoos are often whimsical, traditional, beautiful—but can they also be medical? The Dermal Abyss project, a collaboration of researchers at Harvard and MIT, is trying to develop a tattoo that can monitor an individual’s health. They have already created “bio-ink” capable of fluorescing at different colors in response to certain variables in the body. In theory, a diabetic inked with one of these tattoos would … Continue reading Harvard and MIT are making tattoos to monitor your health
Password guessing using artificial intelligence
The recent Equifax hack is one of the largest exposures of highly sensitive information in US history. The breached information includes social security numbers, home street addresses, credit card numbers and other personal details. Breaches of this magnitude bring to light how personal data is managed along with how unauthorized access to information can occur. User generated passwords are the most common method employed to … Continue reading Password guessing using artificial intelligence
Big Brother
In a clutch of eggs, some zebrafish are the runts of the litter and may appear younger because of their diminutive size. This is the case for the two zebrafish above. The two are in fact 5-day old siblings. At this stage of development, the zebrafish larvae have hatched from their transparent eggs and have begun feeding on tiny single celled organisms called paramecium. As … Continue reading Big Brother
From Microwaves to Microbreweries: The Science Behind Our Food
Time: 7-9 p.m., Wednesday, October 18th Location: Armenise Amphitheater at Harvard Medical School, 200 Longwood Avenue, Boston (link to directions) Speakers: Renee Geck and Chiara Ricci-Tam What, exactly, is cooking? We heat food up with a stove or microwave, but don’t often think about what is happening on a molecular level. Come learn how different methods of cooking work, consider the art of creating recipes from a scientific … Continue reading From Microwaves to Microbreweries: The Science Behind Our Food