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The Higgs Boson Hoopla Explained

— All scientists are driven to explain how and why things are the way they are. The differences among the various scientific disciplines lie in the scale and location at which we choose to investigate these basic questions. Two of the most fundamental questions one could ask about matter – anything that takes up space and has mass – are: “What is matter made of?” and “Why does matter have mass?” It is very rare nowadays to see a scientific discovery that helps answer questions as fundamental as these, which is why the July 4th announcement that scientists at the European Council for Nuclear Research (CERN) had discovered a new particle that behaved like the Higgs boson was such a big deal – it represents a step toward a more complete understanding of the universe. Continue reading The Higgs Boson Hoopla Explained

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Improving diagnostic testing for infectious diseases

Most visits to a doctor or hospital occur when a patient feels under the weather, but is unsure of the cause of the symptoms or the best way to treat them. For example, sniffles and a sore throat could be caused by seasonal allergies or the flu, each of which must be treated with different medications. In such cases, physicians rely on diagnostic tests to help them decide on the appropriate course of treatment.
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Understanding pattern formation during morphogenesis

Ann Druyan, an American author and producer specializing in cosmology and popular science, once said For most of the history of our species we were helpless to understand how nature works. We took every storm, drought, illness, and comet personally. We created myths and spirits in an attempt to explain the patterns of nature. As disordered as nature appears, a number of natural phenomena adhere … Continue reading Understanding pattern formation during morphogenesis

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Seminars

Climate Change: What We Know and Where We Go From Here

Presented by Elizabeth Thomas, Sujit Datta, and Atreyee Bhattacharya During the last three billion years, Earth’s climate has nurtured life. However, records of Earth’s history indicate that climate has changed dramatically with major consequences for its inhabitants. What drives such climate changes? What are the consequences? In tonight’s lecture, we discuss the effects that greenhouse gases can have, as well as a novel engineering approach … Continue reading Climate Change: What We Know and Where We Go From Here

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Is the Robot Apocalypse Just Around the Corner?

— If you believe Hollywood’s interpretation, the advent of intelligent robots rarely ends well for mankind. Movies like The Matrix, Terminator, and I, Robot all depict robots as quite intelligent, capable, and horrifyingly destructive machines that either aim to enslave us, or worse, bring about the extinction of the human race. In these cinematic examples, robots are rarely helpful or friendly (with the occasional exceptions like Wall-E or R2-D2). Intelligent robots with the capacity to take over the world are fine as long as they remain in the realm of science fiction. But are highly capable robots confined to the silver screen? When you read the news and see titles like “Evolving robots learn to lie to each other,” “Tiny robots are ready to spy on us,” “Are we being watched by flying robotic insects?,” “A real-life robotic avatar turns you into a machine,” or consider that IBM’s Watson can handily defeat humans on Jeopardy, you might think that it’s time to panic. Or you may wonder what exactly all those reckless scientists are thinking – haven’t they seen the movies? Why don’t they stop before it’s too late? Continue reading Is the Robot Apocalypse Just Around the Corner?

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The Promise of Organic Solar Cells: Flexible, Cheap, and Printable

— The world is excited about solar cells – and with good reason. Imagine the City of the Future, where every exposed surface has solar cells on it, converting the sun’s energy into electricity. This vision could include solar cells on windows, on top of our cars, on the surface of our cell phones, or on our clothes. Instead of using energy from coal or oil, which pollutes the environment, we would be using the ever-present, pollution-free energy available from the sun. Scientists and engineers must work on improving solar cells if we want to make this futuristic city a reality. Continue reading The Promise of Organic Solar Cells: Flexible, Cheap, and Printable

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The Nanotechnology Solution to the Global Water Challenge

— It has been said that “water is the next oil.” Just like oil, water — specifically, clean drinking water — is a resource that is rapidly depleting. Every year, 1.2 billion people do not have access to safe drinking water, and millions of people die, including almost 5000 children a day, from various waterborne diseases. These numbers are increasing as the world population keeps growing. Continue reading The Nanotechnology Solution to the Global Water Challenge

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