In recent years, a new genre of video game has emerged: “brain training” games. The makers of these games claim that they will improve your cognitive function, intelligence, and attention. However, these claims have undergone plenty of scrutiny and debate as there has been no published data that supports them. Until now.
Photography enthusiasts may have conflicted opinions about the up and coming trend in smartphone accessorizing: the smart lens. While subscribers to SLR school of thought still have dibs in the categories of durability, quality, and versatility, the smart lens phenomenon just might be the long awaited love child between convenience and quality for the rest of us low(er) budget art lovers.
When we think of cancer research, our first thought is usually of dangerous, but necessary, medical treatments like chemotherapy, radiation, and various invasive surgeries, whose destructive forces can kill healthy cells along with the damaged, leaving patients feeling weakened and sick.
In recent years environmentally conscious eaters have opted for diets that exclude meat like the vegetarian and even trendier vegan and raw food diets. But for those who just can’t give up their weekly cheeseburger, there may be another option that saves the environment some wear and tear: artificially grown meat.
Hopkins received criticism on Monday when the University’s adherence to academic freedom was called into question. Matthew Green, a computer science professor, authored a recent blog post critiquing the National Security Agency (NSA). As a specialist in applied cryptology, he condemned the NSA’s ability to bypass online encryption that safeguards sensitive information on the internet. Four days later, Andrew Douglas, interim dean of the Whiting School of Engineering (WSE), instructed Green to remove his blog post from the Hopkins servers because it included the NSA logo and linked to classified information.
Amidst our country’s gun control debates, Korean peninsula tensions and recent acts of mass violence in the news, we begin to wonder how we can ever feel safe again. While intense debate arises when discussing the pros and cons of increased weaponry in the hands of common citizens, some scientists are spending their time developing hard-to-argue-with solutions for the ever-increasing instability of the modern world.
Before the world knew him as Lord Voldemort, Tom Marvolo Riddle was quite a charmer. A tall, handsome youth with impeccable manners and perfect grades, Riddle was admired by his teachers and classmates. But Tom’s good boy persona was skin-deep. At heart, he was a psychopath and narcissist who used his looks and charisma to rope others into doing his dirty work.
3D printing is now starting to get into the realm of manufacturers, yet still retains a certain hobbyist appeal, so getting a design might get a little easier with an equivalent scanner. Currently there are two companies looking to break ground in the mass adoption of 3D scanning: Makerbot with their Digitizer Desktop 3D Scanner and Matterform with their Photon 3D Scanner.
A new species of dinosaur named Dahalokely tokana (pronounced “dah-HAH-loo-KAY-lee too-KAH-nah”) recently discovered in Madagascar has helped to fill in the important missing fossil record from that area.
Hospitals can seem like a world unto themselves — doctors flying around frantically, machines beeping everywhere —but one thing about them is pretty ordinary: they produce trash. The not so ordinary part: it’s a lot of trash.
Various aspects of human beings are determined by genetics. However, there is always the nature versus nurture debate. Recently, a team of researchers led by Corey Watson, a postdoctoral at the Mount Sinai School of Medicine, discovered important links between immunity and genes. There is substantial evidence that the nature side of the debate is more influential than nurture — at least in terms of the immune system.
One of the modern world’s biggest concerns today is the current energy crisis. Globally, scientists and engineers are searching to find and working to develop new alternative energy sources to replace our dwindling fossil fuel reserves. In response, we’ve turned to wind-power, hydro-power, ethanol and many more green initiatives. Yet, nature’s most powerful energy source has always been the sun. Thus far, solar energy technology has not shown much promise in yielding practical and efficient results to meet today’s energy demands. However, quantum biologists may have finally found a way to harness the sun’s vast energy potential — by mimicking plants.
Young adults often find themselves stuck in a “waiting room” — a place where everything comes at a standstill. We do not move because we are afraid to move; we do not know how to take the next step. So we remain frozen in that chair in the waiting room as we claw anxiously at the armrests. But why? We are at the brink of adulthood, yet we feel we are still not quite strong enough to make a difference in the world — to set a change for something so much bigger than ourselves. But there is a way out. Much to our surprise, we have had the key the entire time.
Hopkins has celebrated its status as the oldest research university in the U.S for the 137 years since it was founded. The Provost’s Undergraduate Research Awards (PURA) seek to enhance the founding research principle. On April 22, these awards of up to $2,500 were granted to over 20 undergraduates from across the University.
The next time you contemplate the glazed munchy selection at the FFC, do your pancreas a favor and think of this article. Consistently combating fatigue with sugary pick-me-ups can seriously burn out your beta cells, which can only lead to one thing: diabetes.
You have probably suffered from one or maybe two of the leading causes of death in children around the world. Thankfully, you are still alive. This means that the two illnesses, which together claim the lives of over a quarter of all children across the globe, are preventable. The deadly culprits? Pneumonia and diarrhea.
We are surrounded by a limitlessly complex world. Plants, although simple and green on the surface, contain intricate machineries that allow it to wield its photosynthetic powers. Humans, too, have developed extremely complicated functions over a tortuous and long path known as evolution.
Have you ever wondered if that amazing feeling you get while listening to your favorite song is anything like what others experience when they listen to their favorite music? There is a pleasure associated with those songs that we do not get by listening to random sounds put together. Researchers found that when we are indulging ourselves with some sweet melody, the auditory cortex is not the only part of the brain activated: emotion-associated regions and reward circuits are also stimulated.
Sometimes, the key to understanding is to take a good, hard look. Scientists have been doing just that, training their eyes on the telomerase enzyme which is known to play a significant role in aging, cancer and other diseases. For the first time, researchers have mapped out the structure of the entire enzyme complex. The researchers from UCLA and UC Berkeley say this breakthrough could lead to new ways of combatting disease, particularly cancer.
