This post was written by ScIU Social Media Intern Ava Steensland, an undergraduate student in The Media School at Indiana University. The fashion industry is the second largest polluter in the world. Here, we’ll take a closer look into tip number one from the ScIU post 7 Tips on How You Can Help the Environment,… Read more »
General Science
Cancer cells and their invisibility cloak
I remember being mind blown when I first read about how Harry Potter was able to disappear into alleys by wearing his invisibility cloak. The idea that someone could hide in plain sight always fascinated me as a child. What if I said that this happens right in the human body, where certain cells are able to use an invisibility cloak to camouflage themselves? You read it right: cancer cells have this extraordinary ability to hide in plain sight in the body. But, scientists are working on ways to get cancer cells to come out of hiding and to target them for destruction…
The science behind meteor showers in Animal Crossing
Animal Crossing has proven again and again to be an exquisitely well-designed game and has surprised many with its excellent representation of scientific concepts. Many players have written about the punnet squares of flower breeding, and others have made videos about all the animals in Blathers’s museum (even the bugs!). However, I’d like to turn your attention skyward. Let’s take a look at the meteor showers that happen above your island…
Greedy scientists and their grants
In 2009, there was a faux controversy called Climategate, in which a climate change research server was hacked and private emails were leaked. This event was then spun to create the impression that human-caused climate change was all a big conspiracy. What exactly was the alleged motive for these scientists to make up climate change?… Read more »
Media literacy in the modern age
This post was written by ScIU Social Media Intern Jack Reasner, an undergraduate at IU’s Media School. The Center for Media Literacy defines media literacy as “a 21st-century approach to education. It provides a framework to access, analyze, evaluate, create and participate with messages in a variety of forms — from print to video to… Read more »
Potluck of neuroscience: Physics and charge
The more I learn about the discipline of neuroscience, the more I come to see it as the great scientific potluck of our day. While the actual meal at a potluck often seems disjointed, it allows guests to sample a wide variety of tasty foods brought by people from different culinary backgrounds. This post is… Read more »
‘Your experiment is stupid’: Mentoring in science
Science in the modern world is never done in a vacuum; every single discovery is a result of the coordinated efforts of a team of scientists working together to answer important questions. If success is to be expected, every graduate student, post-doc, and early-career professor should have a mentor or a team of mentors. In a scientific setting, this person is typically the principal investigator (PI), who directs the lab and projects happening therein. PIs and their mentees have a very interdependent relationship…
How Your Diet Impacts the Environment
The food you put into your body not only affects your own health, but also the health of our planet. The world’s food system accounts for about twenty-five percent of global greenhouse gas emissions. Famous primatologist Jane Goodall once said, “you cannot get through a single day without having an impact on the world around you. What you do makes a difference, and you have to decide what kind of difference you want to make.” Are you making a difference?
Are you sure you should eat that?
Amid this pandemic, you may be having conversations with family members similar to my own. I was talking to my brother about going to the grocery store and buying some eggs for baking when I was pretty strictly told that “no, you shouldn’t because the virus can be transmitted through food.” As a scientist myself, this was intriguing advice. So, I asked him to show me where he had read it. Sadly, nowadays when we are bombarded with news at every corner we turn, we were unable to backtrack his source…
4 Go-To Skills to Support Your Mental Health During COVID–19 (and Beyond)
We’re living in a very stressful time due to the sweeping, global effects of the COVID–19 pandemic. Although much of the focus has been on physical health, mental health is equally important during these times. Broad feelings of uncertainty, job loss, fear, and drastic changes to our normal schedules and activities take a toll on our mental well-being. Below are four of the skills that I have relied on to maintain and support my mental health during COVID–19, though their utility extends to any time I’m experiencing stress in my life…