Figure 1: The bottom arrow points to an autophagic vesicle engulfing and beginning to degrade the mitochondria (indicated by the arrowhead on the left) in addition to other cytoplasmic material Source: Wikimedia Commons Autophagy is an important process by which cells degrade and recycle damaged or unnecessary components (Rees, 2020). Currently, autophagy is a key …
Figure 1: Basic architecture of a rotating black hole. In the middle is the singularity, a one-dimensional point of infinite density (but in a rotating black hole it actually takes the shape of a one-dimensional ring known as a ‘ringularity’). Surrounding the singularity is the event horizon (composed of an inner and outer horizon), inside …
Magnetic Reconnection Offers New Insight into Harnessing Energy from Black Holes Read More »
Figure 1: Allergic disorders in humans and dogs are associated with an urban lifestyle, likely due to a lack of microbial exposure Source: Pixabay Industrialization has driven many societal advances such as improved healthcare infrastructure; however, it has also switched our once rural living environment to a now urban lifestyle, negatively impacting our health (Lehtimäki …
Are We Driving Our Dogs Sick Through Our Urban Lifestyles? Read More »
Figure 1: This figure describes some of the symptoms of stress, which can have negative consequences for many body systems Source: Wikimedia Commons Hospital workers perform valuable work in caring for the sick and injured, but as part of their work, these workers are exposed to a variety of stressors. In a review of an …
Fighting Hospital Hardships: An Intervention for Reducing Stress in Hospital Workers Read More »
Figure 1: Industries that burn fossil fuels to produce energy also release harmful greenhouse gases, which can trap heat in our atmosphere for anywhere from a few years to thousands of years. Source: Photo courtesy of ETA+ on Unsplash Powering our planet comes at a deadly cost. To generate heat and electricity for our homes, …
The Scientists Are Saving the Earth by Turning Greenhouse Gases into Solids Read More »
Authors: Sakeena Badrane1, Vivek Babu2, Sanah Handu1 1University of Pittsburgh, 2Drexel University Source: Wikimedia Commons Introduction Since the onset of the pandemic, the American populace has lived in varying levels of isolation. In March, the country entered a complete lockdown. Fear of the unknown in conjunction with warnings from the CDC resulted in most Americans …
The “Old Friends” Hypothesis and the COVID-19 Pandemic Read More »
Figure 1: Lance Armstrong, a well-known professional cyclist, has been implicated in drug doping scandals throughout his career Source: Wikimedia Commons When one considers cheating in the world of athletics, the typical cases that come to mind are those of Marion Jones, Tyson Gay, and Lance Armstrong, athletes who all admitted to using steroids and …
Genetic Cheating? Identifying CRISPR/Cas Gene Doping Read More »
Figure 1: The first picture of a blackhole Source: Wikimedia Commons Fourteen billion years ago, the Big Bang caused the universe to begin rapidly expanding, forming galaxies like the Milky Way as it cooled and settled. Scientists believed that over time, gravity would begin to pull all this matter together, slowing the outward expansion. Then, …
Figure 1: Transmission electron microscope image of the SARS-CoV-2 virus. The ligands on the surface of the virus bind to receptors in the olfactory bulb Source: Wikimedia Commons Even as researchers continue to uncover more about the SARS‐CoV‐2 virus, the long-term effects of COVID-19 remain unstudied. However, decades of past studies on similar viruses combined …
COVID-19 May Inflict Lasting Damage on the Central Nervous System Read More »
Figure 1: Neural imaging of the default mode network (pictured bottom left) with two key sub-regions identified, the mPFC and PCC Source: Wikimedia Commons Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) can be defined as a mental health condition which has been triggered by experiencing or witnessing traumatic events. Trauma can have lasting effects on one’s sense of …