While I'm often left paralyzed by apple choice in Kroger, I know the breadth of options at grocery stores mask a far different reality: we've lost roughly 90% of the world's crop varieties in the past 100 years. This threat to future food security is referred to as genetic erosion and primarily attributed to the
At the Kennedy Space Center, NASA is finalizing preparations to launch the Mars 2020 rover in July. One of the aims of the Mars 2020 mission is to search for signs of past microbial life through biosignatures. Biosignatures typically present themselves in traces of nitrogen, oxygen, or methane, indicating some active life form in either
I have always wondered: why do I keep losing my phone, keys and other belongings? I have to take care of my belongings carefully especially if I am not carrying a purse with me. I'm sure other women can relate to my dilemma. The ridiculous reason is that our pants don't have pockets! Women's clothing,
What if I told you that the source code, or genomes, for many living organisms is available for free online? Would it surprise you? As of today, all genomes created by public funds are accessible to anyone in the world. Anyone with internet access, and a little bit of curiosity, can access tomes of genetic
The US Atlantic coast is a dynamic, living landscape. Georgia in particular displays a picturesque mosaic of barrier islands, salt marsh meadows, maritime forests, brackish marsh and river networks snaking up the Coastal Plain. Together, coastal habitats form a dynamic ecosystem capable of protecting the coastline, storing carbon, filtering water and providing coastal regions with
Alternatively, this post could have been titled, My Guilty Conscience Series: Plastics. This blog post has been a long time coming – given the fact that I (and many others) have been conditioned to “reduce, reuse, and recycle†before we could even multiply. Yet, as I continue to diligently organize my empty jars and cans
Floriography, better known as the language of flowers, doesn't refer to a communication method between plants. Rather, it is the Victorian era practice of gifting arranged flowers to communicate a coded message: a red rose for love, a white tulip for forgiveness–things you may want to be familiar with this upcoming Valentine's Day. Long before
If we accept the idea that animal models are holding back drug development due to a potential inability to predict safety and efficacy in humans, what can be done to fix it? Increasingly, scientists are using human cells cultured in vitro to assess the safety and efficacy of new drug compounds. While in vitro cell
Many of us can recall a time where someone we knew (or even ourselves) threw a banana peel out a car window. They're biodegradable, so what's the harm? I'll never forget the time my mom did not dispose of that peel in a proper way… My family and I were driving through Yellowstone National Park,
You walk into the lunchroom, and all sorts of alarms go off in your head. While reaching for utensils you think “What if the last person used this for peanut butter and didn't wash it well.†You sit down at the table thinking “Someone ate nuts here last week, was the table cleaned since then?â€
One fact that was drilled into my head while studying biomedical science was how few experimental drugs ever make it past clinical trials. A failure rate of 90% is reported. This struck me as odd, but I chalked it up as an example of how difficult drug development is and didn't ask why. That changed
While coffee has seemingly had a cultural renaissance, with independent coffee roasters popping up all over the country, and even the naivest 7 year old being able to spout the difference between arabica and robusta, a far older, and ancient drink seems to remain in obscurity in the continental United States. The drink I'm referring
