Bird Flu Finds Fido
Seriously, don’t come to work if you’re sick. How many times have we all heard this mantra? When people bring their infectious illness to work, it spreads like wildfire. Especially […]
Author Archives: athenssciencecafe
The Science of Awe
When I was very little, I asked my dad how long it would take to get from Earth to the Sun.
I was wondering because I was attempting to pay a visit via a well-timed leap off the swingset. After he initially shattered my travel plans with the reminder that, to avoid a fiery death, I’d have to go at night (which, unfortunately, was past my bedtime), he proceeded to shatter my fragile 4-year-old notion of the universe with the fact that the sun is 93 million miles away.
Addictive Poppies: A Brief History of Morphine
You may have heard of opioids as the drug that killed Prince, Janice Joplin, Jimi Hendrix, and (controversially) Elvis Presley. But my interest came after constantly seeing articles about overdoses […]
Its Common Name is Satan
On October 27, 2016, Mike Wallace, a cotton and soybean farmer from Arkansas, met with Allan Jones, also a farmer and Mike’s neighbor. They met along a quiet road between their two farms. Their discussion began civil, but it quickly escalated. Then, suddenly, Jones drew his gun and shot Wallace. The farmer died before paramedics could arrive.
Symmetry and Physics
If you are interested in trying to understand physics, either at a technical level or at an amateur level, at some point you will inevitably hear a physicist waxing on […]
Origami: The Ancient Art of Designing New Things
When thinking of origami you may imagine brightly-colored squares of paper folded into cranes and flowers. But did you know that origami has inspired the design of many everyday objects including take-out boxes and airbags? The art of transforming flat sheets into 3D objects can be used to design many devices in our modern day world.
Stressed Out: The Addiction You Might Not Know You Have
Stress is a daily occurrence in all of our lives, and often comes in waves. Take college finals week, for example. A week where students all over the country lock […]
A Bad Year for Bugs – The Importance of Cold Winters for Insect Control
“It’s going to be a bad year for bugs.” Last month, I was frequently reminded of this expression as a seemingly endless supply of caterpillars feasted happily on the sunflowers […]
“Born to Die”: Genetically Modified Mosquitoes could be the answer to Zika Epidemic
When Lana Del Rey sang of “Summertime Sadness”, I’m sure she was singing of summers in Georgia. Living in Athens, there are three things I can expect during the months of May through September: getting caught in a storm without an umbrella, sweating at 9 am walking into work, and being covered in hundreds of mosquito bites despite multiple coats of bug spray.
The Great Decide: Health Promotion in Our Everyday Choices
Our days are made up of thousands of decisions – both big and small, simple and complex. Generally we respond to these decisions by acting in our best interests. Yet […]
