Life Science – Athens Science Observer

Who gives a hoot? A wildlife management tale of two owls

Madden Solomon — Sat, 21 Dec 2024 17:12:39 +0000

If you’ve spent a significant amount of time on the South campus of the University of Georgia, you’ve probably heard talk of the “Warnowl,” and maybe even seen it once or twice. Students have affectionately awarded this name to the barred owl that frequents the trees surrounding the Warnell School of Forestry and Natural Resources …

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Spuds and Science: Digging Up the Origins and Future of the Potato

Dionne Martin — Wed, 04 Dec 2024 13:00:00 +0000

The next time you and your friends share some fries, impress them with some knowledge on your favorite side dish. They’ll be amazed to learn that potato is the world’s third most consumed food crop and America’s favorite vegetable (according to the US Department of Agriculture). Strangely enough though, potatoes haven’t always been a fan …

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Helping plants thrive: assisted gene flow may combat habitat loss

Riley Thoen — Mon, 25 Nov 2024 16:26:08 +0000

If you have ever driven on a rural road, you have likely seen flowers in small patches of land on the roadside. While it is easy to write these habitat patches off as “just some on the roadside,” they actually serve as some of the last remnants of the American prairie. Before the colonization of …

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Going full worm: an exploration of Shai-hulud and its parallels to the real worms on Earth

Kendall Clay — Wed, 03 Apr 2024 14:56:20 +0000

Shai-hulud, or the giant sandworm, exists in Dune both as a mode of transportation, a generator of spice, and a key player in the ecological niche of Arrakkis. In the book by Frank Herbert and the movie adaptation (Dune part 1 2021 and Dune part 2 2024 directed by Denis Villenueve), the sandworm plays a …

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The small genetic quirk that could help us fight biodiversity loss

Ben Long — Wed, 07 Feb 2024 13:00:00 +0000

The numbers are in, and it’s official: we are losing the fight to save the many endangered species on our planet. Despite a growing number of global voices highlighting the importance of preserving biodiversity to worldwide human health and food security, the WWF’s Living Planet Report 2022 estimated we’ve lost 69% of monitored wildlife populations, …

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A bug-eat-bug world: why hyperparasites could be the future of disease control

Benjamin Phipps — Tue, 18 Jul 2023 16:02:38 +0000

Our guts are home to hundreds of microbial species (collectively called the gut microbiota) that are essential for normal digestion and immunity. What species are present and in what proportions can impact our ability to fight off pathogens, as well as our risk for obesity, metabolic disorders, and allergies. In fact, certain bacteria that can …

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The Hoof or the Boot? Phylogenetics as Historical Evidence

Guppy Stott — Tue, 27 Jun 2023 13:55:27 +0000

“Pueblo Revolt 1680” by Loren Mozley. Public Domain. The horse is thought of as a symbol of the American West, but when and how domesticated horses arrived has been a matter of controversy. Lakota oral histories described the arrival of the horse occurring prior to the arrival of the Spanish colonizers. However, the Spanish (and …

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The evolution of Pokémon evolution: 25+ years of Evolutionary misconceptions

Riley Thoen — Fri, 26 May 2023 15:35:27 +0000

Without question, Pokémon is one of the most iconic entertainment franchises ever. In fact, it is the highest-grossing media franchise of all time, coming in at a whopping $76.4 billion in revenue. All franchises come with some form of controversy among media and fans, and although Pokémon has avoided major contention, it has spread misleading …

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It actually isn’t that weird to see grey squirrels in the winter

Justine Smith — Tue, 17 Jan 2023 15:12:07 +0000

Close your eyes and imagine the first snowfall in a forest from your favorite film. What are the wildlife doing? What are they preparing for? Now fast forward to the first day of spring: when all the snow melts, the grass grows greener, and the pink flowers immediately blossom. What are the wildlife doing now? …

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A Tale Of Two Shelterbelts

Guppy Stott — Wed, 30 Nov 2022 16:15:00 +0000

For decades, climate scientists have highlighted concerns about climate change caused by greenhouse gasses emitted by humans (through fossil fuel use as well as refrigerants). While reducing greenhouse gas emissions would solve the crisis, there is a lack of political will, particularly in the United States, which prevents significant progress towards meeting goals set by …

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Becoming a Lump With Knobs

Meghan Brady — Thu, 17 Nov 2022 15:26:48 +0000

Driving down any rural road around this time of year, you’re likely to see rows on rows of corn blowing in the wind. You might notice that they look like twins of each other, almost exactly the same height and precisely the same color. That uniformity is also why corn lovers can walk into near …

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The Dark Past of Yaupon Tea, and What Genetics Can Do To Brighten Its Future

Ben Long — Fri, 28 Oct 2022 20:49:14 +0000

Whether you drink coffee, tea, or both, it’s hard to deny that we live in a caffeine culture. In 2021 alone, Americans drank over 62 billion servings of tea, and over 60% of Americans drink coffee every day. With such high numbers, tea (and especially coffee) industries are straining to keep people’s daily kick on …

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The damage of traditional lawns and what you can do to help

Samantha Surber — Tue, 26 Apr 2022 13:25:36 +0000

When I think about the suburban USA the main image that comes to mind is a bright, prim, proper, and trimmed yard with fresh turf and maybe a berm with a rose bush. However, in recent years, there has been a push to move away from these cookie-cutter landscapes and toward a more natural or …

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Turmeric: The Root of Skincare

Sayani Roy Chowdhury — Tue, 12 Apr 2022 18:49:22 +0000

When I scroll through Instagram or TikTok, I have a major sense of FOMO. People have wonderful travel visuals with perfect glassy skin all the while having their finances in order. However, to me, nothing seems as important as the absolute urge to get my particular skincare routine right this very instant. Browsing the internet …

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Don’t take them for granite: The whimsical world of granite outcrops

Riley Thoen — Wed, 06 Apr 2022 13:21:52 +0000

When most people picture landscapes of wildflowers, they often picture bright pastels of yellow, blue, and pink against a backdrop of prairie grass. Others may think of the chorus of spring ephemerals blooming in the understory of the woods. Folks from the west coast may even imagine a blanket of desert annuals blooming in synchrony …

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Machine Learning for Ecologists and Other Interesting People

Daniel Suh — Thu, 24 Mar 2022 11:00:00 +0000

Every spring, graduate students at the Odum School of Ecology at the University of Georgia organize a short weekly seminar around an interesting theme. This year, the theme is â€œMachine Learning for Ecologistsâ€. At first glance, machine learning may not seem very related to a discipline mostly concerned with the distribution and abundance of organisms, …

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An ode to herbalism, seeking help outside of disparities

Chazz Jordan — Tue, 22 Mar 2022 19:00:00 +0000

A brief history of herbalism Herbalism began to grow its roots many years ago through African and Indigenous American culture and practices. It seeks to combine the knowledge of plants and plant extracts for healing purposes, whether that is mental, physical, or spiritual healing. Specific herbs are utilized for their ability to treat specific ailments. …

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Long term ecological research is our crystal ball

Inam Jameel — Fri, 18 Mar 2022 16:00:00 +0000

How might climate change affect the environment in 50 or 100 years? To even begin to answer this pressing question, we need work that can accurately describe changes in the environment to predict the future. Long term ecological research (abbreviated as LTER), describes studies interested in environmental processes that last for at least one year …

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A botanical and medicinal history of Echinacea, a native plant of the Southeast

Chazz Jordan — Fri, 10 Dec 2021 21:03:40 +0000

In Native American culture, the purple coneflower was used to treat poisonous bites and stings, toothaches, reduce inflammation, sore throat, colds, and so much more. In a way, this botanical miracle was used as a cure-all and was used to treat ailments more than any other medicinal plant. The purple coneflower, also known scientifically as …

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Sus scrofa: The Notorious Sibling of the Pig Family

Justine Smith — Sat, 04 Dec 2021 12:00:00 +0000

When you think of farm animals, what comes to your mind? Cows, chickens, pigs, goats, sheep, horses, and so on? Each animal on the farm serves a key role in providing us with food or resources to use. But before we industrialized and invested into the farming industry, these animals were found in the wild. …

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Natural Philosophers and Seekers of Truths: The Missing “Ph” in “PhD”

Audrey Ward — Fri, 03 Dec 2021 17:41:27 +0000

The History of the PhD While many students aim to earn their PhDs, few know the philosophical history of the degrees they are pursuing. The Doctor of Philosophy (PhD or DPhil) began as the degree awarded in recognition of advanced scholarship and acknowledging that recipients had expertise needed to teach at a university level. These …

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Behind Brown Eyes: Theory of Mind in our Canine Companions

Megan Tomamichel — Wed, 01 Dec 2021 01:00:42 +0000

Have you ever looked at your favorite pet and wondered exactly what's going on behind those soulful, amber eyes? For a long time, scientists believed that only humans possessed something called Theory of Mind, that is, the understanding that one is a conscious being, and that others also possess a consciousness of their own. Theory …

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Pandemic Preparedness Requires a Macroecological Perspective

Daniel Suh — Wed, 24 Nov 2021 16:00:00 +0000

Prior to the emergence of COVID-19, there already was a movement to understand infectious disease emergence at the global scale. With the advent of the COVID-19 pandemic, this information has only become more relevant. The macroecology of infectious diseases is an important area of research with great promise for our ability to predict and prepare …

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Peanut Evolution: From Mini to Jumbo

Namrata Maharjan — Fri, 19 Nov 2021 23:12:57 +0000

While I was at my uncle's house this summer, I was looking after my 10-year-old cousin. He was enjoying his peanut butter and jelly sandwich and at a certain point he asked me: â€œWhere does peanut butter come from?â€ â€œFrom peanuts.â€ â€œWhere do peanuts come from?â€ â€œFrom a peanut plant.â€ While he was satisfied and …

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Fighting fire with fire: How microbe farmers use bacteria for self-defense and other survival functions

Benjamin Phipps — Fri, 05 Nov 2021 12:40:05 +0000

Insects comprise over half of all described species excluding bacteria and around 90% of the animals on Earth. They are so prevalent that we encounter them every day without thinking twice, and have evolved to live in nearly every imaginable habitat, from mountaintops to the depths of caves. How do insects survive in such harsh …

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The Monsters That Make You: The Spooky Tale of Selfish DNA

Meghan Brady — Tue, 02 Nov 2021 14:39:43 +0000

It’s the spooky season and we’re all anticipating monsters crawling out from under our bed, but did you know that there are monsters living inside our very cells! Every living thing has DNA in its cells. It provides the â€œblue printâ€ for what that living thing is going to be. There can't be any monsters …

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Why is it spicy?

Kendall Clay — Thu, 28 Oct 2021 21:21:17 +0000

You look down at the ramen in front of you. The aroma is enticing, smelling of cinnamon, turmeric, and chilies. As the sauce enters your mouth, your eyes start to water, your nose runs, and your whole mouth is on fire, but you love it. Why? People around the world use chili peppers to enhance …

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Universal Flu Vaccines: Beyond the Seasonal Jab

Kaito Nagashima — Wed, 27 Oct 2021 16:00:00 +0000

Sore throat? Stuffy nose? Influenza, or flu, is a nuisance for many every year, causing unwelcome respiratory discomfort that goes away after a few days for most. In some, it can cause more severe disease and even death. Every year, we can get a seasonal flu vaccine to protect ourselves against the virus. But there …

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Not all invasive species are created equal

Max Barnhart — Thu, 21 Oct 2021 19:51:49 +0000

On an otherwise entirely forgettable late-summer morning during the height of pandemic-induced self-isolation, I stepped out onto my front porch and saw the biggest spider I had ever seen in my life suspended above my hedges, hanging in the middle of an elaborate web. My new neighbor was as big as my palm, bright yellow …

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Mad honey! The secrets and adventures of psychedelic nectar

Shreena Pradhan — Fri, 25 Jun 2021 00:46:51 +0000

The remote, obscure high Hills of Nepal have their fair share of remarkable things. While the existence of some of the beings said to be living in the Himalayas is controversial, such as the Yeti, there are others whose existence will hit you like a brick wall should you ever come across it. Believe it …

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The role of the parasite Toxoplasma gondii on human behavior: Causation or correlation?

Abigail Calixto — Wed, 23 Jun 2021 19:30:59 +0000

Before becoming a graduate student, I knew little to nothing about the neglected microscopic parasite, Toxoplasma gondii. Once I began my studies, I quickly realized that unless you were a healthcare worker, vet, or pregnant, the awareness of Toxoplasma was close to nonexistent. Despite prevalence among one-third of the world's population, infected immunocompetent individuals remain …

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Science of the Fifth Sense

Taiwo Akinyemi — Fri, 18 Jun 2021 16:00:00 +0000

Imagine my frustration while trying to bottle-feed breast milk to my 4-week-old baby. The little guy was not happy taking his nature-made meal from a bottle, even if they had different-styled nipples. He would only take the breast milk directly from his mom. As a result, I wasted no time raising this concern with his …

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Addressing bullying in STEM: a call for UGA to empower trainees

Ale Villegas — Tue, 15 Jun 2021 13:51:05 +0000

Bullying in academia Bullying continues to be a problem in academia. A recent global survey showed that 59% and 84% of participants either witnessed or experienced abusive supervision behaviors, respectively. Bullying in academia is difficult to address because a power differential exists within the mentor-mentee relationship. Graduate students and postdoctoral researchers (both referred to as …

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Bats, One Health, and Emerging Infections

Gabriella Veytsel — Tue, 01 Jun 2021 19:34:38 +0000

I grew up on Ferngully, Dr. Seuss' The Lorax, the Wild Thornberrys, Studio Ghibli movies, and Avatar the Last Airbender. The theme of the interconnectedness of humans, animals, and the environment has been entrenched in me for most of my life. Furthermore, it is the foundation of One Health, an approach emphasizing collaboration between human …

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Microsporidia: tiny parasites with big impacts

Benjamin Phipps — Thu, 06 May 2021 04:23:35 +0000

A vessel is harpooned and infiltrated by an enemy, then robbed of its precious cargo â€“ this imagery may call to mind Long John Silver or other fictional marauders, but these events happen every day, all around us, on a scale so small we cannot see it. I'm referring to microsporidia, a group of real-life, …

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A bee’s eye view

Chazz Jordan — Tue, 20 Apr 2021 19:25:24 +0000

Humans see a vast array of colors, ranging from red to violet. I remember learning the acronym Roy G. Biv (Red, Orange, Yellow, Green, Blue, Indigo, Violet), the acronym elementary schoolers use to memorize the colors of the rainbow. Humans see the visual light spectrum, which is the range of light in the electromagnetic spectrum …

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Survival of the Fittest: A Sullied History of Science

Kelly McCrum — Fri, 02 Apr 2021 14:15:55 +0000

We've reached a point in the pandemic where people are starting to wonder: what would you do in a vaccinated world? Of course, reaching that reality requires that the world continue to take the health risks of coronavirus seriously, and that we continue to be transparent about how vaccines are made, tested, and distributed. There …

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The unexpected silver lining: stress and premature greying

Jen McFaline-Figueroa — Tue, 30 Mar 2021 20:18:51 +0000

The process of hair going grey is a topic that has always fascinated me. Mainly because I cannot remember a time in my life where my Dad's hair was entirely dark. In my earliest memories, where he was a young thirty-something-year-old, I can recall giggling at what he vehemently swore were little droplets of wisdom …

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Why Muscadines should be your next favorite fruit

Rebecca Atkins — Thu, 25 Mar 2021 16:00:00 +0000

Odds are if you've taken a walk in the woods you've noticed twisted, shaggy vines dipping down from the tree canopy and anchored to the forest floor. As signs of spring appear, these vines will come to life, unfurling new tendrils and ravenously reaching for the sun. Growing upwards of six inches in diameter and …

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The Science of Ultra-Running

John Spiekerman — Tue, 23 Mar 2021 22:00:00 +0000

It's 3:30 in the morning. As Lucy Bartholomew's mother braids her hair, she asks, â€œdid you sleep?â€, to which Lucy responds, â€œa littleâ€. It's a few hours before the start of one of the most grueling races in the world. At 22 years old, Lucy is one of the youngest participants ever. Lucy has competed …

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Starve not the goose that lays the golden egg: The importance of federally funded research

Inam Jameel — Wed, 17 Mar 2021 16:35:36 +0000

What do frog skin, horseshoe crab blood, and a llama named Winter all have in common? All three were part of studies that have been awarded Golden Goose awards, a designation given to strange sounding but ground-breaking federally funded research. Frog skin was used in experiments to determine the mechanism underlying cholera and directly led …

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In Defense of Natural History Museums

Rebecca Atkins — Wed, 17 Feb 2021 13:16:03 +0000

What becomes of species that no longer exist, or bygone narratives of human history? Where do scientists go for answers when our questions span continents and centuries? For the answer to these questions and so many more, we need museums. Natural history museums in particular serve as the nexus between research and people, spanning numerous …

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The Future of CRISPR Therapy

Kaito Nagashima — Tue, 26 Jan 2021 13:00:00 +0000

Although rewriting the code of life seems like a daunting task, scientists have managed to do just that. You've probably heard of CRISPR technology, a burgeoning genetic tool that has seen use in a multitude of applications, from treating Duchenne muscular dystrophy in mice to making crops more sustainable. The technology offers a method of …

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Stand in the place where you live

Monica Harmon — Tue, 22 Dec 2020 16:40:12 +0000

Trees are all over, above us and below us. They connect soil to the atmosphere. They create forests and confer their beauty on our city. In Athens we have the tree that famously owns itself, a white oak. Maybe you've taken a stroll through Oconee Forest Park or noticed the smell of the woods on …

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From obscurity to everyday use: How basic science changes the world

Meghan Brady — Tue, 08 Dec 2020 13:00:24 +0000

Every holiday season, I've struggled to explain to my family of accountants, firefighters, and lawyers why basic science research is important. They never seem to believe that my work on frog-eating bats is anywhere near as important as applied research aimed at curing disease or addressing world hunger. What they don't seem to understand is …

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In defense of trees and those who cut them

Colton Meinecke — Tue, 24 Nov 2020 13:00:00 +0000

Trees have received a lot of press lately. As wildfires tore through forests worldwide, President Donald Trump blamed the devastation on poor forest management. Meanwhile, the United States formalized a commitment to planting trees to restore our climate. The world's governments and scientists are grappling with how we both protect and manage forests. What should …

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Battle for the Ocean's Giant Kelp Forests

John Spiekerman — Tue, 03 Nov 2020 15:55:01 +0000

Slightly off the Californian coast, battle lines are drawn. On one side lies a purple, spiny, extraterrestrial-looking creature intent on eating all plant life in its path. On the other, an equally eccentric echinoderm in the shape of a star awaits that same creature as its next meal. The battleground between them is overshadowed by …

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The Fault in Our Epigenome: The science behind aging

Megan Tomamichel — Thu, 29 Oct 2020 22:20:57 +0000

From the Yoruba tradition of throwing cowrie shells, to the Roma fortune tellers peering at palms, people throughout history have wondered if there was some sort of physical or external way to map out the path of our lives. Modern day scientists are still pondering how to predict the future, but instead of looking up …

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What your mama (mostly) gave you

Jen McFaline-Figueroa — Tue, 20 Oct 2020 16:03:21 +0000

Anyone who knows me knows that mitochondria are pretty much my life. My Ph.D. focuses on making these little cellular power plants more efficient at producing energy so that they can help muscles heal faster after traumatic injury. More than that, though, I want to teach people that mitochondria are more than just â€œthe powerhouse …

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Diving into the Homo-Delphinus connection

Sarada Sripada — Tue, 06 Oct 2020 18:46:42 +0000

Humans have shared a special bond with a certain animal since the time of Aristotle. Artworks as early as 1500 BC depicted interactions with this fascinating creature. Members of this species have assisted the US Navy, and have also been used as therapy animals for patients with Down syndrome and autism. These amiable beings are …

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Wall of Destruction: The impact of the US-Mexico Border wall on wildlife

gabbiesandstedt — Tue, 05 May 2020 16:17:00 +0000

Growing up in Arizona, we were told that people could go to jail for damaging a Saguaro cactus. Saguaros are a protected symbol of the Southwest. Yet in 2019, videos shot by Kevin Dahl, the Arizona Senior Program manager for the National Parks Conservation Association, recorded bulldozers uprooting Saguaro cacti and other desert shrubs at …

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Breaking the two-hour tape: Engineering the fastest marathon run in history

Emily McIntyre — Fri, 01 May 2020 18:32:21 +0000

What does it take to reach the peak of athletic performance and break barriers thought to be beyond human capabilities? One of these barriers is the two-hour marathon, a feat which requires running 26.2 miles while maintaining an average pace of 4:34 per mile. At that speed, you could run the 100-yard length of a …

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The stranger within: the story of mitochondria

Jen McFaline-Figueroa — Fri, 01 May 2020 18:09:17 +0000

Suppose you stop someone on the street to ask them a question. You offer them three words: what are mitochondria? Chances are, they will reply â€œthe powerhouse of the cellâ€ as a near-Pavlovian reflex. It's amazing to think that almost everyone who went through high school-level biology or life sciences can remember this factoid, regardless …

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Sleeping Beauty Seeds

athenssciencecafe — Sun, 12 Apr 2020 19:43:06 +0000

This year I've been reading a lot about seed dormancy and while we're all hunkered down, sheltered in place during the COVID-19 pandemic, I can't help but feel there's an apt comparison to be made. Most plants don't get a lot of input on where they land as seeds, but they do have a say …

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Fanning the flames

Simone Lim-Hing — Wed, 01 Apr 2020 18:32:34 +0000

In recent years, it feels like we have watched parts of the world be swallowed whole by fire, painting a very apocalyptic picture of the future. Nearly 40,000 square miles in Australia were decimated by bushfires last year. California's Camp Fire displaced about 50,000 residents, and Indonesia saw over 2 million acres of land consumed …

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Double Merle Dogs

athenssciencecafe — Mon, 30 Mar 2020 20:22:26 +0000

Dog coats come in a seemingly endless variety of patterns, lengths, textures and colors, determined by their genetic makeup. Just 8-14 different genes are responsible for most of these differences in coat color and pigmentation. Dogs inherit two alleles, or variations, of each of these genes, one from the father and one from the mother. …

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Saving more than just seeds, in situ

Tara Conway — Fri, 13 Mar 2020 22:28:54 +0000

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 …

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Microbial mania on Mars

athenssciencecafe — Fri, 06 Mar 2020 17:08:29 +0000

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 …

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The undead ghost forests of Georgia

Rebecca Atkins — Thu, 20 Feb 2020 18:53:09 +0000

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 …

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Plastic tips: a more sustainable science

Kathy Bui — Fri, 07 Feb 2020 14:50:52 +0000

Alternatively, this post could have been titled, My Guilty Conscience Series: Plastics. This blog post has been a long time coming â€“ given the fact that I (and many others) have been conditioned to â€œreduce, reuse, and recycleâ€ before we could even multiply. Yet, as I continue to diligently organize my empty jars and cans …

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Azure is the New Black: Creating a Blue Rose

Jeremy Duke — Tue, 04 Feb 2020 15:38:12 +0000

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 …

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A Tough Nut to Crack: Navigating Severe Food Allergies and the Search for an Effective Treatment

athenssciencecafe — Tue, 21 Jan 2020 18:27:27 +0000

You walk into the lunchroom, and all sorts of alarms go off in your head. While reaching for utensils you think â€œWhat if the last person used this for peanut butter and didn't wash it well.â€ You sit down at the table thinking â€œSomeone ate nuts here last week, was the table cleaned since then?â€ …

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The roots of your tea

athenssciencecafe — Sun, 05 Jan 2020 22:28:08 +0000

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 …

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Divide and Conquer! A parasitic worm's key to survival

Megan Tomamichel — Mon, 18 Nov 2019 12:57:23 +0000

You may have already forgotten about Halloween, but the recent discovery of a new social organization of body-snatching parasites might be enough to send shivers down your spine! Trematodes are a clade of worms that are almost exclusively parasites of snails and mollusks (with the notable exception of schistosomes); one species is the cause of …

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The Wonders of Human Milk!

athenssciencecafe — Sun, 17 Nov 2019 00:52:54 +0000

It's a girl (or boy)! Your bundle of joy is finally here. Stepping into parenthood, life is magical. But it is not all sunshine and roses either with the constant cleaning, frequent feedings and sleepless nights. The baby falling sick on top of it, is your worst fear. No wonder you find yourself paranoid, sterilizing …

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Shining some light on the science of vampires

athenssciencecafe — Wed, 30 Oct 2019 23:14:15 +0000

This Halloween, as you see kids dressed up as zombies or witches, threatening neighbors into giving them candy it's easy to forget that these terrifying creatures once had a less sugary purpose: in the absence of modern science, our ancestors needed a supernatural technique to explain the plagues and diseases that reason couldn't. One of …

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Saving the world’s seeds, ex situ

Tara Conway — Wed, 30 Oct 2019 18:57:50 +0000

The imposing structure of the Svalbard seed bank is familiar to many. This â€œdoomsdayâ€ vault (ahem, already breached by climate change) is humanity's last resort for preserving the seeds of our crops and plants. But how did this bastion of biodiversity arise? Nikolai Vavilov, a 20th century Russian agronomist and geneticist, established the first modern …

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Last but not yeast, the beer necessities

athenssciencecafe — Mon, 28 Oct 2019 15:36:32 +0000

Fermentation is the process in which sugar is consumed by microbes and converted into another chemical. In the case of brewer's yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae), the fungus responsible for nearly all alcoholic beverages, sugar is eaten and converted to alcohol, phenols, and esters. Other fungi and bacteria have been in use for centuries, but their use …

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Photosynthesis & waffles: how plant sap gets on our breakfast plates

Simone Lim-Hing — Sat, 26 Oct 2019 17:45:17 +0000

Maple syrup is a staple in Western breakfast culture. True maple syrup – as opposed to the thick corn syrup imitation that sits in many American diners – comes from a variety of trees, mostly the sugar maple. But this breakfast condiment is more than just goo that happens to ooze out of a plant …

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Fossilized Ebola is Hiding in Your Pet Hamster's DNA!

Max Barnhart — Sat, 19 Oct 2019 21:10:43 +0000

Ebolavirus is one of the most infamous disease causing pathogens of the modern era. The 2014 Ebola outbreak in West Africa was the largest outbreak of ebolavirus to date, with over 28,000 suspected cases and 11,000 deaths. Ebolavirus is just one member of the Filoviridae virus family. These viruses are colloquially referred to as Filoviruses …

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The Solar Power of the Sunflower

Max Barnhart — Wed, 16 Oct 2019 00:34:31 +0000

This article is part of our brand new Athens Science Observer interview series. We are conducting interviews with established scientists in order to get first person accounts of exciting research and hear the stories of those who are making a difference. You may have heard that sunflowers can track the sun during the day, but …

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Scouting for the Next Top Model (Organism)

athenssciencecafe — Sun, 13 Oct 2019 23:17:47 +0000

Here's a valid question: if it's a human condition or disease we're interested in, why do we study flies, plants or bacteria? It's a question that researchers often have to answer: whether it be for grant funding or to their in-laws over Thanksgiving dinner. Certainly, no one wants to hearâ€”or vote forâ€” tax dollars aimlessly …

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From Social Stigma to Health Sensor: Scientific Tattooing

athenssciencecafe — Sun, 06 Oct 2019 18:03:15 +0000

Tattoos, the artistic insertion of pigment into the skin as a form of body modification, has been around for quite a while, with the earliest preserved example from around 3300 BC. These tattoos comes from Ã–tzi the Iceman, a preserved human found in the Alps between Austria and Italy in 1991. The tattoos were of …

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Viruses: The Original Genome Editors

athenssciencecafe — Sat, 05 Oct 2019 17:31:55 +0000

Viruses stealthily spread among us, commandeering our very cells and waging a relentless war with our immune systems. You know them for everything from the common cold and flu to catastrophic outbreaks of HIV and Ebola. At the very least, they’ve probably ruined your plans once or twice. But did you know that a …

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Plant Cells, an Unculturable Mystery

athenssciencecafe — Sun, 29 Sep 2019 19:38:33 +0000

The simplest unit in biology is the cell. This central tenet has remained true since the coining of the term 'cell' in 1665 by Robert Hooke. Cells have enabled multicellular organisms to conquer every part of the planet, enabling cell line specialization and the formation of more complex organisms. Multicellularity allowed organisms to thrive by …

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Riding the Brain Wave

athenssciencecafe — Sun, 22 Sep 2019 15:50:17 +0000

Wurzburg, Germany, 1892. Hans Berger was in military training when he was suddenly thrown off his horse and injured. That same evening, Berger received a telegram from his family coincidentally inquiring about his health. This event instigated an ambition in Berger to discover the neural basis of â€˜telepathy', communication of thoughts between people without the …

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Malaria: From Miasma to Elimination

Max Barnhart — Sun, 22 Sep 2019 11:43:13 +0000

Life on Earth is full of dynamic and complex interactions between organisms. Some of these interactions are mutualistic, where all parties benefit from the relationship. Others are commensalistic, where one organism benefits and the other isn't really affected. Then there are the parasites, organisms that live and prey on others causing them harm. Parasites are …

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How do plants sense their surroundings?

Simone Lim-Hing — Wed, 10 Jul 2019 19:30:59 +0000

When laying the most essential foundation of biological sciences to a bunch of first graders, educators often start with a lima bean. Between two layers of a wet paper towel, a lima bean takes root and then sprouts its first two leaves. In a mere eight days, what was once a dry bean is a …

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Does Your Multitasking Spark Joy?

Rebecca Atkins — Thu, 27 Jun 2019 17:09:39 +0000

As a graduate student, I'm fortunate enough to dictate my own work hours. However, with this freedom comes expectations of productivity; I must juggle writing manuscripts, mentoring students, applying for grants and conducting my research. Amidst these tasks, I inevitably find the time to toggle between the 30-something tabs on my internet browser, scroll through social …

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Preventing the Next Epidemic: Scientists Take a Closer Look at Rift Valley Fever

athenssciencecafe — Wed, 12 Jun 2019 23:09:02 +0000

In 2015, Zika virus resulted in a global public health emergency. The epidemic caused severe brain defects in thousands of Brazilian newborns after the virus was transmitted to pregnant mothers via infected mosquitoes. The rapid emergence of disease caught everyone by surprise, and with little understanding of the virus pathogenesis it left scientists unprepared to …

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Lost in Translation

athenssciencecafe — Fri, 31 May 2019 15:24:19 +0000

The year is 2019; the place, your local grocery store. You, the unwary consumer, wander the aisles on your weekly shopping excursion. Reaching for the milk, you hesitate; “non-GMO” is emblazoned across one milk carton. Meanwhile another label holds no such distinction. It does not assure you, the consumer, that its contents are free of …

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Flight of the Living Dead: Is the Zombification of Flies Facilitated by an Interkingdom Host Switch?

athenssciencecafe — Wed, 22 May 2019 15:21:32 +0000

In July of 2018, the Eisen lab at UC Berkeley published what Michael Eisen described as one of the wackiest discoveries of his career. They discovered a virus that swapped hosts from a fly to a fungus. This virus might underlie the fungus' ability to control the minds of insects. Since the 1850s, people have …

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Blinded by the Blue Light

athenssciencecafe — Thu, 09 May 2019 10:42:34 +0000

â€Don't stare at your phone/computer too much, you will hurt your eyesâ€ – we've probably all heard this at some point in our lives. Is this true? Does staring at a screen really â€œhurtâ€ your eyes? What other effects does it have on the body, and is it something that will impact our health as …

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Men control the reproductive rights of plants too

athenssciencecafe — Thu, 02 May 2019 11:19:01 +0000

When confronted with the imprecise notion of â€œsustainabilityâ€ in agriculture, most people's thoughts drift to ideas of ecologically-mindful land management practices. I'll dub these concepts â€œthe classicsâ€: rotate your crops, use less fertilizer and pesticides, always employ cover cropping. While these ideas are not wrong, they are incomplete in that they tend to omit some …

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The Secret World of Plant Chemistry: Plant Communication

Simone Lim-Hing — Thu, 25 Apr 2019 11:16:13 +0000

Part II of the series exploring plant chemistry through different lenses. Plants are the perfect embodiments of natural selection â€“ they can't just get up and move; so whatever adversity they face, they generally have to stick it out. It leaves the strongest individuals to survive while the weaker ones perish. This situation warrants some …

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When Wild Avocados Roamed the Earth

athenssciencecafe — Sun, 21 Apr 2019 20:29:31 +0000

If you've ventured outdoors in the southeast over the last couple weeks, then you may have noticed that things are looking distinctlyâ€¦yellow. Everywhere you turn, cars and sidewalks are covered in a fine layer of yellow â€˜dust'. The hazy quality to the air, as any sufferer of seasonal allergies will be happy to inform you, …

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Pooper Snooper: Four-legged conservation heroes at work

athenssciencecafe — Thu, 18 Apr 2019 12:41:18 +0000

From hunting to detection of drugs and bombs to search and rescue, it seems there is no limit to the ways we can take advantage of the keen sense of smell possessed by man’s best friend. What is less known is that the same qualities that enable dogs to find drugs and track down animals …

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Breed for Speed: The Inner Workings of Horse Racing Genetics

Inam Jameel — Wed, 10 Apr 2019 21:04:15 +0000

Secretariat entered the 99th running of the Kentucky Derby as a heavy favorite, posing 5-to-2 odds. Thus, It wasn't unexpected when the large chestnut colt set the new course record at 1 minute and 59 â…– seconds, but few could imagine the record would still stand today, 45 years in the future. Even Justify, the …

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Science Warning! Annihilation

Max Barnhart — Thu, 04 Apr 2019 14:04:48 +0000

Science Warning! Is a series about the science behind some of our favorite SciFi stories. Today we take a look at Annihilation starring Natalie Portman. As a biologist, I find watching Annihilation a thrilling experience. The movie so expertly blends science-fiction and horror into a narrative where the rules of life are twisted to create …

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Science Behind Bars: A Bioethics Case Study

athenssciencecafe — Wed, 27 Mar 2019 12:29:44 +0000

The “salt wars” have been raging for decades, with medical science still embroiled over whether there is a direct link between sodium consumption and heart disease. Last year, a group of researchers published an editorial in an American Heart Association journal proposing a way to finally get to the bottom of this; in the process, …

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Cancer and Us – Are You Safe?

athenssciencecafe — Sun, 17 Mar 2019 20:51:16 +0000

On February 4th, we celebrated World Cancer Day to remember those affected by cancer, standing by them in their fight against it. Known as the big â€œC,â€ cancer is a dreaded disease. There were 18.1 million new cases worldwide in 2018, of which 9.6 million were fatal. Being a leading cause of mortality, it has …

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The Sugar Code: Representing Glycans

athenssciencecafe — Tue, 12 Mar 2019 21:50:47 +0000

Hearts, stars, horseshoes, clovers and blue moons, pots of golden rainbows and me red balloons! If you've ever eaten Lucky Charms cereal, you probably know this jingle and the tiny shapes of marshmallows it references. Interestingly enough, glycobiologists, or biologists who study the sugars that make up those tasty mallows, have their own Lucky Charm …

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Emerging Diseases and Wildlife: How Small Changes Can Have Big Consequences

Megan Tomamichel — Thu, 07 Mar 2019 12:34:00 +0000

On my walk home from work, I almost always encounter what I affectionately call â€œtrash creaturesâ€: squirrels that pop out of dumpsters carrying slices of pizza or crows pulling apart garbage bags to get at the tasty morsels inside. While undoubtedly amusing, these incidents may have more cryptic, and sinister, consequences to the health of …

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Oil Wells in the River of Grass

athenssciencecafe — Sun, 03 Mar 2019 19:43:28 +0000

“Here are no lofty peaks seeking the sky, no mighty glaciers or rushing streams wearing away the uplifted land. Here is land, tranquil in its quiet beauty, serving not as the source of water, but as the last receiver of it. To its natural abundance we owe the spectacular plant and animal life that distinguishes …

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The Tiny Wiggly Molecular World of Medicine

athenssciencecafe — Wed, 27 Feb 2019 13:00:07 +0000

Medicine has been important to humans since our earliest days, but for the majority of our history, we've had very little idea of how medicine works. We used to attribute medicinal effects to magic or to balancing the fluids of the body (bloodletting, anyone?), but thankfully we've come a long way since then. With the …

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The Cold Truth About Cryopreservation

athenssciencecafe — Mon, 25 Feb 2019 01:05:17 +0000

Recently, I was in the lab doing some routine work with cells. In order to start growing my own stock of cells I took a small vial out of a tank of liquid nitrogen, where it is stored at around -150°C (-238°F). Then I quickly thawed it to body temperature (37°C, or 98.6°F) and transferred …

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The Secret World of Plant Chemistry

Simone Lim-Hing — Mon, 11 Feb 2019 12:44:44 +0000

Sometimes plants make it seem like nature was intended for our benefit. From the wood in our coffee tables to the rubber in our erasers – plants are so entwined with our lives that we often forget that our products were once towering elms and flowering poppies. The relationship we have with plants seems more …

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A Lesson in Un-BEE-lieveable Insect Intelligence

athenssciencecafe — Mon, 11 Feb 2019 02:56:46 +0000

Bumblebees. What comes to your mind when that word is uttered? To some, it's pure fear of its vicious sting. To others, it's the image of their toddler dressed up for Halloween. But to researchers who study bees, it's awe at the ability of such a small creature to have immense intellectual potential. Bee communities …

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Cystic Fibrosis and Your Genes

athenssciencecafe — Wed, 06 Feb 2019 13:00:26 +0000

Disease alters lives in permanent and often heartbreaking ways. Most people have a story about how they have been affected by disease, either firsthand, through a family member, or looking from the outside in on another person's life. In a world where tragedy is at the forefront of our personal lives via news stories, gofundme …

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I'm colorful and multitalented

athenssciencecafe — Thu, 20 Dec 2018 14:25:35 +0000

What do the San Francisco Bay, the Dead Sea and the Great Salt Lake in Utah have in common? Water, obviously. But inside each of these water bodies resides a special organism called halobacterium. And if you think halobacterium is a type of bacteria, you may be surprised to find that you are wrong. Now, …

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Frosty the Microbe

athenssciencecafe — Mon, 10 Dec 2018 03:15:36 +0000

â€˜Tis the season for stories of wintery magic. From Elsa and Frozone to their mythical grandfather, Jack Frost, there's no cooler gift than the power to let it snow at will, or shock a pond skate-worthy with a single touch. Little do we realize that these chilly abilities aren't limited to the realm of holiday …

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Algal Nutraceuticals: When Seaweed takes the lead!

Sarada Sripada — Mon, 26 Nov 2018 04:07:47 +0000

Algae happen to be one of the most important organisms on our planet, producing about 70-80% of the oxygen we breathe. They are mostly aquatic photosynthetic organisms which grow in all sizes, from microscopic phytoplankton floating in the water, to the giant kelp which can be as large as a tree! More often you can …

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Thermophiles: Hot Microbes on the Biofuel Frontier

athenssciencecafe — Mon, 19 Nov 2018 22:52:16 +0000

If you've ever been lucky enough to visit Yellowstone National Park (or looked at pictures), then you have probably seen the colorful, steaming mats that surround many of the park's famous geysers and geothermal pools. While they may not look it, these mats are actually living creatures. They form a special class of organisms called …

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As American as Pumpkin Pie

athenssciencecafe — Tue, 13 Nov 2018 04:30:56 +0000

Thanksgiving: an American holiday uniquely focused on food and family. Not grounded in religion, nor patriotic beliefs, it’s distinctly American in the best way. And yet, on this lovely day, we fail to realize the ancestral fruit of our continent right in the midst of our dinner tables. A fruit which has been unjustly usurped …

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The Magic Of Curries: A Spicy Science

athenssciencecafe — Tue, 06 Nov 2018 17:25:22 +0000

Have your lunch breaks gotten boring? How about an enticing curry to spice up your taste buds? Curries like korma, rogan josh, jalfrezi and tikka masala are more than just food – they are an experience. An explosion of sweet, savory, spicy, and sour flavors all at once – each bold in its own right, …

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Battle of the sexesâ€¦ for evidence-based healthcare

athenssciencecafe — Tue, 06 Nov 2018 03:45:41 +0000

Ladies, how many times have you rolled your eyes while your male friend languishes on the couch, suffering from a serious case of the â€œman fluâ€ while the rest of us manage to take a decongestant and go about our day? Fellas, does it ever seem like every woman you know is constantly complaining of …

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Mirror, mirror on the wall, who is the fairest (or youngest) of them all?

athenssciencecafe — Tue, 06 Nov 2018 01:08:37 +0000

Have you ever been scared of grey hair, skin wrinkles, baldness, or even worse, dementia? Voltaire once remarked, â€œWhat most persons consider as virtue, after the age of 40 is simply a loss of energyâ€. Nothing is as unnerving as the fact that we all have limited time on this beautiful planet. For centuries, humans …

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One Health: Leveraging the connection between humans, animals, and the environment

athenssciencecafe — Mon, 29 Oct 2018 03:14:48 +0000

Don't forget!! One Health Day is coming!! https://t.co/dUmFU7SPOt pic.twitter.com/FWLmKg1taO — OneHealth Commission (@OneHealthCom) October 12, 2018 What is One Health? One Health is an approach that acknowledges the interactions between human and animal health are inextricably linked, and interdependent to the health of the surrounding ecosystem. These interactions offer opportunities for the emergence and spread …

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Genetic Privacy

athenssciencecafe — Wed, 24 Oct 2018 13:52:12 +0000

As dust settles in the wake of the Facebook and Cambridge Analytica scandal, people around the world are rapidly awakening to the power and value of their personal data. Information collected through social media about your favorite music or your choices on an online quiz contributes to an ever-growing mass of data about you that …

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Bright and Bedazzledâ€¦ Camouflage?

athenssciencecafe — Mon, 22 Oct 2018 11:39:23 +0000

Have you ever looked at the shimmer of a peacock's feathers or the metallic shine of a green June beetle and thought, â€œI bet those bright colors help that animal blend in with its natural habitat.â€ No? Well, you wouldn't be alone. When artist and naturalist Abbot Thayler first proposed that iridescence could be a …

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Living Fossils â€“ Extinct or Extant?

athenssciencecafe — Mon, 15 Oct 2018 22:56:36 +0000

Does serendipity exist? Marjorie Courtenay-Latimer was the curator of a tiny museum in East London, South Africa, when she received a phone call from a local dockman. It was Christmas eve in 1938, and Marjorie was asked to inspect the latest catch of Captain Hendrik Goosen. As it turned out, it would be a …

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The Science of Emotions

athenssciencecafe — Mon, 08 Oct 2018 03:45:59 +0000

We've all experienced it â€“ the feeling of having your heart broken by someone you love or experiencing pure rage at someone cutting you off in rush hour traffic. But we've also all experienced the opposite – butterflies when your crush smiles at you or the serenity of crisp fall air with falling leaves. But …

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Hoppily Ever After: How Big Beer fueled the rise of the Craft Beer resistance

athenssciencecafe — Wed, 03 Oct 2018 13:50:30 +0000

Sitting at the bar of Creature Comforts, sipping on one of their many hop-forward beers, many of us never think about the ingredients that go into some of our favorite beverages. Dry-Hopped, Wet-Hopped, Mosaic, Citra, Cascade, Centennial, IBU, alpha acids, and lupulin are some of the terms you may have seen on your favorite beer …

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The Physiological Aftermath of a Heartbreak

athenssciencecafe — Mon, 01 Oct 2018 02:46:59 +0000

Decades back, Willa Cather summed up what we all have felt at some point in time – â€œromantic relationships are tragic necessities of human lifeâ€ – ones that lay bare the fragilities of the human heart. The end of a romantic relationship can be torturous and leave you feeling heartbroken; perhaps this is why it's …

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The Perfect Place to Fall in Love

athenssciencecafe — Mon, 24 Sep 2018 14:50:49 +0000

Some people spend their free time volunteering, spending time with loved ones, or enjoying hobbies. Others, like me, spend six hours a week watching drunk people making out on a beach. If you don't watch the television equivalent of a tequila shot that is Bachelor in Paradise, the basic concept is that those who failed …

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The Last Sandcastle

athenssciencecafe — Mon, 24 Sep 2018 03:45:37 +0000

Famous astronomer and science communicator Carl Sagan said â€œThe total number of stars in the universe is greater than all the grains of sand on all the beaches of the planet Earth.â€ As it turns out, not only was he right, but we are also running out of sand. Lack of Necessary Resource How do …

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“It’s a delicacy”: How microbes help vultures eat rotten meat

athenssciencecafe — Mon, 17 Sep 2018 20:20:53 +0000

As humans, we sometimes eat some pretty weird things. (Rocky Mountain oysters, anybody?) But no matter how adventurous an eater you are, we typically draw the line once food starts to decompose. There is one animal, however, that thrives on a repulsive diet of death and decay. Vultures are obligate scavengers. Unlike other carnivores, they …

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Miracle Molecule of 1992

athenssciencecafe — Mon, 10 Sep 2018 20:00:51 +0000

A month into my Ph.D. program, I remember my advisor reminiscing about how his uncle had to have hip replacement surgery. Sadly, his uncle did not survive due to complications post-surgery caused by blood clots and infections on the replaced hip. A decade later, his determination to prevent such cases, resulted in the development of …

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When a â€œsweetâ€ bite has an unsavory end…

athenssciencecafe — Mon, 10 Sep 2018 03:00:14 +0000

How do you like your steak? Preferably not deadly? Well, maybe you should keep an eye out for ticks…yep, ticks. Ticks are quite the pesky problem, especially during the summer months, when they're active and we're more likely to be outside. They're already pretty notorious for spreading diseases like Lyme and Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever, …

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The Power of Pollinators – More than Just Honey

athenssciencecafe — Sun, 26 Aug 2018 17:23:17 +0000

One would be hard pressed to take a walk through the Athens Farmers' Market in mid-summer, and not be struck by the bounty offered by Georgia farmers and producers. The wide variety of fruits and vegetables on display hold the promise of delicious meals to be had and flavors to be enjoyed. However, if not …

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Dead Zones… Are They a Problem?

athenssciencecafe — Sun, 05 Aug 2018 20:21:40 +0000

Continuing from my previous post, I want to talk about real life examples of climate change and its effects on the world around us. The idea for this particular post came to me when I was scrolling through Facebook and saw a video about a dead zone near the coast of Oman. It made me …

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Fatal Attraction: The Truth Behind Mosquito Bite Preference

athenssciencecafe — Wed, 01 Aug 2018 15:47:34 +0000

For as long as I can remember, they have come for me. They follow me everywhere, stealing a tiny drop of my life force and replacing it with poison before I even know they've been there. I still bear the scars of their attacks on my legs and ankles. I have tried every defenseâ€“ chemical, …

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Insect Riddles

athenssciencecafe — Sun, 29 Jul 2018 23:38:46 +0000

Any true Athenian knows that summer means sweat, more sweat and (best of all) insects! Though summers filled with no-see-ums, mosquitoes, gnats and flies may cause you to despair of their class altogether, don't forget all the fascinating, beautiful and seemingly magical insects that make our existence possible. Whether you're an entomologist or not you …

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Take two of what and call you in the morning?

athenssciencecafe — Mon, 23 Jul 2018 23:46:28 +0000

While everyone may not know exactly what antibiotics are or how they work, most people have taken them at some point in their lives. Familiarity with antibiotics stems from the fact that they are prescribed often, and their frequency of misuse has led to a very big problem – antibiotic resistance. So what are we …

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The Science of â€œThe Pillâ€

athenssciencecafe — Mon, 23 Jul 2018 02:15:06 +0000

The story of oral contraception begins in the early twentieth century when Austrian physiologist, Ludwig Haberlandt, found that female rabbits and guinea pigs became temporarily sterile after the transplantation of ovaries from pregnant animals. But what caused this temporary sterilization, and how did it lead to the pill? The secret of the pill is the …

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To vaccinate or not to vaccinate? It's not just about you.

athenssciencecafe — Mon, 16 Jul 2018 15:32:11 +0000

1.5 million. That number can represent many different things: the population of Philadelphia, the number of classified living species, or the number of tweets Taylor Swift's Reputation album received in the first 24 hours of its release. It is also the number of children under 5 years of age that die from vaccine-preventable diseases every …

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Do These Genes Make My Butt Look Big?

athenssciencecafe — Wed, 11 Jul 2018 15:45:33 +0000

Today's chickens are bigger than ever before, which raises the question â€“ how did we do that? Over the years, companies have selected chickens with the healthiest growth and size for breeding, to help them get the best start possible. Understandably,food animal production is an emotionally-charged topic, and with conflicting information readily available online …

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The two-sided tail of the Peacock

athenssciencecafe — Tue, 03 Jul 2018 18:14:17 +0000

Have you ever encountered the Indian Peafowl? It is notoriously famous for a showy, elaborate dance to lure its female, the peahen. The male peacock adorns himself with an ornate appearance. Just observing one is breathtaking. A fan-shaped crest sits on top like a jeweled crown, a brilliant blue glistening neck making way for an …

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New Hopes for a Cancer Diagnosis

athenssciencecafe — Tue, 26 Jun 2018 13:45:38 +0000

â€œYou have cancer.â€ The dreaded three words that no patient wants to hear when they go into the clinic. A cancer diagnosis can be devastating on an emotional and psychological level, and most importantly, it prematurely reminds us of our mortality. According to 2017 Cancer Statistics, over 1.7 million Americans will be diagnosed with some …

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Hidden World: How Perception Influences Science

athenssciencecafe — Mon, 18 Jun 2018 18:59:25 +0000

If you use social media, then you probably remember the uproar surrounding the optical illusion known as â€œThe Dress.â€ Some people saw blue and black, others, white and gold. The vehement arguments over the color of the dress are a perfect example of how our perception can influence what we think of as reality. Unfortunately, …

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Growing plants in space: not just an academic adventure

athenssciencecafe — Sat, 05 May 2018 19:30:36 +0000

On December 15, 2017, Alexander â€œAlâ€ Meyers waited patiently at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station to hear the deafening roar of a Falcon 9 rocket signifying the start of the launch. Delayed over a month for technical issues, the successful launch of the SpaceX CRS-13 mission was essential for Al Meyers, as nestled inside were seeds that are potentially critical to the future of space exploration.

Tired â€˜Round the (Circadian) Clock

athenssciencecafe — Mon, 16 Apr 2018 01:13:47 +0000

Everyone knows what it's like to feel tired. If you're a student, you probably know what it means to feel completely exhausted. You likely could also pinpoint exactly why you are exhausted â€“ you stayed up cramming all night for that big test, or just couldn't turn off Netflix even though you had class early …

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Detoxifying the mystery of an underrated organ

athenssciencecafe — Mon, 09 Apr 2018 15:59:48 +0000

We're a few months into the new year now, so how's that â€œNew Year, New Youâ€ life plan going? More specifically, how about those detoxes or cleanses? You may have noticed a few detox trends on the covers of magazines while buying organic veggies for your vegan meals (which may or may not have turned …

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Texan Panthers to the (Genetic) Rescue

athenssciencecafe — Thu, 05 Apr 2018 15:27:57 +0000

Once upon a time, thousands of panthers roamed throughout the North American continent. Puma concolor are a highly adaptive species that inhabited a variety of habitat types. However, within 200 years after European colonization, they were eliminated from the entire eastern half of North America due to hunting and habitat loss. All that remained was …

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Captive breeding and reintroduction programs: the last-ditch effort in conservation

athenssciencecafe — Sat, 24 Feb 2018 22:53:27 +0000

George had a problem. He was at least 100 years old and had been living in the same place for 40 years. He led a relatively simple life, though was somewhat overweight and had not left his confining compound since 1972. What was the most unusual thing about George was that he was under enormous …

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Glyco-what?

athenssciencecafe — Fri, 16 Feb 2018 21:00:50 +0000

The dreaded question for this graduate student: â€œWhat do you do?â€ Ugh. Must I really talk about my research at the dinner table or in this dimly lit bar? Perhaps it's my leaning towards introversion, but this really is my least favorite question to answer outside of a strict research setting. It's inevitable though. Here's …

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It's the Little Things: Finding Inspiration in a Snail

athenssciencecafe — Sat, 27 Jan 2018 21:22:10 +0000

Nature influences us every day. Not only can we find beauty in the natural world, but scientists and engineers can also draw inspiration from animals and plants to solve problems. Bioinspiration, a term for taking biological principles and applying them to non-biological science and technology, has long been a driving force behind invention and the …

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A Matter of Milkweed

athenssciencecafe — Sun, 25 Dec 2016 12:00:38 +0000

The Real Ultra-marathoners Pause for a minute and think about how far you travel in a day. The average American walks around 2.5 miles each day. If you are an ultra-marathoner you might cover up to 100 at most. As a runner myself, the furthest I've run at one time is somewhere around 16 miles. …

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Disaster Strikes and Disease Follows

athenssciencecafe — Fri, 23 Dec 2016 20:17:11 +0000

When disasters strike we see images of destroyed buildings, injured individuals, and the far-reaching devastation that accompanies the forces of Mother Nature. The media covers the aftermath for a few weeks, but then coverage slowly dissipates and people watching from afar forget about the struggle still facing those affected. But for these individuals, devastation and …

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Christmas Tree, O Christmas Tree – How Threatened Are Thy Branches

athenssciencecafe — Wed, 21 Dec 2016 17:56:10 +0000

â€˜Tis the season for one of my favorite holiday traditions: selecting and decorating a Christmas tree. This annual holiday festivity became popular and widely adopted worldwide in the late 18th century as people started displaying ornately decorated evergreen conifer species (i.e. pines, spruces, firs) in their homes. Although the Christmas tree tradition now includes fake …

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Pickled Pools: Briney Ecosystems

athenssciencecafe — Thu, 15 Dec 2016 21:12:45 +0000

Often the ocean can look idyllic and inviting on the surface. Exploration of the sea floor, however, shows a harsh and unforgiving place. The Gulf of Mexico brine pools investigated by Erik Cordes and his colleagues are a model example. Subject to salinity more than four times the amount of normal seawater, and full of …

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Speciation & the Mimulus Story

athenssciencecafe — Fri, 02 Dec 2016 15:30:46 +0000

Ever wonder how new species begin? Join director and narrator Nick Batora and animator Rishi Masalia as they explore the evolutionary processes of speciation and how the genus Mimulus has been used to study it. This video was made for students at the University of Georgia in BIOL 1107, an introductory biology lab, but is …

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How Language Affects Thought And Culture

athenssciencecafe — Thu, 01 Dec 2016 15:16:12 +0000

The way our language forces us to speak has profound implications on our culture and way of thinking. There are many different types of languages around the world derived from various parent languages. For example, English is a type of Germanic Language which is a branch of the Indo-European language family. It is split into …

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Where have all the songbirds gone?

athenssciencecafe — Wed, 30 Nov 2016 15:30:23 +0000

I love nothing more than waking on a summer's day to the sound of bird songs outside my window. If you read my last post on bird language, this should be no surprise. The piercing sirens of mated cardinal pairs, the churring of chickadees, the sweet murmurs of cedar waxwingsâ€”all of these are music to …

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Pipe Dreams

athenssciencecafe — Tue, 29 Nov 2016 22:26:44 +0000

Let's face it, we all love our oil. In fact, â€œaddictedâ€ may be a more appropriate word than â€œlove.â€ The stuff practically runs through our veins alongside the caffeine and nicotine. We use oil, directly or indirectly, every single day. It heats our homes. It fuels our cars. It is our consumer lifeblood. To the …

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Why are Eggplants so Controversial? A Look at the New GM Crop in Bangladesh

athenssciencecafe — Tue, 15 Nov 2016 02:16:55 +0000

Mohammed Hafizur Rahmen is a Bangladeshi eggplant farmer who owns a single acre north of the country's capital Dhaka. Until recently, he spent two days a week every growing season spraying his crops with a toxic pesticide to ward off the â€œfruit and shoot borerâ€, a caterpillar-like pest that decimates crops throughout Asia. Despite frequent …

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But First, a Nap

athenssciencecafe — Sun, 23 Oct 2016 20:23:52 +0000

It's Monday morning. About 15 minutes into my 9AM evolution class, I'm starting to nod off. C'mon, wake up, I tell myself. I look down at my notes and they're totally incoherent. I reach for my tea. Ah yes, caffeine. What time is it? Only 9:26? How can that be?! For me, the worst part …

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Addiction Research Gets Ant-sy

athenssciencecafe — Wed, 19 Oct 2016 20:06:47 +0000

Drugs. Whether or not we like to admit it, drugs play a big role in our everyday lives. For some of us, that drug could be the caffeine in our morning coffee. For others, that drug is the insulin needed to survive. Doctors routinely prescribe drugs to treat everything from cancer to the common cold. …

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The Price of Life: The Rising Cost of Epipens

athenssciencecafe — Mon, 10 Oct 2016 04:26:17 +0000

It was a typical Christmas for mom Colleen and her family. Everybody was sitting around the living room and enjoying the day. All of a sudden, Colleen's young son Ciaran started to wheeze. Knowing that Ciaran had a severe nut allergy, Colleen scooped him up and hurried to the kitchen. She grabbed an EpiPen and …

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It’s good to be different

athenssciencecafe — Tue, 04 Oct 2016 01:45:01 +0000

Evolution runs on the principle of â€œsurvival of the fittestâ€- individuals that are better suited to their environment will be able to survive and reproduce more successfully. Following this logic, one would think that only the â€˜good' (advantageous) genes are passed on through generations, and the â€˜bad' (disadvantageous) genes are eventually eradicated. Thus, it is …

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