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2017 Nobel Prize in Physics

On Tuesday, October 3rd the Nobel Prize in Physics was awarded to Rainer Weiss, Barry Barish, and Kip Thorne for their contributions to the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory (LIGO). On February 11th, 2016, LIGO announced the first detection of gravitational waves, a monumental moment in science. Gravitational waves were predicted by Albert Einstein in 1916,

The More You Know: Presidential Candidates’ Answers to Science Policy Questions

by Natalie Eldredge The White House, Washington, D.C. by Diego Cambiaso Here's why you should be paying attention to the latest presidential campaign news: whether you hate or love politics, the outcomes of our elections have very real impacts on all of our lives. To catch up on the most recent comments by both candidates,

Zika Virus: The Deadliest Animals on Earth Strike Again

“Zika virus could be bigger global health threat than Ebola, say health experts” – The Guardian “Zika Virus a Global Health Emergency, W.H.O. Says” – The New York Times “Zika virus raises more questions than answers for pregnant women” – Los Angeles Times Mosquito season is about to swing into full force here in the

First Detection of Gravitational Waves

By Paige Copenhaver On February 11th, scientists from the Laser Interferometer Gravitational Wave Observatory (LIGO) announced the first ever detection of gravitational waves. Analogous to ripples caused by throwing a rock into a pond, gravitational waves are ripples in the fabric of spacetime caused by the acceleration of massive objects in space. The collision of

Addition of 4 New Elements to the Periodic Table

by Stephanie M. Halmo Scientists from across the globe have discovered four new elements, filling in row seven on the periodic table. The International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry confirms the synthesis of these elements with atomic numbers 113, 115, 117 and 118. The four new elements are not found in nature. Researchers synthesized

New Phase of Carbon Discovered

by: Stephanie M. Halmo Researchers at North Carolina State University, Jagdish Narayan and Anagh Bhaumik, discovered a new solid phase of carbon distinct from graphite and diamond. Coined Q-carbon, this phase can quickly be converted to diamond at ambient temperature and pressure without the presence of hydrogen or a catalyst. Before the discovery of Q-carbon,

Cancer from a Tapeworm

by: Stephanie M. Halmo An article published last week in the New England Journal of Medicine linked tapeworm infection and cancer through a novel disease mechanism. It was found that tapeworm cells could become cancerous in a human host. The article followed the case of a Colombian man with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), a tapeworm

The Descent of Man’s Best Friend

by Stephanie M. Halmo When and where the world's first domesticated species of dogs originated is a hotly debated topic by geneticists. A recent study places the origin of human's best friend in Central Asia or modern day Mongolia and Nepal. These results, published last week in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences

DNA origami

2015 Nobel Prize in Chemistry award for discovery of DNA repair

by Stephanie M. Halmo Announced on Wednesday, October 7th, the 2015 Nobel Prize in Chemistry was awarded to Tomas Lindahl, Paul Modrich, and Aziz Sancar for their studies on DNA self-repair. These scientists each discovered a different mechanism by which DNA—usually thought of as a stable molecule—can be repaired. These scientists each discovered a different

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