Canada Finally Shamed Into Banning Asbestos

Posted on October 8, 2012 by | 3 comments

Asbestos is a very strong substance that became popular in the late 19th century for many reasons; its durable and fire-resistant properties make it handy for building and electrical wiring. Asbestos is also very affordable, as well as an excellent material for sound absorption. At one point, the town of Asbestos, Quebec was home to the largest asbestos mine in the world (Wikipedia, 2012). In other words: it is cheap, strong and useful.

Now, most of us know the downside to this seemingly flawless substance: it’s a carcinogen. Exposure to the substance has been proven to cause lung cancer, asbestosis and mesothelioma. Its mining and use has been banned from over 50 countries worldwide, including the European Union (Wikipedia, 2012). Removal of asbestos is done carefully from older homes and buildings with the utmost caution. So why is Canada one of the only countries continuing to export the well-known carcinogen?

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As current as 2010, Canada was mining 150,000 tonnes of asbestos and exporting 90% of it to developing countries. Why? Because it was one of the only materials developing countries could afford and our government didn’t see anything wrong with selling it to them. Of the 6 forms of the substance, chrysotile asbestos is still being mined in Canada. Quebec’s provincial government actually promised to loan $58 million to reopen a mine in the previously mentioned region of Asbestos. The Federal government’s stance on chrysotile asbestos during the last three Rotterdam Conventions was that ‘[they] promote the safe and controlled use of chrysotile’ (CBC Radio-Canada, 2012); this went against more than 50 other nations. Canada’s bullheaded stance (with the likes of Vietnam, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan) has halted the final form of asbestos from being listed as a hazardous susbstance at the conference, until now.

Whether due to a sudden epiphany or with another agenda in mind, Canada finally agreed with the rest of the world and consented to banning the use and shipment of chrysotile asbestos at the most recent Rotterdam Convention. As of this Friday, the Quebecois provincial government has promised they will cancel the previously promised loan and ban the production and export of asbestos in the future. Ottawa has even promised a $50 million investment into diversifying the region and hopefully replacing some of the 400 jobs that would have been created upon reopening of the mine (CBC Radio-Canada, 2012).

I don’t know why it took this long, but it makes me a little less of a cynic to hear that Canada has changed its stance on the asbestos debate. I’m proud of the government’s decision and I hope it continues to look out for the welfare of the less fortunate in the future.

-Kady

References:

Youtube. “Restricting Asbestos.” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J3H2pfeQqow (accesses October 8, 2012)

Wikipedia. “Asbestos.” http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asbestos (accessed October 8, 2012)

CBC Radio-Canada. “Canada Won’t Oppose Asbestos Limits.” http://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/story/2012/09/14/montreal-canada-thetford-mines-asbestos.html (accessed October 8, 2012)

 

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Chimeras: Not as Fictional as You Think

Posted on October 8, 2012 by | 4 comments

Chimera [ki-meer–uh] usually defined as:

1. n. A mythological, fire-breathing monster, commonly represented with a lion’s head, a goat’s body, and a serpent’s tail. (source)

However, there is also a lesser known genetic definition:

2. n. An organism composed of two or more genetically distinct tissues, as an organism that is partly male and partly female, or an artificially produced individual having tissues of several species. (source)

Now this definition is applicable in the real world.

DNA to chromosome Image source

One type of chimerism is tetragametic chimerism. Tetragametic chimerism occurs when different sperm fertilizes two eggs. Two zygotes develop and then fuse together, this isn’t effected by gender difference. The remaining zygote has two distinct sets of DNA and therefore 46 pairs of chromosomes instead of the typical 23. When the fetus develops the organs have different DNA types, for example, their liver will have one set of DNA and their lungs the other set of DNA. Observable chimera phenotype characteristics are differences in the pigment of their eyes, hair and patches of skin, also a possibility of extraneous sexual organs.However, in humans the condition is rare, most have no presenting abnormal characteristics and live completely unaware.

Two infamous cases of tetragametic chimerism in humans are Karen Keegan and Lydia Fairchild.

Keegan needed a kidney transplant and her children were tested as potential matches. The results showed that only one of her three children was actually related to her. After extensive testing on Keegan’s different organ tissues researchers discovered, and published in 2002, that Keegan had 46 pairs of chromosomes and was a natural chimera.

In 2005, Fairchild discovered she had different DNA from her two children after DNA testing done to get welfare aid. She was accused of welfare fraud and threatened to have her children taken from her custody. When her third child was born and DNA testing was negative again, she was under the suspicion that she was lying as a surrogate or had acquired her children illegally. Only after presenting the published chimera paper on Keegan, Fairchild was tested and proven as a chimera as well.

Presently, scientists are researching if chimera organisms have better immunity or if the genetics can be used for future biological advances. Unnatural chimeras such as ‘geeps’, a fusion of a sheep and goat embryo, have already been successfully created as well as human and animal fused embryos. Using these hybrids, however, involves stem cell research and genetic engineering, which brings up major ethical problems and controversy in the scientific community.

So, we’ll never have mythological fire breathing creatures, but you have to admit it’s still pretty darn cool.

– Rachel Chang

 

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Posted in Biological Sciences, Uncategorized

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Vitamin Pills: A Waste of Money ?!

Posted on October 8, 2012 by | 8 comments

These days,  if you walk through every pharmacy store , you will see a variety and abundance of different vitamin pills due to the widespread use of these supplements.However, are people really aware of the effects of these pills? There are controversies over using these supplements.

Human body needs 13 types of vitamins to work properly : A, C, D, E , K and the eight B vitamins. Each of the vitamins has different advantages for our bodies and can be found in different nutrients. Most of the people take vitamin pills since their daily diets do not provide enough natural vitamins for their bodies.

“People use vitamin pills to compensate for their unhealthy diets”

(picture from: https://blogs.ubc.ca/communicatingscience2012w109/files/2012/10/vitamin-pills1.jpg )

However, studies show different results for popping vitamin pills.

One category of studies associate benefits with vitamin supplement consumption. For example, a number of studies show that these supplements improve cognitive skills and decrease the rate of mental decline.

The second category of studies show no effects associated with supplement consumption.For instance, a study was done over the course of eight years with about 8,000 participants.The overall health conditions of the participants who took the real pill daily (which contained vitamin C, vitamin E, beta-carotene, selenium  and zinc,) and the ones who took the placebo pills daily ( the pill with the same appearance of the real one but without the capacity to function) showed almost the same trend .

The third category of studies, in contrast, show that consuming vitamin pills can be harmful. For example, according to two of the studies, the likelihood of  developing different types of cancer such as malignant cancer( the most severe type of skin cancer) and breast cancer was more in participants who took particular types of vitamin supplements. Another study also suggests that using supplements such as multivitamins increases the mortality rate.

What should we do despite all the contradictory results from different studies about the cons and pros of taking vitamin supplements ? According to an article ,having a healthy diet is the most important step . However, taking one multivitamin tablet as well as vitamin D tablet per day can help people who do not have an optimal diet, but the important thing to remember is that we should not over use vitamin supplements.The article argues that the disadvantages of the supplements are outweighed by their advantages.Another article states that foods contain natural vitamins as well as other plant substances such as  phytochemicals ( plant chemicals that prevent disease) that cannot be put in the vitamin pills ;Therefore, it is much better to have a healthy diet rather than taking vitamin pills.

In the video below,uploaded by ” psychetruth” ,Dr. Vincent Bellonzi gives more information about whether we should take vitamin supplements or not.

 

 

 

 

(www.youtube.com/watch?v=Aa6-jmVhbcU&feature=related)

Maryam Goharian

 

Sources:

benefits:  http://www.business-standard.com/generalnews/news/daily-multivitamin-tablets-can-boost-memory-study/65391/

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-2078861/Taking-multi-vitamin-pills-does-health.html

http://www.medicinenet.com/melanoma/article.htm

http://www.cosmosmagazine.com/news/4829/vitamin-pills-do-more-harm-good

http://www.health-alternatives.com/vitamins-nutrition-chart.html

http://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/what-should-you-eat/vitamins/index.html

http://www.phytochemicals.info/

http://www.netdoctor.co.uk/dietandnutrition/feature/vitamins.htm

 

 

picture from:

https://blogs.ubc.ca/communicatingscience2012w109/files/2012/10/vitamin-pills1.jpg

video from:

www.youtube.com/watch?v=Aa6-jmVhbcU&feature=related

8 Comments

Posted in Biological Sciences, Issues in Science, Uncategorized

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Sleep Quantity VS. Sleep Quality!

Posted on October 6, 2012 by | 7 comments

Does sleeping longer really benefit us throughout the day? Most of us have been told that lots of sleep is necessary to function at our best, but there really haven’t been any findings that show more than 7 or 8 hours of sleep causes you to function well or to function even better than normal compared to sleeping 6 or 7 hours. Not many  people realize the importance of the amount of time that is actually needed for the brain to refresh itself and the habit of sleeping at the right time along with waking up at the right time.  I argue that sleeping longer does not improve cognitive and body functions, but sleeping with a consistent schedule and good sleep quality is better for the body and brain.

Sleep quantity is important, especially in the time the brain needs to refresh itself through different stages. Sleep can be characterized into four stages and rapid eye movement (REM). The first stage is where the body is in between consciousness and unconsciousness and theta activity is between 3.5 and 7.5 Hz. The second stage is where eye movement ceases, and brain waves slow down. The third stage is when the brain starts producing delta waves. By the fourth stage, the brain pretty much just produces delta waves exclusively.

Fig.1 The different cycles of sleep. (Photo by Marshal Brain)

After the fourth stage, the body is now in REM sleep, usually referred to as deep sleep. During REM sleep, breathing becomes more rapid and the eyes jerk rapidly in different directions. It is also during this time that the quantity of sleep is very important because the brain and body is rejuvenating itself. But is it wise to think that, because brain and body need lots of time to rejuvenate itself, oversleeping is justified?

According to the American Sleep Association (ASA), the average amount of sleep for adults usually fall in the range of 7.5 to 8.2 hours of sleep; however, there are variations where others may need as little as 5 or 6 hours to function just as well.

YouTube Preview Image Neurologist talks about getting good quality sleep (from MercySacramento)

Mercy Medical Group neurologist and sleep specialist Alan Shatzel shares that efficient and quality sleep is very important, and the reason why people are sleep deprived even when they do sleep some 8 hours is because there are various factors that are interfering with their sleep.

Fig. 2 Sleep deprivation is bad for your job and health.

An article from the Journal of Psychosomatic Research looked at the sleep quality vs. the sleep quantity between college students. What the study showed was that sleep quality was better related to health, feelings of tension, anger, anger, fatigue, and confusion. This study not only shows that sleep quality is more important than sleep quantity, it also shows that sleep quality with a consistent schedule is necessary for better performance.

From my own experience, university is tough and in order to do well, there are times when I have skipped several nights of sleep just to review more material. However, whether I did well or not, I would always feel very unsatisfied afterwards; not because of the test, but because I would be getting headaches and other pains. Even after sleeping for 10 hours just to make up for lost sleep, I would still feel horrible and tired.

Therefore, I would strongly advise everyone that whether you have an exam tomorrow or a big presentation in a few weeks, the best strategy for doing well is sleeping with  consistency (~7-8 hours per day) along with good quality sleep!

-Daniel Liao

Sources:

Pilcher, J.J., D.R. Ginter, et al. “Sleep quality versus sleep quantity: Relationships between sleep and measures of health, well-being and sleepiness in college students.” JOURNAL OF PSYCHOSOMATIC RESEARCH . 42.6 (1997): 583-596. Web. 7 Oct. 2012. <http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0022399997000044>.

http://www.sleepassociation.org/index.php?p=whatissleep

 http://www.helpguide.org/life/sleeping.htm

 http://www.happynews.com/living/sleep/rem-sleep.htm

Video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ufl1jraYtjc&feature=related

Images:

http://www.ideachampions.com/weblogs/archives/2012/09/since_1986_i_ha.shtml

http://science.howstuffworks.com/environmental/life/inside-the-mind/human-brain/sleep1.htm

 

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Increasing a Kids Height with Human Growth Hormone

Posted on October 1, 2012 by | 11 comments

In today’s image-conscious society, researchers have concluded that people are often treated differently based on their height. Specifically, children that are short in stature have reported that they are constantly teased, whereas taller individuals have reported that they are well respected among their peers.

To help boost their confidence, numerous vertically challenged children are undergoing growth-hormone treatment to increase their height. There is a steady increase of children being prescribed the main drug in this treatment, as the number of prescriptions of this drug has increased from 19,000 to 23,000, from the years 2007 to 2011.

The children undergoing this treatment are referred to as idiopathic short stature patients (ISS). ISS patients are deemed as being the shortest 2% of the population. Males are projected to reach an adult height of 5’3 and females a height of 4’10. These short heights have no correlation to deficiencies such as low growth hormone levels, or diseases such as turner syndrome that are related to below average height. In Canada, growth hormone treatment is only available for medical reasons and not cosmetic. Therefore, parents cannot simply ask for this treatment just because they want there child to be a few inches taller. The doctor must deem their child as being a suitable candidate.

For ISS patients to undergo the growth hormone therapy, the synthetic lab made growth hormone Humatrope, which was approved by Health Canada in 2006, must be used.

The side effects of Humatrope are very low. The most common side effects are: headaches, muscle pain, joint pain, high blood sugar, and hypothyroidism. In my view, the benefits of the drug out way the common side effects.

The video below from King5 news provides a child, parent, and a doctors view on benefits of growth hormone therapy and describes how the benefits out way the risks.

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So exactly how does Humatrope work?

When Humatrope is injected it acts like normal growth hormone in the body. Growth hormone is hormone secreted by the pituitary gland and then quickly converted in the liver into Growth Factor- Type 1 or simply IGF-1. IGF1 is what causes the height growth in children. The height increase in children is attributed to the fact that IGF-1 stimulates bone growth and cell reproduction.

Effects of Growth Hormone- IGF-1 increases bone size. / Source: Vanderbilt University

Overall, I believe that growth hormone therapy using Humatrope is a great way to help short children grow. Someone who I knew from high school had a wheat allergy and was very short in stature. He was often picked on for being short. He decided to undergo this treatment and within a year he had grown to the height of many of the other students without any side effects. Ultimately, I believe this treatment will help many kids that suffer negatively from their short stature as my friend did, and will help give them an extra boost in their confidence.

Mandip Parmar

 

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Posted in Biological Sciences, Science in the News

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When in doubt, throw it out!

Posted on October 1, 2012 by | 5 comments

You’re up late studying for midterms, desperately trying to avoid blinking for fear of falling asleep. As a quick pick-me-up you reach for a piece of Halloween candy. You open the wrapper and in your sleep-deprived state, your candy falls to the floor. According to an old wives tale, you have approximately 3-5 seconds to grab your tasty treat before it becomes covered in bacteria and whatever else might want a bite. Your candy is sitting on the floor, helpless. Regardless of whether it’s two seconds after you dropped it or six, you pick it up. Apart from the stray fluff from your fuzzy socks, it looks relatively unharmed. Now, the big question: do you eat it?

According to researchers, the answer is a resounding NO. Bacteria and other microorganisms immediately contaminate food that falls to the floor. There are some factors to take into account but in general, it is safer to ditch the dropped food. This is why some researchers think we should be using a ‘when in doubt, throw it out’ philosophy as opposed to the mythical ‘five second rule’.

Two factors that determine how many bacteria end up on your food are the moisture content of the food and the cleanliness of the surface upon which it falls. Moist food, such as cheese or meat, is quite easy for bacteria to stick to and ends up with higher bacteria contamination when dropped. Bacteria have a more difficult time with dry food, such as crackers or cookies, which don’t become contaminated as easily. As for the surface in question, obviously a cleaner surface will have less bacteria and a lesser chance of contaminating dropped food. Watch here as Dr. Philip Button outlines his take on these two factors:

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But what about the length of time food is left on the floor? It has been shown that the difference in amount of bacteria on food that was left for two seconds or six seconds is not significant. If bacteria are there, they are going to be on that food faster than you can react.

And what about wiping it off? Or rinsing it with water? Once food has been dropped or has touched something it shouldn’t, there is really no way to get it back to its original state. Wiping or rinsing may get rid of some bacteria, but it cannot get rid of them all.

So if you drop a piece of dry food on a clean surface, what’s the big deal? As clean as the surface may be, you don’t really know which bacteria are present. The bacteria that end up on the food may require only a small number of organisms to be present in order to cause disease, which could be costly for someone with a weak immune system.

The next time you drop a piece of food on the floor, think about the circumstances under which it is falling and who will be eating it. Remember: when in doubt, throw it out!

-Karly Stillwell

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Posted in Biological Sciences

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Beat the Heat

Posted on October 1, 2012 by | 3 comments

Love soaking up those rays? I think we all enjoy getting out in the sun, and taking advantage of all the activities that can go along with it. Some examples include water skiing, picnics, swimming, hiking, linking neighbouring thymine bases through direct covalent bonding… Not familiar with the last one? This is what can happen when our DNA absorbs UV light.

As nice as the glowing effects of prolonged sun exposure may be, the long term and microscopic effects certainly deserve attention too. The specific type of DNA mutation involved with UV light absorption is called induced mutation. This type of mutation is caused by either radiation or environmental chemicals. The specific mutagen of interest in this blog of course being of UV light radiation.

This is a woman who has stayed in the sun for too long, resulting in a sunburn.
Picture from: http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-s9PEOgjLLxM/T8ZEo0B8VbI/AAAAAAAABRE/bHOFTS7lKtE/s1600/Sunburn-794174.gif

DNA typically has no direct covalently bonded base pairs, but as mentioned earlier, exposure to the sun can change this. A covalent bond is when atoms share electrons with one another. When two thymine bases within our DNA covalently bond, it causes complications when the DNA strand tries to replicate. This is bad since since it prevents the body from creating its natural DNA strands. However, since it is expected that we get out into the sun as a part of everyday life, the body possesses enzymes which attempt to solve the damaged DNA replicating problem.

After two thymines have covalently bonded, there are two mechanisms which help to ensure the no DNA mutation will result proceeding the replication process. Light repair and Dark repair can be put to work as long as only one of the two DNA strands has been affected by UV damage. In both cases, the damaged DNA strand will not be used in the replication, only the undamaged strand. These two mechanisms however cannot be employed if both DNA strands have been damaged.

In the worst case scenario, where neither Light repair or Dark repair are applicable, the SOS repair is applied. This will ultimately lead to mutations being produced, but at the same time send SOS response genes to attempt to repair the mutated DNA strands. This is done through insertions and deletions of nucleotides in efforts to restore the DNA strand to its healthy pre-damaged self.

This is the sun holding sunscreen, something we should all be wearing when the sun is shining.
Picture from: http://www.motherearthnews.com/uploadedImages/Blogs/Healthy_People,_Healthy_Planet/uvsafetymonth.jpg

Although there are efforts which can be made by the body to repair itself after being scorched by the sun, what should really hit home is that this causes harm non the less. So even if it makes us feel like bronzed babes at the time, remember all the repair work we’re setting our bodies out to do. Think long term, and help yourself out by wearing sunscreen, hats, and reducing prolonged UV light exposure.

Chelsea Forbes

References:

SOS Response retrieved on September 30 2012
URL: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SOS_response

(2012). MICB 201: Introductory Environmental Microbiology. Vancouver: Department of Microbiology and Immunology University of British Columbia

Ralph H. Petrucci, William S. Harwood, F. Geoffrey Herring, and Jeffery D. Madura. (2007). General Chemistry: Principles and Modern Applications, Ninth Edition. New Jersey: Prentice-Hall, Inc.

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Posted in Biological Sciences

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Are Dental and Medical Schools worth it?

Posted on September 30, 2012 by | 6 comments

Many science undergraduate students build up a great resume over the course of 4 plus years to apply to professional schools such as dental or medical schools. However, many of them do not realize the reality of debt they will be in after graduation. The tuition fee for a lot of these professional schools are increasing at an incredible pace, which results many asking, “Is it worth it?”.

Dental schools are among the most expensive professional schools to attend. According to Top Ten Nation, University of Southern California School of dentistry (USC Dentistry), the tuition fee alone is $61,953 per year. However, most students do not get accepted to their choice of dental schools which most likely are in-state-schools thus they will need to add living expenses. The tuition and living expenses together can escalate into almost double the tuition fee. USC for example adds up to $95,467/year. Some others include NYU $93,745/year, UPenn $82,928/year, BU$83,369/year, and Tufts $79,431/year. Medical schools are also among the most expensive professional schools. Published under U.S. News Education,  the tuition alone for Tufts stands at $54,578/year, Temple $54,218/year, and Columbia of $52,659/year.

Even with the huge debt most dental and medical graduates will carry, most undergrad students are led to believe the debt will be paid off in a short amount of time. However, this belief can have serious consequences in their future. Many students are forced to borrow money from the government to pay for their education. As an example, during the 2007-2008 year, 65.6% of 4 year-undergraduate students, graduated with $23,186 in debt. According to ADEA, the average debt for newly graduates of dental school in 2006 was $124,700 to $174,241. Medical school graduates aren’t far off as among 112 medical schools, 2010 graduates averaged $145,020 to $204,000 in debt. If a student with more than $20,000 in debt choses to go to dental or medical school, that debt increases dramatically. Let’s not forget the interest that comes along with the borrowed amount. It is not uncommon to see a newly dental or medical graduate with a staggering $400,000 plus debt.

Data from American Dental Education Association (ADEA) shows the uphill increase on average debt of dental graduates over the span of 16 years

The annual median salary of dentists (DMD or DDS) is $153,290. The lowest 10% earning $55,250 per year while the upper 10% taking over $166,400 per year. The average salary of a medical physician (MD) ranges from $126,329 to $211,357. This is a very comfortable amount to live off however, if you factor in the house, monthly utilities, car payments, and other basic necessities to live, it will take many years just to pay off the debt.

A career in dentistry or medicine can be a very rewarding and meaningful profession. However, one should really think about what his or her reasons are before entering the long road in becoming a dentist or a medical physician. If living lavishly with a Mercedes or BMW after graduation is the only reason, then the end result might be disappointing.

Below is a documentary on Youtube by username EXoMARTRIXTV, on student loan crisis in the US (10:40 relates specifically to this topic) :

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-Ryan Song

video used: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ww4m8GUK69E

 

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Posted in Science in the News

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“Trust me, I’m an Engineer”

Posted on September 27, 2012 by | 2 comments

Ever seen the “Trust Me, I’m an Engineer” meme on the Internet? As it turns out, the slime mold Physarum polycephalum can claim the title of engineer as well!

Physarum polycephalum is a single-celled organism, which when in the plasmodium phase of the life cycle, will grow continuously, expanding tendrils into unknown territory, as long as nutrients are present.  Tendrils with high volumes of nutrients will expand, while those that are used less will gradually disappear, leaving an efficient network.

Fig 1: Physarum Polycephalum colony growing on a rock
Reproduced under a Creative Commons license from Wikipedia (original author: Jerry Kirkhart)

For background information on slime molds and their life cycle, click here.

Researchers in Japan and the UK experimented with slime mold, presenting it with a model where geographical locations of cities around Tokyo were represented by oat flakes. The slime mold was allowed to grow into the arena, creating a transport network. Amazingly, the network formed was comparable in efficiency to the real Tokyo rail system, even though the slime mold has no brain, no central planning process.

Here’s a video showing slime mold growing out into the Tokyo arena: (attribution: sjtkg001)

You say, wait a second, what exactly do the researchers mean by efficiency? 3 main factors were taken into account: total length (TL), average minimum distance (AMD) and fault tolerance (FT). Average minimum distance represents how easy it is to get between the food sources, which is analogous to how easy it is to get between cities (transport efficiency). Fault tolerance measures how resilient the network would be, i.e. if it still functions if connections are broken. A high-performing system is one with a low TL representing minimal cost, low AMD representing high transport efficiency, and high FT representing high resilience.

Here’s a podcast from CBC with Dr. Mark Fricker who headed the Tokyo rail slime mold experiment; he gives details on this experiment:

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

If you’re suspicious that the slime mold got lucky, researchers replicated their experiment with transport networks in Germany, the UK and even Canada! They found that again, the slime mold built a network with comparable performance.

Here’s a link to an article testing slime mold growth with a trans-Canada highway model.

Drawing inspiration from the slime mold, researchers around the world are now using biological systems to model real-world infrastructure problems in arenas such as computing, transport, and communication. They take the real-world conditions of problems in these arenas, such as spatial boundaries (i.e. rivers, cities, mountains), and apply these boundary conditions on slime mold by manipulating variables such as light intensity and antibiotic concentration. They then observe the growth networks and patterns of slime mold that arise, and can use these as a preliminary model for a solution.

Interested in reading more? Researchers are also utilizing the slime mold to model the blood vessel networks feeding tumors. With this understanding, they hope to come up with a method to starve the tumor of blood by cutting off key connections.

-Christie Chan

References:

Tero, A., Seiji, T., Saigusa, T., Ito, K., Bebber, D.P., Fricker, M.D., Yumiki, K., Kobayashi, R., Nakagaki, T. (2010, January 22). Rules for biologically inspired adaptive network design. Science, 327, 439-442.

Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BZUQQmcR5-g

Websites used:

http://scienceblogs.com/notrocketscience/2010/01/21/slime-mould-attacks-simulates-tokyo-rail-network/

http://esciencenews.com/articles/2010/01/21/slime.design.mimics.tokyos.rail.system

http://news.sciencemag.org/sciencenow/2012/08/a-slimy-insight-into-treating-ca.html

Podcast:

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

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