Category Archives: Issues in Science

How much can babies really understand?

Posted on February 26, 2018 by faraz kazi | 4 comments

You likely wont get a coherent verbal response from an infant until they’re about two years old. Until then, infants are generally associated to have a weak vocabulary and a very minor understanding of the human language. However, studies, like the one done by Bergelson & Swingley, have shown that infants at 6 months of age may be able to comprehend more than what we give them credit for. The study implies that they may even understand the meanings of some common nouns such as “banana” or “hair”.

Source: Flickr

In the study, they presented images to infants between the ages of 6 and 9 months while parents named the objects in the pictures. When named, the researchers found that the infants would gaze towards the associated image. This study suggested that infants were able to understand their parents before 15 months of age, which was previously thought to be the age where understanding began.

Setup for Bergelson & Swingley’s study on infant understanding. Sourced from their published study,

Now this work inspired further investigation. How much do these infants really understand? Do all infants equally develop understanding of common nouns at the same points in life? Bergelson performed a more recent study that suggested infants are more easily able to tell the difference between words that are semantically unrelated, such as milk and foot, than when they are related (milk and juice). This was the first time infants of this age were observed utilizing their understanding of phonemes to comprehend human language.

It seems obvious that an infant would not be able to make that distinction as easily; however, this lack of distinction is also observed in adult understanding of language. Previous studies have been conducted like the Bergelson & Swingley study, in which images were placed before adult participants and their eye movements were tracked when words were spoken to them. A delay in eye fixation was observed when related images were shown to the adult participant versus images that were completely unrelated. As it turns out, our understanding of common nouns is not far from that of a 6-month old infant. This is the first time a similarity in language comprehension of this scale has been observed between adults and infants at the age of 6 months.

Source: Shutterstock

New developments such as this suggest that infants are learning and developing understanding on a much faster rate than previously thought. It’s worth noting that there are short-comings to this research. For one, there were only 51 children studied and most of the infants were from white, middle-class families. However, this opens the door to further studies on infant cognition. Perhaps next time we talk to a baby, we might be more careful with the words we choose, because it seems that they understand more than what we once thought.

4 Comments

Posted in Biological Sciences, Issues in Science, Public Engagement, Science in News, Uncategorized

Tagged children, cognition, comprehension, infants, language, psychology, Science Communication

The Potential Of Cannabinoids

Posted on February 5, 2018 by aaron reiss | 2 comments

Marijuana is evil. Since I can first remember, as a child, this is the view that was taught to me by adults. When I was in the fourth grade, our class had police officers come in, as part of the D.A.R.E. program, and talk to us about why drugs were bad. We were taught that marijuana, like all other illegal drugs, did nothing but ruin lives.

Source: Cannabis Culture

The idea that marijuana ruins lives is the exact stance of the United States government. In a journal article by Rebecca Dresser, she examines the legality of marijuana as it is classified as a Schedule I drug, putting it in the same category as heroin and bath salts. Being classified as a Schedule I drug implies that a drug has a high potential for abuse and has no acceptable medical uses. However, there is a growing amount of scientific evidence that refutes this very definition and implies almost the exact opposite. Marijuana may just hold the key to treatment for a wide variety of diseases and disorders.

It is important to first have a basic understanding of what exactly marijuana is in a scientific sense. Marijuana’s proper scientific name is Cannabis. Cannabis is comprised of many different compounds, the main one being the psychoactive compound tetrahydrocannabinol or THC which is largely responsible for the high that people feel from consuming cannabis. THC is a cannabinoid, a class of chemical compounds that interact with the body’s cannabinoid receptors to produce a physiological response. Research has identified over 110 different cannabinoids from cannabis besides THC, each with varying effects. These cannabinoids are what give cannabis such a high potential for therapeutic use.

THC molecule Image source: Wikipedia

Studies into the medicinal effects of marijuana have been limited by its legality; however, change in popular opinion about marijuana has led to an increase in studies into its potential uses. Many studies, like the research by Kogan and Mechoulam, have found that cannabinoids do in fact have high therapeutic value. They found that cannabinoids have the potential to provide treatment for a great many diseases, a few of which being anorexia, pain, inflammation, multiple sclerosis, Parkinson’s disease, Huntington’s disease, Alzheimer’s disease, epilepsy, glaucoma, cardiovascular disorders, cancer, and obesity. This is only a sample of the possible diseases that could have possible treatments utilizing cannabinoids. Because of cannabinoids extremely low toxicity and harmless side effects, it is an attractive course of treatment for many different diseases.

Above is a basic introductory video on the different cannabinoids found in marijuana by High Times.

With the impending legalization of recreational marijuana in Canada arriving as early as this summer, the scientific community has been presented with an incredible opportunity. Legal recreational marijuana would pave the way for an unprecedented increase in cannabis research. The vast number cannabinoids that come from cannabis have too great a medical potential to be overlooked any longer. While many Canadians are excited about the coming legalization of marijuana for recreational purposes, I truly am excited about the potential for increased research into the compounds that could hold impactful medical treatments.

By Aaron Reiss

2 Comments

Posted in Biological Sciences, Issues in Science, Public Engagement, Science in News

Tagged Cannabinoids, Cannabis, Medical Treatment, Popular Science, Research Potential, Science Communication

The Role of Vitamin D and the Deficiency of Vitamin D

Posted on February 5, 2018 by geunjung lee | 1 comment

Health issues are one of major concerns of us in present days. As our lives become urbanized and modernized, we take less care of our body. Subsequently, our nutrition balances are getting worse. Unfortunately, it is undeniable fact.

One of crucially important nutrition that we are usually missing these days is Vitamin D. Many of us may have heard about vitamin D at least once.

But, it is just without knowledge of its important role in our body when it is deficient.

Vitamin D, in simple description, is a key nutrition that regulates our feelings and health (preventing depression and strengthens bones). Therefore, it causes several problems without sufficient amount of vitamin D intake.

Vitamin D is synthesized in our cell tissues under the skin with exposure of sunlight, specifically ultraviolet rays:

In human, when 7-dehydrocholestrelol in our skin is exposed to sunlight, it is converted into cholecalciferol which is vitamin D3.
In plants, when sterol meets sunlight, it is converted into calciferol which is known as vitamin D2; regulates calcium and phosphorus in our body.

Source: wordpress vitaminsaandd

We are only able to treat vitamin D in form of D2 and D3 in our body and they both work the same thing during the metabolic process.

Vitamin D is easily absorbed through the skin into our body within the wavelength of 290 nm to 315 nm. People who spend more than 20 minutes a day outside between 10 am to 2 pm would have no worries of vitamin D deficiency.

However, due to the location of Canada (cloud-covered sunlight during winter in the norther hemisphere region) and long rainy seasons, we are not freely able to enjoy the sunlight well to absorb the enough amount of vitamin D.

So, vitamin D deficiency is very common to people in Canada during the winter season since we have much less exposure to sunlight.

source: nutritionaction

As a result, vitamin D deficiency may causes several serious problems:

1) Weaken the immune system

Vitamin D enhances T-cell; cells that destroy microbes causing diseases. In case of vitamin D deficiency, T-cell may be weakened.

2) Diabetes

Risk of type-2 diabetes increases by up to 80 % – Vitamin D helps with insulin (hormone that regulates blood sugar level) secretion and conversion to glucose (a type of sugar from food we eat) energy. Low levels increase insulin resistance and damage glucose metabolism

3) Cardiovascular diseases (hear and blood vessel diseases)

Vitamin D inhibits renin which is a hormone increases the blood pressure of the systolic period. Vitamin D deficiency increases risk of several cardiovascular diseases, including hypertension (high blood pressure), heart attacks, and heart failure.

4) Depression

Vitamin D deficiency causes low serotonin levels and high cortisol hormone. Cortisol is stress hormone and serotonin is brain hormone that regulates happiness. The level of serotonin is increased when the body is exposed to sunlight.

source: department of nutrition, Harvard school of Public Health

To prevent vitamin D deficiency, it is best to expose oneself to sunlight 15~20 minutes a day without sunscreen. When it is not possible to spend time under the sun, however, intake of vitamin D with foods are another good option.

source: asianetindia

Sources of vitamin D from foods:

salmon&tuna
whole grains
egg yolk
mushroom
milk
cheese

source: BC Medical Journal

Even we intake vitamin D with foods, the content is too small for suggested daily dose. Therefore, the intake of vitamin D supplements are considered as the second-best option. However, supplements may cause the overdose problem so that it is crucial to follow the recommended dosage.

1 Comment

Posted in Biological Sciences, Issues in Science

Tagged food, health, health benefits, health effects, health supplements, issues, lifestyle, Science Communication, vitamin

Swimming in an Ocean of Plastic

Posted on February 4, 2018 by maddy | 2 comments

How much plastic do you think there is in the ocean?

One million tons? One hundred million tons? Try 8.3 billion tons. There are 500 times more pieces of plastic in our oceans than there are stars in our galaxy!

Polluted Ocean: photographed by Giogio55 on the Pixabay Image Commons.

How did we get here?

If you are like I was a few weeks ago then you may not know that plastic was created nearly 150 years ago as a durable substitute for elephant ivory (there’s a Final Jeopardy answer for you). Plastic’s versatility, light weight composition, and ability to be mass-produced cheaply allowed it to take the world by storm. The plastic revolution had begun.

From single use plastic packaging to the plastic in our fabrics, our lives are surrounded by plastic. Today 160,000 plastic bags are used globally every second and approximately 30 million tons of plastic enter our oceans annually. That’s insane! The amount of plastic currently in the ocean is equivalent to 5 grocery bags filled with plastic covering every single square foot of coastline across the globe! Our obsession has turned into a gross addiction.

Plastic Entwined Turtle: photographed by Stefan Lijon from Flickr Commons.

Why should we care?

Because plastic doesn’t degrade in the ocean nor does it always sink, plastic pollution creates an extreme hazard to the health of marine wildlife. Plastic is highly buoyant and often remains floating on the ocean’s surface or suspended within the water column. As a result, marine organisms inhabiting these spaces such as fish, turtles, and aquatic birds often mistake plastic for fish eggs, jelly fish, and other forms of food.

Dead Albatross That Ingested Plastic: photographed by Chris Jordan from Flickr Commons.

Once ingested plastic cannot be broken down and may create gut obstructions. Moreover, plastic often causes animals to have a false sense of feeling “full” resulting in reduced feeding rates, malnutrition, weight loss, reduced fertility, and even death. What’s more, plastic pollution in the ocean often acts as a magnet for toxic substances such as DDT, which may adhere to the sides of plastic particles further increasing the risk to organisms that ingest and interact with plastic pollution. Research estimates that 600 species are negatively impacted by plastic pollution and that by 2050 approximately 99% of all seabirds will have ingested plastic!

How do we fix this problem?

Banning the use of all plastics is not realistic, however, eliminating single use plastic packaging, increasing recycling, and creating cleanup programs are vital in order to fix the issues we have created. Personally, I think The Ocean Cleanup project is an outstanding example of the innovation needed to save our oceans. Its objective is to use ocean currents to concentrate plastic debris that can then more easily be removed from the ocean. Moreover, at just 15 and 17 years old, Melanti and Isabel Wijsen created a government approved initiative to ban plastic bags in Bali by December 2018.

We can help save our oceans. The question is, are you willing to try?

Video curtesy of TED Talks.

Maddy Haines

2 Comments

Posted in Biological Sciences, Issues in Science, Public Engagement, Science in News

Tagged conservation, DDT, digestion, ecology, enviro, marine pollution, plastic pollution

Image

Is the mainstream media hurting science?

Most people learn about the world of science through media outlets such as newspapers, news broadcasters, and blog posts like this. Unless someone is in that particular field of science, there isn’t a need to have a deep understanding of the media article as it is just meant to entertain you and keep you engaged. After all mainstream media only really cares about how many views a post gets. This causes a problem; in order to appeal to a wider audience and grab more peoples attention, science articles are often exaggerated, over simplified and sometimes flat out wrong.

Mainstream media authors aren’t always science majors and that’s fine as long as they do their research, because if they don’t they are just propagating pseudoscience.

The setup of the experiment. Source: Wikipedia commons

An example of this is when scientists from the European particle physics laboratory, CERN, fired neutrinos (a sub atomic particle) through the earth to a detector in Gran Sasso. This normally would not be of any interest to the general public, but the results of the test were very abnormal. According to the data, the neutrinos traveled 0.002% faster than light. If this was true, it would mean Einsteins theory of relativity is wrong, and this would have huge implications in the world of physics. The scientists that did the experiment were understandably very skeptical of this result, but could not figure out what could have went wrong. They published their results in hopes that other physicists would spot their error, but then it leaked to the media and it went viral. Everyone was talking about it and people really believed that the laws of physics really were broken.

A fiber optic cable. Source: Wikipedia commons

Soon after it came to light that the reason why they observed neutrinos going faster than the speed of light was because of a loose fiber optic cable that ruined their results. Although, the damage was already done. Many media outlets continued spreading the story and few backtracked and admitted the mistake.

The true story that everything is as we expected just isn’t interesting enough to publish, so people are left believing this false science. If the media wants to talk about science, they better do their research, otherwise it’s best if they talk about something else.

Better Sleep, Better Life

Posted on January 29, 2018 by Junchao Bai | Leave a comment

Sleep is an incredibly important part in our daily life. We spend almost one-third of our lifespan on it. However, many people are wondering how much sleep do they need every day. In the last few years, National Sleep Foundation finished a research about the appropriate sleep duration for different age groups, and they published the results in sleep health. The appropriate sleep duration for teenagers is between 8 to 10 hours. For adults, the recommended sleep duration is between 7 to 9 hours.

Source: Flickr

Canadian Men’s health foundation conducted a study about sleep and found that around 30% Canadian men do not have enough sleep every day. They usually sleep 4 to 6 hours in a day instead of the recommended sleep duration. This may increase their risk of having some serious health problems such as heart disease. A Research published in Sleep Medicine suggests that short sleep duration over a long period time may be related to an increasing risk of mortality. People who have less sleep duration tends to have a greater risk of dying than people who
have enough sleep. Some people like to stay up very late in the weekend. They held some parties and enjoy the weekend’s night without feeling tired. They may be able to get enough sleep by getting up late the next day, but this is still harmful because people need regular sleep time everyday. Moreover, people who stay up late in the weekend may feel tired in the coming Monday, and they cannot adjust themselves to the regular working schedule.

Source: Lifehack

Too much screen time is the one of the reason why many people do not have enough sleep. A recent research showed that smartphone use for work at night disrupted sleep that night, which was associated with greater depletion the next morning and less engagement during the workday. Many people prefer to watch their phones for a second before they sleep. Once they open some social networking software such as Facebook, they cannot stop themselves for a long time. Some people may also like to watch television for a while before they sleep. As a result, people spend more time on screen instead of getting enough sleep. There may be many other reasons why people do not have enough sleep, but screen time is what we can control. People can have a good night’s sleep by decreasing the time they spent on their phones before they go to sleep.

A video about why sleep matters:

In conclusion, people should pay attention to their sleep duration and their sleep qualities. They should regulate their sleep schedule and try to have a regular sleep time. People should keep themselves away from the device that can excite their brain when they prepare to sleep.

By Junchao Bai

Should we try to find and communicate with other civilizations in the universe?

Posted on January 29, 2018 by liang zou | 1 comment

There are about four thousand billion stars in the Milk Way Galaxy, and there are about twenty thousand billion galaxies in the universe. It is very likely that we are not alone in the universe. Should we try to find and communicate with aliens in the universe?

Image Resource: Iter.org

In my opinion, the most interesting and persuasive theory about this question is the “Dark Forest Law”. This theory was brought up in the famous Chinese science fiction novel The Dark Forest written by Cixin Liu.

To prove the law, we need to assume a general theorem. Survival is the first demand of a civilization. Now, to make things easier to understand, assume that there are only two planets A and B in the universe. Planet A is aware of the existence of planet B but planet B does not know the existence of planet A.

If planet A decides to communicate with planet B, civilization B cannot assume that civilization A are not aggressive. They cannot risk their own safety. On the other hand, civilization A is doing the same thing. Therefore, because of the suspicion between A and B, B will assume that A is aggressive, so B will decide to destroy A if A tries to communicate with B. Therefore, planet A should not try to communicate with B.

What if A just ignore B and do noting about it? A cannot do that. If A can find B, then it is possible that B will find A in the future. Because survival is the first demand of a civilization, A cannot take that risk.

Image Resource: Pexels

Our deduction is over. For planet A, when it knows the existence of B, A cannot communicate with B or ignore B. Destroying B is the only choice left for A. Universe is like a dark forest, each civilization is a hunter with a gun. They all travel through the forest carefully because there are other hunters all over the forest. No matter what they see, the only thing they can do is destroying it. In this forest, other people are all threats. Any life that expose itself will be destroyed immediately. This is the “Dark forest law”.

Even though the theory is well-developed and accepted by many people, it is not perfect. Based on the information from the article “Extraterrestrial aliens: friends, foes, or just curious? ” (Micheal, G, Skeptic(Altadena, Calif.)), the fear between two civilizations in the universe is mainly related to the physics of interstellar travel.

One of the reasons that causes two civilizations to attack each other is that they are very far from each other so they cannot have a good communication. However, if interstellar travel with enough fast speed is possible, this suspicion between two civilizations may be gone.

This theory simulates the interaction between civilizations and what could happen. Based on this, we might conclude that it is dangerous to communicate with alien civilizations. However, if we do find other life in the universe, what will we actually do? Are human ready to face the cruel reality of the universe?

By Liang Zou

1 Comment

Posted in Issues in Science

How much can babies really understand?

Posted on January 28, 2018 by faraz kazi | Leave a comment

Whether you love them or hate them, at some point in your life you have likely talked to a baby. Often, we don’t associate them to have a vocabulary that goes anything beyond “goo goo gaga” so we don’t expect them to understand the slightest of what we are saying. It isn’t until they’re nearly two years old that we expect them to start speaking and communicating in comprehensible language. However, studies have shown that infants at 6 months of age may be able to comprehend the meanings of common nouns.

Source: Flickr

In Bergelson & Swingley’s study, they presented images to infants between the ages of 6 and 9 months while parents named the objects in the pictures. When named, the researchers found that the infants would gaze towards the associated image. This study suggested that infants were able to understand their parents before 15 months of age, which was previously thought to be the age where understanding began.

Setup for Bergelson & Swingley’s study on infant understanding. Sourced from their published study,

Source: Flickr

By Faraz Kazi

A cool and refreshing way to lose weigh

Posted on January 22, 2018 by qingyue wang | 1 comment

Many have been struggling with losing weight. Some people choose to control their diet very strictly. Others try to lose weight by going to the gym very frequently. These ways can definitely help people to reach their goals. However, it is painful for some people to only eat healthy food. And going to the gym takes a lot of time and energy. Here comes a simple and cool solution — drinking water. Most people know that water is very essential to our lives. But can you imagine that you can easily lose weight simply by drinking more water?

[source: https://pixabay.com/en/lose-weight-fat-slim-diet-loss-1911605/]

Surprisingly that is true. Scientists have found that drinking water can increase the resting metabolic rate(RMR) of adults. RMR is the measurement of the rate of body’s metabolism. Higher RMR means human body can consume more calories by spending the same amount of energy. One experiment is conducted on overweighted women who normally drink less than 0.5 L water every day. The result of it shows that the increased intake of water to over 1 L per day can make a significant difference in body weight. After over a 12-month period, most overweight women who participated in the experiment lost more than 2 kg. Because all the participants were required not to change their lifestyle except to drink more water, this study shows the direct relationship between the intaking amount of water and the weight loss.

[source: https://pixabay.com/en/tape-tomato-glas-diet-water-403592/]

Given the fact that drinking more water does help us reduce the body fat, what is the proper way to drink water based on this theory?

First, don’t forget to drink water before the meal. This can help to reduce your appetite. According to a research based on adults subjects, pre-meal water consumption has an effect on the reduction of meal energy intake, especially for older adults. This is due to the sense of fullness provided by water. Because the hunger ratings were lower and fullness ratings were higher after drinking water, people tend to eat less after drinking the required amount of water. However, for those of you who are not older adults, it is still a good advice. Although this may not have that impressive effect on you at the same level as the middle-aged people, it still helps you to avoid overeating.

Second, try to drink one more cup of water every day and replace other sweetened beverage with water. Sugars in the sweetened beverage are the biggest enemy of losing weight. A study shows that drinking beverage can not only increase the energy intake and body weight but also increase the risk of several medical problems. It has been proved that the daily intake of water can have an influence on people’s behavior and emotions. In general, you should drink water as soon as you feel thirsty and drink enough to quench your thirst. However, it is not good to over drink the water. 1-2 liters of water per day is recommended to help stay healthy and lose weight.

[source: https://pixabay.com/en/thirsty-man-drink-drinking-water-937395/]

Isn’t it cool to lose weight simply by drinking water? For those of you who are not interested in working out or being upset of controlling the diet, this refreshing way can be your lifesaver! If you still doubt it, just try to drink more water from now on! It does not take much effort but can give you a huge benefit.

By Qingyue Wang

1 Comment

Posted in Biological Sciences, Issues in Science, Science in News

Tagged bodyfat, health, news, overweight, sweetened beverage, water

Olive Oil- a prevention to cardiovascular risk

Posted on January 22, 2018 by kimty chowdhury | 2 comments

Cardiovascular disease is thought to be solely a result of genetic and environmental factors; however individuals diet is the most significant role player in a healthy heart. Most health gurus and dieticians have raved about the benefits of olive oil. How exactly does this Mediterranean delight help our heart stay healthy?

Dr Bob explains the beneficial properties of olive oil.

The First International Conference on the Healthy Effects of Virgin Olive Oil (VOO) presented a scientific summary of the health benefits of olive oil. Olive oil consists of bioactive components including the unsaponifiable and the soluble fraction, that contains phenolic compounds. According to the EUROLIVE study, the phenolic content in olive oil reduces serum triacylglycerols and increases high-density lipoprotein (HDL)-cholesterol and the reduced-to-oxidized glutathione ratio in a dose-dependent manner depending on the concentration of phenolic compound. This significantly reduced cardiovascular risk.

In addition, scientists from Hospital del Mar Medical Research Institute in Barcelona took measurements of how HDL is working. They found out that individuals that consumed a diet rich in olive oil had better functioning HDL. Hence, they were able to pluck LDL out effectively from the heart vessel walls and move them to the liver for removal. This made them more better able to work antioxidants, giving security against inflammatory related damages that can destroy blood vessels and make them more susceptible to heart attacks.

Dr Gundry conducts an experiment to show the benefits of olive oil to your heart

The human heart is one of the most essential organ for successful living. The heart is accountable for many functions of your body including transportation of oxygen and a healthy immune system. Apart from your genetics and surrounding environment, your diet plays an significant role in the health of your heart. Olive oil is the miracle power food containing healthy fats that will keep your heart bright and glowing.

2 Comments

Posted in Biological Sciences, Issues in Science, Uncategorized

Tagged Science Communication

Category Archives: Issues in Science

How much can babies really understand?

The Potential Of Cannabinoids

The Role of Vitamin D and the Deficiency of Vitamin D

Swimming in an Ocean of Plastic

Is the mainstream media hurting science?

Better Sleep, Better Life

Should we try to find and communicate with other civilizations in the universe?

Image Resource: Iter.org

Image Resource: Pexels

How much can babies really understand?

A cool and refreshing way to lose weigh

Olive Oil- a prevention to cardiovascular risk

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