Category: public posts
The select public posts from syn·op·sis, written and reviewed by iSci students at McMaster University. Each post is interdisciplinary in nature, and a wide variety of subject matter is covered. So sit back, relax, and start learning.
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SPF 1000?
In 2020, the world’s largest reef, the Great Barrier Reef in Australia, experienced its third mass bleaching event in the last five years (Nelson, 2020). Exacerbated by climate change, extreme heat waves bleach coral as their thermal tolerance and photosynthetic symbionts are exceeded (Hoegh-Guldberg, 1999). While bleaching does not always lead to organism death, it…
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The physics of teaching physics
Education has certainly evolved into the 21st-century, and the way in which physics is taught is not shy to this phenomenon. How is physics taught? What are some problems associated with these teaching methods? How can we fix them? Students in physics classrooms are often sorted into two groups: those who believe that physics consists…
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Mathematics + Genetics = Molecular Computing
The interdisciplinary comprehension and use of mathematics and computing in science are essential for research and development. Mathematics aids in analyzing and visualizing patterns in data collected on computers, and allows for representation of scientific phenomena (Meredith et al., 2007). The use of math also allows for expanding existing ideas and discovering new ones. In…
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Learning How to Read Minds
Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI), despite being one of the most pivotal innovations of contemporary medicine, is markedly limited due to its safety, cost, and inability to discern micro-insults within the brain (Glover, 2011). In 1992, scientists introduced functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI), a non-invasive technique intended to measure brain activity with unparalleled specificity (Soares, et…
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Is Carbon Capture Accelerating Global Warming?
It has been well established that climate change is driven by anthropogenic greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) warns us in their 2021 report that even with massive reductions in current GHG emission levels, we will soon experience unprecedented rises in global temperature and natural disaster frequency (IPCC, 2021). The…
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A Blast of Clean Energy
Serviceable fusion power is a near-ideal source of effectively limitless clean energy—its high energy density, safety, and sustainability distinguish fusion from any other energy source today. Despite this, the funds required for fusion research and its highly specialized conditions of operation hinder its feasibility in the market (Cowley, 2016). However, as global energy use continues…
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Magical Muons and Magma Movement
Volcanoes can threaten public safety, water supplies, land, and contribute to temporary climate changes (U.S. Geological Survey, 2018). Canada primarily has volcanic areas in British Columbia and Yukon, but is also exposed to volcanoes along the United States border that may erupt again in the future (Government of Canada, 2020). Volcanoes, therefore, pose a threat…
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The Physics of Photosynthesis
Plants are some of the most important organisms on the planet; they form the foundation of numerous ecosystems and environments. Although they appear as relatively simple organisms, there are many complex processes occurring within all plants. Many of these processes involve the application of physical laws and principles. Plants rely on light absorption as well…
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Champagne Problems: The Challenge of Effervescence
Whether it is the sweet taste of ripe grapes or the dry flavour of crisp apples, often the first thought that comes to mind when considering champagne are the bubbles, that sparkling signature of facetiousness. What you might not think about is where champagne comes from and its production. What is really in a bottle…
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Cooking Therapy
In a perspective piece written for the Health and Wellness section of the Washington Post, one woman described her struggle with Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD) and the positive, therapeutic effect that cooking provided her (Friedlander, 2020). She explained how she used cooking as a coping strategy to ease her anxiety during extremely stressful times in her life, such as her parent’s divorce, her father-in-law’s hospitalization…