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POSTS FROM 2024

Making Everyday Life Easier With Soft Robotics Pranav Addepalli delves into the advent of soft robotics, their numerous underwater, medical, and biomimetic applications and some of the challenges facing soft robots/soft robot development. Thursday, 25 July 2024

Mental Maps In her exploration of connectomics, Rachel McKeown reflects on the rapidly advancing field dedicated to mapping intricate physical connections of neurones in diverse networks, and what this holds for the future. Thursday, 25 July 2024

Seeking Connections: The Essence Of Epidemiology Bethan Powell argues that seeking connections and patterns is at the heart of epidemiology. Tuesday, 9 July 2024

Empathy In 2024 : Brains, Media And AI Spatika Jayaram questions what it means to empathise in today’s age and considers the implications of AI and social media. Tuesday, 9 July 2024

You Won’t Believe The Insane Reason We’re Drawn to Clickbait Oliver Macauley discusses how online media headlines can capture our attention and draw us in. Tuesday, 25 June 2024

Light skies, dark world: backyard stargazers reveal increase in light pollution Lizzie Knight discusses the impact of increasing light pollution from artificial light sources. Tuesday, 25 June 2024

The Very Hungry Catastrophe Solution Phillipa Samella asks if moth larvae and microbes could be the answer to our plastic prayers? Thursday, 6 June 2024

Running Hot Off the Press: How Medicine is Embracing 3D Bioprinting Sambhavi Kumar dives into the latest medical technologies that could see 3D printers finding their way into our hospitals and clinic. Thursday, 6 June 2024

The Evolutionary Roots of Metabolic Regulation in the Immune System: Tracing the Path from Primordial Mechanisms to Modern Complexity Swetha Kannan discusses the interaction between immune and metabolic processes from an evolutionary perspective. Wednesday, 22 May 2024

Unlocking the Gut-Brain Connection: The Invincible Army Modulating Brain Activity Goitseone Thamae shines light on the invincible army modulating brain activity Thursday, 9 May 2024

Keeping Mental Score: This is Your Brain on Music Yuthika Pillai outlines how the brain responds to music and why this is so essential to our lives Wednesday, 24 April 2024

Can Language Be Abstracted? Shikang Ni reveals the rules of communication and asks whether they can be captured by a computer. Monday, 15 April 2024

Chipping In: Are the Benefits of Neurolink All Inside Our Head? Maciej Gabrysiak explores the current state of neural implant technology and examines the claims of its leading proponents Thursday, 4 April 2024

Intermittent hypoxia: could hypoxia be beneficial? Mingshuai Zhu discusses the potential benefits of intermittent hypoxia and potential clinical translation. Tuesday, 26 March 2024

The Magic in Mushrooms: A Quick Dose of The History of Psychedelics Isabella Bentham-Clark explores psychedelically altered states of perception and cognition. Thursday, 21 March 2024

The consequence of connection: how human travel impacts global disease. Alice Sparks discusses the impact of globalisation on the spread of diseases and how our increased connectivity impacts our response to pandemics. Monday, 11 March 2024

Forces of Life Rachel Mckeown explores how applying a physical perspective to living systems is yielding new insights into how our bodies are built and shaped during development Monday, 4 March 2024

An Interview with Jessie Hall: The Philosophy of Virtual Reality Pauline Kerekes speaks to scientist and philosopher Jessie Hall about materialism and consciousness, and which criteria can be proposed to... Tuesday, 27 February 2024

Review: How Emotions are Made by Lisa Feldman Barrett Rachel Mckeown reviews the book "How Emotions are Made" by Lisa Feldman Barrett Tuesday, 20 February 2024

The little compass hidden in each of us Andrea Rogolino explains how a certain biological molecule can detect magnetic fields Monday, 5 February 2024

Cuttlefish teach cameras to ‘see’ better amid contrasts in illumination Andrea Rogolino explains how researchers created a new camera based on the eyes of cuttlefish Friday, 2 February 2024

Researchers discover secret pyramid tunnel Armaan Shaikh describes how muon radiography identified an undiscovered section of one of the Great Pyramids of Egypt Tuesday, 30 January 2024

Aging Warriors and Cancer's Game: Navigating Immunometabolic Chessboards in Young versus Seasoned Battlers Swetha Kannan explains the metabolic interplay between aging and cancer, and the implications of this for therapeutics Friday, 19 January 2024

Diabolically Ironclad Tasmin Wood explains what makes the diabolical ironclad beetle so tough Monday, 15 January 2024

Social Scientists: Our Favourite Online Influencers Libby Brown highlights some great Instagram accounts for scientists Friday, 12 January 2024

Quantum birds and their sixth sense Andy Song and Yena Seo explain the theory behind how magnetoreception could work in migratory birds Wednesday, 10 January 2024

Shaking Up Scientific Publishing: eLife Announces Controversial New Publishing Plan Holly Smith discusses the advantages and disadvantages of a more transparent peer review process Wednesday, 10 January 2024

Quantum Internet: An Entangled World Shreyas Iyer introduces the reader to the strange and remarkable implications of a quantum internet and its applications in secure communication Tuesday, 9 January 2024

Clearing the Confusion about Nuclear Fusion Xavior Wang discusses the promises and challenges of fusion energy Thursday, 4 January 2024

Power to the People: Creating a Resilient Electricity Grid in the Face of Global Hazards Lizzie Knight discusses how the electricity grid is susceptible to global hazards and what can be done to improve its resilience Thursday, 4 January 2024

Botox: From Anti-Wrinkle to Anti-Depressant Emily Birt discusses the clinical applications of Botox and emerging research into its potential use as a therapy for mental health disorders Wednesday, 3 January 2024

POSTS FROM 2023

Mitochondrial Networking: Immunometabolic Symphony in Cellular Societies Swetha Kannan explains the role of mitochondria in the immune system in the context of cancer and ageing Saturday, 30 December 2023

ASCUS: Society at the Heart of Science Pauline Kerekes talks to Keira Tucker, the General Manager at ASCUS Art and Science that provides the only publicly accessible lab in the UK, aiming at strengthening the necessary cross-talk between society and science. Wednesday, 20 December 2023

Genome Sequencing: its Promises, its Impact Merissa Hickman and Rachel Duke discuss the societal implications of advancements in genomic medicine Wednesday, 20 December 2023

Brains in a Dish - Models for the Study of the Human Brain Anna Pujol explores the different models used to study the brain and its related pathologies Tuesday, 19 December 2023

GM brought us Golden Rice, but is it a Golden Solution? Hayoung Choi explores whether GM crops are a solution to the food crisis Monday, 18 December 2023

Bluesci Goes Green on the Amazing People, Enquiring Minds Trail at Cambridge University Botanic Garden Rachel Mckeown explores the new Botanic Garden trail and talks to some of the researchers involved Friday, 15 December 2023

Why Plant-Based Just Makes Sense William Smith presents the environmental benefits of a plant-based diet Thursday, 14 December 2023

HeLa: The Immortal Cell Line Shaping Science and Society Konstanze Schichl discusses the legacy of Henrietta Lacks with a focus on the history and modern-day implications of the use of the HeLa cell line Wednesday, 13 December 2023

An Interview with Dr Catherine Galloway: Translation and Innovation Lead at the Kavli Centre for Ethics, Science, and the Public Merissa Hickman explores the pioneering ways that the Kavli Centre for Ethics, Science and the Public involve and engage the general public in science Tuesday, 12 December 2023

Modifying the genetics of humanity? What we do not know is what matters Raina Jia reviews the book “The End of Genetics: Designing Humanity’s DNA” by David Goldstein Monday, 11 December 2023

The truth behind ‘Zoom fatigue’ – the impact of videoconferencing on our minds and bodies Rachel McKeown discusses the factors underlying Zoom fatigue Wednesday, 8 November 2023

New Realities Ailie McWhinnie explores the ways our brains build our unique experiences of reality Thursday, 2 November 2023

Birdsongs alleviate anxiety and paranoia in healthy participants Laura Chilver explains how birdsong could benefit people living in urban areas Thursday, 26 October 2023

Coughs and Sneezes or Attention Seekers? Libby Brown discusses how captive gorillas may be using complex vocal learning Monday, 9 October 2023

Rapidx: A Rapid Disease Testing Startup at Cambridge University Using Plasmonics Yan-Yi Lee describes how laser technology is aiming to improve PCR testing for microbial infections Wednesday, 4 October 2023

Uplifting Plants: Hebes in New Zealand’s Southern Alps Anne Thomas discusses the diversification of a flowering shrub in mountain habitats Monday, 25 September 2023

Access to Electricity: A Growing Issue in 2023 and Beyond Chisom Ifeobu highlights how a framework to classify people's access to electricity could help plans to improve global access Thursday, 14 September 2023

Xenotransplantation Megan Chan discusses recent advances in replacing damaged human tissues with those from other species Monday, 21 August 2023

Bioreceptive Architecture Bartek Witek explores how architects are designing building materials that combine plants and concrete Monday, 7 August 2023

Moon Plants Barbara Neto-Bradley describes how scientists have managed to grow seedlings in moon dirt Wednesday, 26 July 2023

Beyond The Periodic Table Mickey Wong explores the origins of radioactivity and why this means that superheavy elements are unlikely to exist Monday, 24 July 2023

Nuclear Fusion – Harnessing the Power of Stars Shikang Ni talks about the future of nuclear fusion energy and where we are now Thursday, 20 July 2023

Frontiers at the Large Hadron Collider Manuel Morales Alvarado writes about the importance of the work at the LHC in the progression of high energy physics and its impact on wider society Tuesday, 18 July 2023

The Decarbonisation Challenge Clifford Sia explains the difficulty of making the world run on renewable energy Thursday, 13 July 2023

Pavilion: When Braille Meets Colours Pauline Kerekes talks to Clarke Reynolds, a visually impaired artist who invented a new form of visual art. Tuesday, 11 July 2023

Microprocessor Design – We're Running Out Of Ideas Clifford Sia discusses the challenges involved in building faster microprocessors Monday, 3 July 2023

Generative Adversarial Networks Shavindra Jayasekera discusses how competing algorithms can solve the problem of small biomedical datasets Wednesday, 21 June 2023

Is 3D Printing All It’s Cracked Up To Be? Sarah Lindsay introduces the many layers of 3D printing Monday, 19 June 2023

Lateral Flow Tests – Beyond COVID-19 Caroline Reid talks about pushing existing medical technology to its full potential Tuesday, 13 June 2023

The Green Revolution – How a Jellyfish Transformed Cell Biology Andrew Smith explores the origins of GFP and how it became the versatile tool that we know today Thursday, 8 June 2023

In Search of the Missing Jawbone – Solving an Evolutionary Riddle Hayoung Choi explores various approaches to solving the long-studied evolutionary riddle on the mysterious structures that were repurposed to build the middle ear Monday, 5 June 2023

Review: Prehistoric Planet (BBC, Apple TV) Adiyant Lamba reviews the BBC paleobiology series featuring photorealistic CGI dinosaurs and narration by David Attenborough Thursday, 1 June 2023

The ‘low threshold high ceiling’ approach to nurturing young mathematicians Ems Lord reviews NRICH, the University of Cambridge's website of mathematical school resources that are both challenging and accessible Monday, 29 May 2023

Femtech Venture Creation Weekend – May 2022 Benedetta Spadaro reviews the first Femtech Venture Creation event, which focused on how technology could be used to improve female health Thursday, 25 May 2023

Novel Mapping of the Human Immune System Could Unveil New Targets in Medical Therapy Yan-Yi Lee and Sung-Mu Lee discuss how researchers have created a map of the signalling proteins of the human immune system Tuesday, 23 May 2023

Scientists Identify Two Viruses that Trigger Alzheimer’s Disease Sneha Kumar discusses a possible link between brain inflammation and the viruses that cause cold sores and chickenpox Wednesday, 17 May 2023

The Role of Horizontal Gene Transfer in Insects and its Possible Applications Lily Taylor discusses the importance of horizontal gene transfer in insects Monday, 15 May 2023

POSTS FROM 2022

A Less Glamorous 'Circle of Life' Philip Myers describes parasites and fungi that hijack animals' brains Tuesday, 4 October 2022

The Mystery of Stabilimenta Laura Chilver describes an unusual feature of spider webs Thursday, 29 September 2022

Treating C.diff Infection with ‘Crapsules’ — Faecal Microbiota Transplants in Capsule Form Lily Taylor explores a potential new treatment for microbiota imbalances Thursday, 29 September 2022

The Toys That Made Us Maria Julia Maristany delves into how toys make us who we are Sunday, 25 September 2022

Genes, Carpets, and Mediaeval Manuscripts Bartek Witek discusses the broad applications of phylogenetic techniques Saturday, 24 September 2022

Pro-Science? Fight Anti-Science Compassionately Naomi van den Berg explains how guarding against misinformation helps us fight imminent crises more effectively Friday, 23 September 2022

Sticking to the Science? The Role of Climate and Conservation Scientists in a Polarised Political World James Ball explores the delicate boundaries that delineate research, advocacy, and activism in the scientific community Thursday, 22 September 2022

Pavilion: the Eye of the Beholder Laia Serratosa walks along the fuzzy, dreamlike borders between science and everything else Wednesday, 21 September 2022

A Portrait of the Scientist as a Young Artist: the Diary and Drawings of Santiago Ramón y Cajal Livia E. Lisi-Vega reveals how Ramón y Cajal's artistic inclination fueled with Nobel-winning work Tuesday, 6 September 2022

Acculturation in the Life of an International Student Manuel Morales Alvarado shares his experience of acculturation in four different countries during his four years of postgraduate study Thursday, 1 September 2022

Exploring the Zooniverse Julie Tang discusses how citizen science facilitates scientific research and has potential benefits for both citizen scientists and professionals Tuesday, 30 August 2022

Q&A with Stephen Braren Maria Bolevich interviews a fellow researcher about his personal journey in scientific discovery Thursday, 25 August 2022

Why patient experiences should shape medical knowledge Jacob Smith explains why and how patient experiences should shape our current medical knowledge Tuesday, 23 August 2022

Conservation: Subjective, but Still Science Kate Howlett illustrates how applied science is firmly rooted in its social context Thursday, 18 August 2022

Handmade: A Scientist’s Search for Meaning Through Making Bethan Charles considers Ploszajski's journey into materials science Tuesday, 16 August 2022

Brain Connectomics Throughout The Life Outcome: In-Person Conference at the MRC LMB Elizabeth English reviews her first in-person neuroscience conference Thursday, 11 August 2022

Review of Rebel Cell: Cancer, Evolution, and the Science of Life by Kat Arney. Lily Taylor reviews Kat Arney's Rebel Cell Tuesday, 9 August 2022

Beep-boop: How Brains Struggle to Detect Change During Dementia Andrew Smith explores new research in dementia Thursday, 4 August 2022

What happens when legislation does not catch up with the thriving surrogacy industry? Jung Chen explores the challenging legislature surrounding surrogacy Thursday, 28 July 2022

Weird and Wonderful - The Large Blue(Sci) Butterfly Matt Hayes writes about Phengaris arion Thursday, 14 July 2022

Valuing Vaginal Variation: Why Size Matters Benedetta Spadaro explores how male-centric research neglects vaginas Thursday, 7 July 2022

Tiny Owls and Tiny Snakes: Strangest of Bedfellows? Alexandra Howard explores the relationship between the eastern screech owls and blind snakes of central Texas Thursday, 30 June 2022

Seeds of Change: A Diverse History of Agricultural Practices in the UK Tim Birkle delves into the history of crop rotations in the UK, modern farming practices, and the role of collective action in allowing important changes to take root Thursday, 23 June 2022

Eco-Mining for the Future: The Changing Face of Lithium Extraction Matthew Morris discusses the need to make lithium extraction greener and how we are bringing this closer to home in more ways than one Thursday, 16 June 2022

The Dating Game: What Role Does the Major Histocompatibility Complex Play In Sexual Compatibility? How do we choose our perfect partner? Clodagh Bottomley suggests our DNA has a greater role to play than we might think Thursday, 9 June 2022

How to Build a Quantum Computer Xavior Wang explores what makes and breaks a quantum computer Thursday, 2 June 2022

Where Art Meets Artificial Intelligence Pauline Kerekes talks to Lukas Noehrer at the Alan Turing Institute Thursday, 26 May 2022

Reinventing Ourselves: What Do Advances in Artificial Intelligence Mean for Truth? Gladys Poon discusses how our increasing reliance on algorithms affects the world we live in and our perception of it Thursday, 12 May 2022

Hedging Your Bets: Is Single Cell Variability Functionally Important? Roberta Cacioppo delves into the surprising variation between cells and what this might mean at the population level Thursday, 5 May 2022

The Power of Statistics: A Myth of Objectivity Charlotte Hutchings asks if statistics really makes science objective Thursday, 5 May 2022

New Perspectives on Bilingualism and its Connection to Dementia Yan-Yi Lee unravels three new questions at the intersection of bilingualism and dementia Monday, 2 May 2022

Something To Declare: Australia’s Cane Toad Problem Monica Killen uses the example of cane toads to explore complexities around introduced species and the importance of research into their impact Thursday, 28 April 2022

Seen One Snake, Seen Them All? Think again! Alexandra Howard delves into the world of snakes to highlight their surprising diversity Thursday, 21 April 2022

Flexibility or Restriction: Five Ways Fixed-Term Contracts Reduce Diversity Bethan Charles explores the dominance of temporary contacts in academia and what this means for diversity Tuesday, 19 April 2022

Same But Different: A Short History of the Human Genome Bartek Witek discusses our surprising lack of genetic diversity and its clinical consequences Thursday, 14 April 2022

Crash Course Big History – CrashCourse Sarah Lindsay reviews a science communication YouTube channel Thursday, 7 April 2022

The Codebreaker – Walter Isaacson Hazel Walker reviews a book by Walter Isaacson Thursday, 31 March 2022

Nipponium: An Element Lost in Time Anthony Phung explores the story of a Japanese chemist’s lost element Wednesday, 30 March 2022

Wilding – Isabella Tree A review of the rewilding of Britain, as explored in Isabella Tree's Wilding Thursday, 24 March 2022

A Breath of Fresh Air: Needle-Free COVID Vaccine Developed in Cambridge Elizabeth English explores research into needle-free vaccines. Sunday, 20 March 2022

The Largest Invertebrate of All Time Adiyant Lamba explores recent fossil evidence of the largest invertebrate. Sunday, 20 March 2022

Glass-Like Super Jelly: A Material for the Future Adiyant Lamba explores research into a new glass-like super jelly. Thursday, 3 March 2022

Calutron girls in the atomic city "Calutron girls" worked in Oak ridge in WWII Thursday, 24 February 2022

Weird and Wonderful: Is ASMR Real? Denise Tran explores the research behind ASMR. Thursday, 17 February 2022

It’s Getting Hot in Here, so Override Your Chromosomes Sarah Lindsay explains the mechanism behind temperature-dependant sex determination Thursday, 10 February 2022

What cooperation in climate conservation looks like Donovan Sim discusses the need for scientific and political unity for climate action Thursday, 3 February 2022

The popularisation of science Chloe Li weighs up the implications of differing views on simplifying and disseminating scientific findings Thursday, 27 January 2022

Clinical Trial Design May Perpetuate Health Inequalities Differences in immunological responses between disparate human populations are well-documented. Lauren Lee considers that inadequate representation of some groups in clinical trials omits the study of the genetic and environmental factors relevant to those populations Thursday, 20 January 2022

Scientific Discovery, Imperialism and the Geological Map Octavia Rooks charts the concept of discovery and the role of mapping in colonialism Thursday, 13 January 2022

Decolonising Natural History Museums Daniel Lim showcases stories from the colonial origins of the Natural History Museum collections Thursday, 6 January 2022

Hidden Figures: The Erasure of Scientific Labour and the Hope of Decolonisation For the FOCUS article of Issue 52, Gianamar Giovanetti-Singh, Rory Kent, and Swathi Nachiar Manivannan discuss who is excluded from the narratives surrounding scientific practice - and who benefits from this exclusion. Tuesday, 4 January 2022

POSTS FROM 2021

Following the Science What do we mean by evidence-based decision making? Andrea Chlebikova tackles misconceptions about the phrase. Thursday, 23 December 2021

The ‘Leaky Pipeline’: Is Diverse Representation in STEM a Pipe Dream? Lizzie Knight discusses diversity in STEM and how the metaphor itself might perpetuate problems Thursday, 16 December 2021

Science ‘Walks on Two Legs’ in Maoist China Eugene Chia explains how the popular narrative of science under Mao brushes over a complex relationship between science and politics Thursday, 9 December 2021

What Have We Learnt by Searching for "Gay Genes"? Chay Graham argues that research into the DNA ancestry of gay sex is really a study of the relationship between LGBT+people, STEM and profit. Thursday, 2 December 2021

The Myth of Objectivity Zak Lakota-Baldwin questions whether objective science is possible, or even desireable Thursday, 25 November 2021

The People in the Trees - Hanya Yanagihara Bethan Clark reviews The People in the Trees Thursday, 18 November 2021

Review: Letterbox Science Letterbox Science is a public engagement project that aims to connect the research work at the Gurdon Institute with people who are often left behind. Thursday, 11 November 2021

The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks Susanne Mesoy reviews the book The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks Thursday, 4 November 2021

Getting to the Heart of COVID-19 Tom Wilkins explains two potential treatments for COVID-19. Thursday, 28 October 2021

Changing Climate Alters How Volcanic Eruptions Affect Our Planet Swastika Issar explains how natural phenomena can impact climate change Thursday, 21 October 2021

AI Learns the Tell-Tale Signs of Dementia Chloe Li explains how machine learning can be used for early diagnosis of dementia Friday, 15 October 2021

How To Avoid Being Seen: Learning From the Octopus Sona Popat explains how scientists are uncovering the secrets of camouflage Tuesday, 14 September 2021

Being baby-faced Hannah Lin observes the evolution of the face Tuesday, 7 September 2021

Weird and Wonderful: Is Seeing Truly Believing? Mirlinda Ademi talks about visual illusions Tuesday, 31 August 2021

The Ties that Bind the Mind: Exploring the Limitations of Thought Tom Wilkins discusses seeing the forest for the trees Tuesday, 24 August 2021

Visualising Science Bethan Clark tackles the problems and pitfalls of data visualisation Tuesday, 17 August 2021

Geology Rocks! — How Rock Collections Shaped the Understanding of the Earth Juliane Borchert explores the history of the Sedgwick Museum Tuesday, 10 August 2021

To See in a New Light: There is More than Meets the Eye Xavior Wang explores the scientific advancements in optical technology that transformed our perception of reality Tuesday, 3 August 2021

Pavilion: Seeing the Supernatural? Grace Exley explores how photography helped to expose a war-time witch Tuesday, 27 July 2021

Arteries of the Earth: Why Rivers Run Everything Will Knapp and Séan Thor Herron investigate how scientists study the importance of river systems throughout Earth's history Tuesday, 20 July 2021

Whale Tracking Technology Hopes for a Sea Change in Conservation Hazel Walker takes a deep dive into the world of cetacean tracking Tuesday, 13 July 2021

Synchrotron Science: A Deep Dive into the Atomic World Fran Seymour explores the creation of synchrotron light in accelerators and its many usages Tuesday, 6 July 2021

Collapsing Ecosystems and Melting Permafrost in a Warming World: Is This The Future We Choose? Mahlaqua Noor discusses the effect of climate change on permafrost ecosystems Tuesday, 29 June 2021

Stereoisomers Why position matters, the difference of a bond Thursday, 24 June 2021

Remote Sensing: the Key to Reducing Seismic Hazard? Natalie Forrest discusses how satellite data can shed light on seismic processes Tuesday, 22 June 2021

Stepped-drum Calculators to Math Grenades: how well do you know your calculators? Kathryn Bowers talks about the history of calculators Thursday, 17 June 2021

Animal Magnetism Susanne Mesoy investigates the mechanisms of magnetoreception Tuesday, 15 June 2021

Illuminating the Northern Lights Lucy Hart explains how the solar wind creates the Northern Lights Thursday, 10 June 2021

Nature Live Online, Natural History Museum Nature Live Online — bringing science to your home Tuesday, 8 June 2021

A Sprinkling of Gold Dust: Fairytale or Modern Science? William Hotham writes about gold nanoparticles Thursday, 3 June 2021

Southern Reach Trilogy William Guo reviews the popular science fiction trilogy - and is left pondering some big questions Tuesday, 1 June 2021

Making an Internet From Scratch Charles Jameson explores the remarkable levels of complexity underlying something we all take for granted - the Internet Thursday, 27 May 2021

Kiss the Ground How agriculture can help with the climate crisis Tuesday, 25 May 2021

Improved With Crystals Evelyna Wang explores the intricacies of crystal formation and their many uses Thursday, 20 May 2021

Tracing the Evolution of Antibiotic Resistance Lauren Lee discusses how antibiotic resistance emerged Tuesday, 18 May 2021

A Mathematician, A Monster, And A Game With No Players Maria Julia Maristany takes a look inside the marvelous and magical mind of John Horton Conway Thursday, 13 May 2021

How Much Sugar is in That Drink? James Lee investigates the effects of the UK's sugar tax Tuesday, 11 May 2021

The Chicken or the Egg? First Came a Chicken Virus: Celebrating 50 Years of Oncogenes Research Benedetta Spadaro and Harry Bickerstaffe delve into the discovery of oncogenes and the development in our understanding of cancer genetics and the therapeutics available Thursday, 6 May 2021

A Giant Vortex of Liquid Light Adiyant Lamba on quantum fluid vortices Tuesday, 4 May 2021

The Music of Black Holes Owain Salter Fitz-Gibbon discusses how sound waves from a violin resemble gravitational waves emitted from black holes Thursday, 29 April 2021

The Electrifying World of Energy Harvesting Liam Ives explores how we can harness the wasted energy from everyday processes. Thursday, 22 April 2021

Cutting Edge: CRISPR/Cas9’s Molecular Scissors Hazel Walker explores the Nobel Prize-winning innovation of CRISPR/Cas9 gene editing Thursday, 15 April 2021

Science Twitter Roundup: February/March 2021 A summary of the opinions and witterings of the science community on Twitter Thursday, 15 April 2021

Enter ‘Monkeydactyl’: The Pterosaur with the Oldest Opposable Thumb New research reveals the first ever pterosaur with an opposable thumb, a structure normally associated with the primate hand Thursday, 15 April 2021

Mesenchymal Stem Cells: Vanquisher Or Accomplice Of Osteoarthritis? Minji Ai discusses osteoarthritis, mesenchymal stem cells, and and how our mechanistic understanding of them both is bringing us closer to a therapy currently just out of reach. Thursday, 8 April 2021

Stressful Stuff: Is Psychological Stress More Damaging Than We Realise? Eleanor Sherlock investigates the hidden connection between psychological stress and immune-related illnesses Thursday, 1 April 2021

Hope Beyond Hype, EuroStemCell Debbie Ho reviews a stem cell research comic Thursday, 25 March 2021

Winter Birds, Lars Jonsson Kate Howlett tells us all why we need a copy of Winter Birds Thursday, 18 March 2021

A Life on Our Planet Narrated by Sir David Attenborough Dean Ashley reiterates an emotive and hard-hitting message from Sir David Attenborough Thursday, 11 March 2021

A stomach-churning discovery Our impulse to look away from disgusting images is triggered by changes in the electrical rhythm of our stomach, according... Thursday, 4 March 2021

Healing medicine from its gender bias Sofia Weiss Goitiandia tells us about a new initiative, "Medical Herstories", that aims to rid medicine of its gender bias Thursday, 4 March 2021

Making a map of the universe The Gaia mission was launched in 2013 and aims to help us map the universe, as there is still a... Thursday, 25 February 2021

AI: thinking in three dimensions A classical problem in structural biology is the ‘protein folding problem’ – that is, figuring out what final 3D conformation... Thursday, 18 February 2021

Breaking Symmetry: The First Steps from Cell to Being Adiyant Lamba describes how cell polarity breaks the symmetry of the embryo to lay down a template for subsequent development Thursday, 18 February 2021

Study reveals shared developmental programmes underlying psoriasis and eczema A recent study reveals that cells from patients with inflammatory skin diseases share many of the same molecular pathways as developing skin cells Tuesday, 16 February 2021

Investing in scientific diversity: Why theoretical arguments aren’t enough Charlotte Zemmel, Section Editor at Bluesci and co-editor of the Minorities in Science Series, explores why theoretical arguments for diversifying science aren't enough Monday, 15 February 2021

Stalin and the Scientists Tom Wilkins gives an in depth review of Stalin and the Scientists written by Simon Ings Thursday, 11 February 2021

Reflecting on a year of pandemic for women in academia Julia Maristany, co-editor of the Minorities in Science series, explores the impact COVID-19 has had on women in academia Thursday, 11 February 2021

Primates, BBC One Kate Howlett reviews Primates on BBC Tuesday, 9 February 2021

Quick Prediction of Long COVID Examination of the immune system in COVID-19 patients shows that the likelihood of severe and ‘long COVID’ may be established very early on following infection Tuesday, 9 February 2021

Dish Life: The Game – by Pocket Sized Hands Have you ever wondered what it would be like to be a scientist? Adiyant Lamba reviews Dish Life. Thursday, 4 February 2021

A Spoonful of Jelly Makes the RNA Go Down Benedetta Spadaro explains how bees learn their fate Tuesday, 2 February 2021

Science Twitter Roundup: January 2021 A summary of the opinions and witterings of the science community on Twitter Sunday, 31 January 2021

Peanut Butter Diamonds Elizabeth Brown reveals an unlikely source of diamonds Thursday, 28 January 2021

A Watery Twist to the Dinosaur Tale Adiyant Lamba dives into the newly found past-times of our favourite prehistoric creatures Tuesday, 26 January 2021

The Value of Being Precautious? Charlotte Zemmel discusses the precautionary principle and how it shaped the UK response to COVID-19 Thursday, 21 January 2021

Seeing Is Believing: Researchers Use Viral Gene Therapy to Restore Lost Sight Trial uses targeted gene therapy to ‘edit’ mutated genes and reverse effects of genetic blindness Tuesday, 19 January 2021

A Vaccine for Your Mind Joanna Lada and Jake Rose look at the increasing prevalence of ‘fake news’ and discuss ways to combat misinformation with inoculation theory Thursday, 14 January 2021

Science at Speed: Publishing Amidst a Pandemic Juliana Cudini speaks with Nature Editor-in-Chief Magdalena Skipper and eLife Deputy Editors Anna Akhmanova and Detlef Weigel about the rapidly rising tide of COVID-19 publications Thursday, 7 January 2021

POSTS FROM 2020

All Hands On Deck Alice McDowell explores the need for collaborative drug discovery programmes Thursday, 31 December 2020

Pangolins, Pigs, and Pets: A Recipe for Another Pandemic Tatjana Baleta, Hazel Walker, and Anna Tran discuss the biorisk due to zoonotic diseases originating from the dependence of humans on animals, and how these can be sustained in light of their impacts on socioeconomic stability and public health Thursday, 24 December 2020

Pavilion: Bacterial Art Pauline Kerekes interviews Dr Berkmen about his vision of art and science Thursday, 17 December 2020

Science Twitter Roundup: October/November 2020 A summary of the opinions and witterings of the science community on Twitter Friday, 11 December 2020

A Pathogen’s Dilemma: The Virulence-Transmission Trade-Off Oakem Kyne explores why pathogens evolve to cause different levels of harm Thursday, 10 December 2020

Green Space and Public Health Kate Howlett highlights how access to the great outdoors is key to mitigating the health inequalities produced by COVID-19 Tuesday, 8 December 2020

A World Without Antibiotics? Megan Hardy discusses antibiotic resistance and the importance of antibiotic development Thursday, 3 December 2020

Ion-blocking polymers offer sunny horizons for solar power Pip Knight takes a look at what materials are on the horizon for solar power Tuesday, 1 December 2020

New Funding for COVID-19 Genomic Surveillance Researchers will be sequencing viral genomes at a huge scale to help combat the COVID-19 pandemic Monday, 30 November 2020

Obesity, a Choice or ‘Fat Chance’? Dean Ashley explores the role of genetics in our lifestyle choices Thursday, 26 November 2020

Staying Sane In An Insane World: The Challenge Of Social Distancing Mirlinda Ademi discusses the neuroscience behind isolation and loneliness Thursday, 19 November 2020

Plan-demic: Decoding Disease Dynamics Shavindra Jayasekera explores how mathematical modelling can inform plans for controlling the spread of infectious diseases Thursday, 12 November 2020

Schrödinger, biology and incredible wit: A physicist’s influential ponderings on life itself Savanna Leboff reviews Schrödinger's book Tuesday, 10 November 2020

Immune Suppression — From Enemy to Therapy A joint study by the Wellcome Sanger Institute (WSI) and Medical Research Council Cancer Unit in Cambridge, UK, revealed that... Thursday, 5 November 2020

Negative Mass and the Dark Universe Alex Byrne considers the bizarre idea of negative mass, and why it might explain the missing 95% of the Universe Tuesday, 3 November 2020

Artificial “mini-lungs” provide new COVID-19 insights Researchers from Cambridge and Seoul used lung organoids to study the mechanisms underlying SARS-CoV-2 infection Monday, 2 November 2020

Four-Stranded DNA: A New Dimension For Cancer Therapy? Researchers at the University of Cambridge have found that four-stranded DNA structures play a role in certain types of breast cancer and could provide a new target for personalised medicine. Thursday, 29 October 2020

Yaws: The Revenge An international research collaboration, including the Wellcome Sanger Institute, tracks the resurgence of the bacterium Treponema pallidum in Papua New Guinea following an eradication campaign Tuesday, 27 October 2020

Green Energy With Your Greens Researchers from the University of Cambridge have demonstrated that using tinted semi-transparent solar panels with crop production can increase profits... Thursday, 22 October 2020

Dying of Ignorance: The History of British Public Health Campaigns Jessica Knight looks at the long history of mass media public health campaigns, comparing our current representation of COVID-19 to public health crises since World War I and beyond Tuesday, 20 October 2020

The next generation of solar cells, featuring Dr Elizabeth Tennyson The next generation of solar cells, featuring Dr Elizabeth Tennyson Monday, 19 October 2020

Science Twitter Roundup: Nobel Prize Special A summary of the opinions and witterings of the science community on Twitter Friday, 16 October 2020

Pavilion: Be Better, Not Banned ‘Ladies and Gentlemen-’ No. Scrap that. See how easy it is to just throw something away. See how quickly those... Tuesday, 13 October 2020

What happens when metallic hydrogen melts? A joint effort between Cambridge, EPFL and IBM tasks artificial intelligence with finding out what happens when metallic hydrogen melts Tuesday, 6 October 2020

Understanding protein behaviour at the nanoscale, featuring Dr Jerelle Joseph Understanding protein behaviour at the nanoscale, featuring Dr Jerelle Joseph Monday, 5 October 2020

UN Decade on Biodiversity ends with failure to achieve all conservation targets A new UN report reveals global failure to halt biodiversity declines Saturday, 3 October 2020

Re-Discovering Depression Zuzanna Stawicka explores new research efforts in the study of depression that are looking at the brain to help determine how the disease operates, and hopefully how to treat it better Friday, 2 October 2020

From pandemic to syndemic: have we been thinking about coronavirus in the wrong way? As we enter a possible second wave of COVID-19, Richard Horton of The Lancet encourages us to think beyond pure... Thursday, 1 October 2020

Beneath the layers: exploring the unique properties of hybrid superlattices Pip Knight explores the exciting possibilities that hybrid superlattices offer, and the novel technologies on the horizon that it enables Tuesday, 29 September 2020

Science Fact, or Fiction? Liam Ives investigates the spread of fake science Tuesday, 22 September 2020

A new step forward in the search for life on Venus A microbial by-product detected in Venus’s atmosphere hints at the possibility of life on Earth’s closest neighbour Thursday, 17 September 2020

Science Twitter Roundup: August 2020 A summary of the opinions and witterings of the science community on Twitter Wednesday, 16 September 2020

The Undercover Hero of the Sea Ellie Wilding explores how seagrass can help to fight climate change Tuesday, 15 September 2020

Weird and Wonderful: Disrupting Language What is the role of association fibers in the neocortex? Friday, 11 September 2020

Weird and Wonderful: Let’s Talk Baby Talk Jonathan Lam explains the importance of baby talk Tuesday, 8 September 2020

Mosquito immune system mapped for the first time Scientists have created the first cell atlas of the mosquito immune system, a vital new tool in the fight against malaria Tuesday, 1 September 2020

Energy from (almost) nothing: a review of polymer-based nanogenerator technology Pip Knight explores the future of nano-generator technology, the potential materials we could make them out of, and the plethora of applications that sit on our horizon. Artwork by Natalie Saideman Tuesday, 1 September 2020

Cambridge SARS-CoV-2 vaccine awarded £1.9 million for clinical trial The UK government has awarded £1.9 million in funding to run clinical trials on a promising SARS-CoV-2 vaccine candidate designed by the Cambridge-based company DIOSynVax Sunday, 30 August 2020

In2Science: The Student's Perspective Students Aleena Paul, Matthew Kwok, and Autumn Goddard discuss their experience of the programme Thursday, 27 August 2020

In2Science: Navigating the next step Susannah McLaren and Anna Yakovleva discuss their experiences as in2science mentors Tuesday, 25 August 2020

Science Twitter Roundup: July 2020 A summary of the opinions and witterings of the science community on Twitter Tuesday, 18 August 2020

Cut-Throat Science: The Less Documented Cases of Scientific Malpractice Anonymous anecdotes reveal harassment, bullying and sabotage in academia Friday, 14 August 2020

A Career in Science; Living the Dream? Lucy Hart explores research culture and its impact on the wellbeing of academics Tuesday, 11 August 2020

The Lake Kivu Challenge 2020 – Unlocking Africa’s Lower Skies James Macdonald takes us on a trip through Africa's rapidly developing aviation technology scene Saturday, 8 August 2020

Weird and Wonderful: Genealogy Through Genitals Billy Morris talks about how genital morphology can be used to distinguish cryptic species Thursday, 6 August 2020

Explosive potential hidden beneath gentle Galápagos volcanoes A multinational research team has found that some volcanoes may not erupt as uniformly as expected, due to chemically diverse magmas hidden beneath the surface Tuesday, 4 August 2020

Fire and Water on a Warming Planet Evan Wroe and Annika Schlemm explore the links between climate change and extreme weather events around the world Tuesday, 28 July 2020

Supercharged Shellfish - Food for the Future? Scientists at Cambridge University have found a method to enhance shellfish with elevated nutrient levels in order to tackle global micronutrient deficiency Tuesday, 21 July 2020

Meet the tetraquark, a charming new particle The tetraquark is a new subatomic particle that has charmed physicists at CERN Friday, 17 July 2020

Review: Evolution or Extinction: Will Humanity Survive the 21st Century? - Chris Packham Kate Howlett reviews a talk by Chris Packham Tuesday, 14 July 2020

Science Twitter Roundup: June 2020 A summary of the opinions and witterings of the science community on Twitter Tuesday, 7 July 2020

Review: Antimony, Gold, and Jupiter’s Wolf - Peter Wothers Gareth Hart reviews a book by Peter Wothers Friday, 3 July 2020

Printing the future, with Tanyaradzwa Mangoma Printing the future, with Tanyaradzwa Mangoma Monday, 29 June 2020

The Solution to Antibiotic Resistance? In a first, researchers at Princeton University discover a novel broad-spectrum antibiotic against which both Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria fail to develop resistance Friday, 26 June 2020

Big Data in Psychology Gnothi seauton – know thyself. Whether it is for us as a species, or for ourselves as individuals, the imperative echoes through the centuries and many academic fields Monday, 22 June 2020

Hunting for the Axion: Needle in a Haystack Shamil Shah and Adiyant Lamba discuss attempts to look for dark matter candidates Friday, 19 June 2020

Helping on the homefront: homemade face masks and how to make them better Jago Strong-Wright considers the key factors in what makes an effective homemade face mask Wednesday, 17 June 2020

Turning Over an Old Leaf Bryony Yates discusses the value of herbaria with Dr. Lauren Gardiner, Curator of Cambridge University Herbarium Monday, 15 June 2020

Meet the graduate students behind the COVID-19 educational webapp, featuring Daniel Muthukrishna and Nick Taylor Meet the graduate students behind the COVID-19 educational webapp, featuring Daniel Muthukrishna and Nick Taylor Monday, 15 June 2020

Why there are no ant traffic jams? Serene Dhawan on the recent research into ant migration by Toulouse University and the University of Adelaide Friday, 12 June 2020

Science Twitter Roundup: May 2020 A summary of the opinions and witterings of the science community on Twitter Tuesday, 9 June 2020

Fake It 'Til You Make It Ruby Coates looks at the rise of meat and dairy alternatives Monday, 8 June 2020

Facebook Dataset to Improve Social Science Liza Karmannaya discusses the release of a dataset from Facebook Friday, 5 June 2020

Understanding the immune response to the SARS-CoV2 virus, featuring Dr Chinedu Ugwu Understanding the immune response to the SARS-CoV2 virus, featuring Dr Chinedu Ugwu Monday, 1 June 2020

Cambridge researchers tackle COVID-19 Juli Cudini examines how researchers from different fields at the University of Cambridge have united to tackle the COVID-19 pandemic Monday, 1 June 2020

Flying - a Story of Success Felicitas Pamatat looks into the emergence of flying species Sunday, 31 May 2020

Genetic Engineering of Humans - Opening Pandora’s Box? BlueSci explores the biology and ethics of human genetic engineering Tuesday, 26 May 2020

New study proves instability in model of the universe In a recent paper, Georgios Moschidis shows that a hypothetical geometry of our universe - known as anti-de Sitter (AdS) space - is unstable. Instabilities in this spacetime lead to the formation of black holes and may hint at the origins of the second law of thermodynamics Monday, 25 May 2020

Seeds of Change Alice McDowell discusses Wangari Maathai and the Green Belt Movement Monday, 25 May 2020

Review: How is the Scientific Method Doing? - Sabine Hossenfelder Grace Field reviews a talk by Sabine Hossenfelder Saturday, 23 May 2020

Connectomics - a Fly-Brained Contribution to Neuroscience Billy Morris comments on the recent publication of a fruit fly connectome Friday, 22 May 2020

Aphenotypical: the House Mouse’s Dark Secret Anna Tran takes a close look at Marion Island, where the mice have developed a taste for albatross meat Monday, 18 May 2020

Voyage to the Antarctic with Dr Anna Belcher Voyage to the Antarctic with Dr Anna Belcher Monday, 18 May 2020

How to Avoid Promoting COVID-19 Misinformation When Trying to Debunk It Itamar Shatz explains why misinformation is so abundant and what could be done to avoid it Thursday, 14 May 2020

Mushrooms, Modern Therapeutics and the Psychedelic Renaissance Jonathon Turnbull and Andrew Malcolm discuss the history and potential of psilocybin from the cultural to the medicinal Thursday, 14 May 2020

Science Twitter Roundup: April 2020 A summary of the opinions and witterings of the science community on Twitter Thursday, 14 May 2020

Progressive: Leeches in Medicine Katarina Grobicki explores how the outdated, historical practice of leeching has a place in modern-day medicine Wednesday, 13 May 2020

Sequencing the genome of SARS-CoV2, featuring Grant Hall Sequencing the genome of SARS-Cov2, featuring Grant Hall Monday, 4 May 2020

Cambridge scientist reveals journey in latest book: ‘The Dance of Life’ Cambridge embryologist Magdalena Zernicka-Goetz reveals her personal and professional journey through science, in her latest book: ‘The Dance of Life: Symmetry, Cells and How We Become Human’. Monday, 4 May 2020

Cancer-driving mutations in cells of human uterus arise early in life Zak Lakota-Baldwin discusses a new study into the early developmental origins of uterine cancer Tuesday, 28 April 2020

A Case for Plant Intelligence Ivan L. Simpson-Kent argues against the stereotypical definition of intelligence, illustrating this case with the wondrous abilities of plants Tuesday, 28 April 2020

To Do "No Harm"? the Rise of Paternalism in the Era of a Pandemic Charlotte Zemmel explores the concepts of paternalism vs autonomy in combating COVID-19, but warns that it may give greater power to governing states in dictating the actions of its people Friday, 24 April 2020

How Can Academic Labs Support the NHS With COVID-19 Testing? How can academic labs support the NHS with COVID-19 testing? Featuring Professor Stephen Baker. Monday, 20 April 2020

How the Cambridge Philosophical Society Shaped Modern Science Zak Lakota-Baldwin discusses the history of the Cambridge Philosophical Society and its role in shaping modern science. Thursday, 9 April 2020

Unintelligent Design: Uncovering Bias in Artificial Intelligence Evan Wroe and Felix Opolka speak to Dr Jennifer Cobbe about the causes of bias in machine learning models and how the associated risks can be mitigated. Monday, 6 April 2020

Going Deep to Reach the Stars Tatjana Baleta explores the deep sea and its relationship to outer space. Thursday, 2 April 2020

Deconstructing the Brain: New Insights into Spatial Organisation Adiyant Lamba explores a new study on the organisation of cells in the mammalian brain. Tuesday, 31 March 2020

From Cannons to Apollo: Rockets Through the Ages Lucy Hart discusses the history of space flight and what could lie ahead for this exciting field. Monday, 30 March 2020

The Other in Science Fiction Alex Bates and Billy Gyngell ask why we see too many hominids in science fiction. Thursday, 26 March 2020

FOCUS: Our Place in the Universe Maeve Madigan, Philip Clarke and João Melo explain the central concepts behind the 2019 Physics Nobel Prize. The first half... Monday, 23 March 2020

COVID-19 And You The current COVID-19 outbreak has caught everyone by surprise. In this special article, find out more about why it is so serious, and what can be done about it. Friday, 20 March 2020

Charting the Skies, Land and Seas James Craig reviews the history of map making. Thursday, 19 March 2020

Trash talk: Tackling Waste in Science Ruby Coates discusses the issue of plastic waste in science, with Martin Howes. Monday, 16 March 2020

A Look at the Modern Interactions between Humans and Crops Eleanor McCartney highlights the importance of agrobiodiversity in our changing world. Thursday, 12 March 2020

Are we in the Insect Apocalypse? Zak Lakota-Baldwin discusses how a new study of insect population levels across Great Britain has provided a more precise view of the much-discussed “insectageddon” Thursday, 12 March 2020

Locked Out of My Own House Anna Serrichio looks into overcoming language difficulties in aphasia with treatments in Speech and Language Pathology. Monday, 9 March 2020

Reviewing the Narrative of Dr. Rosalind Franklin From a female scientist to a scientist who was female - explored by Hannah Kossowska-Peck. Sunday, 8 March 2020

En Clair - Adam Rodman Abigail Dutton shares an interesting podcast on forensic linguistics. Thursday, 5 March 2020

Gender, Race and Power in Science - Angela Saini Shanice Bailey outlines the key messages from Angela Saini's lecture on why it is important to avoid bias in scientific research. Monday, 2 March 2020

The Uninhabitable Earth by David Wallace-Wells - A Review Is climate change just about the bees? Let David Wallace-Wells convince you otherwise, says Hazel Walker Friday, 28 February 2020

New Superfast Charging Battery Developed by Cambridge University Spinout Company Echion Technologies reveal a new battery which can be fully recharged in 6 minutes, thanks to its Mixed Niobium Oxide anode material. Wednesday, 26 February 2020

J.J, Is your Corpuscle My Electron? How the story of the electron shows that the language of ‘discovery’ in science is misleading and problematic. Thursday, 20 February 2020

Nineteenth century fever A Stanford research group looks into why humans are cooler now. Thursday, 20 February 2020

First humans placed in suspended animation 'Freezing' time to save lives - a groundbreaking treatment or a risky gamble, asks Serene Dhawan Tuesday, 18 February 2020

Bee-tween Here and There HONEYBEES - Group Decision-Making in Animals Monday, 17 February 2020

Aphenotypical: Moulding the Future Aphenotypical: an exploration of inhuman "intelligence" Thursday, 13 February 2020

POSTS FROM 2019

Tiny particles, huge computers Laurence Cooper discusses computational methods and future technologies that can help us improve our understanding of particle physics. Laurence is a PhD student in theoretical physics at DAMTP, Cambridge. Monday, 23 September 2019

Autonomous Vehicles: Looking at the Road Ahead James Macdonald interviews Professor John Miles and start-up Wayve about the future of autonomous vehicles Sunday, 4 August 2019

I need my sleep Insights from flies challenge traditional notions, reports Matthew Brady Sunday, 21 July 2019

Scientists capture the first image of a black hole event horizon A network of eight radio telescopes spanning locations in various continents, from Antarctica to Europe and South America, called the Event Horizon... Sunday, 14 July 2019

FOCUS: The Earth as a Natural Living Laboratory BlueSci presents three perspectives on how scientists have expanded our understanding of science using the greatest laboratory of all – planet Earth. Thursday, 4 July 2019

Review: The Violinist’s Thumb “Every word and sentence contribute to the engaging narrative - the book is just impossible to put down!” Thursday, 27 June 2019

Sulawesi: A Seismological Mystery The Sulawesi earthquake should not have produced tsunamis, but it did. Ben Johnson speaks to Professor James Jackson about how it happened, and how we could prepare for future incidents Thursday, 20 June 2019

Review: To Be a Machine “Akin to a traveller’s diary, this book describes unbelievable technologies of tomorrow, such as mind uploading, cryonics, artificial superintelligence and device implantation” Thursday, 13 June 2019

A Bohmian Rhapsody Mrittunjoy Guha Majumdar talks Bohmian mechanics, the 'causal interpretation' of the strange world of quantum mechanics. Thursday, 6 June 2019

Review: Chemistry “Under various pressures the American-Chinese narrator quits her chemistry PhD and struggles with her long-term relationship...” Thursday, 30 May 2019

A Digital (R)Evolution Charles Jameson examines neuroscience’s role in solving the most difficult computational problems Thursday, 23 May 2019

Review: Adventures in the Anthropocene “For many of us, the effects of the Anthropocene may feel far off, but as human activity continues unabated, this book is an important journey we all should take“ Thursday, 16 May 2019

Let's Talk About Soil Kasparas Vasiliauskas looks under our feet at some of the Earth's most overlooked material. Thursday, 9 May 2019

Walking in the footsteps of robotic fossils Robot of ancient fossil enables scientists to model gait Monday, 6 May 2019

How the Antarctic is used as a Neutrino Detector Maeve Madigan discusses how and why we can leverage Antarctic ice to find some of the most elusive particles in the known Universe. Thursday, 2 May 2019

Most distant planetary flyby in history The NASA probe captured photographs of the distant object Monday, 29 April 2019

Drought and the Collapse of the Maya James Kershaw discusses whether new data is raining on, or could prove, this fashionable hypothesis Thursday, 25 April 2019

Live bacteria pills, a possibility Pills containing live bacteria on the horizon Monday, 22 April 2019

The Future of Earth is Up in the Air James Weber explains the role of positive feedback loops and how they could lead to runaway environmental disaster Thursday, 18 April 2019

POSTS FROM 2018

Pharmaceutical Companies Unite to Advance Nucleotide-Based Medicines Scientists work together to create more effective medicines Wednesday, 24 October 2018

Peering into the Past Dan Brubaker and a mishmash of know-nothings convene at the Dr Ralph L Buice, Jr Observatory, Atlanta Thursday, 4 October 2018

Time Flies Philip Myers tells us how scientists unravelled the secrets of time telling using the humble vinegar fly Thursday, 27 September 2018

Why Limit Ourselves to Silverware? Think goldware, zincware and copperware! Bianca Provost explains what Professor Mark Miodownik's work can tell us about materials and food Thursday, 20 September 2018

Review: Weapons of Math Destruction: How Big Data Increases Inequality and Threatens Democracy “... reveals the insidious impact that Big Data algorithms – in her words, ‘Weapons of Math Destruction’ - have on our society“ Thursday, 13 September 2018

Medicine’s Forgotten Warriors Laura Upstone tells the story of virus based medicine in the war against bacteria, the wonder drug that almost was Monday, 10 September 2018

Review: The Secret Language of Anatomy “... with a sense of wonder and whimsy, this book reveals the thoughtfulness of anatomists through the ages” Thursday, 6 September 2018

Breaking up at Sea:  The Great Collapse of an Ice Shelf Dr Alison Banwell tells Silas Yeem Kai Ean and Seán Thór Herron how ice shelves break up Monday, 3 September 2018

Stick Spiders from Different Hawaiian Islands Evolve in Parallel Esther Pilla reports on a discovery in evolution Thursday, 30 August 2018

33 million-year-old toothless whale weighs in on the evolution of oral structures The blue whale is the largest animal to ever have lived on our planet, with the heaviest recorded weighing in... Friday, 24 August 2018

Charting the Unknown: Crowdsourcing the Maps for Overlooked Villages Cara Louise Woods discusses how we are putting places on the map using technology and the power of people, with Dr Bjoern Hassler Monday, 20 August 2018

Liquid-liquid Phase Transition Observed for the First Time Esther Pilla reports on the state of water research Thursday, 16 August 2018

The BlueSci Mental Wellbeing Survey: Interview with Geraldine Dufour, Head of the University Counseling Service Through Lent term and Easter 2018, BlueSci conducted a survey on mental wellbeing at the University of Cambridge. Our aim... Sunday, 27 May 2018

The BlueSci Mental Wellbeing Survey: Interview with Keir Murison Through Lent term and Easter 2018, BlueSci conducted a survey on mental wellbeing at the University of Cambridge. Our aim... Sunday, 27 May 2018

Cambridge Science Centre: Science For All Emma Werner discusses the Cambridge Science Centre and its role in inspiring a new generation of scientists with Lisa-Marie Cahill Sunday, 27 May 2018

The BlueSci Mental Wellbeing Survey Through Lent term and Easter 2018, BlueSci conducted a survey on mental wellbeing at the University of Cambridge. Our aim... Sunday, 27 May 2018

A Day In The Life: A Scientist With Wings Laura Nunez-Mulder interviews Prof. Nicky Clayton Tuesday, 27 February 2018

A Laser Game Controller for the Cambridge Science Festival James Macdonald describes designing a system to control video games with lasers. Tuesday, 13 February 2018

Pterodactyls lived like seagulls Jack McMinn investigates pterosaur parenting Sunday, 11 February 2018

Regulation and Foresight Harry Lloyd ponders our duty to think ahead of technological progress Sunday, 11 February 2018

Is the Evolution of Language all Talk? Steve Samuel ponders whether it is worth tackling the central question of how language has come to be Sunday, 11 February 2018

Lady of the Diptera Matthew Brady talks to Dr Erica McAlister about her work exploring the world for some of science’s smallest animals Sunday, 11 February 2018

Judged by your Genes Katherine Dudman introduces genetic discrimination, the sly cousin of racism and sexism Sunday, 11 February 2018

No Time for Hot Air Lauren Broadfield reflects on the state of climate change policies in an increasingly hostile political environment Sunday, 11 February 2018

Weird and Wonderful: Giving a Fig about Wasps While many plants entice pollinators with nectar, fig trees do so with the promise of safety and food for the... Sunday, 11 February 2018

Just Your Cup of Tea Sophie Protheroe examines the global history of tea and its effect on our health Sunday, 11 February 2018

Why care about the Polar Bear? Rachael Beasley reveals how there is more to polar bears than meets the eye Sunday, 11 February 2018

Read, learn, and inwardly digest Joy Thompson studies the links between the lavatory and the literary Sunday, 11 February 2018

Harry Potter and the Reactive Profile Picture Martha Dillon investigates the technology behind living photographs Sunday, 11 February 2018

Can Birds Read Minds? Rachel Crosby puts herself inside the mind of the Eurasian Jay Sunday, 11 February 2018

Ambling in the Arctic: a geological expedition in remote Greenland Victoria Honour discusses Arctic camping, bear alarms, and the solidification of magma on her recent expedition to the Skaergaard intrusion Sunday, 11 February 2018

Marie Curie, 150 years on First woman to be a professor at a French University; first to receive a Nobel Prize; only recipient of two... Monday, 1 January 2018

POSTS FROM 2017

A Look Behind the Ice Sheet: The Polar Museum's Greenland Exhibit Uummannaq: A Century of Exploration Thursday, 23 November 2017

Nobel Prize in Physics Awarded for Detection of Gravitational Waves Theo Steele explores the science behind this year's Nobel Prize Wednesday, 18 October 2017

Cambridge’s Latest Nobel Prize Max Wilkinson explores the science behind this year's Nobel Prize in Chemistry Wednesday, 11 October 2017

What if We Touched Mars? Patrick Lundgren reflects on the scientific and moral implications of humanity’s dream of space exploration coming true. Friday, 7 July 2017

A Psychedelic Conversation: Tackling the Taboo Antonina Kouli and Bart Nieuwenhuis report on the CamBRAIN panel discussion of psychedelic drugs’ medical potential Friday, 7 July 2017

The Inexpert Ape Laura Van Holstein explains why none of us is a specialist, and why this makes us so successful. Friday, 7 July 2017

The Drug that Brought the Dress Back Following Professor France Ashcroft’s 2015 damehood, Atreyi Chakrabarty examines how the work of one woman transformed both treatment and understanding of a debilitating childhood disease. Friday, 7 July 2017

FOCUS: Speak More, Act More With ongoing political and public apathy surrounding sustainability and development, Kelsey Reichenbach and Paul Cohen ask the experts Professor Simon Schaffer,... Friday, 7 July 2017

Standing on the Gene: an interview with Professor Wolf Reik Jiali Gao and Salvador Buse discuss the emerging field of epigenetic modification, and ask Professor Wolf Reik where it might take us. Friday, 7 July 2017

Lord Martin Rees: the Future and Catastrophe Lord Martin Rees is a former Master of Trinity College and an accomplished cosmologist and astrophysicist. He has been Astronomer Royal since 1995, and was President of the Royal Society between 2005 and 2010. Lord Rees spoke to Gabija Maršalkaite and Deyan Mihaylov. Friday, 7 July 2017

Planting Ideas: an Interview with Professor Beverly Glover Ramya Gurunathan and Caitlin Walker talk to Professor Beverly Glover about communication, collaboration, and botanical research. Tuesday, 4 July 2017

Understanding the Irrational Laura Nunez-Mulder discusses psychiatry's future with Professor Paul Fletcher Tuesday, 4 July 2017

Food for Thought: Fake News and the Diet Industry Zi Ran Shen talks fad diets and pseudoscience with Cambridge's Dr Giles Yeo. Tuesday, 4 July 2017

Shakes and the City Seán Thór Herron talks to Dr Emily So about preparing for earthquakes in urban areas Sunday, 18 June 2017

Zika Virus Alex Sampson considers the spread and disappearance of a new disease Friday, 14 April 2017

The Last Lunar Explorer: An interview with Gene Cernan, the last man to walk on the Moon Jackson Howarth (from LUUSci at the University of Leeds) chats with Gene Cernan Tuesday, 11 April 2017

Cannabis Joins The Fight Against Addiction Rachael Rhodes explores the potential medical applications of a Class C drug Wednesday, 29 March 2017

Love on the Line Jordan Ramsey explores how technology has reshaped our romantic relationships Tuesday, 21 March 2017

Open For Everyone Haydn King describes the open-source software movement and two of its most striking characters Tuesday, 21 March 2017

Cracking Codes Philipp Kleppman deciphers the advance of cryptography throughout the centuries Tuesday, 21 March 2017

Decoding Quantum Computing Simon Watson demystifies the complex world of quantum computing Tuesday, 21 March 2017

Fracking: Facts and Fiction Ollie Stephenson explains why the fracking debate is far from simple Tuesday, 21 March 2017

Our Neanderthal Ancestry Alba Landra uncovers the ancient ancestry that underlies modern human evolution. Tuesday, 21 March 2017

Driving Away Mosquitos Zohaib Arain explains the potential for new genetic tools to tackle deadly diseases. Tuesday, 21 March 2017

The World Is What We Eat Jacob Ashton tackles one of the biggest challenges facing mankind. Tuesday, 21 March 2017

Come Flu with Me Holly Giles tracks the spread of post-World War II collaborations within international research communities Sunday, 19 March 2017

No Time for Hot Air Lauren Broadfield reflects on the state of climate change policies in an increasingly hostile political environment Sunday, 19 March 2017

Big Bucks for Big Bugs Zoë Carter considers the role of commercial research in the global fight against antibiotic resistance Sunday, 19 March 2017

Running Away from Unwanted Inflammation Kimberley Wiggins explores the anti-inflammatory effects of exercise Saturday, 18 March 2017

Overherd Immunity Caitlin Stewart discusses the importance of vaccination and the dangers of the anti-vaccination movement Saturday, 18 March 2017

Multidrug Resistance Arthur Neuberger explains how increasing antibiotic resistance is a global threat that we breed inside ourselves Saturday, 18 March 2017

The Ageing Brain Antonina Kouli and Bart Nieuwenhuis put the future of our brains under the microscope. Saturday, 18 March 2017

Science, Fiction Hannah Thorne reveals the alchemy between science and literature Saturday, 18 March 2017

When Citizen Science Works Kimberley Wiggins gives us the story of an email that led to a medical breakthrough Saturday, 18 March 2017

Nanotech? That’s Ancient History! Ramya Gurunathan shines a light on nanoparticles in Ancient Roman art Tuesday, 14 March 2017

Revisiting the Test Tube Sarah Foster considers the ethical implications of growing human embryos in the lab for longer-term experiments Tuesday, 14 March 2017

Exploring our Amazing Universe from Cambridge - The Joy of Observing the Night Skies Andrew Sellek discusses how astronomers and amateurs alike observe the sky at night Tuesday, 14 March 2017

Engineering in Time Martha Dillon discusses why civil engineers should care about the past Tuesday, 14 March 2017

The Rise of Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells Rebecca Richmond-Smith investigates the new kid on the block in medical research. Tuesday, 14 March 2017

FOCUS: AI and the power of the neuron Alex Bates looks at how neurobiology has inspired the rise of artificial intelligence Monday, 13 March 2017

Syndrome: Tumbling into Wonderland Mirlinda Ademi scrutinises the syndrome that simulates Wonderland Sunday, 5 March 2017

Tissue Engineering Scaffolds: Guiding the rise of Cell Therapies Oran Maguire explains how engineering and cell biology are carving out a new field Sunday, 5 March 2017

How our experiences affect our children Jiali Gao looks at what toad sex, a suicide and starvation have taught genetics Sunday, 5 March 2017

In Search of Quantum Gravity In Search of Quantum Gravity Sunday, 5 March 2017

Does Your Brain Have a Sex? Does your brain have a sex? Sunday, 5 March 2017

Travel and Conservation – Steppes Beyond Travel and Conservation – Steppes Beyond Sunday, 29 January 2017

Nature Matters 2016 Nature Matters 2016 Sunday, 29 January 2017

Review: Before the Wilderness Edited by Thomas Blackburn & Kat Anderson. Published by Malki Press-Ballena Press (1993) Friday, 27 January 2017

POSTS FROM 2016

The world’s worst 2 for 1 deal: Co-extinction Have you ever seen a crayfish with tentacles as well as pincers? Well your opportunity to do so is slowly slipping away, as is the very existence of Australia’s magnificent Mountain Spiny Crayfish along with it’s flatworm symbionts, temnocephalan. Saturday, 28 May 2016

Viruses help fight drug-resistant bacteria Nowadays, antibiotics are so commonly used that increasing numbers of bacterial strains have evolved resistance to such drugs. The World... Friday, 27 May 2016

Magic mushrooms possibly safe as depression treatment Depression is a large problem around the world, and is estimated to cost the UK £7.5 billion per year. Therefore,... Friday, 20 May 2016

Spread of contagious cancer in dogs tracked by genetic markers Cancer arises due to genetic mutations that cause cells to proliferate uncontrollably and form tumours. While it is a devastating... Thursday, 19 May 2016

Making a Difference in Conservation Why do we do conservation research? Is it purely for scientific publication or to save species (including our own)? Although... Sunday, 17 April 2016

‘Unicorns’ roamed Siberia alongside humans A fossil skull recently discovered in Kazakhstan suggests that members of the horned species Elasmotherium sibiricum may have survived until as recently as 29,000 years ago, greatly at odds with the previous estimate of 350,000 years ago. Monday, 11 April 2016

Interview: Survival International Conservation, the effort of protecting other species and ecosystems from over-exploitation, is almost universally considered a necessity. Far less accepted,... Monday, 11 April 2016

How your brain knows you have eaten enough Worldwide, 600 million people are obese and the global obesity rate has more than double since 1980. Researchers from Johns... Monday, 4 April 2016

Interview: Ed Miliband & George Monbiot on Climate Change A well-known defender of the natural world, George Monbiot has championed such scientific initiatives as ‘re-wilding‘ and the de-carbonisation of... Friday, 1 April 2016

Beetles provide inspiration for frost prevention Frost removal is a laborious and costly task that is carried out by engineers in aviation, renewable energy and more... Wednesday, 30 March 2016

Interview: Prof. Tim Benton Global Food Security (GFS) Champion Tim Benton is both a governmental policy advisor and interdisciplinary researcher in agriculture-environment interactions. In... Thursday, 24 March 2016

Wolves and relatives have species-specific howls, extensive study finds Organisms living in groups have means of communicating with one another, which can be visual, acoustic and/or olfactory. Even though groups may use the same communication system (e.g. acoustic cues), even among closely related species communication (i.e. language) may differ. Friday, 19 February 2016

Newly identified role for immune cells in maintaining a healthy gut Our intestines have a complex army of immune cells and molecules that work together fighting against bacterial infections. A new... Tuesday, 16 February 2016

Want to be the next Einstein? In case you somehow managed to miss it, physicists at the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory in the U.S. have detected gravitational waves for the first time. Monday, 15 February 2016

The Ghost Virus Bethan Clark explains the persistent effects of the Ebola crisis Sunday, 14 February 2016

Habit formation leads to changes in brain circuitry A month into the new year, many of us are finding that resolutions to resist cravings are harder to keep than planned. According to new research from Duke University, this may be due to long-lasting changes in particular brain circuits which prime us for giving in. Monday, 8 February 2016

Northern lakes are the dominant methane source New estimates place methane emissions from Arctic lakes and ponds north of 50°N latitude as the main source of all... Thursday, 21 January 2016

Honey bee welfare and virus warfare The decline in bee populations is causing large concerns not only among ecologists but also among agricultural managers and economists.... Thursday, 7 January 2016

A “Periodic Table” of Protein Complexes A scientific collaboration involving Cambridge researchers has identified simple rules underlying the assembly of multi-protein complexes, and based on these rules, created a “periodic table” classification scheme for these complexes. Monday, 4 January 2016

POSTS FROM 2015

Targets to reduce dengue infected mosquitos Dengue fever is a virus-driven disease causing a worldwide burden. The WHO estimates that 500,000 infected people are hospitalised each... Monday, 21 December 2015

Ovarian cancer survival increased by the contraceptive pill Are there more positive side-effects to the contraceptive pill than we know of? While most media coverage of birth-control methods... Tuesday, 15 December 2015

Cultural shocks enhance cognitive performance Do you think a ‘cultural shock’ can’t Wednesday, 2 December 2015

Plate tectonics thanks to plumes? “Knowing what a chicken looks like and what all the chickens before it looked like doesn’t help us to understand... Thursday, 26 November 2015

Is the flickering of a far-away star caused by comets or aliens? (It’s probably not aliens.) NASA’s Kepler space telescope was launched in March 2009 with the goal of discovering Earth-like exoplanets. It also may have... Thursday, 5 November 2015

Technology: Do-It-Yourself Biology Verena Brucklacher-Waldert discusses how stay-at-home biologists want to democratize experimental research Tuesday, 3 November 2015

Improving on gold dust: a new way to bolster semiconductor devices ‘Silicon Valley’ has become somewhat of a byword for success in the technology industries. The rocky, reddish, Northern Californian valley... Monday, 2 November 2015

New compound offers hope for Ebola A new compound has been found to protect rhesus monkeys from Ebola when administered three days after infection. The small molecule, known as GS-5734, led to 100% survival rate against the deadly virus, showing promise for further development. Thursday, 29 October 2015

Postcards from Pluto: Blue skies, red water ice, and more If we ever travel to Pluto, we might be greeted by blue skies. (This is, of course, assuming we came... Thursday, 22 October 2015

Month of birth linked to natal and adult differences, study suggests An adult's behaviour, morphology and physiology develops throughout its life, and their development depends on the interaction between the genes... Tuesday, 20 October 2015

Neuroscience resources on the Web Joy reviews Neuroscience Online and Neuroanatomy Online Monday, 19 October 2015

Is our marine food chain collapsing? A first-time global analysis looking into the way ocean habitats respond to projected effects of climate change finds that marine... Friday, 16 October 2015

Water in the brain Lymphatic vessels discovered in the central nervous system Wednesday, 14 October 2015

Ouch! New research reveals sex differences in pain detection. Sunday, 4 October 2015

Improving the treatment of urinary infections using DNA sequencing A DNA sequencing device the size of a USB stick could be used to improve the diagnosis and treatment of... Friday, 25 September 2015

Ig, Ig, Hurrah! From un-cooking breakfast to the immune benefits of kissing, the 2015 IgNobels showcase the very best of weird, wacky, and wonderful science. Tuesday, 22 September 2015

Is Alzheimer’s catching? A Nature paper hit the headlines last week by suggesting that build-ups of the protein characteristic of Alzheimer’s disease could be transmitted among humans, via contaminated tissue. Tuesday, 15 September 2015

Train the brain – improving memory in schizophrenia with an iPad game Schizophrenic patients struggle with many symptoms. They have hallucinations, delusional beliefs, and often lack motivation. Apart from these “classical” symptoms,... Friday, 7 August 2015

The unique roughness of screams directly activates fear centres in the brain A group led by David Poeppel from New York University has investigated what makes screaming different from other human vocalisations... Monday, 3 August 2015

More Microglia, or, Bugs on the Brain The body’s population of microbes controls the function of the brain’s ‘immune cells’. Tuesday, 21 July 2015

The Positive and Negative Effects of Cannabis Act via Separate Biological Pathways Cannabis is known to provide medical benefits such as pain relief to patients. However, it also has severe side effects... Tuesday, 14 July 2015

Huge Hydrogen Cloud Bleeding from Nearby Planet The Hubble Space Telescope has detected a huge hydrogen cloud, dubbed “The Behemoth”, evaporating from a Neptune-sized planet in a... Monday, 13 July 2015

Three Ebola virus variants identified in Guinea Following the outbreak of the Ebola epidemic in March last year, beginning in Guinea it has spread throughout West Africa... Tuesday, 7 July 2015

Scientists call for measures to improve research quality Cases of scientific misconduct and unreplicable results, such as the infamous study (now debunked) linking MMR vaccines to autism, have... Thursday, 2 July 2015

The bittersweet truth about chocolate and weight loss Many read and shared news stories about the paper when it was released – science shows eating chocolate everyday is... Friday, 26 June 2015

Parental smoking puts nearly half a million UK children into poverty It is well known that tobacco smoking causes health problems for children passively exposed, but there is now proof it... Monday, 22 June 2015

Activities can have good or bad impact on sleep depending on their type Have you ever slept like a stone after training or racing? A new study by the University of Pennsylvania used... Friday, 19 June 2015

Earth organisms survive under low-pressure Martian conditions Methanogens are among the oldest and simplest organisms on earth having evolved approximately 3.5 billion years ago. They are highly resilient microbes... Monday, 15 June 2015

Brain's reaction to certain words could lead to new passwords With 19 passwords on average per person, it is unsurprising that people often struggle with remembering them all. However, a new study, “Brainprint”, suggests that unique brain responses to a set of particular words could replace traditional passwords. Friday, 12 June 2015

Artificial Intelligence discovers how worms regenerate body parts Many dream of the day when medicine finds a way to regenerate organs. But to successfully recreate complex body parts,... Tuesday, 9 June 2015

Changing social attitudes during sleep Are you biased against Black people? Do you think women are not good at science? Most people would reject such racial and sexual biases when they are asked. But even if you do, does that mean you are truly unbiased? Wednesday, 3 June 2015

First test of gene-editing method using CRISPR/Cas9 in non-viable human embryos Last week, a group from China led by Pupin Liang reported the testing of a gene-editing method in human tri-pronuclear... Friday, 1 May 2015

Two millennia glow-in-the-dark mushroom mystery solved If you go down to the woods today, you're sure of a big surprise… If these woods are home to... Wednesday, 15 April 2015

Comfort eating may make you worse We all know that fatty and sugary foods are bad for us- increasing our risk of diabetes and heart disease.... Monday, 30 March 2015

So you have your father’s eyes, your mother’s hair….. and your blood type from a bacteria?! Researchers from the University of Cambridge have discovered that we acquire ‘foreign’ genes from other organisms as part of our development as a species. Friday, 13 March 2015

Book Review: The Trouble with Popsci Kathrin Holtzmann, who previously reviewed Michael Warren's Head Trip for us, returns to the Neuroscience Blog - this time with a critique of the popular science genre. Thursday, 12 March 2015

Microglia and the…Mice of NIMH? Chimeric mice whose nervous systems contain human glial cells could provide new, powerful models for neurodegenerative diseases. Friday, 27 February 2015

Deep fried ice cream comet anyone? Hope it doesn’t hit us in (baked) Alaska on a Sundae (sorry). Astronomers may have discovered why comets, like deep fried ice cream, have an outer crust but a colder, more porous inner core. Wednesday, 11 February 2015

Guest Post: Can we engineer resilience to depression? Welcome back to a new year of neuroscience blogging! This week, we have a guest contribution by Camilla d'Angelo on the molecular basis of psychological resilience. Camilla is a PhD student in Experimental Psychology, studying the brain basis of compulsivity. Thanks, Camilla! Monday, 12 January 2015

POSTS FROM 2014

Flu: How viral infection causes intestinal disease Why do we often suffer from vomiting and diarrhoea during an influenza? Influenza is an infectious respiratory disease, whereas vomiting and diarrhoea are symptoms of a gastrointestinal disease. Researches have now found the mechanism by which they are connected. Monday, 15 December 2014

Holes in the brain What happens when a large part of the brain is missing? Tuesday, 25 November 2014

Inflammation: New regulatory gene identified Researchers have identified the gene Ccdc88b as a new regulator for inflammation. Factors affecting this gene might be responsible for onset, progression, and severity of several inflammatory diseases, such as encephalitis or multiple sclerosis. Monday, 24 November 2014

Probe successfully lands on comet for the first time in history On the 12th of November at 16.00 GMT hours a mission launched by The European Space Agency succeeded on landing... Monday, 17 November 2014

Communities of ferns communicate to decide an individual’s sex Sex-determination, the process by which organisms develop into males, females, or hermaphrodites, happens in many different ways across nature. In... Friday, 14 November 2014

New method for finding water on mars A young Washington-based undergraduate student Katie Wall, aged 21, has been looking for evidence that water influences crystal formation in... Thursday, 6 November 2014

Jim Al Khalili – The Edge of Life Professor Jim Al Khalili, science communicator and voice of BBC’s The Life Scientific makes the case for quantum biology in his lecture Life on the Edge, part of the Cambridge Festival of Ideas. Wednesday, 29 October 2014

"Can I please get a fly in my soup?" The first thing that comes to mind at the sight of a bug isn't exactly "Mmmm, lunch!" But don't be... Tuesday, 28 October 2014

New software allows to live-track cells Since the discovery of the cell by Robert Hook in the 1665, biologists have been studying cells under microscopes. Currently... Friday, 17 October 2014

Issue 31: Weird and Wonderful A selection of the wackiest research in the world of science which, in this issue, comes from a competition for sixth-form students Monday, 13 October 2014

Pavilion In the course of evolution, insects have developed a variety of strategies to reduce surface contamination and thus to avoid... Monday, 13 October 2014

Away From the Bench: Absolutely FameLab-ulous Jonathan Lawson reminisces on this year’s FameLab, a competition for science communication Monday, 13 October 2014

Arts and Science: The Dolphin Whisperer Joanna-Marie Howes talks with director Christopher Riley about his latest documentary Monday, 13 October 2014

Science and Policy: The Pint is Right Robin Lamboll debates whether the price of alcohol should be raised Monday, 13 October 2014

Perspective: Textbooks or ‘tubes: YouChoose Matthew Dunstan investigates the changing role of YouTube and online video in education Monday, 13 October 2014

Technology: Solitary cell confinement Verena Brucklacher-Waldert discusses the challenges and benefits of chips that analyse individual body cells separately Monday, 13 October 2014

Top Headline Grabbers of the Past Ten Years In celebration of BlueSci’s tenth anniversary, Joanna-Marie Howes revisits the past ten years of influential scientific stories Monday, 13 October 2014

Top Ten Scientific Discoveries of the Past Ten Years In celebration of BlueSci’s tenth anniversary, Joanna-Marie Howes revisits the past ten years of influential scientific stories Monday, 13 October 2014

Ten Years of Nobels For over 100 years, Nobel Prizes have recognised those conferring “the greatest benefit on mankind”. Meanwhile, the Ig Nobel Prizes... Monday, 13 October 2014

Where Are They Now? Since Bluesci’s first issue ten years ago, countless members have contributed to the ongoing success of the magazine. Although they... Sunday, 12 October 2014

Focus: GM crops: Feeding the nine billion BlueSci explores the debate surrounding GM crops and whether current legislation hinders progress Sunday, 12 October 2014

Feature: You are your genes and your environment Alex O’Bryan-Tear discusses the long-standing nature versus nurture debate Saturday, 11 October 2014

Feature: Measles: The return of an ‘eliminated’ virus Sarah Smith investigates the return of measles and developments in vaccines Saturday, 11 October 2014

Feature: I heal the body electric Joy Thompson uncovers the importance of bioelectricity in medicine Saturday, 11 October 2014

Feature: Voyager 1: breaching the final frontier of the Solar System Simon Watson describes Voyager 1’s journey of a lifetime Saturday, 11 October 2014

Feature: Our Colourful History Rhian Holvey explores how colour has shaped our history Saturday, 11 October 2014

Reviews: Issue 31 Experiment Eleven: Deceit and Betrayal in the Discovery of the Cure for Tuberculosis - Peter Pringle Saturday, 11 October 2014

News: Issue 31 Addiction, Addicti-off Saturday, 11 October 2014

Cover: Turbulent encounters Dhiren Mistry discusses the turbulence we encounter every day Saturday, 11 October 2014

Editorial: Issue 31 - Michaelmas 2014 Giant’s shoulders Friday, 10 October 2014

Can sugar affect your memory? Western diet consumption, high in fat and sugar, is known to be linked to many negative health outcomes including diabetes... Wednesday, 8 October 2014

When the lights go out Neurologists may have found a control switch for consciousness. Wednesday, 1 October 2014

Post Traumatic Stress Disorder- waves of fear in the brain Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is a common consequence of overwhelming stressful or fearful events. Although people suffering from PTSD... Tuesday, 16 September 2014

Brainz: Return of the Zombie Amoeba! Could microscopic zombies be lurking in a puddle near you? Meet Naegleria fowleri, the water-dwelling amoeba that can crawl up an unsuspecting swimmer’s nose before chowing down on his brain. Friday, 29 August 2014

[SciCam] Brains wired on physics Building a working brain depends on complex interactions between nerve cells and their environment. Now, cutting-edge tools from both biology and physics are helping us understand how physical factors shape brain development. Friday, 29 August 2014

Neuroscience on SciCam Want double the neuroscience fun? I am now a contributor to SciCam! Friday, 29 August 2014

Yawn Contagion Occurs in Wolves Too We’ve all heard about how yawns can be ‘contagious’ – if you see or hear someone yawn, it makes you more likely to do likewise. But now it seems that wolves experience contagious yawning too, with important potential implications about empathy. Wednesday, 27 August 2014

Elucidating functions of mutant genes in a deadly cancer Bile duct cancer is one of the most common types of liver cancer. For bile duct cancer, unfortunately, there is... Tuesday, 26 August 2014

Heated nanoparticles awaken the immune response to attack cancer Nanoparticles, far too small to be seen by the naked eye, have been the subjects of lots of research recently.... Friday, 1 August 2014

About leadership… something scientists should learn more about Leadership is something we learn either through our experience or when given an opportunity for formal training. A few months... Monday, 21 July 2014

Feature: Pulling all-nighters is harming your brain Camilla d’Angelo looks into some of the beneficial effects of sleep and why skimping on those precious hours can be damaging Wednesday, 16 July 2014

Feature: Homosexuality in the animal kingdom Ornela De Gasperin Quintero describes the wealth of homosexual behaviour in the animal kingdom Sunday, 6 July 2014

Summer Science! You could spend this weekend lounging in the sun but we all know it's going to rain and you need something better to do. Time to geek out about science and let your nerd flag fly... Friday, 4 July 2014

Using Ancient Faeces to Reconstruct Neanderthals’ Diets We may think it’s only ‘nutritionists’ who are obsessed with our faeces in modern times, but researchers at Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the University of La Laguna have been conducting scientific analyses on some far older samples. Thursday, 26 June 2014

Saving the world through zoology? When people ask me what I study, I say I'm trying to save the world. This is obviously largely the ego of a Cambridge student talking, but there is a grain of truth in it. But I should qualify: Friday, 13 June 2014

How the Super-Long-Lived Die As we all know, the life expectancy of populations in developed countries such as England is growing. As everyone’s life... Friday, 6 June 2014

Guest Book Review: 'Head Trip' by Michael Warren Our first guest blogger reviews Head Trip, a self-styled 'field guide' to the varying levels of mental awareness. Thursday, 5 June 2014

A touching story? How touch can trigger emotion Scientists have described how light, gentle touch conveys events to our brain that are pleasant or rewarding. Wednesday, 4 June 2014

The importance of timing in Alzheimer’s disease Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative disorder that affects one in six people over the age of 80. Along with... Tuesday, 3 June 2014

Westminster versus the Lab Evidence-based policy sounds like a common sense idea which no-one could object to, yet the reality of translating research into... Thursday, 22 May 2014

What is science for? Part II: Making sure we fund the right science How is public funding structured so as to achieve the best net outcome? Thursday, 22 May 2014

To sleep, perchance to dream Applying a small electrical current to a sleeping person’s brain can trigger lucid dreaming. Wednesday, 21 May 2014

Issue 30: Weird and Wonderful A selection of the wackiest research in the world of science Tuesday, 20 May 2014

Science and Policy: Stem Cells: with great power comes great responsibility Alessandro Bertero discusses the controversy behind stem cell therapies Tuesday, 20 May 2014

Behind the Science: Frederick Sanger Virginia Rutten reviews the life of Frederick Sanger, the British Biochemist and double Nobel Prize winner Tuesday, 20 May 2014

History: Royal to the Bone Charlotte Houldcroft outlines the scientific techniques used to identify dead royalty Tuesday, 20 May 2014

Perspective: The Psychology of Discrimination Alex O’Bryan Tear discusses the psychology behind racism Tuesday, 20 May 2014

Technology: Decoding Quantum Computing Simon Watson demystifies the complex world of quantum computing Tuesday, 20 May 2014

Overactive bladder? Blame the bacteria New study finds bacteria populations may be to blame for incontinence caused by an 'overactive bladder' (OAB). Sunday, 18 May 2014

Focus: Decision making and cognitive biases BlueSci explores biases in human cognition, from their evolutionary background to their socio-political implications Friday, 16 May 2014

Feature: Health-boosting Greens? Ricardo Milho examines the evidence behind the ‘superfood’ claims of cruciferous vegetables Friday, 16 May 2014

Feature: On the Origin of (a Virus) Species Michael Nicoll investigates the recent outbreak of a new virus in the Middle East Thursday, 15 May 2014

Feature: Shake It! Caroline Fabre invites you into the world of body language in animals Wednesday, 14 May 2014

Feature: Eyes See? Robin Lamboll explores the unconscious side of sight Wednesday, 14 May 2014

Feature: Blood Groups and Infection Sarah Caddy discusses how your blood type can alter your susceptibility to infectious diseases Wednesday, 14 May 2014

Reviews: Issue 30 This Week in Virology - Vincent Racaniello Tuesday, 13 May 2014

News: Issue 30 Bacteria solution to biofuel problem? Tuesday, 13 May 2014

Cover: Open Access Sarah Smith discusses the advantages of open access images Tuesday, 13 May 2014

Editorial: Issue 30 - Easter 2014 UNDERSTANDING HOW OUR BRAIN WORKS is one of the most complex puzzles of our time. Just last year the president... Tuesday, 13 May 2014

Neuroscience Blog - Oligodendrocyte Poem During my post-docs, I spent a lot of time working on oligodendrocytes (remember my first post, they are the cells... Tuesday, 13 May 2014

New metal-eating plant discovered in the Philippines Researchers from the University of the Philippines, Los Banos, have discovered a new plant species that accumulates enormous amounts of... Tuesday, 13 May 2014

Introducing: the new BlueSci blog network! The new BlueSci blog network is now live! We are excited to present 5 new blogs. Wednesday, 7 May 2014

‘Improved’ water sources may not be as safe as previously thought Access to safe water is a basic human right. The Millennium Development Goals, the set of aims agreed globally in... Wednesday, 7 May 2014

A novel idea If I’m not in the lab, I’m always tempted to read fiction rather than scientific papers. So when I came... Monday, 5 May 2014

Lesson Number One: Don't trust a drongo Welcome to BlueSci's new Zoology blog! We are Kirsty, Max, and Dave, three PhD students in the department of Zoology, and between us we will be giving you weekly snippets of animal goodness, with a dose of conservation and evolutionary science for good measure. Saturday, 3 May 2014

A new function for sleep How many of you have asked yourselves, ’Why do we sleep?’ Well, one of my favourite paper from 2013 might answer the question. Friday, 2 May 2014

Are faeces a drug? Canadian health authority shuts down experimental faecal transplants The harmless bacteria in our gut help us to digest food, but can also wreak havoc on our bodies. Antibiotics... Tuesday, 29 April 2014

Gene responsible for weight gain identified A multinational researcher team discovered the gene Nnmt as being required for body fat accumulation. Inactivation of Nnmt, which encodes the enzyme nicotinamide N-methyltransferase (NNMT), protected mice from diet-induced obesity. Monday, 28 April 2014

X-Ray-Generated Model Helps to Reveal How Flies Turn in Flight We often take insect flight for granted and as casual observers, it’s hard to understand – flies move too fast and are too small for our limited eyesight. But a paper published recently in PLOS Biology provides beautiful and novel insights into how flies fly. Thursday, 24 April 2014

Fake birth control pills hit market - scientists develop quick screening method Nearly a quarter of birth control pills analysed in a study were substandard or fake, according to researchers from the Georgia... Friday, 18 April 2014

New Mouse Model Predicts Fialuridine Side Effects Which Killed Five In 1993, five participants of a clinical trial testing fialuridine lost their lives because of the drug’s unexpected liver toxicity,... Wednesday, 16 April 2014

Of brains and nerves part II As Joy introduced nicely, our blog will be about Neuroscience. Tuesday, 15 April 2014

A new smart tag revealing if your food is spoiled Pouring milk onto your cereals only to find out it is spoiled can be a tough way to start your day. Tuesday, 15 April 2014

Tobacco Companies Didn’t Fight Fair on Standardised Packaging The British Government’s decision to introduce standardised packaging on tobacco products has been reached after a hard-won battle with the tobacco companies. A paper recently published in PLOS Medicine suggests that these companies may not have played fair. Monday, 14 April 2014

Review: Building Bridges in Medical Sciences Symposium 2014 Stimulating; diverse, top-notch and passionate speakers; inspirational – these were some of the reflections of participants of the 6th edition... Sunday, 13 April 2014

Welcome to the Science News Blog! We deliver reporting and commentary on the latest and greatest discoveries in science. Saturday, 12 April 2014

Of nerves and brains How do we see? How do injured nerves heal? Why do we sleep? Welcome to the Bluesci Neuroscience blog, where we will ponder these questions and more! Saturday, 12 April 2014

Why? My decision to start writing about cutting-edge Physics research, bringing it to as wide an audience as possible, is based on the assumption that people would be interested in reading about it. Friday, 11 April 2014

Slow-growing bacteria resist antibiotic treatment A team of Swiss and British scientists have provided new insights into the underlying mechanisms of antibiotic resistance. Antibiotics are important to treat bacterial infections. However, today’s widespread antibiotic resistance poses a serious threat to human health. Friday, 11 April 2014

What is science for? Part 1: The economic argument Clearly that's a bit of a simplistic question with a multitude of possible and valid answers. But I'm thinking here... Monday, 7 April 2014

Withdrawal of “revolutionary” stem cells research A few months ago, a paper published in Nature revealed what was described as a “major scientific breakthrough”. Dr. Haruko... Thursday, 3 April 2014

Why write about science policy? Science is sometimes portrayed as a rational scepticism, its practitioners as Doubting Thomases who constantly question and seek more evidence... Wednesday, 2 April 2014

A face-specific mechanism for recognising people in the brain? Humans are amazingly skilled at recognising faces. A recent study suggests that the brain has a unique mechanism specialized for... Monday, 31 March 2014

Five second rule does indeed save dropped slices of toast How often have you dropped a piece of lovingly prepared food on the floor, then hurriedly picked it up whilst muttering ‘five second rule...’? Well, now new research has shown that there is a scientific basis to this habit. Friday, 14 March 2014

Neanderthal lineages excavated from modern human genomes Research has shown that a substantial fraction of the Neanderthal genome exists in modern human populations. Resent research analysing whole... Thursday, 27 February 2014

Probable hydrogen river observed flowing through space Astronomers from West Virginia University have spotted what could be a hydrogen river floating through space. Galaxies have different shapes,... Thursday, 6 February 2014

Issue 29: Weird and Wonderful A selection of the wackiest research in the world of science Tuesday, 4 February 2014

A Day in the Life: Neurophilosopher Sergio Lainez Vicente catches up with science writer and former developmental neurobiologist Mo Costandi, author of the Guardian blog Neurophilosophy. Tuesday, 4 February 2014

Pavilion: Sculpting T4 Bacteriophage This glass sculpture depicts a T4 bacteriophage, a virus that infects Escherischa coli bacteria, once used as an alternative to... Tuesday, 4 February 2014

Perspective: Cost and Conservation Martha Stokes discusses why it pays to conserve biodiversity Monday, 3 February 2014

Behind the Science: The Women Behind the Science Sarah Smith considers the impact of the founding mothers of computer science Monday, 3 February 2014

Arts and Science: Counting Out Loud Matthew Dunstan explores the complex interplay between language and numbers Monday, 3 February 2014

Science and Policy: Designer Babies Maria Mascerenhas discusses the issues surrounding Pre-Implantation Genetic Diagnosis Monday, 3 February 2014

History: No Monkey Business Sophie Harrington revisits the Scopes MonkeyTrial of 1925 Monday, 3 February 2014

Focus: Lines of Communication BlueSci explores how the natural world communicates, from single cells to the birth of the digital era Monday, 3 February 2014

Feature: Tapping into New Water Sources Digory Smith discusses the issue of water shortage and the technology employed to meet demand Monday, 3 February 2014

Feature: In Search of a Cure for Black Bone Disease WingYing Chow explains how we might find possible treatments for a rare disease Monday, 3 February 2014

Feature: Bubbles of Trouble Robin Lamboll explores how different organisms have coped with life in boiling water Monday, 3 February 2014

Feature: Making Sense of the Senses Toby McMaster explains how the quest to understand hormones changed our appreciation of sensation Monday, 3 February 2014

Feature: Genomes from Beyond the Grave Charlotte Houldcroft discusses the search for ancient pathogen genomes Monday, 3 February 2014

Reviews: Issue 29 Gravity: Starring Sandra Bullock and George Clooney Monday, 3 February 2014

News: Issue 29 Babies suppress own immune system Monday, 3 February 2014

Cover: Discovering Cell Fate Mubeen Goolam discusses the advancing technology used to generate this issue’s cover image Monday, 3 February 2014

Editorial: Issue 29 - Lent 2014 Communication is key... Monday, 3 February 2014

Sparrho: A one-stop shop for scientific discovery Sparrho is a scientific discovery platform that allows you to easily browse through scientific content relevant to you. We aggregate,... Wednesday, 29 January 2014

Watch and vote online for the Cambridge FameLab heats! Videos of the Cambridge heats for this year's FameLab competition are now available to watch online. You can vote for your favourite until Tuesday 4 February. Sunday, 26 January 2014

Apply to Join BlueSci - Deadline 20 January! 2014 will be an exciting year for BlueSci – in Michaelmas it will be 10 years since the publication of our first issue, a milestone we hope to celebrate with a number of special events, and we want you to be involved! Sunday, 19 January 2014

POSTS FROM 2013

Festival of the Spoken Nerd: THE FULL FRONTAL NERDITY TOUR! Fresh from the Edinburgh Fringe, the sell-out comedy phenomenon is back on tour with a brand new show for the insatiably sci-curious. Thursday, 19 December 2013

Mice can transmit fear to their offspring through sperm A study has shown that mice can transfer fear to specific odours through their sperm to their offspring and grand... Wednesday, 18 December 2013

Muscle protein keeps blood stem cells alive A protein known to allow muscle contraction is now also thought to maintain our blood stem cells. Dennis Discher’s lab... Monday, 2 December 2013

Issue 28: Weird and Wonderful A selection of the wackiest research in the world of science Monday, 25 November 2013

Arts and Science: Game (R)evolution Matthew Dunstan examines how science has impacted the development of gaming Monday, 25 November 2013

Perspective: Standing Up for Science Brianne Kent discusses why attitudes towards scientific research need to change Monday, 25 November 2013

Science and Policy: The Bee All and End All Greg Mellers analyses the background and consequences of the neonicotinoid ban Monday, 25 November 2013

Away from the Bench: To the Future, or From the Past? Hugo Schmidt chats to Buzz Aldrin, the second man on the Moon, about space exploration Monday, 25 November 2013

Initiatives: The End of Extinction? Emily Pycroft summarises decisions of the CITES meeting on animal trading practices Monday, 25 November 2013

Technology: Love on the Line Jordan Ramsey explores how technology has reshaped our romantic relationships Monday, 25 November 2013

Focus: Whatever the Weather BlueSci explores the origins of the ever- changing weather and how it affects us Monday, 25 November 2013

Feature: A Trip to the Psychiatrist Camilla d’Angelo argues the case for more research into street drugs Monday, 25 November 2013

Feature: No Pain, No Gain Christopher Tsantoulas explains why a world without pain is not as good as it sounds Monday, 25 November 2013

Feature: Tracing Cholera Celebrating his birth bicentenary, Laura Pearce looks back at the detective work of John Snow Monday, 25 November 2013

Feature: Bug Off! Joy Thompson investigates how bacteria within insect cells are harnessed to combat dengue fever Monday, 25 November 2013

Feature: Sleep - Keeping Scientists Awake at Night Toby McMaster discusses why we need to sleep at night—and for how long Monday, 25 November 2013

Reviews: Issue 28 The Hive: The Story of the Honeybee and Us – Bee Wilson Monday, 25 November 2013

News: Issue 28 Azure Planet Spotted by Hubble Monday, 25 November 2013

Cover: Visualising Vision Xana Almeida discusses the 4D imaging method used to generate this issue’s cover image Monday, 25 November 2013

Editorial: Issue 28 - Michaelmas 2013 “To Boldly Go...” Monday, 25 November 2013

New theory to propagate seeds of life in asteroids A new look at the early Solar System has introduced an alternative to the long-taught and accepted theory that explains... Friday, 22 November 2013

Birds pay attention to speed limits, study shows European birds decide how soon to fly away from a car according to the speed limit of the road, a... Friday, 8 November 2013

Scientists uncover a novel way to tackle Flu The influenza virus continues to pose a serious risk to human health; it is estimated that influenza is responsible for... Friday, 1 November 2013

Major breakthrough in Alzheimer’s treatment research As the number of patients with dementia increases dramatically, research focused on new treatments for Alzheimer’s disease is at its peak. Friday, 25 October 2013

Drinking impairs healing of broken bones A study performed in Loyola University Medical Center has shown that alcohol abuse impairs the healing of broken bones. Alcohol-related... Monday, 21 October 2013

Relatively well connected What makes a genius? This is the question Professor Dean Falk is attempting to answer through her studies on the... Friday, 11 October 2013

Life on Earth has 1.75 billion years left on the clock. Our home planet will remain habitable for a further 1.75 billion years new research suggests. During this time, Earth will... Wednesday, 25 September 2013

New moon on Neptune In an age when we are observing new planets around distant stars almost every day, it is stunning to realise... Thursday, 29 August 2013

Social networks shape monkey ‘culture’ too In our over-connected digital lives, we all think of social networks as a synonym for Facebook and Twitter, but actually... Wednesday, 14 August 2013

Can imagination change what our senses perceive? Apparently, yes! According to experiments published in Current Biology by Christopher Berger and Henrik Ehrsson; what you hear can change what... Wednesday, 7 August 2013

Voyager 1 crosses the magnetic highway out of our solar system The Voyager 1 spacecraft has encountered an unexpected region at the edge of our solar system which has become known as the “Magnetic Highway”, 18.5 billion km from the Sun. Monday, 29 July 2013

Solar panels as affordable as paint? Solar panels have been hailed as one of the best ways of harnessing renewable energy in homes but purchasing, installing,... Tuesday, 25 June 2013

Key B cell lymphoma gene identified The first step to finding a new treatment for cancer is to identify pivotal factors, such as genes, that the disease cannot survive without. For the majority of B cell lymphomas, Dr Melnick and colleagues in New York have discovered one such gene: EZH2. Friday, 7 June 2013

Extensive glacial retreat in the Mount Everest region Researchers from the University of Milan have found that glaciers in the Mount Everest region are shrinking. Glaciers are large... Friday, 24 May 2013

Cell body clocks are altered in depression Our biological rhythms are tuned to the day-night cycles, light-dark cycles in which we live because the cells of our... Tuesday, 21 May 2013

Issue 27: Weird and Wonderful A selection of the wackiest research in the world of science Wednesday, 15 May 2013

Arts and Science: On a Scientific Note Christoforos Tsantoulas explores the relationship between music and science Wednesday, 15 May 2013

Behind the Science: The Notoriety of Oliver Sacks Robin Lamboll looks at the controversial career of a neurologist who works with music Wednesday, 15 May 2013

History: The War Against Infection Nathan Smith explains how the pre-antibiotic era could come back to help us Wednesday, 15 May 2013

Away from the Bench: Altitude Science Two weeks before he treks out, Elly Smith talks to Dr Andrew Murray about science on Everest Wednesday, 15 May 2013

Initiatives: Making New Scientists Elizabeth Mooney reflects on the opening of the new Cambridge Science Centre Wednesday, 15 May 2013

Science and Policy: Waste of Research Maja Choma discusses the environmental impact of biomedical research Wednesday, 15 May 2013

Focus: A World of Music BlueSci explores the phenomenon of music—what it is, where it comes from and why we do it Wednesday, 15 May 2013

Feature: Cracking Codes Philipp Kleppmann deciphers the advance of cryptography throughout the centuries Wednesday, 15 May 2013

Feature: Commemorating a Commission Felicity Davies celebrates the centenary of the Medical Research Council Wednesday, 15 May 2013

Feature: Open for Everyone Haydn King describes the open-source software movement and two of its most striking characters Wednesday, 15 May 2013

Feature: The Myriad Genes Chin-Chin Chen discusses the implications of a Supreme Court ruling on BRCA cancer gene patents Wednesday, 15 May 2013

Feature: Have You Heard the Northern Lights? Shane McCorristine examines the eerie sounds made by the glowing sky Wednesday, 15 May 2013

Reviews: Issue 27 Bad Pharma: how drug companies mislead doctors and harm patients – Ben Goldacre Wednesday, 15 May 2013

News: Issue 27 New Twists in the Tale of DNA Wednesday, 15 May 2013

Cover: Electron Microscopy Nicola Love explains the technique used to obtain this issue’s cover image Wednesday, 15 May 2013

Editorial: Issue 27 - Easter 2013 Humans have been making music for thousands of years. The oldest musical instrument dates to 36,000 years ago, and it... Wednesday, 15 May 2013

Issue Editor: Issue 28 You might fancy being issue editor yourself. This is a very rewarding role. You have complete control over the content of the magazine, the editing process and production. Friday, 10 May 2013

Supermarkets seriously misinforming customers about health risks In an open letter to ten supermarket CEOs, early career researchers have called on supermarkets to stop misleading customers about health risks. They accuse the supermarkets of playing on unfounded fears about health effects from GM, MSG, parabens and aspartame. Wednesday, 1 May 2013

Music is my drug A new study reveals that pleasurable music engages reward-related neurocircuitry. Scientists found that discovering a new favourite song activates similar... Tuesday, 30 April 2013

Genetic flags identify cancer causing genes More than 1000 scientists have been involved in a recent study that has discovered over 80 genetic markers associated with... Wednesday, 24 April 2013

Bacteria commit suicide to protect others Escherichia coli bacteria commit suicide to protect other bacteria, even when they don’t share many genes with them; a study... Wednesday, 17 April 2013

Feature: Food for Thought? Brianne Kent investigates the links between appetite and brain development. Tuesday, 9 April 2013

Captain, there’s something on the radar The Royal Navy have just unveiled their new radar system and the Artisan 3D boasts statistics stats that would impress tech-addicts everywhere. Tuesday, 2 April 2013

A stroke of genius Feeling the pinch? This expression shows how negatively we view the sensation of being pinched. Scientists have known for some time about the existence of specific neurons, cells of the nervous system, dedicated to detecting this nasty event. Tuesday, 19 March 2013

Observing the birth of a planet An international team of astronomers appear to have made the first observations of a planet being born. The team, led... Friday, 15 March 2013

Game on: why video games help you to read “Stop playing those video games, they rot your brain!” - A phrase likely to become a thing of the past. Wednesday, 6 March 2013

BlueSci Film: How to Look Inside a Volcano Cambridge University volcanology PhD student Tehnuka Ilanko takes us to the top of Mount Erebus volcano in Antarctica where studies on plume gases are helping scientists understand what goes on beneath the crater's surface. Friday, 1 March 2013

The scars of human evolution and standing on our own two feet The transition from walking on four legs to walking on two legs has resulted in some unwelcome side effects, new research shows. Tuesday, 26 February 2013

A sea of possibilities for new antibiotics The collaborative project PharmaSea aims to combat the growing problem of antibiotic resistance by looking for new drugs in our ocean trenches. Friday, 15 February 2013

Generating new ear cells- yes you heard right! Mammalian ear hair cells are not regenerated, and so deafness due to their loss is an irreversible condition, or so... Friday, 8 February 2013

DNA could store digital files A group led by Nick Goldman in Hinxton, UK, has demonstrated that DNA - the so-called “code of life” - can now be used to accurately archive all-sorts of digital media. Information encoded in DNA could be stored and read for thousands of years. Tuesday, 29 January 2013

Issue 26: Weird and Wonderful A selection of the wackiest research in the world of science Friday, 25 January 2013

Art and Science: Art, Maths and the Universe Zac Kenton discusses the mathematical basis of the great artist M.C. Escher Friday, 25 January 2013

Behind the Science: Craig Venter vs The World Jordan Ramsey looks at the life of one of modern science’s most divisive figures. Friday, 25 January 2013

History: HMS Challenger Amelia Penny explores the expedition of the HMS Challenger which marked the beginning of oceanography Friday, 25 January 2013

Science and Policy: Anything but Elementary Matthew Dunstan looks back at the history of the naming of elements Friday, 25 January 2013

Perspective: Babies with Three Parents? Nicola Love looks into the science and ethics of Mitochondrial Replacement Friday, 25 January 2013

Focus: Lazy Universe BlueSci explores the universal principle of energy minimisation across the sciences Friday, 25 January 2013

Feature: One to Another Alessandro Bertero looks at our increasing ability to change the fate of our cells Friday, 25 January 2013

Feature: Digging for Dinosaurs Amelia Penny discusses the importance of the fossil record, and the impact of fossil-hunters on our historical knowledge Friday, 25 January 2013

Feature: The Journey of the Bicycle Karsten Koehler explores the history of the bicycle, and how our understanding of the physics of cycling has developed over time Friday, 25 January 2013

Feature: Living in Fear Sarah Smith examines biological terrorism and its effect on science Friday, 25 January 2013

Feature: Senses in Symphony Shi Khoo and Vanda Ho take a look at the cognitive perspective of synaesthesia Friday, 25 January 2013

Reviews: Issue 26 How the Hippies Saved Physics – David Kaiser Friday, 25 January 2013

News: Issue 26 Does Earth need planetary sun block? Friday, 25 January 2013

Cover: Synthetic Biology Haydn King explains the scientific discipline behind this issue’s cover image Friday, 25 January 2013

Editorial: Issue 26 - Lent 2013 As long as there have been scientists there has been conflict. From the denial of supernatural diseases by Hippocrates to the... Friday, 25 January 2013

One step closer to HIV immunity Researchers at Stanford University have developed a form of gene therapy that stops human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) from latching onto... Wednesday, 23 January 2013

The world beneath our feet Ecologists have used a state of the art technique known as ‘metagenomic sequencing’ to unlock the genetic secrets of the microbial underworld that lies within the world’s soils. Tuesday, 22 January 2013

Stem cells cure mice from blindness Published on: Jan 17, 2013 @ 15:08 Thursday, 17 January 2013

Need a use for your old Christmas tree? Give it a second life in biomedicine! You’ve lost and won countless games of Monopoly, consumed your body weight in turkey sandwiches and selection boxes, and sung... Friday, 11 January 2013

How excess holiday eating disturbs your 'food clock' New research from the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) shows how your body's 'food clock' can become disturbed when... Monday, 7 January 2013

POSTS FROM 2012

Committee nominations re-opened We've had several applications for committee positions for 2013, but several places are still available. We have therefore decided to... Sunday, 30 December 2012

Committee Positions We hope you're all enjoying the Christmas vacation. 2012 has been a good year for us, we have developed stronger... Thursday, 27 December 2012

Obese but happy? All too often, we find ourselves feeling pity toward clinically obese individuals, trying to navigate their way about normal life.... Friday, 14 December 2012

The pixie of all pixels Scientists at the Department of Engineering at the University of Cambridge have demonstrated a new use for carbon nanotubes (CNTs).... Tuesday, 27 November 2012

Genetic engineers flying high - A novel Drosophila model sheds light upon human Epilepsy Scientists at Brown University and the University of California-Irvine made use of elegant genetic techniques to introduce a single key mutation into a Drosophila gene and thus create a fly model for human epilepsy. Monday, 5 November 2012

Discovery of a geological ‘sombrero’ on the Earth’s surface Magma is a mixture of molten rock, found beneath the Earth’s surface and which often collects in chambers to feed... Wednesday, 31 October 2012

CSAR and BlueSci Energy Debate This evening at Churchill college representatives from BlueSci and CSAR will be debating the future of green energy with teams... Monday, 29 October 2012

Issue 26 Magazine Cover Image Is your research visually stunning? We are looking for images for the cover of the next issue of BlueSci. This... Thursday, 25 October 2012

BlueSci event: Scavenger Hunt BlueSci will be hosting its very first science scavenger hunt! It will take place from 2 until approximately 4PM on Sunday, November 4th and will involve prizes, pints, and fun! Sign up in teams of up to 3 people to take part in the scavenging madness here. Thursday, 25 October 2012

‘Super- Earth’ likely to be made from diamonds A planet twice the size of Earth orbiting a sun-like star, 55 Cancri e has been described by researchers at... Thursday, 25 October 2012

Issue 26 Magazine Meeting If you have ideas for regular articles to contribute to Issue 26 or would like to try your hand at... Friday, 19 October 2012

Oxygen and Ice – how geochemistry revolutionised life on Earth The evolution of multicellular animals, or metazoans, was made possible by a huge increase in oxygen levels after a major global warming episode, a new study suggests. Tuesday, 16 October 2012

A Nobel pursuit Cambridge biologist John Gurdon and Shinya Yamanaka of Kyoto University, Japan have become this year’s Nobel Prize winners for Physiology or Medicine, for “the discovery that mature cells can be reprogrammed to become pluripotent". Wednesday, 10 October 2012

Bumblebees could teach robots how to navigate Bumblebees are surprisingly efficient navigators. With simple brains and no mental map to guide them, bumblebees must learn routes to... Friday, 5 October 2012

Weird & Wonderful: Issue 25 A selection of the wackiest research in the world of science Wednesday, 3 October 2012

Perspective: Science for All Leila Haghighat discusses the recent revolution in academic publishing Wednesday, 3 October 2012

History: Life on Mars Hugo Schmidt reveals the advances made in the field of Astrobiology Wednesday, 3 October 2012

Initiatives: Big Issues in Science – UKCSJ Ian Le Guillou reports from the 2012 UK Conference of Science Journalists Wednesday, 3 October 2012

Science and Policy: Minority Report Vicki Moignard examines exactly where scientific information is coming from. Wednesday, 3 October 2012

Behind the Science: Written in the Stars Matthew Dunstan explores the life of controversial physicist Neil deGrasse Tyson Wednesday, 3 October 2012

Focus: Armchair Experimentation BlueSci reveals how technology has made science more accessible Wednesday, 3 October 2012

Issue 25 Specials: [POPULAR Science] Helen Gaffney discusses BlueSci’s series of science communication talks. Wednesday, 3 October 2012

Issue 25 Specials: BlueSci Radio Anand Jagatia discusses the benefits of communicating science over the airwaves. Wednesday, 3 October 2012

Issue 25 Specials: BlueSci News Louisa Lyon talks about the fast-paced world of science news. Wednesday, 3 October 2012

Issue 25 Specials: BlueSci Film Nick Crumpton explores the past, present and future of science documentary making. Wednesday, 3 October 2012

Issue 25 Specials: Not-Sci We’re celebrating the 25th issue of BlueSci with this special collection of articles describing some of the other activities and... Wednesday, 3 October 2012

2012 Graduate School of Life Sciences Image Competition The graduate school of Life Sciences (GSLS) image competition is a celebration of the variety of biological research that is ongoing here... Wednesday, 3 October 2012

Feature: Balm or Burden? Isaac Elliot finds out how sleep deprivation influences our mood. Wednesday, 3 October 2012

Feature: Through the Looking Glass Jonathan Lawson reflects on the two faces of handedness. Wednesday, 3 October 2012

Feature: Whose Training is it Anyway? David Kent wonders whether doctorates have gone stale. Wednesday, 3 October 2012

Feature: Such Stuff as Dreams are Made On Leila Haghighat finds out what we really know about our dreams. Wednesday, 3 October 2012

Feature: We Look Like You Nick Crumpton looks at the stereotype of the scientist. Wednesday, 3 October 2012

Reviews: Issue 25 Successful Science Communication - David J Bennett & Richard C Jennings Wednesday, 3 October 2012

News: Issue 25 Microbes Help Immune Cells Function Wednesday, 3 October 2012

Cover: A History of Making History Jonathan Lawson recounts the story of BlueSci from the beginning. Wednesday, 3 October 2012

Editorial: Issue 25 - Michaelmas 2012 Let’s talk science Wednesday, 3 October 2012

The reptilian wiring in our hearts New research by scientists from Aarhus University and the University of Amsterdam has begun to illuminate the evolutionary origin of... Tuesday, 2 October 2012

Exercise for body and mind Scientists have now confirmed that regular exercise is good for the mind as well as the body. Wednesday, 26 September 2012

Issue 26 Features Deadline: 19th October With Issue 25 almost here, it's time to start work on Issue 26. The deadline for feature articles is rapidly... Wednesday, 26 September 2012

Do dry soils attract rain? New research indicates that rain storms are more likely to form over drier than wetter soils. Friday, 14 September 2012

X-Rays shed new light on mantle plumes New studies using highly focused X-Rays have moved one step closer to explaining hotspot volcanism by investigating how huge plumes of hot mantle rock could form deep inside the Earth. Tuesday, 4 September 2012

Superhuman medicine The latest Spider-Man film features researchers attempting to re-grow human body parts by combining lizard DNA with that of humans.... Wednesday, 29 August 2012

Concussions cause brain ageing? The first sign that concussion can prematurely age the brain by breaking down its signalling pathways has been found by... Friday, 17 August 2012

Reaffirming Rio Rio+20 marked 20 years since the Rio Earth Summit of 1992, which made early progress in recognising climate change and... Tuesday, 14 August 2012

Nuclear weapons give climate change research a helping hand Testing nuclear weapons and researching climate change seem to be at opposite sides of the scientific spectrum; the former seeks... Friday, 10 August 2012

BlueSci Committee: Managing Editor Post Available This is your chance to join the BlueSci committee and play a major role in the running of the magazine... Tuesday, 7 August 2012

The power of suggestion Suggestions exert a powerful influence on how we think, feel, and act but it appears that the effects play a much larger role in shaping our lives than most people realise. Wednesday, 1 August 2012

Fool’s Gold- not such a fool after all? Researchers have found that Fool’s Gold plays an important role in governing atmospheric oxygen concentrations. Wednesday, 25 July 2012

Mickey Mouse fights the flab – Oh boy! June 2012 marked The Walt Disney Company’s announcement of a junk food commercial ban from 2015. Roughly a third of... Wednesday, 18 July 2012

Alzheimer’s early detection ‘timeline’ developed Researchers can now detect signs of Alzheimer’s 25 years before the expected onset of the disease. Saturday, 14 July 2012

BlueSci Film: Bioblitz at Cambridge University Starting at 3pm on Friday June 22nd 2012, experts, volunteers and members of the public raced against time to count... Wednesday, 11 July 2012

Drinking coffee may protect against heart failure Contrary to American Heart Association guidelines discouraging habitual coffee drinking, new research from the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Centre (BIDMC) indicates that moderate coffee consumption may be an effective preventative of heart failure. Friday, 6 July 2012

Lichen can survive in space Lichens can survive journeys through space – even when exposed to potentially lethal radiation levels and temperature changes. Friday, 29 June 2012

Scientists identify protein required to re-grow injured nerves Nerve cells in the brain are notorious for their inability to heal. But the situation is different for nerve cells... Friday, 29 June 2012

Arctic warming linked to Antarctic ice New findings suggest that the Arctic may be subject to very warm ‘super-interglacials’ linked to the loss of the Antarctic ice sheet on the other side of the world. Monday, 25 June 2012

Issue 25 Features Deadline Don't forget, the Issue 25 features deadline has been extended to this Friday, 29th June. Features are 1200 words and... Saturday, 23 June 2012

Plastic-eating fungus discovered in the Amazon Undergraduate students from Yale University have discovered a fungus capable of degrading the common plastic polyurethane. With low costs and high demand, the volume of plastics produced overwhelms waste management systems and threatens ecosystems and human welfare globally. Thursday, 21 June 2012

Feature: Your Love is my Drug Brianne Kent explores the similarities between love and drug addiction. Sunday, 17 June 2012

BlueSci: Issue 25 Magazine Meeting The magazine meeting for the next issue of BlueSci will be at 6pm on Wednesday 13th June at the Earth Sciences Common Room in the Downing Site. Wednesday, 13 June 2012

Genes can determine your ability to quit smoking Researchers at the Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, have found that the same gene variants that make it... Tuesday, 12 June 2012

Gates Foundation and Big Pharma unite to combat neglected tropical diseases The largest yet collaborative effort towards the elimination of neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) was unveiled in London earlier this year.... Friday, 8 June 2012

Smallest fossils change understanding about sturdiest dinosaurs Weighed down by the burden of their armour, ankylosaurs were the rhinoceroses of the dinosaur age, defending themselves against predators with their thick dermal plates and tail clubs. Wednesday, 6 June 2012

Tiny mammoth once roamed Crete Scientists from London’s Natural History Museum predict that millions of years ago a dwarf mammoth once roamed on the Mediterranean... Friday, 1 June 2012

Facebook could be addictive You could be addicted to Facebook, suggests a new study lead by a team of researchers in Norway. Monday, 28 May 2012

Feature: Holistic Biology – it’s science alright, but not as we know it.... Aoife O’Shaughnessy discusses how systems biology may help to shape the future of medical research. Sunday, 27 May 2012

Bionic eye gives hope for blindness Scientists at Stanford University in California have invented a wireless retinal implant which can help to cure blindness. Illnesses such... Friday, 25 May 2012

Using photoacoustics to screen for breast cancer 50,000 people are diagnosed with breast cancer in the UK annually – on average someone every 10 minutes, and although... Sunday, 20 May 2012

Magnetic bacteria can build tomorrow's biocomputers According to a group of researchers at the University of Leeds, microbes are the key to producing tomorrow’s super-fast computers.... Friday, 18 May 2012

Giant feather dinosaur discovered Three almost complete skeletons of a huge feathered dinosaur have been unearthed in north-eastern China. The new species has been... Monday, 14 May 2012

Feature: Coming of AGE - how molecular strategies may soon improve quality of life Rhian Grainger explains how small drug-like molecules may soon help us tackle the biological impacts of ageing. Sunday, 13 May 2012

Tiny hitchhikers target cancer cells Scientists at Northwestern University, Illinois have been the first to develop a nanoparticle that can deliver anti-cancer drugs directly to... Friday, 11 May 2012

Leeches can track jungle mammals Monitoring the abundance of mammalian species in tropical rain forests is difficult due to the uncooperative environment. Not only does... Tuesday, 8 May 2012

Weird & Wonderful: Issue 24 Scientists from Oregon state University have found that placing oestrogen capsules in male snakes makes them attractive to other males and... Friday, 27 April 2012

Away from the Bench: Science on Ice Hugo Schmidt talks to Pierre Dutrieux and Paul Holland about science at the South Pole. Friday, 27 April 2012

Science & Policy: Preparing for the Unknown Tim Middleton examines risk and uncertainty in policy-making. Friday, 27 April 2012

Perspective: The Genome Generation Nicola Stead reveals what we have learnt from a decade of the human genome. Friday, 27 April 2012

Behind the Science: The Grand Question Helen Gaffney explores the many-sided life of Cambridge scientist Joseph Needham. Friday, 27 April 2012

Arts & Science: Dreaming up Science Beth Venus looks at how thought experiments have explained scientific phenomena. Friday, 27 April 2012

History: From Herbs to Hormones Vicki Moignard explores how approaches to contraception have evolved over time. Friday, 27 April 2012

Focus: Higher, Faster, Stronger BlueSci explores the role of science in pushing the boundaries of human physical ability. Friday, 27 April 2012

Feature: Turbocharged Thinking Camilla d’Angelo asks whether society will become dependent on brain‑enhancing drugs to function. Friday, 27 April 2012

Feature: Type ‘L’ for Love Jordan Ramsey reveals how computers are being used to simulate love and investigate our choice of life partners. Friday, 27 April 2012

Feature: Big Ideas, Small Beginnings M Fernando Gonzalez investigates the microelectronic revolution and the role of transistors. Friday, 27 April 2012

Feature: Symmetry in Science Jack Williams discusses symmetry in nature and its fundamental place in the Universe. Friday, 27 April 2012

Feature: Staying Alive Beth Richardson looks at new recommendations for performing CPR. Friday, 27 April 2012

Reviews: Issue 24 Radioactive: Marie and Pierre Curie – Lauren Redniss Friday, 27 April 2012

News: Issue 24 Promising Alzheimer’s Treatment Friday, 27 April 2012

Cover: Deducing Diffractions Lindsey Nield explains the science behind this issue’s front cover. Friday, 27 April 2012

Editorial: Issue 24 - Easter 2012 Left-Brain vs Right-Brain Friday, 27 April 2012

Final flight of Discovery After a year of decommissioning, NASA’s flagship Space Shuttle Discovery has made its final flight, this time within Earth’s atmosphere... Tuesday, 24 April 2012

New compounds trigger dramatic weight loss Scientists at the Scripps Research Institute in Florida have developed two synthetic compounds that could potentially treat obesity, plus many... Wednesday, 18 April 2012

Genes shape our response to flu Researchers at the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute, Cambridge, have uncovered the genetic basis behind individual variation in response to influenza infection. Saturday, 14 April 2012

A step in the right direction Bipedalism, or walking upright, is one of the key features to distinguish humans from the great apes. However, exactly why... Monday, 9 April 2012

Özti the Iceman Although he may look a little like Gollum of ‘Lord of the Rings’ fame, Özti the Iceman is actually the... Tuesday, 3 April 2012

How the zebra got its stripes Existing theories as to why zebras have evolved stripes centre on their role in combating predators. Stripes may provide camouflage... Thursday, 29 March 2012

New blood When asked their blood group, many people would probably be able to reply “A”, “B”, “AB” or “O”, with some... Monday, 26 March 2012

How to detect traces of explosives Scientists at the National Institute for Interdisciplinary Science and Technology in Trivandrum, India, have developed a simple method for detecting attogram (10-18 g) quantities of the explosive trinitrotoluene (TNT). Wednesday, 21 March 2012

Feature: Powering East Africa from below Tom Bishop explores the potential of geothermal energy in Africa. Sunday, 18 March 2012

Synthetic steak It seems that the promise of regenerative medicine is no longer enough. Not satisfied with preventing ageing and curing disease, stem cells are now also being charged with solving the impending global food crisis. Thursday, 15 March 2012

Do you hear what I hear? It may one day be possible to listen to the “imagined speech” of patients who have been left unable to communicate following strokes or paralysis, thanks to the work of researchers at the University of Berkeley. Sunday, 11 March 2012

When the heart skips a beat Despite the claims of Olly Murs, the heart is in fact most likely ‘to skip a beat’ during the morning in accordance with the internal body clock, a recent study in Nature has revealed. Thursday, 8 March 2012

Short-term memory based on synchronised brain oscillations Holding a picture you’ve just seen in your 'mind's eye' is a task that requires long-distance communication between visual and... Tuesday, 6 March 2012

Listening in on lysozyme Researchers from the University of California have used a ‘molecular microphone’ to listen to a single protein molecule at work. Sunday, 4 March 2012

Review: Wednesday is Indigo Blue - Discovering the Brain of Synaesthesia As you listen to the voice of a weather forecaster describing the highs and lows of tomorrow’s temperature, a kaleidoscope... Thursday, 1 March 2012

Towards a universal flu vaccine New research suggests that vaccines targeting key influenza proteins could provide immunity against multiple strains of flu. Wednesday, 29 February 2012

Males and females run on different programmes Variations in gene expression within the brain have been implicated in some of the fundamental behavioural differences between the sexes. Sunday, 26 February 2012

The immortal devil’s contagious cancer Cancer is still one of the biggest killers worldwide, arising when our own cells turn against us and grow out of control. As human life expectancy continues to increase, so too does our risk of cancer. Thursday, 23 February 2012

DNA analysis may be open to interpretation The genetic sequence encoded within the double helical strands of an individual’s DNA has long been considered decisive evidence for... Tuesday, 21 February 2012

New insights into malaria mechanisms A recent study in Cell reveals the way deadly malaria parasites transport proteins in infected red blood cells. Targeting this transport pathway may offer new opportunities for malaria treatment. Sunday, 19 February 2012

A human wind turbine At 12 noon on Friday 10th February, Cambridge University students gathered on Parker’s Piece to rally for renewable energy. Thursday, 16 February 2012

Turning a mouse into an elephant “Animals get bigger through time”. This, in a nutshell, is the evolutionary ‘rule’ named after the American palaeontologist Edward Drinker... Tuesday, 14 February 2012

Feature: Psychedelic Psychiatry Ecstasy and magic mushrooms have recently been shown to help people with treatment-resistant psychiatric disorders. Camilla dʼAngelo explores how these drugs could radically change the landscape of psychiatry. Saturday, 11 February 2012

New cancer drug target discovered Scientists at the University of Leicester have identified a new molecule that could serve as a target for an entire family of future cancer drugs. Thursday, 9 February 2012

Solving a monkey puzzle In a study published recently in the journal Cell, scientists at the Oregon National Primate Research Center in the USA announced that they have created the first chimeric primates. Monday, 6 February 2012

Energising Cambridge A new student campaign, Energise Cambridge (http://www.energisecambridge.org/), has been launched to try and persuade the University of Cambridge to buy a larger proportion of its energy from renewable suppliers. Friday, 3 February 2012

Bacterial bio-pixels could detect poisons Researchers led by Prof. Jeff Hasty at the University of California have created “bacterial bio-pixels” by combining two methods used by Escherichia coli... Wednesday, 1 February 2012

Clever corvids: quoth the raven 'look at this' Ravens have recently been seen to use the types of gestures previously thought limited to just the great apes and... Sunday, 29 January 2012

BlueSci Film: Wanted - Scientists in the field We are interested in showcasing the work that scientists here at Cambridge do when away from the city. So if you're interested in sharing your experiences, contact BlueSci Film Editors Nick and Alex at <a href="mailto:film@bluesci.co.uk">film@bluesci.co.uk. Friday, 27 January 2012

‘Great Lake’ on Jupiter’s moon may harbour life Scientific analysis of the surface of Jupiter’s moon, Europa, suggests that warm water rises from its deep oceans to form shallow nutrient-rich lakes that could support life. Wednesday, 25 January 2012

Using antibodies to help prevent HIV infection Researchers in California have developed a novel form of gene therapy for preventing HIV infection. In a recent Nature paper,... Sunday, 22 January 2012

BlueSciFilm: We are Sitting in the Mollusc Store Snails, clams, squids and octopoda... Dr. Richard Preece took BlueSci film editor Nick Crumpton behind the scenes in the University... Saturday, 21 January 2012

Weird and Wonderful A selection of the wackiest research in the world of science Wednesday, 18 January 2012

A Day in the Life: The Science Diplomat Ian Le Guillou interviews David Clary Wednesday, 18 January 2012

Arts & Science: Writing the Future Matthew Dunstan investigates the role of science fiction in shaping science fact Wednesday, 18 January 2012

History: Science’s Royal Beginnings Nicola Stead takes a look back at the origins of the Royal Society and its founding members Wednesday, 18 January 2012

Behind the Science: Computers, Codes and Cyanide Jordan Ramsey explores the persecuted genius of computing pioneer Alan Turing Wednesday, 18 January 2012

Science & Policy: The Race to the Edge Beth Venus discusses the future of manned space missions Wednesday, 18 January 2012

Perspective: Capturing Change Tom Bishop discusses carbon dioxide capture as one solution to climate change Wednesday, 18 January 2012

Focus: Intelligence BlueSci looks at the science of human intelligence: how do we test it, what controls it, and how do we even define it? Wednesday, 18 January 2012

Feature: Aspects of Ageing Andrew Szopa-Comley explores possible explanations for why humans age at the molecular level Wednesday, 18 January 2012

Feature: Warning - Contains Peanuts Mrinalini Dey investigates our attempts to alleviate the anxiety of allergy sufferers Wednesday, 18 January 2012

Feature: The Eccentric Engineer Sarah Amis looks into the life of one of the world’s most innovative, yet troubled, inventors Wednesday, 18 January 2012

Feature: Neglecting Vets Peter Moore explores the importance of Veterinary Medicine for mankind Wednesday, 18 January 2012

Feature: The Need for Sex Anna Wilson looks at the evolutionary benefits of sexual reproduction Wednesday, 18 January 2012

Reviews The God Species - Mark Lynas Wednesday, 18 January 2012

News: Issue 23 …and this little piggy corrected mutations Wednesday, 18 January 2012

Cover: Creating Crystals Lindsey Nield looks into the story behind this issue’s cover image Wednesday, 18 January 2012

Editorial: Issue 23 - Lent 2012 Science has come a long way since C.P. Snow gave his 1959 Rede lecture: “The Two Cultures”. In this lecture... Wednesday, 18 January 2012

Dreaming, not time, is the healer of all wounds Researchers at the University of California have found that spending time in rapid eye movement (REM) or “dreaming” sleep can make painful memories more bearable. Tuesday, 17 January 2012

New metal is world’s lightest material A team of researchers has developed a ‘micro-lattice’ material that is approximately 100 times lighter than polystyrene. Thursday, 12 January 2012

Dopamine-deficient worms join the fight against Parkinson's Scientists at the University of Texas, Austin, have found a way to use dopamine-deficient worms to identify new drugs for the treatment of Parkinson’s disease. Sunday, 8 January 2012

Earth's survival, thanks to the sacrifice of a gas giant New research published by Dr. David Nesvorny of the Southwest Research Institute provides strong evidence that the solar system may initially have had five giant gas planets, as opposed to the current four. Sunday, 1 January 2012

POSTS FROM 2011

Paracetamol no longer a mystery The common painkiller’s mechanism of action has finally been identified Wednesday, 28 December 2011

Genetically engineered E. coli could be used to make biofuels In a discovery that pushes the dream of worldwide implementation of renewable energy towards reality, researchers at the Joint BioEnergy Institute (JBEI) in Berkeley, California have synthesised three advanced biofuels using genetically engineered Escherichia coli (E. coli). Friday, 23 December 2011

Interview: Dr Rupert Soar - Fungus Farming to Freeform Construction. Nick Crumpton talks to Rupert Soar about termite-inspired buildings, sustainable architecture and the future of construction. Tuesday, 20 December 2011

Synthetic spider silk for water-catching webs Dew-drops on spider webs are a common sight on foggy mornings, but only recently have scientists realised their implications for... Monday, 19 December 2011

A bug in the programme Scientists have discovered a parasite that can alter behaviour by manipulating brain chemistry. Tuesday, 13 December 2011

Review: Frank Close - Physics, Prizes and Phantom Particles Winning a Nobel Prize in neutrino physics, is all about longevity. That was the message of Professor Frank Close OBE to a joint audience from BlueSci, Cambridge University's Science Magazine, and the Cambridge University Physics Society. Monday, 12 December 2011

Pythons with big hearts can help protect ours Fatty acids that appear in the bloodstream of pythons after eating have been found to promote healthy heart growth. Friday, 9 December 2011

Biosensors help to detect neurodegenerative diseases Shalini Prasad and colleagues at the University of Texas, Dallas, have developed a biosensor that can differentiate between Alzheimer's disease... Wednesday, 7 December 2011

Making a CASE for PhDs In an exciting new development for interdisciplinary research and development, GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) has today announced the recipient of the first ever GSK Oncology collaborative awards in science and engineering (CASE) PhD scholarship. Monday, 5 December 2011

Review: Building Bridges in Medical Sciences Symposium 2011 The 4th annual Building Bridges in Medical Sciences (BBMS) symposium was held in October at the Cancer Research Institute in... Monday, 5 December 2011

Review: The First Chief Scientific Adviser in the Foreign office Government and Science. The two often have an interesting relationship; long term predications and concerns, such as those associated with... Sunday, 4 December 2011

Interview: Filming Frozen Planet - Capturing the Public Imagination Frozen Planet director Adam Scott talks to Nick Crumpton about one of the most extreme environments on Earth. Wednesday, 30 November 2011

New vaccine reduces risk of malaria A new vaccine tested on African infants may reduce the risk of malaria by half, according to a recent publication... Tuesday, 29 November 2011

Being bilingual may help delay Alzheimer's disease Speaking more than one language may help delay the onset of Alzheimer’s disease according to a new study published in “Cortex”. Friday, 25 November 2011

Stars send out distress flares Astronomers have revealed that stars send out distress flares as they’re torn apart by black holes. Tuesday, 22 November 2011

Children, but not chimps, prefer teamwork A new study has shown that children display a preference for cooperation that is not shared by chimpanzees. Friday, 18 November 2011

Temporal cloaks mask our perception of reality Through a remarkable feat of physics, researchers at Cornell University have been able to hide an event in time by... Tuesday, 15 November 2011

Review: Parasite Rex (Carl Zimmer) Sleeping sickness, leishmaniasis and hundreds of other parasitic diseases plague millions of people across the world. We have no clear... Monday, 14 November 2011

It's not all about the snap The world's largest lizard, Indonesia's Komodo Dragon, is well adapted for a carnivorous, ambush-hunting lifestyle, with serrated teeth, a venomous... Friday, 11 November 2011

Review: Ten Top Tips for Televisual Triumph Why do journalists often get their facts wrong when they report on science stories? Thursday, 10 November 2011

Feature: Life on Air - Listening in on Natural Science Some sort of bubbled ‘moo’: that’s what I assumed manatees were going to sound like. A muffled Chewbacca would have... Wednesday, 9 November 2011

Radar can now see us through walls Since the development of RADAR (Radio Detection And Ranging) in 1940, its ability to pinpoint fixed objects and determine the... Tuesday, 8 November 2011

Polymer plug "LeGoo" approved in US for use during surgery Blood vessels are traditionally blocked during surgery using clamps to pinch the vessel and stop blood flow. This can lead to damage and trauma of the artery. However, a new product called 'LeGoo' may make clamps a thing of the past. Sunday, 6 November 2011

Review: The Future - A Mini-retreat Where does the Future lie for PostDocs and Graduate Students? This was the focus of the 2011 Biochemistry Mini-Retreat organised... Thursday, 3 November 2011

Raising the alarm against viruses Scientists at the European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL) have identified the precise mechanism by which the detection of foreign agents in cells can lead to a rapid immune response. Thursday, 3 November 2011

New observations question our understanding of dark matter According to the standard cosmological model, dark matter plays an important role in the description of our universe. Dark matter... Monday, 31 October 2011

Abusive boobies may prove a good model for human ‘cycle of violence’ Scientists studying the Nazca booby in the wild have observed the same ‘cycle of violence’ as seen in humans: birds that get abused as youngsters are more likely to go on to abuse nestlings when they grow up. Friday, 28 October 2011

That Friday feeling Looking forward to the weekend? Scientists at Cornell University have used Twitter to explore changes in people's moods over the course of the day, week and year. Tuesday, 25 October 2011

Review: Virtual Water (Tony Allan) How much water do you need to make a cup of coffee? According to Tony Allan, Professor of Geography at... Monday, 24 October 2011

The personal touch: crizotinib and lung cancer Study shows that the drug crizotinib produces good results in certain non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients Sunday, 23 October 2011

A step closer to artificial intelligence Scientists at Tel Aviv University, Israel, have restored lost brain function in rats using an artificial cerebellum. Like a real... Wednesday, 19 October 2011

Nobel Prize awarded for insights into the immune system Major breakthroughs in understanding the way in which our immune system is activated have seen Bruce A. Beutler, Jules A. Hoffmann and Ralph M. Steinman awarded the 2011 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine. Monday, 17 October 2011

Introducing BlueSci Radio BlueSci is pleased and excited to unveil BlueSci Radio. Our brand new radio show will broadcast live on CamFM, Tuesdays... Sunday, 16 October 2011

Announcement: New Writing & Editing Guidelines BlueSci is proud to release a new set of writing, editing and copy-editing guidelines, which have been written to provide... Sunday, 16 October 2011

Review: Principles of social evolution (Andrew F. Bourke) Ed: In the first of our new online Review section, which will incorporate reviews of books, games, talks, events and... Friday, 14 October 2011

Feature: Conference - Threats to the University In recent years, despite generating an historic amount of research in fields barely imaginable a generation ago, science has hit... Wednesday, 12 October 2011

Bigger than the Big Bang - 2011 Nobel Prize in Physics The 2011 Nobel Prize in Physics has been awarded to Saul Perlmutter, Brian P. Schmidt and Adam G. Riess, whose efforts during the 1990s led to the astonishing conclusion that the rate of expansion of the Universe is increasing. Wednesday, 12 October 2011

Discoverer of quasi-crystals wins Nobel Prize The Nobel Prize for chemistry has gone this year to Dan Shechtman, the man who discovered quasi-crystals – materials that... Sunday, 9 October 2011

Notice: New Committee Members BlueSci is pleased to welcome two new members to the committee. Tom Bishop, fresh from editing Issue 22, replaces Steph Glaser as Managing Editor whilst Louisa Lyon steps into the role vacated by Rob Jones, becoming the new News Editor. Tuesday, 4 October 2011

Weird and Wonderful A selection of the wackiest research in the world of science Monday, 3 October 2011

Away from the Bench: Skeletons and Flame Tornadoes Aaron Barker explains how certain types of CHaOS can be fun and informative Monday, 3 October 2011

Science & Policy: Reactive Politics Rose Spear analyses the varying global stances on nuclear energy Monday, 3 October 2011

Perspective: Colliding at Colossal Costs Richard Thomson gives his opinion on whether the Large Hadron Collider is worth its substantial investment Monday, 3 October 2011

Arts & Science: Caring for Art Tim Middleton uncovers the role of science in the storage and conservation of paintings Monday, 3 October 2011

History: Science in Print Helen Gaffney explores the rise of popular science magazines Monday, 3 October 2011

Behind the Science: The Father of Forecasting Lindsey Nield reflects on the life and voyages of Admiral Robert Fitzroy Monday, 3 October 2011

Focus: Beneath the Surface BlueSci looks at an endlessly fascinating and increasingly useful world deep below Monday, 3 October 2011

Feature: Beyond Darwin Jamie Hackett examines whether it is possible to inherit the experiences of our parents Monday, 3 October 2011

Feature: A Bolt from the Blue Simon Page reveals the colourful side of one of chemistry’s more dangerous reactions Monday, 3 October 2011

Feature: Eye-popping Films Aaron Barker looks into the physics behind 3D cinema Monday, 3 October 2011

Feature: The Age of Endeavour Vicki Moignard recalls the captivating history of the Space Shuttle Monday, 3 October 2011

Feature: A Clean Slate Yinchu Wang looks back to a life unknowingly dedicated to science Monday, 3 October 2011

Reviews Cool It - Bjorn Lomborg Monday, 3 October 2011

News: Issue 22 Bat wing hairs act as airflow detectors Monday, 3 October 2011

Cover: Cultured Brains Jonathan Lawson looks into the story behind this issue’s cover image Monday, 3 October 2011

Editorial: Issue 22 - Michaelmas 2011 Rationality, References and Radio Monday, 3 October 2011

Online game players solve structure of AIDS protein Players from an online gaming community have solved the crystal structure of a retrovirus protein causing AIDS in rhesus monkeys. The gamers determined in just three weeks something that has eluded scientists for over 10 years. Wednesday, 28 September 2011

Overconfidence is a winning trait Scientists in Edinburgh and California have found that being overconfident can help you succeed. Monday, 26 September 2011

Canadian amber found to hold clues to the evolution of feathers Researchers in Canada have discovered feathers preserved in amber from 70 million years ago. Thursday, 22 September 2011

iGEM 2011: Squid to E. coli - Bactiridescence Squids and octopi (cephalopods) are renowned for their stunning ability to change their skin colour, as a means of camouflage... Monday, 19 September 2011

Plant circadian clock mystery solved Researchers at Yale University have identified a key component of the plant circadian clock, solving one of the final mysteries that remained in understanding this process. Thursday, 15 September 2011

BlueSciFilm: Interview with Lord Martin Rees Sita Dinanauth interviews Lord Martin Rees; Astronomer Royal and Master of Trinity College on his career in astrophysics research and his many prestigious accolades. Monday, 12 September 2011

New material offers superior rate performance for batteries Battery technology could soon see a vast improvement due to the discovery of a new material that could increase power, energy density and safety, as well as reduce charge time. Monday, 12 September 2011

Self-cleaning fabrics could be cleaner than ever Scientists at the University of California, Davis, have developed a new self-cleaning fabric that is more robust, has improved antibacterial qualities, and is easier to manufacture. Saturday, 10 September 2011

A man-made mountain in the Netherlands? A Dutch journalist has proposed the idea of creating a mountain in the Netherlands, believing it will benefit the nation’s athletes and become a top attraction. Thursday, 8 September 2011

Rivers of ice discovered in the Antarctic The ice flow of the Antarctic ice sheet has been mapped in high resolution for the first time. Thursday, 1 September 2011

Fighting malaria with microwaves Researchers at Penn State University have been awarded a grant by the Gates Foundation to develop their idea of treating malaria with microwaves. Friday, 26 August 2011

DRACOnian measures for disease-causing microbes Scientists from the Lincoln Laboratory at MIT have unveiled DRACO, a new drug designed to kill all viruses. Thursday, 18 August 2011

The internet tells children to love pandas but not their back gardens The increased reliance of children on virtual media rather than hands-on outdoor activities means their consideration in protecting species along... Monday, 15 August 2011

Ageing of the brain differs between chimpanzees and humans A recent study of the brain size of humans and their closest living relatives has found important differences relating to aging. Saturday, 6 August 2011

Test post Here is a header to the post Friday, 5 August 2011

A universal flu vaccine? Scientists have used the 2009 swine flu outbreak to bring us closer to a universal vaccine. Thursday, 4 August 2011

Superconductor model fits with extreme correlation Physicists at the University of California have developed a technique that helps to explain the behaviour of electrons in a high-temperature superconductor. Wednesday, 3 August 2011

Genome of the potato sequenced A group of international scientists have recently published the genome sequence of the humble potato, Solanum tuberosum. It is hoped that the sequence will aid better breeding of this disease-susceptible plant. Sunday, 31 July 2011

BlueSci gets Creative The BlueSci committee are pleased to announce that from now on we will be placing all material published by BlueSci,... Saturday, 30 July 2011

Symptoms of climate change become apparent in European oceans A species of plankton, Neodenticula seminae, has returned to the North Atlantic for the first time since going extinct 8 million years ago. This is the latest example of how changing climate conditions cause species to move or change their behaviour. Tuesday, 26 July 2011

Turtles finally find their place in the evolutionary tree A genetic analysis of turtles has shown that they come from the same branch of the tree of life as lizards. Saturday, 23 July 2011

Surplus metabolic capacities indicate history of yo-yo diet A recent analysis of digestive capacities shows that predators in the wild are able to capitalise on pulses of food abundance, and suggests an evolutionary history of feast and famine. Wednesday, 20 July 2011

Eye test could be used to detect Alzheimer's disease A simple eye test could help detect Alzheimer’s disease in its earliest stages, Australian scientists report. Friday, 15 July 2011

Spearheads and minds sharpened by humans 200,000 years ago Archaeologists at Lund University in Sweden have found that the development of spearhead technology played an important part in the advancement of human thinking and behaviour 80,000 years ago. Friday, 8 July 2011

A genetic history of coconuts A new genetic analysis shows that modern coconuts were brought into cultivation in two independent regions, and discusses how human trade and travel has influenced genetic diversity in coconut populations. Saturday, 2 July 2011

Enceladus plumes come from underground ocean Direct sampling of water plumes jetting into space from Saturn’s moon Enceladus suggest that liquid water exists in large underground reservoirs. Friday, 1 July 2011

Putting waste energy to good use A prototype produced by engineers in the United States can capture wasted heat from exhausts and use it for air conditioning and the generation of electricity. Tuesday, 21 June 2011

Ancient-language dictionary completed after 90 years The first dictionary of an ancient Mesopotamian language is finally complete after ninety years in the making. At 21 volumes, this creates an unparalleled resource for studying the first urban civilisations in history. Monday, 20 June 2011

Study reveals neurobiological mechanism that links smoking with food intake A receptor in neurons of the brain that links nicotine with reduced food intake has been identified and offers a new target for weight loss drugs. Monday, 13 June 2011

Hummingbird tongues don’t suck but ‘trap’ nectar Hummingbirds have evolved an extraordinarily ingenious mechanism that allows them to feed with barely any work being performed at all. Thursday, 9 June 2011

Fjords revealed under Antarctic ice sheet Recent surveying of the East Antarctic Ice Sheet reveals a landscape of mountains and fjords, with dynamic ice sheet configurations. Saturday, 4 June 2011

UV vision helps reindeer survive in the harsh Arctic Sensitivity to the UV spectrum gives reindeer crucial extra visual information, new research shows. Thursday, 2 June 2011

The bright lights attract bats too Greater numbers of bat species are found in areas associated with human populations, according to a study published in the journal Mammalian Biology. Tuesday, 31 May 2011

Reprogrammed cells are rejected in mice Stem cells can trigger an immune reaction in the same strain of mice from which they were derived, according to a recent report. Wednesday, 25 May 2011

The last Neanderthals may have lived near the Arctic Circle The recent dating of remains from northern Russia suggests that Neanderthals may have survived near the Arctic Circle until around 31,000 to 34,000 years ago. Monday, 23 May 2011

Serendipitous supercapacitors The unexpected discovery of a new three-dimensional porous carbon material could allow supercapacitors to rival the performance of the standard lead-acid battery. Sunday, 22 May 2011

A new method to harness solar energy Scientists reporting in Nature Materials have built a prototype to show that the thermoelectric effect might provide an alternative way to generate electricity from sunlight. Saturday, 21 May 2011

Atlas of the stars An amateur astrophotographer has travelled over 60,000 miles to capture images of the stars and produce a stunning interactive atlas of the night sky. Thursday, 19 May 2011

Health risks associated with ‘new ecstasy’ revealed The serious side effects of a drug termed the ‘new ecstasy’ have been revealed through studies at Anglia Ruskin University. Tuesday, 17 May 2011

An innovation odyssey- from basic research to the world’s fastest selling consumer electronics product Review of Centre for Science and Policy ((http://www.csap.cam.ac.uk/)) Distinguished Lecture Series. 12th May 2011, Professor Chris Bishop, Microsoft Research, Cambridge. Saturday, 14 May 2011

Blind legless lizard declared a new species Zoologists in Cambodia have discovered a new species of legless lizard sheltering under a log in the Cardamom Mountains of the Phnom Samkos Wildlife Sanctuary. Friday, 13 May 2011

Study identifies recall memory in monkeys A study by scientists at Emory University suggests that rhesus monkeys are capable not only of recognising images, but also recalling them from memory. Thursday, 12 May 2011

Carbon nanotube microsensors designed to improve gas masks A new type of sensor described recently in the journal Advanced Materials could lead to safer respirators for emergency workers. Tuesday, 10 May 2011

Feature: What is going on in schizophrenic brains? Daniel Martins-de-Souza investigates the role of protein expression in cases of Schizophrenia. Monday, 9 May 2011

BlueSciFilm: Understanding ocean currents BlueSciFilm interview Natalie Roberts, PhD student in the Department of Earth Sciences at Cambridge University, about her work as a paleoceanographer, studying circulation of water around the Atlantic and its association with climate change. Monday, 9 May 2011

Weird and Wonderful A selection of the wackiest research in the world of science Saturday, 7 May 2011

Away from the Bench: Medical Writing Andy Shepherd talks to Richard Thompson about working at Caudex Medical Saturday, 7 May 2011

Technology: Computationally Challenged? Anders Aufderhorst-Roberts examines the demands of the digital economy Saturday, 7 May 2011

History: Immortal Hearts and Henrietta Nicola Stead looks back at the beginnings of cell culture Saturday, 7 May 2011

Arts & Reviews: Shadow Catchers Stephanie Glaser discovers how shadows caught by camera-less photography bring light to an image Saturday, 7 May 2011

Perspective: Common Knowledge Tim Middleton gives his perspective on access to data and the recent scandals Saturday, 7 May 2011

Behind the Science: Women Who Led the Way Jessica Robinson uncovers some of the pioneering female scientists Saturday, 7 May 2011

Focus: Small Channels, Big Ideas BlueSci explores microfluidic technology and its dazzling array of applications Saturday, 7 May 2011

Feature: Superheroes, Fact or Fiction? Mark Nicholson discovers how nature has turned fantasy into reality Saturday, 7 May 2011

Feature: Bird’s Eye View Ian Le Guillou finds out about the ‘biological compass’ of cows, crocodiles and migrating birds Saturday, 7 May 2011

Feature: The Challenge of Chocolate Rachel Berkowitz looks at the science that will allow us to make chocolate better: healthier, cheaper and as tasty as before Saturday, 7 May 2011

Feature: Mountains - Go with the Flow Alex Copley explains how fluid dynamics can help us understand geology Saturday, 7 May 2011

Feature: Between You and Me Louisa Lyon examines how distinct genomes can co-exist in an individual Saturday, 7 May 2011

Book Reviews The Humans Who Went Extinct Saturday, 7 May 2011

News: Issue 21 The Sun as we’ve never seen it before Saturday, 7 May 2011

Cover: A Prettier Shell than Ordinary Tom Ash looks into the story behind this issue’s cover image Saturday, 7 May 2011

Editorial: Issue 21 - Easter 2011 In Ink and On Paper Saturday, 7 May 2011

The singular origin of the melanic moth Scientists have identified the gene region that controls melanism in the peppered moth, a famous example of natural selection in action. They also suggest that the mutation responsible for the dark melanic form arose just once and spread throughout British populations. Friday, 6 May 2011

Antihelium discovered in STAR experiment Physicists at the Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider have detected 18 examples of antihelium, breaking their own a world record for the heaviest particle of antimatter ever found. Wednesday, 4 May 2011

Late Stone-Age enclosures for gazelle hunting identified Archaeologists have found evidence of large-scale culling of hundreds of gazelles by humans 6,000 to 10,000 years ago. Tuesday, 3 May 2011

The Human Brain Atlas The Human Brain Atlas is the first computational map of the brain, developed over four years by the Allen Institute for Brain Science in Seattle and costing $55 million ((http://www.brain-map.org/)). Saturday, 30 April 2011

Plasmonic resonances in semiconductors Scientists have demonstrated localised surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) in semiconductors, extending the range of materials that can be used for photonics and offering new possibilities for light harvesting, nonlinear optics and quantum information processes. Thursday, 28 April 2011

Feature: Man & Machine KT Roberts is surprised by the achievements of cybernetics Monday, 25 April 2011

'King of rabbits' unearthed on Minorca Palaeontologists have discovered an enormous fossil rabbit on the Spanish island of Minorca. It has been officially named Nuralagus rex, meaning ‘Minorcan hare king’. Saturday, 23 April 2011

Earliest tooth decay linked to teeth evolution A fossil recently discovered in Texas provides the earliest evidence of tooth decay in a terrestrial vertebrate. The fossilized remains... Thursday, 21 April 2011

Catchy whale tunes Humpback whale songs have been found to be transmitted culturally on a huge scale from west to east. Tuesday, 19 April 2011

Feature: The ‘Map of Life’ Further to our recent news story, Tim Middleton interviews creators of the new ‘Map of Life’ website ((http://www.mapoflife.org/index/)) and looks into the apparent absurdities and controversies of convergent evolution. Monday, 18 April 2011

Puddingstone film In this short film, Dr Bryan Lovell, President of the Geological Society of London, tells us about his favourite rock:... Sunday, 17 April 2011

Earliest non-marine multicellular life seen in Scottish fossils Large populations of diverse microfossils from lochs in the northwest of Scotland indicate that the evolution of multi-cellular organisms may have commenced on land far earlier than previously thought. Saturday, 16 April 2011

The search for antimatter This month the space shuttle Endeavour will make its final journey after a loyal 19 years service and its last... Thursday, 14 April 2011

Overprescription of pain-relief drugs Increasing prescription rates of pain-relieving drugs suggest a worrying trend of drug abuse in the United States. Friday, 8 April 2011

New maps of Earth's gravity unveiled Models illustrating the most accurate measurements ever recorded of the variation in gravity across the Earth have been unveiled at an international conference at the Technische Universitat in Munich, Germany. Monday, 4 April 2011

Renewable petroleum to the rescue Researchers at the University of Minnesota have taken a step closer to making a renewable hydrocarbon fuel. Thursday, 31 March 2011

Zoos urged to join forces in conserving biodiversity A team of scientists based in Germany are urging zoos and aquariums to collaborate in establishing breeding programmes for endangered animal species. Wednesday, 30 March 2011

A new family tree for primates A report published in the journal PLoS Genetics has produced a much-needed update of primate phylogeny. The study, which is the fruit of an international collaboration, greatly clarifies the evolutionary history of humans and our closest relatives. Sunday, 27 March 2011

Loss of a special bear The famous polar bear Knut died last Saturday at Berlin Zoo aged four years and three months. A necropsy in progress suggests he died of brain damage. Friday, 25 March 2011

Metamaterials for superheroes The invisibility cloaks of comic books may not be all that far-fetched according to a paper recently published in the journal Nature. Their origins lie with the 19th Centrury physicist James Clerk Maxwell. Thursday, 24 March 2011

New look at a bacterial weapon The needle complex that makes Salmonella and related bacteria such infectious pathogens has been modelled at the subnanometre scale. Tuesday, 22 March 2011

MESSENGER spacecraft begins historic Mercury orbit A space probe launched over six and a half years ago has achieved orbit around the planet Mercury, an engineering and scientific milestone for NASA. Monday, 21 March 2011

Neurotransmitter key to motor learning behaviour? Researchers from the University of Oxford have investigated the cellular basis of learning and have helped to explain why some people are quicker to learn piano pieces or perfect dance routines. Friday, 18 March 2011

Polymer failure Researchers at Duke University in the United States have shown for the first time how soft polymers can break down when exposed to high electric fields. Thursday, 17 March 2011

Filming inside living cells A new design of microscope has been developed which produces amazingly detailed 3-dimensional movies of live cells, and could potentially open up whole new areas of research. Wednesday, 16 March 2011

Mass extinction imminent? A mass extinction on a scale only witnessed five times in the last 540 million years could be just around the corner, scientists warn. Tuesday, 15 March 2011

Epileptic self-defence Researchers from Brown University have found that after an epileptic event the brain has the capacity to protect itself from further seizures. If this finding can be confirmed in human cases, it may provide a new approach to treat epilepsy. Monday, 14 March 2011

Cambridge launches the 'Map of Life' The University of Cambridge’s Map of Life project has gone online, aiming to draw fresh attention to the remarkable stories told by convergent evolution. Saturday, 12 March 2011

Organic monitors A completely organic series of compounds are being developed to make display screens cheaper, more efficient and more flexible. Friday, 11 March 2011

Egyptians first to use prosthetics A researcher from the University of Manchester believes that two artificial toes dating from before 600BC may have been the world’s earliest functional prosthetic body parts. Thursday, 10 March 2011

Last flight of Discovery NASA’s workhorse, ambassador, scientist and equal opportunity emissary the Space Shuttle Discovery today completes its final mission. Wednesday, 9 March 2011

Brain matter makes the mind A multi-institutional group of researchers from the University of Melbourne Neuropsychiatry Centre have uncovered a possible basis for differences in mental abilities by identifying links between genetic makeup and the efficiency of brain function. Tuesday, 8 March 2011

Avoiding stereotypes Researchers from the University of Michigan have developed a method that uses novel organic catalysts to produce pure chiral products... Monday, 7 March 2011

World-leading computer vision techniques used to create giant sculpture Software developed by a team of engineers from the University of Cambridge has been used by the artist Antony Gormley to create a 60-tonne monumental sculpture. Sunday, 6 March 2011

Sitting is not so pretty A long-term study on the associations between sedentary behaviour and mortality has suggested that the amount of time people spend sitting down has an effect on their lifespan that is independent of the amount of physical exercise they take. Friday, 4 March 2011

How much is too much? Phosphorus is now one of the major causes of water pollution in the Western world. A new study has found... Wednesday, 2 March 2011

Disease epidemic endangers bats Bats play an important role in controlling insect pests and are an integral part of cave ecosystems, but some populations in North America are facing endangerment or extinction due to a disease epidemic. Monday, 28 February 2011

Spacecraft that think for themselves Scientists at the University of Southampton have developed a new control system for spacecraft, allowing them to make decisions more independently than ever before using artificially intelligent ‘sysbrains’ ((http://www.sesnet.soton.ac.uk/people/smv/avs_lab/index.htm)). Saturday, 26 February 2011

The 'bear' necessities of hibernation “I wish I could hibernate like a bear this winter!” This sentiment is often expressed by Cambridge University students as they slog through the darkest moments of their degrees. But they might want to reassess what “hibernate like a bear” really means. Thursday, 24 February 2011

Pollen discovered to be a new line of plant defence Ecologists from Zurich have shown that flowering plants produce chemical defences in their pollen that prevent bees from being too... Tuesday, 22 February 2011

New class of magnetic atomic clusters discovered Atomic clusters are particles containing a small number of atoms, which often possess unique properties that make them different from... Sunday, 20 February 2011

Twirly-whirly electrons Transmission electron microscopes (TEM) are used to study and image a wide variety of materials due to their sub-nanometre resolving power. In a TEM electrons are shot through an object and adsorption, deflection and energy loss of the electrons is measured. Saturday, 19 February 2011

New strategy to engineer universal vascular grafts The need for donor organs and tissues for transplants is a well known and so far unsolved problem. Patients suffering from... Wednesday, 16 February 2011

Eggs show arctic mercury cycling may be linked to ice cover A team of researchers has used seabird eggs to suggest that the level of mercury cycling in the flora and fauna of the Arctic is related to the amount of ice cover. Sunday, 13 February 2011

Can meditation change your brain? Meditation has been used for thousands of years in religious rituals and as an aid to relaxation and thought. A... Friday, 11 February 2011

New theory reveals fractal nature of arithmetic A full mathematical description of partition numbers, the basis for addition, has long eluded mathematicians. Ken Ono of Emory University... Tuesday, 8 February 2011

Deep space monitored by world’s largest telescope Giant radio telescopes in the Netherlands, France, Germany and the United Kingdom have been used together for the first time... Saturday, 5 February 2011

New hope for the hard of hearing The problem of progressive hearing loss affects a large proportion of the population, young and old, but findings released recently from... Thursday, 3 February 2011

London’s top secret discovery Security service helicopters circle MI6 headquarters, armed police surround the building and all the while a small team are busy... Monday, 31 January 2011

Weird and Wonderful A selection of the wackiest research in the world of science Saturday, 29 January 2011

Away from the Bench: In the Driving Seat Rosie Robison recounts her experience working at the Parliamentary Office of Science and Technology Saturday, 29 January 2011

Technology: Mind Games Tom Ash looks into the development of computer systems that can receive commands directly from the brain Saturday, 29 January 2011

History: The Great Trigonometrical Survey Tim Middleton explores how India was mapped and the world’s tallest mountain named Saturday, 29 January 2011

Arts & Reviews: This is Your Brain on Mozart Lindsey Nield discovers the hidden power of music Saturday, 29 January 2011

Perspective: Test Tube Babies Sara Lejon gives her perspective on Nobel prize winning in vitro fertilisation technology Saturday, 29 January 2011

Behind the Science: An Ordinary Genius Ian Fyfe uncovers the personal life of Albert Einstein Saturday, 29 January 2011

Focus: Life Will Find a Way Worlds on worlds are rolling ever Saturday, 29 January 2011

Feature: Climbing Space Mark Nicholson discusses the science behind the fiction of the space elevator Saturday, 29 January 2011

Feature: Eradicating Rinderpest Paul Simpson looks at the history of a quietly devastating disease Saturday, 29 January 2011

Feature: The Science of Significance Annabelle Painter shows how the amygdala may be key to culture, spirituality and identity Saturday, 29 January 2011

Feature: The Blue Screen of Death Wing Yung Chan traces the imperfect path to the perfect program Saturday, 29 January 2011

Feature: Cell Talk Rhea Chatterjea explores the medical frontiers of gap junction research Saturday, 29 January 2011

Book Reviews Discoveries of the Census of Marine Life: Making Ocean Life Count Saturday, 29 January 2011

News: Issue 20 Benefits to weaker immune system Saturday, 29 January 2011

Cover: Of Minerals and Meteorites Richard Thomson looks into the story behind this issue’s cover image Saturday, 29 January 2011

Editorial: Issue 20 - Lent 2011 Taylor Burns, Editor Saturday, 29 January 2011

The dawn of dinosaurs A new dinosaur has been discovered in Argentina ((Ricardo N. Martinez et al., “A Basal Dinosaur from the Dawn of... Saturday, 29 January 2011

Feature: Bringing Science and Politics Together Nina Klein reveals what she learnt as an intern with the Centre for Science and Policy Wednesday, 26 January 2011

Small-scale earthquakes hit Britain Mention earthquakes and most people will think of places such as Japan and California, where major damaging earthquakes happen once... Wednesday, 26 January 2011

Features and Cover Images Needed for Next Issue We are now accepting feature article submissions for the next issue of Monday, 24 January 2011

Tsunami warning systems Six years have passed since the Boxing Day tsunami disaster which claimed 5,400 victims and devastated coastlines of Thailand, Indian,... Sunday, 23 January 2011

BlueSciFilm: Insights into human motor control Our very own BlueSciFilm interview Daniel Wolpert, Professor of Engineering at Cambridge University, about humans, robots and motor control. Wednesday, 19 January 2011

FIT incentives and free solar panels Feed-In Tariffs (FITs) were introduced in April 2010 to encourage homeowners to generate their own electricity. Technologies such as solar... Tuesday, 18 January 2011

An average approach to managing risk New research suggests that there may be a serious flaw in the way that many investors approach risk. A report... Friday, 14 January 2011

Enjoying the VISTA 2011 is already proving to be a significant year for astronomy. In addition to a conjunction of the planets, a partial solar eclipse and the Quadrantid meteor shower we have obtained spectacular new images of both the Andromeda galaxy and our home galaxy, the Milky Way. Tuesday, 11 January 2011

Neural mechanisms link sleep, general anaesthesia and coma General anaesthetics are widely administered to patients before surgery. While anaesthesia is often referred to as “sleep”, the process is... Sunday, 9 January 2011

The goldilocks body temperature A new mathematical model has shed light on why mammals spend so much energy staying warm-blooded, a phenomenon that has long been poorly understood. Friday, 7 January 2011

Hope in the water 2010 was a year for extreme weather including some of the strongest illustrations of the global environmental crisis. As the country recovers from the “big freeze” it is reassuring that, at least in small ways, we are improving the world around us. Thursday, 6 January 2011

Blue light to combat cancer A team of researchers, led by the University of Warwick, have developed a new light-activated, platinum-cased, anti-cancer drug. The drug... Wednesday, 5 January 2011

Scientific balloons launched from Antarctica NASA and the National Science Foundation of the United States are launching a series of large high-altitude scientific balloons on... Tuesday, 4 January 2011

Feature: The secret life of an element Katarzyna Kopanska examines the importance of a well-known element. Monday, 3 January 2011

“Living” rock art The Bradshaw rock art in the Kimberly region of Australia is of interest to archaeologists, not only because of its... Sunday, 2 January 2011

POSTS FROM 2010

How many lightbulbs? Cambridge University physicist, David Mackay, offers a passionate yet simple, quantitative analysis of the energy crisis in the UK. The film is based on his book "Sustainable Energy without the hot air", which is available free on his website. Friday, 31 December 2010

Feature: Aliens found using arsenic - fact or fiction? Wendy Mak investigates the supposed arsenic loving bacteria. Tuesday, 28 December 2010

A sustainable Christmas? Tucking into second helpings of turkey? Why not treat yourself to another glass of Chardonnay and turn the thermostat up... Sunday, 26 December 2010

Right or left handling at birth: does it matter? <img class="size-medium wp-image-703" title="From: http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Baby%27s_hand.JPG" src="http://www.bluesci.org/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2010/12/babys-hand-225x300.jpg" alt="" width="225" height="300" /> Wednesday, 22 December 2010

To soar or to flap? Large birds, such as storks and hawks, have long been known for choosing to soar and glide on thermal currents... Tuesday, 21 December 2010

Carbon hot-house planet examined by NASA’s Spitzer The blazing-hot exoplanet Wasp 12b has revealed its black stripes as its carbon-rich composition helps it live up to its... Saturday, 18 December 2010

Creative problem-solving for computers Have you ever had one of those ‘light bulb moments’ - flashes of insight that present you with an instant... Friday, 17 December 2010

New paradigm for cancer therapies Cancer treatments could undergo a complete transformation in the way they are designed in an attempt to significantly improve their... Thursday, 16 December 2010

Shrinking the mosquito population Another weapon in the war against mosquito-borne diseases could be on the horizon. Researchers at Riverside Lab in California have... Wednesday, 15 December 2010

Haitian outbreak of cholera likely originated from South Asian source Following the earthquake in Haiti in January 2010, thousands of families were displaced from their homes and were forced to... Wednesday, 15 December 2010

90GB of data stored in 1g of bacteria Researchers from the Chinese University of Hong Kong have succeeded in demonstrating data storage and encryption with bacteria. Monday, 13 December 2010

One step closer to nano-machines A team of scientists, led by Johannes Barth at TU Muenchen, have succeeded in the self-assembly of rod-shaped molecules to form nano-rotors within a honeycomb structure. Sunday, 12 December 2010

Networks that make up the mind We spend much of our lives making decisions, most of which occur in a fraction of a second. This involves... Friday, 10 December 2010

Bacterial romance? A new study, published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, suggests that the bacteria living inside the guts of fruit flies have an effect on the choice of mates made by the host organism – potentially leading to the development of a new theory of evolution. Thursday, 9 December 2010

Closing the gender gap Education researchers from the University of Colorado at Boulder have claimed success in reducing the gender performance gap in physics exams using only a simple writing exercise. Tuesday, 7 December 2010

Space observations show warming of Earth’s lakes Scientists at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory have used satellite nighttime thermal infrared imagery to measure the surface temperature of inland lakes over the period 1985 to 2009. The data show an average rate of warming of 0.045oC per year. Monday, 6 December 2010

Let there be light Scientists from the University of Bonn in Germany have developed an entirely new source of light, based on a quantum... Saturday, 4 December 2010

Oldest known salt mine found in Azerbaijan Rock salt deposits at Duzdagi, in the Araxes basin in Azerbaijan, have been found to have been exploited as early... Thursday, 2 December 2010

The mammals' time to shine It has long been suspected that the dinosaurs’ demise at the end of the Cretaceous period made way for the... Sunday, 28 November 2010

Weird and Wonderful A selection of the wackiest research in the world of science Tuesday, 9 November 2010

Book Reviews The Cambridge Companion to Science and Religion Tuesday, 9 November 2010

Technology: Ready to Go Paperless? Wing Ying Chow investigates the advantages of electronic lab notebooks Tuesday, 9 November 2010

History: Boosting Your Defence Stephanie Glaser travels back through the history of vaccinations Monday, 8 November 2010

Arts & Reviews: Modern World, Modern Art Ian Fyfe explores the way in which science and technology have revolutionised fine art Sunday, 7 November 2010

Perspective: Saving Species Imogen Ogilvie gives her perspective on conservation and asks whether it is worth trying to conserve species at all Sunday, 7 November 2010

Away from the Bench: Are You Receiving Me? Sarah Leigh-Brown travels to London to see how the BBC produces the science radio programme Material World Sunday, 7 November 2010

Behind the Science: The Man Who Weighed The Earth Anders Aufderhorst-Roberts describes the life of the eccentric genius Henry Cavendish Sunday, 7 November 2010

Focus: Gene Therapy BlueSci explores the development of gene therapy, the remaining challenges and the recent triumphs Sunday, 7 November 2010

Feature: Out of Body Experiences Celia St John-Green discusses the science behind out of body experiences Sunday, 7 November 2010

Feature: Cherish Your Enemies Olivier Restif explains why we should learn to live with our pathogens Sunday, 7 November 2010

Feature: The Transformation of Archaeology Maggie Jack digs into the techniques of archaeology, how they are evolving and how this may help us to answer questions like “who killed King Tut?” Sunday, 7 November 2010

Feature: Ocean Acidification Matthew Humphreys examines the impact of carbon dioxide on the oceans Sunday, 7 November 2010

Feature: Forgotten Knowledge Andrew Holding looks at the discovery and loss of a cure for scurvy Sunday, 7 November 2010

Pavilion: Issue 19 Fish vertebrae – unlike mammalian bones – grow in a layered manner, much like tree rings. Isotopic analysis of the... Sunday, 7 November 2010

News: Issue 19 The first non-human, non-verbal dictionary has been created at the University of St Andrews. Erica Cartmill and Richard Byrne spent nine months observing orangutans and trying to discern a lexicon of gestures and signals. Sunday, 7 November 2010

Cover: Manipulating Behaviour Lindsey Nield looks into the story behind this issue’s cover image Sunday, 7 November 2010

Editorial: Issue 19 - Michaelmas 2010 As England descends back into winter and its inhabitants are once again embraced by perpetual gloom, we thought it might cheer you up to read about what science is doing to improve humanity’s lot. Sunday, 7 November 2010

New site update Please bear with us whilst we update the new website. Saturday, 30 October 2010

New model for vertebrate jaw evolution A team of international scientists have proposed a novel model for jaw evolution that contradicts previous understanding. Tuesday, 12 October 2010

Icy Mars mystery - solved? Scientists believe that they have finally found a theory to explain the phenomena of disappearing ice on Mars, also shedding light on the planet's water cycle. Monday, 11 October 2010

Lower suicide rates not necessarily linked to antidepressant switch Neither a rapid increase in the total use of antidepressants nor a decline in potentially toxic ones are related to a simultaneous drop in suicide rates, according to a study analysing drug sales and causes-of-death registers in Nordic countries over the past 30 years. Saturday, 9 October 2010

On the origin of complexity Theoretical models have suggested that complexity comes with a cost, and the simplest organisms are the best at adapting to their environment. How then, have the most complex plants and animals evolved? Friday, 8 October 2010

Quarks: strange, colourful and now, apparently, dancing randomly The world of quarks is a bizarre one. Seemingly everyday words are employed to provide tangible names for otherwise abstract... Friday, 8 October 2010

Early nutrition affects male maturity and differences between sexes Recent research from Northwestern University (Philippines) finds that early infant nutrition strongly shapes the sexual and biological fitness of adult males. Wednesday, 6 October 2010

Control your emotion or it will control you Although the Chinese adage does not allude to voluntarily controlling local brain activity, researchers have found that this is the key to tempering feelings. Tuesday, 5 October 2010

Human cytomegalovirus genome cloned By reconstructing a complete viral genome, British-based scientists have greatly improved the clinical relevance of fundamental research on a leading cause of congenital disability. Tuesday, 5 October 2010

New mathematical model to aid biodiversity conservation A new theory of species diversity has been developed that predicts the number of species in an ecological community by mathematically accounting for the interdependent properties of individual species as well as those of the environment. Thursday, 30 September 2010

A break-down in communications Climate change. Nuclear power. GM crops. Vaccines. Why is it that the general public is so often divided on issues that scientific experts largely agree on? Tuesday, 28 September 2010

Leaner, meaner, faster, stronger Wouldn't it be great if we can have denser, stronger bones, but also be leaner and weigh less? While it may sound like a gym advertisement, a group of researchers in Maine have found a protein that achieves this in mice. Tuesday, 14 September 2010

The vascular endothelial cell and its growth factor Both have been connected to lung diseases, and have therefore shed light on potential treatments. Tuesday, 14 September 2010

Song of a distant star could solve mysteries close to home By eavesdropping on far-away stars, scientists hope to better understand the Sun's magnetic properties and its influence on our lives. Monday, 13 September 2010

The Environmentalist's Paradox: Why are we still doing so well? Humankind is responsible for causing considerable damage to many of the planet's ecosystems. According to environmentalists, this degradation should also be having a negative effect on our own well-being. But it's not. What's going on? Thursday, 9 September 2010

Links between iron deficiency and Chronic Heart Failure syndrome established Low iron in red blood cells causes anaemia and may be linked to heart failure Wednesday, 8 September 2010

Global CO₂ emissions on the decline Recent measures show the global financial crisis leading to this decade's first drop in carbon dioxide emissions from fossil fuel consumption. Tuesday, 7 September 2010

New infrared technique could help to understand cancer Chemists have developed a new technique using infrared light to study the behaviour of lysosomes more clearly and extensively than ever before, potentially taking the fight against cancer and many other diseases to another level. Sunday, 5 September 2010

Why matter matters: a new kind of physics? Particle collision experiments reveal inadequacies in existing theory. Thursday, 2 September 2010

Sun + Plastic Sheet = Energy Researchers from the University of Cambridge have developed a major improvement for organic solar cells, reporting their results in the... Tuesday, 31 August 2010

Nourishing the ageing brain Research findings suggest new links between B vitamin deficiency and the degeneration of the ageing brain. Thursday, 26 August 2010

Earliest Animals Discovered Princeton University geoscientists have discovered what they believe to be the earliest body-fossil evidence of animal life. Monday, 23 August 2010

Species in the Soil Research in the Panamanian rainforest shows that soil-dwelling organisms promote local species richness and keep the rare trees rare. Sunday, 15 August 2010

Carbonate rocks and life on Mars? Scientists writing in Earth and Planetary Science Letters ((Adrian J. Brown et al., “Hydrothermal formation of Clay-Carbonate alteration assemblages in... Tuesday, 10 August 2010

Culture: Shaping the brain Psychological scientists have reported growing evidence that different cultures can have a marked effect on fundamental brain function and structure. Monday, 9 August 2010

Disease and the dysfunctions of metabolism Researchers at Harvard and Boston University have found that the different pathways of the human metabolic network interact and induce deep epistasis, the suppression of a mutation by one or more seemingly unrelated genes. Monday, 9 August 2010

Temperature toggles learning in flies Scientists at the Max Planck Institute for Neurobiology in Germany have used a non-invasive technique to pinpoint neurons required for... Saturday, 31 July 2010

Continuing education can compensate for dementia symptoms Researchers have found that increased education is connected to reduced chance of showing dementia symptoms, suggesting increased schooling to have a compensatory effect on the brain. Tuesday, 27 July 2010

The passion and profession of Richard Ernst On Wednesday 7 July, an audience of over a thousand scientists gathered to hear Nobel laureate Richard Ernst talk about the scientific investigations on Tibetian religious paintings known as thangkas. Tuesday, 20 July 2010

Revolutionising life Researchers have discovered 2.1 billion year-old fossils that answer new questions about the origins of life on Earth ((Abderrazak El... Monday, 5 July 2010

The Casanova antidote: how testosterone increases skepticism in women's perception of men Dutch researchers have demonstrated that testosterone, which is suggested to have antagonistic properties to oxytocin, downgrades interpersonal trust and enhances... Wednesday, 30 June 2010

Pigeons carry harmful pathogens Feral pigeons could be asymptomatic or subclinical carriers of the pathogens Chlamydophila psittaci and Campylobacter jejuni, responsible for acute diarrhea in humans. Tuesday, 29 June 2010

Brain's Expectations A damaged prefrontal cortex leads to impaired preparation and reaction speeds in response to a stimulus. Monday, 21 June 2010

Natural selection in favour of specialisation Despite outliving the Ice Age, the Hundsheim rhinoceros rapidly disappeared without any effective changes to its environment, becoming foe to... Monday, 21 June 2010

Life on Mars? New evidence reinvigorates old questions. High-levels of carbonate minerals suggest a more favourable environment for life in the Red Planet's past. Friday, 18 June 2010

Scientists create artificial mini black hole Chinese researchers at the Southeast University in Nanjing have successfully built an electromagnetic absorbing device for microwave frequencies. They have utilised the special properties of metamaterials- a class of ordered composites which can distort light and other waves. Monday, 14 June 2010

Reef restoration: cheap and simple solutions Researchers from the University of Rhode Island have found that coral reef conservation can be achieved successfully through transplantation of fragmented corals. Sunday, 13 June 2010

Call for citizen scientists An international team with researchers fthe UK, Australia and China consider how our views of biodiversity can be distorted by the data we look at. Monday, 7 June 2010

Disease resistance; not always a bonus. Scientists from the Max Planck Institute of Developmental Biology in Germany have explained an evolutionary dilemma in Nature ((Marco Todesco... Thursday, 3 June 2010

Bold geese trust themselves A team of researchers from the Netherlands have fround that the personality of barnacle geese can affect how they use social information ((Ralf H. J. M. Kurvers et al., “Personality predicts the use of social information,” Ecology Letters 13, no. 7 (2010): 829-837.)). Tuesday, 1 June 2010

How nature's colours could cut bank fraud Scientists have discovered a way of mimicking the stunningly bright and beautiful colours found on the wings of tropical butterflies. The findings could have important applications in the security printing industry, helping to make bank notes and credit cards harder to forge. Monday, 31 May 2010

The little things count Psychologists in California and North Carolina have conducted an in-depth study into how the emotion of gratitude can boost romantic... Thursday, 27 May 2010

Important enzyme for TB found Researchers from the USA and Singapore have demonstrated that the enzyme PEPCK (phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase), plays a pivotal role in the... Monday, 24 May 2010

Smallpox vaccine provides protection against HIV A research study published in Biomed Central (BMC) Immunology by scientists from George Mason University, George Washington University and the... Monday, 24 May 2010

Silk is the secret to honeycomb strength Engineers from China and Cardiff have uncovered the microscopic structure of honeycomb, which is responsible for its impressive mechanical properties... Thursday, 20 May 2010

Stop ageing. Run a marathon! Researchers in Italy have found that running a marathon stops the cellular processes which lead to cell death ((Gabriella Marfe... Monday, 17 May 2010

By the Pricking of My Thumbs, Something Fishy This Way Comes Sharks have a notoriously sensitive sense of smell and can smell a drop of blood from a kilometre away. Researchers have been finding out how. Friday, 14 May 2010

Bio-Gels for Drug Delivery Scientists at Ajou University in South Korea have designed a material that forms a gel in vivo and releases protein... Monday, 10 May 2010

Human Hybrid The first draft of the Neanderthal genome, published in Science this week, provides evidence of interbreeding with our Homo sapiens ancestors ((R. E. Green et al., “A Draft Sequence of the Neandertal Genome,” Science 328, no. 5979 (2010): 710-722.)). Sunday, 9 May 2010

Superhydrophobic fern gives clue to help ships economise on fuel Researchers from Bonn, Rostoc and Karlsruhe have deciphered how the water fern Salvinia molesta manages to keep its super hydrophobic... Friday, 7 May 2010

Elegant Folding of Pollen Grains The structures adopted by pollen grains as they dry out have been analysed and modelled by a team of physicists... Wednesday, 5 May 2010

Name That Audio File Engineers at the University of Jaen have developed a system that can automatically identify the musical notes in an audio... Tuesday, 4 May 2010

Letters Your questions answered by Dr I.M. Derisive Monday, 3 May 2010

Book Reviews Logicomix: An Epic Search for Truth Monday, 3 May 2010

Technology: Lighting Up Disease Lindsey Nield sheds light on the uses of biomarkers Monday, 3 May 2010

History: Increasing the Yield Alex Jenkin looks at the past, present and future of agriculture Monday, 3 May 2010

Arts & Reviews: Movements Frozen in Time Swetha Suresh examines a unique juxtaposition of science and art that reveals the intricacies of movement Monday, 3 May 2010

Away from the Bench: Fluids and Foggaras Djuke Veldhuis descends into the watering holes of the ancient Garamantes Monday, 3 May 2010

Perspective: Funding in Crisis? Gemma Thornton gives her perspective on the future of scientific funding Monday, 3 May 2010

Behind the Science: The People’s Palaeontologist Taylor Burns describes the life behind the science of Stephen Jay Gould Monday, 3 May 2010

Focus: Lasers - Guiding us into the Future BlueSci looks at how this physicist’s toy has become the tool of choice in so many areas of life and how they may play a vital role in solving the impending energy crisis. Monday, 3 May 2010

Feature: I Think, Therefore I Am? Rupak Doshi investigates how scientists hope to find an answer to an ancient philosophical debate Monday, 3 May 2010

Feature: Never-Ending Hunger Kate McAllister looks into Prader-Willi Syndrome and the insatiable desire to eat Monday, 3 May 2010

Feature: The High Stakes of Earthquakes Owen Weller reports on the devastation of seismic activity and the work invested in preparing for the fallout Monday, 3 May 2010

Feature: Not All in the Mind? Ryan Breslin discusses the mechanism of placebo pain relief and whether or not we should exploit it Monday, 3 May 2010

Feature: In Search of the $1000 Genome Elizabeth Batty outlines the race for cheaper genome sequencing Monday, 3 May 2010

Pavilion: Issue 18 Sharks possess a skeleton that is made almost entirely of cartilage. Clearing the tissue and staining the remaining cartilage reveals forms of increasingly delicate intricacy. Monday, 3 May 2010

News: Issue 18 Morphogenesis on a tight leash Monday, 3 May 2010

Cover: New Neurons From Old Jessica Robinson reviews the story behind this issue’s cover image Monday, 3 May 2010

Editorial: Issue 18 - Easter 2010 Gemma Thornton, Editor Monday, 3 May 2010

Haemophiliac mice lead the way to safer cures by eating their greens Researchers from Florida have developed a new way of delivering protein replacements for treating diseases such as haemophilia, without triggering... Friday, 30 April 2010

Smells classified by neuronal patterns Recent research by scientists at the Friedrich Miescher Institute for Biomedical Research (FMI) has shed new light upon the neurological mechanisms behind our sense of smell. Friday, 30 April 2010

Is That Egg Mine? At the Max Planck Institute for Ornithology in Germany, a flock of zebra finches are getting a little bit confused... Wednesday, 28 April 2010

Letters Your questions answered by Dr I M Derisive Monday, 4 January 2010

Book Reviews Why We Disagree About Climate Change Monday, 4 January 2010

Technology: Computing in the Cloud Fernando Ramos looks to the future of web technology Monday, 4 January 2010

History: The Nature of the Beast Lindsey Nield traces the contributions and controversies in the history of animal research Monday, 4 January 2010

Arts & Reviews: A Significant Interaction Cat Davies talks to Nicola Clayton, Professor of Comparative Cognition and Fellow at Clare College, about her collaboration with the Rambert Dance Company Monday, 4 January 2010

Away from the Bench: An Ancestor's Tools Kathelijne Koops roams the African rainforest to study chimpanzee culture Monday, 4 January 2010

Perspective: Faith in Science Ian Fyfe gives his perspective on why rejecting religion is bad for science Monday, 4 January 2010

Behind the Science: Joker, Womaniser... Physicist? Jake Harris looks at the life behind the science of Richard Feynman Monday, 4 January 2010

Focus: The End of Ageing? BlueSci looks at the biology of ageing, how research is helping us to understand and overcome it and the impact on society if we could live longer. Monday, 4 January 2010

Feature: Teaching Computers to Speak Anja Komatar examines the process of combining machine systems and human-like language Monday, 4 January 2010

Feature: Have We Got a Pill For You? Warren Hochfeld explores the inadequacies of prescription drugs Monday, 4 January 2010

Feature: Mind Over Matter Amy Miller considers why science and maths can be so hard to learn Monday, 4 January 2010

Feature: The Perfect Conductor Jack Gillett discusses the current uses and potential of superconductivity Monday, 4 January 2010

Feature: Getting the Girl Natalie Lawrence illustrates the bizarre mating habits of the animal kingdom Monday, 4 January 2010

Pavilion: Issue 17 In chemistry, highly complex behaviour can follow from a number of simple rules. Drawings can be made by looking at the ways of developing complex, and profound, patterns from simple structures and techniques. Monday, 4 January 2010

News: Issue 17 The fall of the Nazcas Monday, 4 January 2010

Cover: Habitat Hopping Katherine Thomas examines how frogs are responding to conservation efforts Monday, 4 January 2010

Editorial: Issue 17 - Lent 2010 Ten years into the new millennium, it is becoming more important than ever for scientists to think about the context... Monday, 4 January 2010

POSTS FROM 2009

Spying on catalysts A new method for measuring catalytic activity has been developed using nanoparticles ((E. M. Larsson et al., “Nanoplasmonic Probes of Catalytic Reactions,” Science 326, no. 5956 (2009): 1091-1094.)). Friday, 30 October 2009

Letters Your questions answered by I.M. Derisive. Thursday, 1 October 2009

Book Reviews The Lives of Ants - Laurent Keller and Elisabeth Gordon Thursday, 1 October 2009

Technology: Robotic Scientists Rose Spear meets Adam, the first of a new generation of electronic scientists. Thursday, 1 October 2009

History: Bringing Elements to the Table Lindsey Nield tracks the evolution of the periodic table. Thursday, 1 October 2009

Arts & Reviews: The Perfect Melody Amy Chesterton looks at the mathematics behind a perfect tune. Thursday, 1 October 2009

Away From the Bench Alison Peel braves the wilds of Africa to look at the spread of viruses in bats. Thursday, 1 October 2009

A Day in the Life of: The Great Beyond Chris Adriaanse and Sonia Aguera talk to Jim Bagian about becoming an astronaut. Thursday, 1 October 2009

Initiatives: Tackling Tuberculosis Sahil Kirpekar and Ali Ansary introduce their innovative strategy for tackling the challenges of drug delivery for recovering turberculosis patients. Thursday, 1 October 2009

Focus: The Manhattan Project As the UK government continues discussion on the renewal of Trident, our missile-based nuclear weapons arsenal, Bluesci looks back on the only two bombs ever to be used in war and Britain’s role as a nuclear power. Thursday, 1 October 2009

Feature: A Revolution in Substance Nicholas Gibbons explains how metamaterials can reveal what we can’t see and make what we can see invisible. Thursday, 1 October 2009

Feature: The Protecting Virus Chih-Chin (Kevin) Chen discusses the latest hope in the fight against the flu virus. Thursday, 1 October 2009

Feature: Seeing the Invisible Bárbara Ferreira tackles the misconception surrounding black holes and describes how scientists can ‘see’ them. Thursday, 1 October 2009

Feature: Evolution Inside Us Robert Williams looks at the incredible feat of B Lymphocytes. Thursday, 1 October 2009

Feature: The Extinction of Physics? Frederik Floether examines whether a Theory of Everything could lead to the demise of a discipline. Thursday, 1 October 2009

Pavillion: Issue 16 The golden ratio is an irrational inherent aesthetic preference. It can be found in paintings by Leonardo Da Vinci, the violins of Stradivarius, the Pantheon, the Great Pyramids of Giza, Stonehenge, your body and all of nature. Thursday, 1 October 2009

News: Issue 16 Cambridge designed solar car unveiled Thursday, 1 October 2009

Cover: Unstable Research Katherine Thomas on the physics behind the cover image. Thursday, 1 October 2009

Editorial: Issue 16 - Michaelmas 2009 Katherine Thomas, Issue Editor Thursday, 1 October 2009

POSTS FROM 2007

New Insight on Bone Structure Cambridge researchers have edged tantalisingly closer to understanding the complex causes of some debilitating bone diseases. Saturday, 27 October 2007

Males evolved to die young Cambridge scientists have found that fighting for mates might have made males evolve to die young Saturday, 27 October 2007

Cambridge scientists win 'Research Team of the Year' The 2007 award was presented at the House of Lords for outstanding contribution to research of breast cancer Friday, 26 October 2007

Nanotubes made easier A new process for manufacturing carbon nanotubes could lead to their widespread use in applications such as body armour Friday, 26 October 2007

Scientists come one step closer to achieving invisibility A computer model shows how still objects can be made invisible by bending light without diffraction Friday, 11 May 2007

Museums and Galleries month Cambridge offers the chance to discover some of its hidden gems this National Museums and Galleries month Friday, 11 May 2007

First marsupial genome sequenced An international collaboration of researchers has successfully sequenced the genome of a female, grey, short-tailed opossum (Monodelphis domestica) Friday, 11 May 2007

Plants don't emit methane Dutch scientists have contested recent discoveries that plants emit methane, a potent greenhouse gas Friday, 4 May 2007

Earth Mark II Astronomers have discovered an Earth-like planet: Gliese 581, which might support life Friday, 4 May 2007

BlueSci News on Holiday BlueSci News is not regularly updated during the exam period or the summer holiday. Weekly news updates (every Friday) will continue next term Thursday, 12 April 2007

POSTS FROM 2006

Alternative Energy Poised for Take-off Speakers from academia and industry argued that alternative energy sources such as wind power are now commercially viable, or very... Friday, 6 October 2006

Indecisive River The course of the River Nile changes more than previously thought, sweeping rapidly across its valley at rates of up... Friday, 6 October 2006

It's Official: Cambridge People are Swots Cambridge scientists were celebrating this week, with both students and academics winning awards for excellence in research Friday, 6 October 2006

First BlueSci Workshop on Tuesday The first of our weekly training workshops will be held next Tuesday, 17th October. All members, or prospective members, are invited to attend Thursday, 5 October 2006

We Are Having a Month Off BlueSci Online News is having a month off. The news will return in SeptemberOver the next month, we will be... Thursday, 10 August 2006

Meerkats Ain't So Meek When pregnant, dominant female meerkats harass their subordinates so much that they become temporarily infertile, according to a new study from the Department of Zoology Thursday, 10 August 2006

The Bees and the Flowers Cambridge scientists have shown that bumblebees associate the colours of flowers with the temperature of their nectar and preferentially choose ‘warmer’ flowers Thursday, 10 August 2006

Infection with Salmonella can Prevent Diabetes in Mice A new study by Cambridge researchers has shown that infection with a live but weakened form of Salmonella typhimurium can prevent the onset of diabetes in a mouse model of the disease Thursday, 10 August 2006

Alcohol Factbox 1. Britain’s binge drinking culture is costing the country £20 billion a year Thursday, 1 June 2006

Building With Biology In the summer of 2005 we worked within a team of Cambridge undergraduates to produce the UK’s first entry for the annual International Genetically Engineered Machine (iGEM) competition Sunday, 21 May 2006

Dude, Where's My Phone? Ramsey Faragher pin-points the latest innovation in mobile phone technology Sunday, 21 May 2006

Dr Hypothesis If you have any worries (purely of a scientific nature, obviously) that you would like Dr Hypothesis to answer, then... Wednesday, 17 May 2006

Our Second-Hand Universe A cyclic universe, bouncing through a series of ‘Big Bangs’ and ‘Big Crunches’, could solve the mystery of the cosmological constant Thursday, 11 May 2006

POSTS FROM 2001

Pioneering colour photography from Russia Pioneering colour photography from Russia Monday, 7 May 2001

Mir reentry on Friday morning Space station Mir will provide a spectacular celestial event as it finishes a 15-year service this Friday morning, according to... Thursday, 22 March 2001

John Sulston receives knighthood Contributed by Sphyg Monday, 1 January 2001

POSTS FROM 2000

Biomail - Medline references by email Contributed by Sphyg Saturday, 16 December 2000

The Internet: Past, present and future Centred around the talk by Dr. Vinton Cerf (inventor of TCP/IP which is the basic technology of the Net), this is an account of the development of the Internet from its experimental military roots, through its present popularity and commercialism, to the space age Wednesday, 6 December 2000

Tetrachromat female found Tetrachromat female found Tuesday, 5 December 2000

Protein folding@home Contributed by Sphyg Friday, 24 November 2000

Brane new world of higher dimensions Why are there exactly three dimensions of space? Can there be more? These questions may lead to surprising consequences in our understanding of space and matter Thursday, 23 November 2000

Seven new Top Level Domains (TLD's) have been decided ICANN have finally made a decision on the next 7 Top Level Domain names (TLD's) and the uses for them... Saturday, 18 November 2000

How to avoid online fraud I want to understand more about online security. I want to know about the best systems and how they work,... Wednesday, 1 November 2000

Microsoft's network cracked On Wednesday 25 October, Microsoft found its network had been attacked by crackers who had managed to read the source code of a new piece of software Tuesday, 31 October 2000

Space probe communications trouble from the Doppler effect ESA's Huygens probe which is to explore Saturn's moon Titan in 2004, is expected to have communications problems due to Doppler effect, an elementary physical phenomenon that could have been predicted Saturday, 28 October 2000

Open Source software: the true alternative in computing, featuring Linux The open source model, promoted by a geek community since the dawn of computing, is finally going mainstream to revolutionize the software industry. What does it mean, and how did it all happen? Friday, 27 October 2000

Coordinating the activities of site developers If three people are jointly working on a site, and doing so remotely, how do they coordinate their efforts so... Friday, 27 October 2000

What happens when I post an article? The full text appears here. Thursday, 26 October 2000

First Steps for Posting Comments and Stories Why have a user area? Convenience. You have your own place and you can control it; you can save your... Thursday, 26 October 2000

The bluesci team Pronounced 'blue sky', this site aims to bring clarity and depth to Cambridge science and technology articles. It has been created by the following people: Monday, 23 October 2000

The making of BlueSci.com The order in which we do things may not be crucial, but there should be no harm in following our example.. Monday, 23 October 2000

Mathematical enigma solved! It seems that two undergraduates studying in the Cambridge University, UK, have solved one of the most challenging mathematical mysteries. They managed to make a plot of two superimposed transcendental functions. See figure below. Sunday, 22 October 2000

Bermuda Triangle Mystery Solved An old theory, by which gas bubbles in water can cause ships to sink, has now been verified by experiments.... Wednesday, 27 September 2000