misciwriterseditors blog, Opinion

Science March – One Week Later

From the MiSciWriters Editorial Board

Saturday, April 22nd, 2017- Thousands of scientists and citizens came together in celebration of scientific achievement and its influence upon public health and environmental safety, but also in protest of proposed budget cuts and spread of “alternative facts.” Not only was this march staged in Washington D.C., but there were 610 satellite events all around the world including Ann Arbor.

Along with the primary goal to increase public understanding of science, the March for Science was also intended to prove science’s political worth to remain within the budget. Now, a week after the event, we ask ourselves: Did the March meet these goals? What further actions need to be taken?
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misciwriterseditors blog, Computer Science, Technology

Did Big Data Win the Election for Trump?

Author: Katie Wozniak

Editors: Jessica Cote, Noah Steinfeld, and Shweta Ramdas

Five months after the 2016 U.S. Presidential election, many remain confused about how Donald Trump made it into the White House despite leading a seemingly disorganized and unconventional campaign against a more experienced candidate. To understand how this happened, experts have taken a closer look at the campaign strategies employed by Trump, and one major theory is that Trump won the presidency thanks to big data analysis by an analytics company called Cambridge Analytica.

But is there really enough evidence to support that big data won Trump the election?

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misciwriterseditors blog, Opinion

Opinion: The #Resistance Wears Lab Coats

Author: Ben Isaacoff

Editors: Irene Park, Ada Hagan, and Scott Barolo

President Donald J. Trump is wildly inconsistent on many issues. Under different circumstances, it might be amusing how often he contradicts himself. But one issue he has unfortunately been very consistent about is a dismissal of science and outright attacks on the scientific enterprise. The Trump campaign, his transition and appointees, and now his nascent administration, have deeply scared many of us who care about science.

Continue reading “Opinion: The #Resistance Wears Lab Coats” →

misciwriterseditors blog, evolution, genetics

Where Do Genes Come From? Part 2: De novo Genes

Author: Bryan Moyers

Editors: Theresa Mau, Alex Taylor, and Kevin Boehnke

“The probability that a functional protein would appear de novo by random association of amino acids is practically zero.” ~ Francois Jacob, 1977

If you’ve ever gotten into arguments about evolution, you may have heard the argument that goes something like this: A new gene randomly forming is as improbable as a tornado blowing through a junkyard and assembling a working 747. The above quote by Francois Jacob shows that scientists have been pretty skeptical about this idea, too.

But something seeming unlikely doesn’t mean that it doesn’t happen. As we learned last time, most mutations are harmful, and most gene duplications are lost—but the rare times when they are beneficial, a new gene can have a huge effect on species survival.

So, is it possible that a protein-coding gene might form randomly? Continue reading “Where Do Genes Come From? Part 2: De novo Genes” →