Author: misciwriterseditors

Written by: Elana Goldenkoff

Editors: Jacob Flaherty, Genesis Rodriguez, and Emily Glass

The coronavirus pandemic is the most immediate crisis that President Joe Biden is facing and, because of the global impact of the virus, it is not a fight the United States can win alone. Managing the effects of the virus requires concerted international efforts to address.  However, in recent years the U.S. has disengaged from the political affairs of other countries. Unfortunately, the increased American isolationism and ‘America First’ policy of the previous administration hindered foreign relationship-building and limited the connections and resources that the U.S. has at its disposal.

Continue reading “Undoing the Damage of ‘America-First’ on Scientific Progress” →

Written by: Anindita Sarkar

Edited by: Isabel Colon-Bernal, Christina Del Greco, & Alyse Krausz

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My pet dog would be scratching and pawing me at roughly the same time every day without fail. My mother believes that he had a better sense of time than me and my sister. I would always convince my mom that the credit for his sense of time should be given to his internal biological clock. This internal biological clock, better known as the circadian rhythm, tunes different physiological processes in not just my dog but also other living beings, to a 24-hour cycle. That is why we tend to feel sleepy or hungry at almost the same time every day. Needless to say, this biological time-tracking system functions as a result of an intricate interplay of several genes and proteins. In fact, I work on one important member of this family of proteins, Rev-Erbβ, which is responsible for the proper upkeep of the circadian rhythm.

Continue reading “What did Rev-Erbβ say to heme? ‘Never let go. Your chemistry drives my biology.’” →

Author: Ellen KW Brennan

Editors: Emily Glass, Sophie Hill, and Lisa Pinatti

Illustrator: Katherine Bonefas

Neurons are the main communicators of the brain. Using electrical signals to ‘talk,’ their conversations with each other underlie every behavior, thought, and feeling we have. To produce these larger functions, neurons need to work together in networks. For example, there is a specialized network of neurons whose only job is to keep you oriented in your surroundings. Two of the main types of neurons in this network are ‘place cells,’ which tell your brain where your body is in space, and ‘head direction cells,’ which tell your brain which way your head is facing. Together (and with the help of many other cells), they act as your body’s GPS system. While knowing where you are is important, you also need to know the details of the world around you. Other specialized cells, like sensory neurons called ‘blobs,’ help you detect color, while neurons in your nose called ‘olfactory sensory neurons’ catch chemicals as you breathe to detect smells. Together, these and many other different neural networks give us a sensory representation of our surroundings.

Continue reading “Eavesdropping on Brain Cells: A History of the Patch-Clamp Technique” →