Standing desks are the latest employee wellness innovation to sweep through workplaces. While student life is typically more active than that of the nine to five grind, the majority of McGill students are familiar with the pains—mental and physical—of sitting down to study for hours at a time, seldom standing[Read More…]
Science & Technology
The latest in science and technology.
Fact or Fiction: Is flossing beneficial for oral health?
Over the summer, the Associated Press (AP) sunk their teeth into a widely-held public health claim: Daily flossing is good for dental hygiene. Their investigative report revealed that there is very little evidence to back up the advice one often hears at the dentist’s office. Growing up in Europe, not[Read More…]
Art meets science: McGill researchers program drone to paint
A group of McGill researchers have developed a technique to create large-scale drawings with a small drone called Crazyflie. The Computer Animation and Interaction Capture Lab, led by Computer Science Associate Professor Paul Kry, published their results in the most recent issue of Expressive. Their research outlines a breakthrough method[Read More…]
Ask a Scientist: What Is “Ask a Scientist”?
Since this is the first instalment of this column, there are not yet questions to answer. But, not to worry! The first question we’ll answer will be: “What is Ask a Scientist about?” In answering it, SciTech hope to drum up enough interest and enthusiasm from you, the readers, to[Read More…]
McGill labs find new ways to target resistant bacteria
In 1945, Alexander Fleming, made famous for his discovery of penicillin, warned that excessive antibiotic use would likely result in bacteria developing resistance. The term is often in the headlines, but what exactly is antibiotic resistance? It is generally defined as microorganisms developing the ability to somehow prevent the intended[Read More…]
The new kids on the block
The universe is expanding—and so is the periodic table. Four new elements have recently been added to complete the seventh row. Though the elements were discovered over the last year, it’s only now that the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC) has released the element names for public[Read More…]
Social psychology disproves common terrorist labels
Following the recent terror attacks in Lahore and Brussels, terrorist threats seem stronger than ever. According to the most recent Global Terrorism Index, terror-related deaths have surged from 3,329 in 2000 to 32,685 in 2014. The increasing presence of terrorism has resulted in a greater desire to learn why terrorists[Read More…]
How to deal with threats to your computer and private information
On March 21, Concordia University issued a statement warning students and faculty that keylogger devices had been found on university computers. “These keylogger devices can capture personal data such as login information and passwords (for example, passwords associated with your Concordia netname) by tracking the keystrokes used at a workstation,”[Read More…]
Exploring insects as a viable food source
In North America, insects are traditionally seen as pests rather than food. In certain communities in Africa and Southeast Asia, consuming insects for nutritional value is a part of a normal diet. In the western world, there are certainly plenty of candy shops that sell chocolate-covered grasshoppers—mainly as a novelty—but[Read More…]
Delving into the data: The science of predicting elections
The 2012 United States presidential election was the culmination of an 18-month-long campaign that saw voters bombarded with debates, ads, endorsements, and relentless media coverage. There were also dozens of factors for voters to consider when deciding which candidate to cast their ballot for, from stances on policy to questions[Read More…]
