The power of a convincing story often goes overlooked in the scientific community. While most researchers opt to display their findings in flashy publications or high impact journals, others are taking a less traditional but conceivably more impactful approach at communicating their findings. Story maps are a simple yet elegant[Read More…]
Search Results for author "Ronny Litvack-Katzman"
Solving the mysteries of Earth’s Cryogenian ice age
Typically, one wouldn’t think to ask a geologist about the most pressing issues in evolutionary biology. Yet, for some biologists, rock formations and fossil records—which have only gained the attention of natural scientists in the last 50 years—provide a plentiful source of untapped information about the history of life on[Read More…]
The haphazard world of scientific research funding
Human systems, from medicine and technology to industrial agriculture, are built upon the tools and findings brought forward by scientific achievement. Yet, to practice science in the 21st century, researchers depend upon another cornerstone of modern civilization: Money. The amount of funds required to conduct scientific research is almost incomprehensible.[Read More…]
The underlying unity of life
Comparing animals of various sizes has historically been a challenge for biologists. From simple observation, an elephant could not be more different than a mouse. Yet, a universal underlying principle concurrently governs them both. Scaling laws—derived mathematical models that compare an organism’s key life traits to its body mass—present an[Read More…]
Testing Darwin’s ecological questions
Rarely does the title of a scientific study live up to the aspirations of its authors. The BIG Project, however, is an exception. BIG, which stands for the Biotic Interaction Gradients experiment, is the first endeavour of its kind to explain one of Charles Darwin’s oldest theories: Species interactions play[Read More…]
Jane Goodall returns to McGill
Jane Goodall began her second Beatty Lecture as she did her first: By saying hello to the audience in “chimpanzee.” Goodall, best known for her work in studying African chimpanzees and her later humanitarian and environmental activism, spoke on Sept. 26 at the 65th anniversary of McGill’s Beatty Lecture series. [Read More…]
Searching for a home away from home
Scientists believe that planets outside of the solar system capable of supporting life should look a lot like Earth. The theory posits that if the chemical components comprising Earth’s atmosphere can be found in that of distant planets, those worlds could harbour similar carbon-based life-forms. This summer, two McGill University[Read More…]
Climate change has become a multi-faceted dilemma
The most recent report from the International Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) (drafted on Aug. 7) emphasizes the susceptibility of global food security to changes in climate and land use. The report highlighted that adaptive strategies to reduce total carbon production and preserve natural ecosystems are humanity’s best chance at[Read More…]
Biological crisis forces species to adapt or go extinct
An extensive report released last month warns that unsustainable human activities, such as agricultural expansion and marine pollution, are accelerating species extinction rates and causing the fastest loss of biodiversity in human history. Authored by the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES), the foremost body for issues[Read More…]
An obituary for ‘Oppy,’ humanity’s long-lost Space Prince
Opportunity, the Mars robotic rover that stunned humanity by remaining operational for over ten years past it’s original mission date, powered off for the last time on Feb. 13, 2019; a final goodbye at the end of a 225-million kilometer journey. Affectionately nicknamed ‘Oppy,’ the National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s[Read More…]
