Picture a scenario where the household hydro bill gets progressively cheaper, rather than more expensive. TeamMTL, a group of McGill University and Concordia University students and faculty, have collaborated to build a house that produces as much, if not more, energy than it consumes. This energy-efficient home is their entry[Read More…]
Tag: science
Safety first: A history of lab mishaps at McGill
Any student who has taken a chemistry lab at McGill is familiar with the infamous “Safety Lecture.” For most students, this means an hour of staring off into space as an overly-dramatic video shows acids inevitably spilled on unprotected eyes. Yet, such unfortunate accidents have such a low probability of[Read More…]
No party is the ‘science party:’ The problem with politicizing science
The concept of the “anti-science” right isn’t new to political discussion; conservatives are consistently seen as the major perpetrators of anti-science rhetoric. A 2009 Pew Research poll described a mere six per cent of scientists in the U.S. as identifying with Republican views. According to the two-party political system, this[Read More…]
2016 Lorne Trottier Symposium on Science and the Media discusses the challenge of pseudoscience in reporting
Today it might be bacon, but tomorrow it could be avocados; the public has a macabre obsession with searching for things that may kill us. In the Age of Anxiety, it’s easy to get lost in all the opinions thrown around as fact in the media. The Lorne Trottier Symposium[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…]
In the beginning, God created the scientist
The Christian Old Testament tells beautiful stories. It is poetic, rich in morals, and well-written. The beginning of the world, as described by Genesis 1, creates a haze whereby from nothing, God creates something. “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth,” the Bible reads. “On the first day,[Read More…]
Fields come together: BASiC hosts yearly scientific conference
This Friday, McGill hosted their latest event in integrative research, the National Integrative Research Council (NiRC) at Thomson House. The point of the event, held annually since 2011, is to encourage McGill students to research beyond the limits of their field. Keynote speakers presented on a variety of subjects such[Read More…]
Bob McDonald’s big ideas at SUS Academia Week
Bob McDonald, host of CBC’s weekly podcast Quirks and Quarks, kicked off the Science Undergraduate Society’s (SUS) Academia week with a special presentation about Canadian spacewalkers. Growing up at the height of the space age, McDonald’s fascination with space exploration was clearly apparent. He’s chronicled the lives of three Canadian[Read More…]
Fact or Fiction: Is MSG bad for you?
It seems like no food is safe anymore. High fructose corn syrup causes diabetes. Swordfish is filled with mercury, a neurotoxin. And the latest bad news? Bacon is a carcinogen according to the World Health Organization (WHO). When it comes to monosodium glutamate (MSG), though, it looks like science is[Read More…]
From the beat to the brain
Hans Christian Andersen said, “Where words fail, music speaks.” In a similar vein, Victor Hugo stated, “Music expresses that which cannot be said and on which it is impossible to be silent.” It’s no secret that music has the power to change us, to uplift in times of joy, and[Read More…]
