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Telomeres in Space
Telomeres in Space By Katherine De Lange In human imagination, life is commonly represented as threads woven together by fate, degrading as one ages. This representation might reveal some truth. Life expectancy and risk of disease is, in fact, associated with threads—our telomeres, which cap the ends of human chromosomes. Some researchers study telomeres to understand…
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PALMS: Reducing the Toxicity of GPT-3
PALMS: Reducing the Toxicity of GPT-3 By Xavier Yin GPT-3 has a problem: toxicity. OpenAI’s Generative Pre-trained Transformer 3 (GPT-3) is a deep learning neural network—an artificial neural network that emulates a brain. Fundamentally, it looks for patterns in human language, and, based on these patterns, generates a response to a prompt or task. Think…
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A Novel Way to Treat Multidrug-Resistant Diseases
A Novel Way to Treat Multidrug-Resistant Diseases By Eunice Tsang We see labels like “antibacterial,” “antimicrobial,” and “antibiotics” so often in soaps, detergents, and medications. These antiseptics protect us from harmful viruses, bacteria, and other pathogens. However, microorganisms have the ability to change their genetic make-up and pass down their genes to the next generation, allowing…
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Aerosols: Mechanisms of Mischief
Aerosols: Mechanisms of Mischief By Noah Bussell While many of us have heard about aerosols only in recent years, likely in the context of COVID-19, these micrometer (and even nanometer) sized particles have long been of interest to scientists due in part to their effects on respiratory health and the climate. However, much is still…
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The link between sleep and Alzheimer’s
Video by Nanda Nayak Read the article version (“Sleep deprivation and Alzheimer’s disease: not getting enough sleep can have far greater negative ramifications than just exhaustion”) here!
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Beyond the Racetrack: The Perfect Formula for a Ventilator [Interview with Simone Resta]
![Beyond the Racetrack: The Perfect Formula for a Ventilator [Interview with Simone Resta]](https://bsj.studentorg.berkeley.edu/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/5-RESTR-1.png)
Beyond the Racetrack: The Perfect Formula for a Ventilator Interview with Simone Resta By Elettra Preosti As published in Berkeley Scientific Journal Volume 25, Issue 1, Bonds pp. 20-24 Simone Resta (1). Simone Resta is Head of Chassis Area at Scuderia Ferrari, the Formula 1 racing team of luxury Italian automobile manufacturer Ferrari. He obtained a master’s…
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Newly Discovered Neural Mechanism of Social Isolation
By Nicole Xu Social isolation is by no means a new phenomenon, but the issue is currently being highlighted as lockdown and social distancing measures during the COVID-19 pandemic have severely dwindled person-to-person interaction. People of all ages struggle with social isolation, but it can have especially detrimental and long lasting effects in developing children.…
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Concerns over Insufficient Vitamin D: A Valid Excuse for Not Wearing Sunscreen?
By Tiffany Liang We know that we should wear sunscreen when heading outdoors on a hot, sunny day, but slathering on the sun lotion is often the last thing on our minds during the cold, dark days of winter. Besides, we need all the Vitamin D we can get, right? Well, let’s first break down…
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The “New” Science Field That Might Cure Our Existentialism
By Aarthi Muthukumar What does it mean to be human? Perhaps it’s our anatomy, and the way we’ve categorized ourselves in evolutionary theory. Or maybe it’s the fact that we have big brains, dedicated to solving complex problems and contemplating the meaning of existence. Whatever the answer may be, we can all agree that…
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Shaping Light with New Materials: A new take on Chromatic Aberration
By Yi Zhu Ever wonder why rainbows contain, well…a rainbow of colors? The science behind rainbows was first demonstrated by Isaac Newton in 1666 when he showed that white light passing through a glass prism will spread out into a wide spectrum of colors. We observe a rainbow from materials such as…
