For the first time, researchers have discovered water vapour in an atmosphere of an exoplanet 124 light-years away from our solar system. Exoplanet K2-18b is approximately 2.7 times the radius and 8.3 times the mass of Earth, but researchers continue to debate whether this planet is a super-Earth or a mini-Neptune. Mini-Neptunes Planets that fall […]
Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech Vaccine: Is it Safe?
Health Canada is on the verge of receiving a third maybe even a fourth COVID-19 vaccine within the next couple weeks. To date, over one million people in our country have been vaccinated, surpassing the total number of cases. Once approved, Canadian prime minister, Justin Trudeau aims for quick delivery of next-in-line COVID-19 vaccines. However, […]
Can We Learn From Axolotls?
The axolotl is an adorable amphibian creature, native to the Xochimilco lake complex in Mexico City. With beady eyes, a wide mouth, and flowery external gills, axolotls have garnered plenty of fans worldwide. People even keep them as pets! But have you ever heard of their talent? As many scientists have learned, axolotls are a […]
Are We to Blame for Our Own Luck?
By Nina Peloso ‘Bad luck’ may be easy to blame when your favorite team is losing, or when you lock your key in the car. For all those cases of ‘chance’ in daily life that don’t go your way. We fear ‘bad luck’ so greatly that we’ve identified ‘good omens’ from the bad; from black […]
Tangle Web Spiders: The Spider Engineers
When we think of the ways spiders use their silk, the image of a dusty spiderweb littered with encapsulated bugs usually comes to mind. But unlike this hackneyed image, Tangle Web Spiders use their silk for a rather interesting purpose: to lift. What are they? Tangle-web spiders, part of the Theridiidae family, get their name […]
Why Are There Black Sand Beaches in Hawaii?
By Rachel Leong I visited Punaluu Bay on the Big Island in Hawaii a couple of years ago. The texture and shape of the sand there was similar to any typical beach. The only difference was the stunning darkness of the sand. Many would assume that beaches are always pale beige or perhaps white, but why […]
Where are the Aliens? The Great Filter
By: Cole Harstone Aliens? You’ve likely found yourself, at some point in your life, wondering if we’re alone in the universe. Luckily, you’re not alone. This question has perplexed scientists for centuries, and to this day, it still remains unanswered. The Fermi Paradox explains that our math contradicts our observations and sums up to: “where […]
Heartless Humans?
By Makena Dyck February is heart month so there is no better time to talk about hearts than now. Did you know that the leading cause of death worldwide is heart disease. Generally, heart disease occurs when plaque builds up in arteries and blood vessels in the heart. This often leads to a heart attack […]
The Power of Vitamin B3
61 years ago, Canadian psychiatrist and biochemist Dr. Abram Hoffer cared for a state-hospitalized patient diagnosed with catatonic schizophrenia – a bipolar mental disorder. Through careful research and observation, Dr. Hoffer deduced that the patient was suffering from a lack of vitamin B3 in the nervous system (vitamin B3-dependency disease). After administering vitamin B3 […]
PFAS: The ‘forever chemicals’
In recent years, awareness of pollution and climate change has spread around the world. Terms like personal carbon footprints and microplastics have established themselves in our society. Yet, I have only recently learned of another type of pollutant that has been affecting populations worldwide for decades: per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances. Origin Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances […]