under the microscope

Life from non-life.

“Lee Cronin, a chemist at the University of Glasgow, has proposed intriguing ideas about creating life-like systems using inorganic materials, particularly metal-based structures. His research focuses on the idea of “chemistry-first” approaches to synthetic biology, where the goal is to […]

under the microscope

How much faith should you put into light therapy?

I am generally slow to come around on newfangled popular wellness fads, which include infrared/red light therapy. “In this study we present the up-to-dated evidence about the effects of PBMT, i.e., low-intensity laser therapy and red and/or infrared low-intensity light-emitting […]

under the microscope

Don’t throw away your printed books.

“Although the current results suggest that paper-based reading should be favoured over digital-based reading, it is unrealistic to recommend avoiding digital devices. Nevertheless, ignoring the evidence of a robust screen inferiority effect may mislead political and educational decisions, and even […]

under the microscope

Fish have a brain microbiome.

“Recently, a study published in Science Advances provided the strongest evidence yet that a brain microbiome can and does exist in healthy vertebrates — fish, specifically. Researchers at the University of New Mexico discovered communities of bacteria thriving in salmon […]

under the microscope

How much faith should you put into light therapy?

I am generally slow to come around on newfangled popular wellness fads, which include infrared/red light therapy. “In this study we present the up-to-dated evidence about the effects of PBMT, i.e., low-intensity laser therapy and red and/or infrared low-intensity light-emitting […]

under the microscope

Don’t throw away your printed books.

“Although the current results suggest that paper-based reading should be favoured over digital-based reading, it is unrealistic to recommend avoiding digital devices. Nevertheless, ignoring the evidence of a robust screen inferiority effect may mislead political and educational decisions, and even […]

under the microscope

Fish have a brain microbiome.

“Recently, a study published in Science Advances provided the strongest evidence yet that a brain microbiome can and does exist in healthy vertebrates — fish, specifically. Researchers at the University of New Mexico discovered communities of bacteria thriving in salmon […]

under the microscope

Real-time inflammation monitoring.

“A Chicago biomedical research hub backed by Facebook creator Mark Zuckerberg and his wife, Dr. Priscilla Chan, has produced its first published research — on discovering a way to monitor inflammation in real time using sensors implanted under the skin.” […]