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by Mary May figures by Neal Akatsuka An estimated 59,000 to 65,000 Americans died due to drug overdoses last year, which is more than the number of deaths from HIV/AIDS at the peak of the epidemic in 1995 and more than the total number of American deaths…

An ultrasound is probably most popularly recognized as a doctor’s tool to peer into the womb and take a look at a growing fetus during a woman’s pregnancy. But what if sound could be used to take a look at even smaller things – like the microorganisms in…

When you think of viruses, the yearly flu or even the Ebola or Swine flu outbreaks may come to mind. However, not all viruses cause disease – some even provide cures! Adeno-associated virus (AAV) can infect humans, but is not known to cause disease. In…

by Christopher Gerry The routes that lead to a career in biomedicine are as diverse as they are plentiful, but one of my colleagues has taken a particularly unorthodox path. Sonia had just graduated from law school when she learned of a “typo” in her…

by Gemma Johnson figures by Olivia Foster You might remember being in a biology class where molecular biology is often represented by cartoons in bright colors on the pages of a textbook. What’s happening inside our cells, however, is much more…

Despite all of the amazing discoveries science has made, we are still trying to understand  the human body. For example, this time last year, scientists defined a new human organ, the mesentery.  Now, scientists might finally have an answer to why…

by Madeleine Jennewein figures by Rebecca Clements Vaccines have dramatically increased life expectancy over the last 100 years, radically reshaping our communities, our economy, and the way we live our lives. As vaccination has become more widespread,…

In a rainbow, the shortest visible wavelength of light is approximately 400nm (blue) and the longest 700nm (red), where all others colors outside this range are invisible to humans. Except not quite. Artal et. al. demonstrate that the eye’s visual acuity…

On February 6th, 2017, four detectors surrounding a nuclear power station in Niigata, Japan simultaneously observed a striking signal. An hour before dawn, the detectors recorded a short burst of light from a lightning strike, which quickly decayed in…

by Steph Guerra figures by Abby Burrus December kicks off the Season of Giving. There are Salvation Army volunteers ringing bells outside of department stores, food drives for the hungry, and fundraising appeals from almost every charitable organization.…