Imagine a future in which we can edit genes like a sentence in Microsoft Word. We could highlight, delete, and correct a section of a gene known to cause disease,…
Continue ReadingIn the digital age, our world revolves around data. Archives of data provide proof of our own existence, such as birth records and proof of the mundanity of everyday life,…
Continue ReadingIt was about this time last year that I found myself falling flat on the admirable New Year’s resolutions I had set. My daily yoga routine had evolved into a…
Continue ReadingDo you remember when Wilmington, NC made national news in 2017 for having serious chemical contamination in their drinking water? An investigation by the EPA had identified that a chemical-manufacturing…
Continue ReadingBacteria are a big part of who we are as humans. They live all over us, forming distinct communities, or microbiomes, on our skin, in our hair, in our mouths,…
Continue Reading“Mom, I think I have a fever,” was the sure fire way to stay home from school as a young child. One such instance, my mom put her hand to…
Continue ReadingThere is this notion that people who study science had a lifelong fascination with it, implying that those who lack this history should pursue another career. Let me tell you:…
Continue ReadingOne of the goals of the Pipettepen blog is to train science communicators to share science with nonscientists. However, as both scientists and nonscientists know, this communication is not always…
Continue Reading2019, “new year, new me,” as they say. Many people have new goals; maybe they’ll read more, go to the gym more, or try to improve relationships. Whatever your New…
Continue ReadingRecently, I couldn’t find my keys. They weren’t where I usually keep them. Turns out, I was so distracted when I came home that I left them dangling in the…
Continue ReadingThe new year is a new horizon full of possibilities and potential. While the clean slate can seem daunting to some, to others it represents an opportunity to commit themselves…
Continue Reading“Detoxing” is all the rage right now—whether it’s foregoing solid foods in favor of juices during a liquid cleanse, suffering through a colon cleanse in the form of a colonic…
Continue Reading(Caution: do not read just before lunch!) We all know the feeling… queasiness, belly in knots, guts on fire and no end in sight. Now I want you to imagine…
Continue ReadingYou have probably never met anyone suffering from sleeping sickness, a potentially fatal condition. This is because the disease, also called African Trypanosomiasis, is only present in certain regions of…
Continue ReadingAny scientist knows the importance of a good negative control. A negative control in an experiment is a group of samples or subjects in which no response is expected to…
Continue ReadingAs of Friday November 16, 2018, California was home to the three most polluted cities in the world. These three cities – San Francisco, Stockton, and Sacramento – topped the…
Continue ReadingImagine you are working on a project with a large group of people, all with different personalities and responsibilities. Your group was just informed that something important to the progress…
Continue ReadingHurricanes are well-known for how unpredictable their paths can be. As wild as they can get, we can usually count on two things for storms that live primarily in the…
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