Established 1826 — Oldest College Newspaper West of the Alleghenies

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Science News Round Up

(02/20/18 10:01am)

The Great Plains of the midwestern United States yield 10 billion bushels of corn a year. According to a new study on regional climate change at MIT, the Corn Belt produces more than its name suggests: It also makes its own weather. While the rest of the world is experiencing a warming trend, this fertile region's summer temperature dropped a full degree Celsius, and the rainfall spiked 35 percent - more than anywhere else in the world. The Corn Belt stretches from Texas up to North Dakota and east to Ohio. The research team suspects agriculture increases rainfall through a mechanism connected with photosynthesis that releases more water into the air.


Tickets on sale for Science Friday

(02/20/18 10:01am)

On April 21, radio and television journalist Ira Flatow will host his public radio show "Science Friday" live on campus. The program is broadcast weekly on Public Radio International to an audience of 1.8 million people, and, according to the show's website, offers listeners "a lively, informative discussion on science, technology, health, space and the environment."


A slice of science news

(11/28/17 10:00am)

Cell Phones and Sunrises: Cities are perpetually ablaze with activity, suggesting that humans are less influenced by Earth's light-dark cycle than we used to be. However, a new study from Aalto University in Finland that analyzes the cellphone call records of over one million people claims otherwise; researchers found cell phone activity grew longer and shorter over the course of the year, waxing and waning with the amount of daylight. Shifts in call records correlated closely with seasonal shifts in light. Over the course of 3-4 months, the latest call times crept later while the earliest call times grew earlier. The peak calling periods changed in the same pattern as well: the morning peak moved earlier, the evening peak later. Does the timing of the sunrise and sunset affect our circadian rhythms in a way that is visible in cell phone records? The study could provide further evidence that the chemicals that govern our bodies' internal clocks are linked to Earth's orbit and the sun's daily ascent and descent.


Gates' Goalkeepers report: Taking the pulse of health news

(09/26/17 9:00am)

Midterms may be gradually approaching on campus, but in the global health arena, a report card has already been issued. Bill and Melinda Gates presented their foundation's assessment of the world's progress in addressing health and poverty to the United Nations General Assembly this past week. Various health indicators were assessed including child and maternal mortality, stunted growth, malaria, vaccine use and HIV/AIDS.