Gamification of Science: Making Science Fun

The Video Gamers United recently convened in Washington DC. As I glanced at its imposing, back-lit poster decking the otherwise drab walls of the metro station on my way to work, I started thinking about science-based video games and their impact on science education. It turns out, science-based video gaming is a flourishing field, with … Read more

FIVE INSPIRATIONAL NON-FICTION BOOKS BY PHYSICIAN-WRITERS YOU WON’T WANT TO PUT DOWN

Becoming Dr. Q: My Journey from Migrant Farm Worker to Brain Surgeon   In this spellbinding memoir, Dr. Q, short for Alfredo Quinones-Hinojosa, reveals his tumultuous, yet exciting journey, from his impoverished childhood in Mexico, to literally jumping the fence to enter the United States, to farming tomatoes for pennies under the unforgiving California sun, … Read more

NEW PROTEIN MAY BE THE ACHILLES’S HEEL OF TREATMENT-RESISTANT HEAD AND NECK CANCER

Researchers at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor believe they have solved the mystery behind why some head and neck cancer cells are refractory to the effects of radiation and chemotherapy and extremely adept at repairing and thriving under such aggressive insults. According to the findings of a new study from the group of Dr. Nisha J … Read more

Exquisite Scientific Art at Dulles International Airport

I had just landed at the Dulles International Airport after flying non-stop for five hours from the Pacific to the Eastern Time zone, with a fussy toddler in my lap. It was two in the morning. Tired, hungry, and hauling about five different types of luggage, including a Hummer of a stroller, I was not … Read more

What’s the point of art?

If I ever win the lottery, I will fill my place with classic paintings by my favorite artists-Rembrandt, Vermeer, Monet, Titian- a dreamy aspiration shared by many around the globe. A fortunate few, and I mean both figuratively and literally, are actually able to realize this dream. In fact, some of the world’s most valuable … Read more

Facing recession in early adulthood can prevent narcissism later in life

Finding a job is a humbling experience. As I go through the motions of a job search-applying, interviewing, networking- I find myself, inadvertently riding a roller coaster, precariously seated on the tracks of fickle emotions-confidence, self-doubt, poise, jubilation, and desperation.  Fortunately, once in a while,  I get a bolstering call or an email that offers … Read more

MERS- a new disease from the old world

After the 2003 SARS epidemic claimed almost a thousand lives worldwide, another coronavirus is now rearing its ugly head from the Arabian Peninsula. The etiological agent of the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS), MERS-CoV is thought to arise from an animal source, possibly camels (or bats). How exactly the virus has managed to jump from … Read more

Electronic cigarettes just blowing smoke?

A new study has determined that the use of electronic cigarettes does not correlate to smoking cessation. In the longitudinal study, researchers analyzed data from 949 American smokers and concluded that e-cigarette users were not more likely to quit or reduce smoking, when compared to non-users. E-cigarettes have been widely promoted as effective tools for helping smokers … Read more

“You, me, everyone-we are made of star stuff”- A look at Cosmos: A Spacetime Odyssey

Through a peculiar collaboration between Seth MacFarlane, creator of the notoriously controversial, nonsensical, yet widely popular TV shows, Family Guy and American Dad, and Ann Druyan, wife of one of the most prominent science communicators of the 20th century, the late Carl Sagan, with whom she co-wrote the immensely popular PBS documentary Cosmos, comes Cosmos: A … Read more