Medicine
The Growing Problem of Cleanliness
Within the last few centuries, humanity has made great improvements in cleanliness and hygiene. Modern cities, with added infrastructure and sewage systems, are completely unrecognizable from a century ago. The last few decades have also seen an unmatched rise in medical innovation. Because of these improvements in sanitation and medicine, mortality from infectious diseases in [...]
Stem Cell Research: Effects of the Patenting Landscape
Ever since stem cell research began in the late 1900’s, the field has been fraught with a variety of issues including bioethics, funding, and general skepticism. The debate on stem cells has been unrelenting, and policies on the field are usually contentious topics during political campaigns. Apart from bone marrow transplantation [1], all other potential [...]
Epigenetics: What It Means and Why You Should Care
Fundamental shifts in the way we understand our world and ourselves are rare, and when they do happen it is often with uproar. When discovery of the DNA double helix by James Watson and Francis Crick in 1953 showed us that all of nature was bound together by a common molecular mechanism, it was assumed [...]
Hidden Obstacles in Cancer Research
While undeniable strides in medical research over the past few decades have proven invaluable in the search for a cancer cure, there is no shortage of obstacles that remain to be addressed. Perhaps the most evident are complications in the biology of the disease itself: among these, problems pertaining to cell identification and treatment specificity. [...]
Is All Fair in Love and Sport?
In the world of competitive sports, one hundredth of a second – the time it takes for lightning to strike – can define an athlete. One hundredth of a second can mean the difference between winning or losing, fame or anonymity, millions of dollars in endorsements or none. Because we handsomely reward strength, speed, and [...]
Stem Cells: Opening Another Avenue
Since their discovery, stem cells have caused a big stir in the biomedical field for a variety of reasons. However, the controversy surrounding embryonic stem cells – cells derived from embryos – is the most fervent. While their totipotency – their ability to become any kind of cell in the human body – makes them [...]
Unnecessary and Deadly: The Post-Disaster Catastrophe of Waterborne Diseases
An insightful look at one of the most dangerous causes of death in natural disaster stricken areas
Texts for Tuberculosis: Enabling Patient Advocacy
A novel way of enabling TB patients to fight against MDR-TB
Two Steps Forward, One Step Back: AIDS in 2010
The road to HIV/AIDS prevention and treatment is an arduous one. Vaccine research and trials have been plagued with failures.[i] Culture and poverty in highly affected areas have left education programs fruitless. The marginal position of women, especially in Sub-Saharan Africa, has left them practically defenseless against infection by their often more promiscuous male partners, [...]
Medical Malpractice: Should Practitioners Be Allowed to Represent Themselves?
Using policy, law and medical arguments, this article discusses whether medical practitioners should be allowed to represent themselves in malpractice suits.
Medical Innovation: Future Promise of DNA Vaccines
An article analyzing the future potential of DNA based vaccinations.
Nervous System Mysteries: The Social Stigma Surrounding Epilepsy
Epilepsy, a chronic neurological disorder characterized by sudden seizures, has mystified both patients and researchers alike for years with its baffling neuronal mechanisms and unpredictable nature. Each year, about 200,000 new cases of epilepsy are diagnosed—just as many as breast cancer. Of these 200,000 cases, 70% have no apparent cause
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