The properties of n-type and p-type semiconductors were well known by the end of World War II, during which considerable research was devoted to electronics and the invention of radar. In 1947 three researchers at Bell Laboratories in New Jersey took the idea of the n-p junction diode a step further. William Shockley, Walter Brattain […]
Another busy day unfolds through dozens of medical visits, prescriptions, and auscultations. The next patient, a medication-resistant chronic back pain case, enters the office and asks the doctor whether acupuncture has something to do with placebos. The physician feels like the artful and evidence-based bedrocks of his medical praxis are called into a tug-of-war. A […]
The last issue of the American Economic Review contains three articles on the performance of three different policies to fight poverty. Chetty et al . (2016) study a program in which families where moved from high-poverty neighborhoods to low-poverty ones, Hoynes et al . (2016) examine Food Stamp programs, and Aizer et al . (2016) […]
Humanities & Social Sciences • Science • Technology • Weekly Selection
First images from Japan’s long-delayed Venus probe revealed Japan’s Akatsuki spacecraft has finally begun sending back images from Venus after an unexpected five-year orbit around the sun. Images show a strange curved shape moving across Venus’ atmosphere as well as clouds of sulfuric acid. The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency rescued the craft and put it […]
Neurogenesis is the process by which neurons are generated from neural stem cells and progenitor cells. It is a crucial part of neural development and is most active during pre-natal life, being responsible for populating the growing brain with neurons. Zika virus is an emerging mosquito-borne and sexually-transmitted flavivirus that was first identified in Uganda […]
A phase may be defined as a homogeneous portion of a system that has uniform physical and chemical characteristics. Every pure material is considered to be a phase; so also is every solid, liquid, and gaseous solution. For example, a sugar–water syrup solution is one phase, and solid sugar is another. Each has different physical […]
The finding that modern humans coexisted and mated with Neanderthals 50000 years ago was a breakthrough when it was announced in 2010. As a result of interbreeding, the genomes of all modern Eurasians contain a small Neanderthal DNA load that has been calculated to be between 1.5% and 4%. Most Africans, however, lack this DNA […]
Ethics • Health • Psychology
Almost desperate, Rodrigo – the name is fictitious- visits his doctor seeking a solution for a chronic back pain he has been suffering for the last three years. After trying five different medications, none of them with effect, he receives an unexpected suggestion from his uncle, who encourages him to try acupuncture. He himself has […]
Humanities & Social Sciences • Science • Technology • Weekly Selection
Neanderthal Y chromosome missing in modern humans The Neanderthal Y chromosome hasn’t been found in modern humans, suggesting it is extinct. Researchers found dissimilarities in the Neanderthal Y chromosome’s immunity genes that could have caused miscarriages. BBC Clouds may not help keep global temperatures down Clouds’ cooling power may not be as great as climate […]
Hibernation is a state of inactivity and metabolic depression used by some mammals to survive a cold winter. It may last several days, weeks, or months depending on the species, environment temperature, season, and individual’s body condition. Usually, hibernating animals survive the energetic bottleneck of the winter by building stores of body fat in late […]