On September 29th, 2021, a law banning most abortions went into effect in Texas. This law bans all abortions after six weeks or once a fetal heartbeat is detected, which is why it is called the heartbeat bill, with no exceptions for rape and incest. The law relies on private
Imagine how expensive your flights would be if airplanes flew as rarely as space shuttles or Mars rovers. How would our society differ if only the opulent could afford this luxury? Many of us have probably heard of Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos’s campaigns towards consumer space travel through images
Alcohol abuse has long been a major problem affecting more than 300 million people worldwide each year [1]. Alcoholism is a major risk factor for mortality and disability in young adults [2]. Yet, the continued use of this detrimental substance is shockingly prevalent. The lack of awareness and prevention may
With polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) being the leading cause of infertility and hormonal imbalances in women worldwide, it is quite puzzling why this condition has not been further studied and understood. While some of the physical symptoms of this condition have been briefly studied, the psychological effects of PCOS are
“Nants ingonyama bagithi baba” As the sun rises off the horizon in the African savannah, the anthropomorphized animals in the iconic movie, The Lion King, head towards Pride Rock, home of the lions. “Sithi uhm ingonyama” Rafiki, the wise baboon, raises the newborn Simba to the sky in a ritual
Worldwide obesity tripled in just the last half century, and more people live in countries where there are greater overweight-related deaths than underweight-related deaths, WHO reports [1]. Obesity is an excess of body fat. As body fat increases, adipose tissues reach their capacity to store fat. This results in more
In October of 2018, the scientific world as we knew it completely changed with the birth of two little girls named Lulu and Nana1. These twins were revolutionary “designer babies” – the first human beings to have each cell of their body genetically modified for certain characteristics [1]. Before we
How accurate is medicine in medical dramas and literary fiction? As you can assume, probably not too accurate since medical details can often be added for drama in literary fiction, but sometimes they do exist. In Won-Pyung Sohn’s novel, Almond, the main character has a medical condition called “alexithymia”, and
Dyslexia is a common neurobiological learning disorder that is characterized by difficulty reading with accurate/fluent word recognition and spelling [1]. These difficulties, such as mispronouncing words, hesitant/punctuated speech disfluencies, difficulty reading new/unfamiliar words, and spelling errors, result from deficits in the phonological component of language (see Figure 1) [2]. Existing
What baffles me most about health-related conversations in the United States is that human longevity is rarely talked about outside scientific circles. Think about it—from prescription medications and dietary protocols to moms oxygenating their kids in sunscreen—every recommendation under the vast health umbrella is tailored to living healthier, longer lives.
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