Important Update
A lot of things have come up recently, so I just wanted to let you guys know that I’ll be taking an indefinite hiatus from posting on this blog. I hope you guys understand. Thanks.
Help Us Reach The Threshold Of 25,000 Signatures By January 4th To Get A Response From The White House!
Please Sign The White House Petition To Increase NASA’s Budget:
https://petitions.whitehouse.gov/petition/increase-budget-nasa/JHhPNStY
“NASA’s annual budget is half a penny on your tax dollar. For twice that—a penny on a dollar—we can transform the country” - Neil deGrasse Tysonhttp://www.reddit.com/r/space/comments/15x5tm/reddit_can_you_help_us_reach_25000_signatures_for/
Come on scinerds, let’s do some midnight miracles. 25,000 signatures before the 4th/ tomorrow? We’re going to have to do a lot of reblogging and signing.
Go go go go go!
Even if you’re not a science nerd like I am, you should still sign this petition. Why? Because NASA impacts your daily life. Do you or someone you know enjoy the following things?
- Artificial limbs
- Baby formula
- Cell-phone cameras
- Computer mouse
- Cordless tools
- Ear thermometer
- Firefighter gear
- Freeze-dried food
- Golf clubs
- Long-distance communication
- Invisible braces
- MRI and CAT scans
- Memory foam
- Safer highways
- Solar panels
- Shoe insoles
- Ski boots
- Adjustable smoke detector
- Water filters
- UV-blocking sunglasses
(via Business Insider)
*See the NASA Spinoff database for a more extensive list.
You have NASA to thank for developing the technology that led to these products, and you can thank them by signing this petition! I’ve already signed it; now it’s your turn!
Anonymous asked: Hey, I was wondering if you know some advantages or pros and cons on taking up BS Biology as a pre-med course? I used to take up Pharmacy but then I felt like I didn't love it anymore and I think it's not the right path for me to take up medicine. Thank you very much in advance for your answer. :)
If I understand your question, you’re planning to switch majors, from Pharmacy to Biology, right? The thing about being pre-med is that your major doesn’t matter, as long as you complete the required courses and take the MCAT (if you want me to detail what those courses are, send me another ask).
I personally chose Molecular Biology because I really loved science and have always been drawn to the life sciences. The nice thing about being a bio major is that the requirements for your major overlap nicely with pre-med courses; I’m a huge fan of “killing two birds with one stone.” It sounds like you’re a science-y person since you started in Pharmacy, but for people who’d prefer to study something else in undergrad, majoring in bio would be a con, mainly because it’s not something they’re passionate about.
Ultimately, it’s up to you. I’d recommend speaking with your academic and/or pre-health adviser before switching majors to see how it affects your progress toward completing your degree. Good luck!
You know you’re a science major when…
- Microsoft Word thinks a third of the words you use in lab reports, abstracts, proposals, theses, etc. are misspellings.
- you get tired of adding words to your dictionary.
- you are constantly looking up scientific words to make sure the spellings are correct.
Thankfully, you can get rid of (most of) those red squiggly lines by installing these awesome and free chemistry and biology/medicine dictionaries for Word! I just started using them today for a molecular biology paper I’m working on, and let me tell you, it’s refreshing not to see red lines everywhere.
In case you’ve forgotten how awesome NASA is…
NASA Johnson Style (Gangnam Style Parody)
G protein-coupled receptors (GPRCs)
This is an image of a G-protein-coupled receptor signaling complex whose structure was identified in 2011. The receptor is in magenta while the different G protein subunits are colored green, red and blue. (x)
GPCRs are essentially both the gatekeepers and molecular messengers of the cell, transmitting signals from inside to outside. The signal can consist of an astonishing variety of stimuli, from photons (light) to neurotransmitters to hormones. They mediate virtually every important physiological process, from immune system function to taste and smell to the fight-or-flight response in humans. GPCRs are also immensely important in medicine and are the target of about 30% of all drugs. Naturally occurring small molecules which bind to GPCRs include adrenaline, prostaglandins, dopamine, somatostatin and adenosine. Drug-like small molecules which bind to GPCRs include caffeine, morphine, heroin and histamine. The range of stimuli and molecules that GPCRs respond to is remarkable and their role in the workings of life is unquestioned. (x)
Dr. Brian Kobilka at Stanford and Dr. Robert Lefkowitz at Duke won the 2012 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for determining the structure of this protein.
Image via the Argonne National Laboratory on flickr.
Cardiomyocytes
Cardiomyocytes from chicken embyo heart. Nuclei are blue. Troponin, a protein of muscle fibres, is stained in red. Note the stripes. These thin muscle fibres, millions of them, make the heart beat.
After being extracted and cultured, the heart cells continue beating.
(source)
![Schrödinger’s cat
In 1935 Erwin Schrodinger proposed a famous thought experiment in which a cat was somehow both alive and dead at the same time. Schrodinger was attempting to demonstrate the limitations of quantum mechanics: quantum particles such as atoms can be in two or more different quantum states at the same time but surely, he argued, a classical object made of a large number of atoms, such as a cat, could not be in two different states. […]
In his original thought experiment, Schrodinger imagined that a cat is locked in a box, along with a radioactive atom that is connected to a vial containing a deadly poison. If the atom decays, it causes the vial to smash and the cat to be killed. When the box is closed we do not know if the atom has decayed or not, which means that it can be in both the decayed state and the non-decayed state at the same time. Therefore, the cat is both dead and alive at the same time - which clearly does not happen in classical physics. (x)
(image source)](http://24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_m9yp0jsIPa1rwkhtdo1_500.png)
Schrödinger’s cat
In 1935 Erwin Schrodinger proposed a famous thought experiment in which a cat was somehow both alive and dead at the same time. Schrodinger was attempting to demonstrate the limitations of quantum mechanics: quantum particles such as atoms can be in two or more different quantum states at the same time but surely, he argued, a classical object made of a large number of atoms, such as a cat, could not be in two different states. […]
In his original thought experiment, Schrodinger imagined that a cat is locked in a box, along with a radioactive atom that is connected to a vial containing a deadly poison. If the atom decays, it causes the vial to smash and the cat to be killed. When the box is closed we do not know if the atom has decayed or not, which means that it can be in both the decayed state and the non-decayed state at the same time. Therefore, the cat is both dead and alive at the same time - which clearly does not happen in classical physics. (x)
(image source)
