Author: Kelly Burnes
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A Tankful of Sugar
Remember those toy trucks, the 18-wheelers (tractor-trailers) that gas companies manufactured? If you grew up in the 80’s, and were a boy or had a brother, or just loved trucks, your dad probably bought one for Christmas. My brother and I would build towns out of Lincoln Logs and Legos and we would wait for…
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Plastics Make it… Problematic
The American Chemistry Council sponsors an initiative “Plastics Make it Possible.” While there is no debating the fact that plastics have completely transformed modern life, from lifesaving medical devices to cellular phones to food storage to sports equipment, to well, you name it; we owe a lot to this accidental creation of Hans von Pechmann:…
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Who Doesn’t Love a (Penguin) Parade?
It’s not just 5-year old children who get excited by the sight of penguins; on no, penguins have been “all the rage” in movies and on television these past few years, delighting all ages. These magnificent, peaceful flightless birds are a key indicator to the health and environment rating of our planet. But I’ll get…
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Is Communication a Lost Art?
So how far away are we from planet Earth morphing into Holodeck 5 and we all have Geordi La Forge glasses? There are several pairs of augmented reality glasses already on the market, many from brands you’ve probably never heard of, but then I’m sure you have heard of Google and their latest project in…
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How Much is that Green Algae in the Window?
Whoever thought you could make money in biology, right? Turns out, there is quite a bit of money to be made in this field. And I think we are realizing more than ever the importance of the life sciences and the contribution it offers to society and the economy. “I think the biggest innovations of…
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Science and Faith
If I let go a hammer on a planet having a positive gravity, I need not see it fall to know that it has, in fact, fallen. – Spock, “Court Martial,” Star Trek, stardate 2948.9. I recently viewed the film Salmon Fishing in the Yemen. Dr. Jones, (brilliantly played by Ewan McGregor), has been ordered…
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Applying MacGyver Principles to Recycling Policy
23 cm of string. 1 tyre iron. 3 broken shards of glass. 18 rolls of fiber insulation. 1 match. 2 cardboard boxes. 4 paperclips. Because you always need a paperclip. There was a fantastic TV show that aired in the United States when my brother and I were growing up in the late 1980s…MacGyver. No doubt…
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In the Quest to Tell the Story for Science
Skills learned in science have a carryover effect into other areas of life, and ultimately have an impact in their chosen profession – influencing their thought process and how they carry out decisions. Whether kids choose science as a major in university and continue with it through to the job market, even at the earliest…
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No Place to Go But Up
ad•ap•ta•tion [ad-uhp-tey-shuhn] – a form or structure to fit a changed environment “The most powerful natural species are those that adapt to environmental change without losing their fundamental identity which gives them their competitive advantage.” – Charles Darwin A few weeks ago, I stepped out on a drizzly, dreary Friday morning in Brooklyn, NY, headed to the…
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Fly the Clean Skies
Next week, Qantas Airlines will use cooking oil to power a flight from Sydney to Adelaide, in what will be Australia’s first biofuel-powered commercial flight. On April 13, the Airbus A330 test will consist of a “drop-in” fuel, meaning that the biofuel (cooking oil) will be mixed with conventional jet fuel, and will run in…
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The Future of Energy
The 7th Annual MIT Energy Conference held March 16-17 in Boston, MA, was an all-around inspiring event filled with conversations of hot topic scientific research and intense policy discussion. It was impressive, considering this event is entirely planned and executed by the student body, with well over 500 in attendance. From the scientific prowess of…
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Turning Information into Action
We hear…but do we comprehend? What connection does our brain make to statements transmitted through our auditory canal such as global warming is increasing at 0.13°C per year? Or there are 495 dead zones covering 95,000 square miles of our world’s oceans as a result of increased runoff from agriculture? We see…but are those images…