Author: Shuhan Yu Editors: Linzi Yeung, Chloe Qian Artist: Francesca Huang Think about the last time you ate a meal; did you notice your body breaking down food into energy? Probably not. This process, known as digestion, depends entirely on enzymes–the tiny proteins that make life possible. Moreover, enzymes are specific proteins; they act as catalysts, accelerating chemical reactions without being consumed in the process. Some enzymes break down food, thus allowing your bo

Author: Elaine Guo Editors: Fiona Cheng, Sophia Chen Artist: Becky Li Experiencing scarcity, a state of having a shortage of supplies, shrinks your cognitive bandwidth, making it harder to plan ahead, make decisions, and see the bigger picture in different situations. This shrinks cognitive capacity as individuals focus on what they lack because the brain is constantly consumed by immediate needs, decreasing mental bandwidth. On the other hand, abundance, the belief that opp

Author: Simone Maimon Editors: Serena Tsao, Suri Liu Artist: Coco Zhou The second most prevalent skin disease, second to acne, is eczema, commonly recognized for a persistent, irritating scratch. Around 10% of the world experiences some form of dry red skin, sometimes pain, and sleep deprivation. Usually, these symptoms manifest in crevices or extremities, including hands, elbows, feet, etc. But, what exactly causes eczema? Currently, scientists don’t have an exact answer.

Writer: Kevin Lin Editors: Suri Liu, Faye Lin Artist: Alvina Zheng Imagine walking into a new clinic to choose the traits of your children artificially. What would it look like, and what restrictions would be placed on the technology? In recent years, this reality has become even more plausible with the development of new gene editing technologies such as CRISPR, achieving successful clinical results. Genetic editing in unborn children presents an ethically and morally preca

Author: Alex Yang Editors: Linzi Yeung, Justin Tai Artist: Caitland So One of the most imposing features of the human mind is memory. It molds everything from personality to deep-seated fears, and even affects every-day choices. Considering how prominent memory is in our lives, the idea of erasing or implanting them has been a staple of science fiction. However, recent scientific research proves that this concept is not necessarily fictional. Scientists are beginning to accu

Author: Joshua Payne Editors: Hwi-On Lee, Ethan Tai, Serena Tsao Artist: Helen Gong Algal blooms—rapid growths of algae and/or cyanobacteria in water—are crucial parts of ecosystems. They occur in all types of natural bodies of water, including freshwater, saltwater, and brackish environments. Specifically, they are prominent in lakes, reservoirs, rivers, ponds, bays, and coastal waters. Several factors can contribute to the growth of algal blooms. For example, algal bloom

Author: Vincent Guo Editors: Ethan Tai, Jonathan Chen Artist: Yahe Song Many people have questioned whether artificial intelligence (AI) is a reliable source to use for your health related concerns and if it is trustworthy enough to ask questions like “What could these types of symptoms be?” or “How can I treat this illness?” Well, the short answer is yes and no. You could use AI in some scenarios, but you shouldn’t rely on it exclusively. There are benefits to using AI, but

Author: Lillian Dong Editor: Oscar Chen Artist: Helen Gong From towering mammoth fossils to delicately pinned butterflies, natural history museums offer diverse and interesting exhibits of biology from across the globe and time itself, but how does it all come together? The answer is research museums, where flashy presentations are replaced with shelves upon shelves of carefully preserved biological specimens. In this article, we will examine the process of preservation and

Author: Ella Chen Editor: Hwi-On Lee Artist: Felicia Chen When you think of snakes and spiders, the first emotion that pops up is probably fear. This is the case for most people, as these creatures inspire fear in many. For an American woman known as SM, however, these creatures aren’t scary at all. In fact, not even the scariest haunted house in the world induces any fear in her. SM doesn’t experience any fear, nor does she know what fear even feels like. Through extensiv