Urban ecosystems were created by people, for people, but that doesn’t mean animals haven’t evolved to survive or even thrive within modern cities. Dr. Seth Magle and Dr. Maureen Murray highlight the importance of understanding human-wildlife interactions and the incredible research done by the Urban Wildlife Institute at Lincoln Park Zoo.
The survival of all forms of Life on Earth through geological time has depended on controlling mineral growth within the environments they inhabit. This process, called biomineralization, has been an essential unavoidable, and ubiquitously distributed force of nature that has caused essential strategic benefits (like forming bones for muscle attachment), as well as profound practical problems and impediments (such as the growth of kidney stones).
Continue reading “Biomineralization: Life Harnessing Mineral Growth Over Four Billion Years”
Picture a Scientist chronicles the groundswell of researchers who are writing a new chapter for women scientists. Biologist Nancy Hopkins, chemist Raychelle Burks, and geologist Jane Willenbring lead viewers on a journey deep into their own experiences in the sciences, ranging from brutal harassment to years of subtle slights. Continue reading “Picture a Scientist: Virtual Film Screening and Panel Discussion”
By Robert J. Kriss, C2ST Editor
Many people think of science as a process for inventing things in a laboratory. But science need not stop at the laboratory door. The scientific method can also be used to develop economically competitive processes for manufacturing inventions on a commercial scale. “Smarter” manufacturing processes are key to the success of US manufacturing in the twenty-first century. Continue reading “Science Can Help Revive US Manufacturing”
About 12,000 years ago, early humans began directly shaping nature through selective breeding of plants and animals. This moment in time is called the Agricultural Revolution. What humans eat today, in Chicago and around the globe, is a direct result of the advances made thousands of years before any of us were ever born. But the truth is that the Agricultural Revolution never stopped. In some ways, it’s just begun… Continue reading “Engineering Plants: The 12,000 Year Plan”
By C2ST Staff
