Science isn’t everything. But it is crucial to governing, decision-making, protecting human health and the environment and resolving questions and challenges around our existence. Those determined to advance industrial interests over all else often attack science. We’ve seen it in Canada, with a decade of cuts to research funding and scientific programs, muzzling of government […]
Science
Posted inNews + Opinion
SCIENCE MATTERS: Citizen science and genetic testing yield positive results
Since I started working as a geneticist in the early 1960s, the field has changed considerably. James Watson, Francis Crick and Maurice Wilkins won the 1962 Nobel Prize in physiology or medicine for their discovery of the double helix structure of DNA. Researchers then “cracked” the genetic code, which held promise for fields like health […]
Posted inArts + Music
The new Discovery Centre opens Sunday (but here’s a sneak peek)
Just how awesome is the new Discovery Centre? We’re about to find out. After five years of planning, fundraising and building, the giant $20-plus million waterfront science showcase opens this Sunday, February 12. (Check the slideshow below.) “We are delighted to finally open our doors to the public,” says Discovery Centre president/CEO Dov Bercovici via […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
The damage of the Harper years
[Image-1] In hushed tones, speaking on conditions of anonymity, one hears a remarkably similar refrain from front-end federal government monitoring staff who were once—and theoretically still are—tasked with environmental regulatory enforcement: There’s no time anymore. So keep your head down and just go through the motions. The back-end staff, office-bound folks who might, say, prepare […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
An arts degree: The sharpest tool in your belt
[Image-1] When it comes to applying to medical school, an applied sciences or biochemistry degree might seem natural as an undergrad choice. However, that’s not the case for everyone. What a student might need is a sharp mind—articulate and creative, but critical of the facts. For Adam Cameron, the edge he needs to get into […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
Why are Halifax Transit buses always running late?
One late bus can ruin your day, and your relationship with Halifax Transit. That long wait in the rain, the blown appointment, a bus that you missed because it went early—these are more powerful memories than the smooth trips, so it seems like the buses are always late. But are they really all that late, […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
In the name of science
Inside the Berman Zebrafish Lab, Jason Berman and his team work to discover new and improved treatments by studying diseased zebrafish cells. It’s a useful tool in trying to design better therapies. “Zebrafish have very similar genes to us and have very similar cells to us,” says Berman. “And they’re also transparent, which means we’re […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
“Not everyone wants to stay at home and be safe”
Canada’s most famous astronaut, Chris Hadfield, captivated the world last year while orbiting high above it. The social media savvy of the International Space Station’s commander gave the public a first-hand look at life in space. Now, the retired pilot and astronaut is visiting Halifax this weekend to speak about his unique experiences. Hadfield took […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
Worm finds a new fisheries hope?
Three years ago, Dalhousie marine biologist Boris Worm made international headlines when he warned that all the world’s seafood could disappear by 2048 unless drastic measures were taken to protect fisheries. Worm’s paper, “Impacts of Biodiversity Loss on Ocean Ecosystem Services,” which was published in the journal Science, was hotly contested by other scientists, including […]