13/09/2023

Exploring endometriosis: a surprisingly common disease

Summary: Endometriosis is a common chronic inflammatory disease affecting one in ten menstruating women. Symptoms include painful menstruation, fatigue and infertility, which impacts day-to-day life, personal relationships and work productivity. Diagnosis can be a long and tricky process, but improvements made in imaging technology could reduce invasive diagnostic procedures. Treatment options include hormonal birth control as medication, other hormone treatment […]

Nicolina Zjacic Health and Medicine 0 9 min read
02/08/2023

Will honey improve your cough?

Summary: There is no strong evidence supporting the efficacy of many over-the-counter cough medications.  Research suggests that honey may be beneficial and can be tried as a home remedy to relieve acute cough in children, however, the studies have limitations. Honey might help by soothing throat irritation and inflammation. Children younger than one-year-old should not be served honey due to […]

Hana Zdimerova Health and Medicine 0 6 min read
05/07/2023

The skeptic’s repertoire – correlation vs causation

Summary: There are numerous logical and rhetorical fallacies which can influence public debates or private opinions. Logical fallacies are mistakes in reasoning which make arguments and opinions false. Both correlation and causation are used in research to describe the relationship between variables but can be mistaken for one another. Correlation is a connection between two things while causation is a […]

Jacek Jabłoński The Skeptic’s Repertoire 0 3 min read
21/06/2023

Study drugs – can we enhance our performance?

Summary: Substances that act to enhance cognitive activity fall under the term “nootropics” and comprise a wide array of compounds with diverse effects on the brain. Global increase in cognitive pharmaceutical doping among students poses a health concern. Nootropics might affect cognitive function directly (tweaking chemical messengers or neurons in the brain) or indirectly (via the blood circulatory system or […]

Jeremy Yeoh Health and Medicine 0 4 min read
07/06/2023

How do social media affect our mental health?

Summary: Social media have become an integral part of our lives.  Researchers have recently become concerned with the potential negative impact of social media on mental health. Scientific studies have demonstrated the negative effects that social media can have on attention span, cognitive processes and sleep patterns. Mitigation strategies such as limits on screen time and digital detoxes can help […]

Viviana D'Otolo Health and Medicine 0 4 min read
24/05/2023

Why is prenatal vaccination against Diphtheria, Tetanus, and Pertussis (DTaP) important?

Summary: Even though prenatal vaccination against Diphtheria, Tetanus, and Pertussis (DTaP) is not mandatory, it is recommended. Diphtheria, Tetanus, and Pertussis are very dangerous diseases for children because their immune systems aren’t yet fully developed. DTaP vaccination during pregnancy is very effective at preventing Diphtheria, Tetanus, and Pertussis in children less than 2 months old. Even though vaccines are important […]

Kamil Wolanin Health and Medicine 0 6 min read
10/05/2023

Corrections and retractions in academia

Summary: Scientists can correct and retract their work for a variety of sound reasons, not just due to scientific misconduct. There is enormous stigma associated with changing published literature.  This is exacerbated by whistle-blower bullying, inefficient bureaucracy, and a general lack of incentive from scientific institutions and journals. However, correction is a normal part of the scientific process rather than […]

Nicolina Zjacic Science Backstage 0 5 min read
11/04/2023

Will artificial intelligence change the future of communication?

Summary: Generative AI and language models use complex architectures and large datasets to generate human-like text or speech. These technologies have applications in business and medicine. However, AI may suffer from issues such as bias through training data and the generation of misinformation. Proper safeguards must be implemented to mitigate these negative impacts. When reaching out to customer service of […]

Max Brambach Modern Technologies 0 4 min read