It’s great to see the increasing range of options to reduce single use plastic use. While reusable water bottles and cloth shopping bags have been around for many years, there is now a growing range of options from stores where you can bring in your own reusable container (at least you could before Covid) and … Continue reading
This is the final week of my fundraiser for kids’ cancers through the Great Cycle Challenge Canada. Lymphoma is the third most common cancer among children although it is rare in very young children and becomes more common as children age (Lymphoma Action, n.d.). Lymphoma is a type of cancer white cells known as lymphocytes. … Continue reading
As summer starts up so do campfires and toasted marshmallows. So what gives a golden brown, melty marshmallow its amazing flavour? What makes them puff up? And why isn’t a burnt one as sweet anymore? Let’s start with the ingredients of a marshmallow. A marshmallow is around 50% air. This actually starts to answer our … Continue reading
A friend of mine had a disagreement with some colleagues at a pd session. My friend correctly asserted that when you put ice into a blender for a smoothie, the ice does not undergo a state change, except for some minor melting due to heat from friction. The ice will melt as the smoothie warms … Continue reading
I’ve heard about the challenges of indoor air quality a few times. I’ve worked in buildings that had reputations as sick buildings. And oh my word, I’ve been questioning the quality of my home air since moving to working from home. While there are factors that impact our indoor air quality that are independent of … Continue reading
I thought I’d do a little experiment to check out how vinegar or a weak acid affects dying eggs with food colouring. The recipe I’ve seen most often is a teaspoon of vinegar in a cup of water so I used this recipe, but I added two other tests: just water and half water and … Continue reading
I’m purposefully choosing to write about topics that aren’t specific to the biology and epidemiology of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2, ie., the virus that causes coronavirus-19) for a few reasons. First, I typically post once or twice a week but things with this virus are changing daily so I won’t be able … Continue reading
In light of today being the International Day of Women and Girls in Science, I went searching for research done by a women to profile today. I decided to start close to home and look through the biology department at the University of Alberta (U of A) where I did my undergrad and did not … Continue reading
When I was diagnosed with asthma as a kid, I remember someone saying that it wouldn’t go away unless I stopped skating because of the air quality in rinks. I was wondering what the research on this is. Rundell (2004) found that the pulmonary function, basically how well a person breaths, of a group of … Continue reading
I grew up figure skating, but I am also very comfortable on a pair of hockey skates. (Please don’t call them women’s vs men’s as this perpetuates stereotypes that just aren’t true.) When I taught learn-to skate lessons I was often asked about the differences between the two types of skates and when this question … Continue reading
