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  The effect of font type on a school’s ink cost

  Author:

  Suvir Mirchandani and Peter Pinko

  Focus:

  Cost, Font

  Your choice of font can impact more than style. Here the authors demonstrate that font choice can affect the amount of ink a given print-out requires. The authors estimate that a switch to Garamond font, size 12, by all teachers in his school district would save almost $21,000 annually.

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  The effect of music on heart rate

  Author:

  Ayush Agrawal*, Neil Makhijani*, Penny Valentini

  Focus:

  Music, Physiology

  Different songs can seem to evoke different emotions. Here the authors demonstrate that different songs can have a significant effect on the heart rate of listeners. A slower song slows heart rate, and a faster song increases it.

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  Isolation of microbes from common household surfaces

  Author:

  Manu V. Gajanan (1), Om V. Singh (2)

  Focus:

  Microbiology, Sanitization

  Microorganisms such as bacteria and fungi live everywhere in the world around us. The authors here demonstrate that these predominantly harmless microbes can be isolated from many household locations that appear "clean." Further, they test the cleaning power of 70% ethanol and suggest that many "clean" surfaces are not in fact "sterile."

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