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The study of technology and the use of individual cognitive effort

Neravetla et al. | Jan 24, 2023

The study of technology and the use of individual cognitive effort
Image credit: Glenn Carstens-Peters

A trial study was performed in 2021 to investigate the link between technology and transactive memory. Transactive memory is shared knowledge in which members share the responsibility to encode, store, and retrieve certain tasks or assignments, leading to a successful and collective performance. We hypothesize that a participants’ expected access to an external source affects the recall rate and retrieval of information.

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Colorism and the killing of unarmed African Americans by police

Hempfield et al. | Nov 08, 2021

Colorism and the killing of unarmed African Americans by police

The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between colorism and police killings of unarmed African American suspects. The authors collected data from the Washington Post database, which reports unarmed African American victims from 2015–2021, and found that the victims who were killed by police were darker on average than a control population of African Americans that had not encountered the police.

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Spectroscopic Kinetic Monitoring and Molecular Dynamics Simulations of Biocatalytic Ester Hydrolysis in Non-Aqueous Solvent

Chen et al. | Dec 20, 2020

Spectroscopic Kinetic Monitoring and Molecular Dynamics Simulations of Biocatalytic Ester Hydrolysis in Non-Aqueous Solvent

Lipases are a common class of enzymes that catalyze the breakdown of lipids. Here the authors characterize the the activity of pancreatic lipase in different organic solvents using a choloremetric assay, as well as using molecular dynamic simulations. They report that the activity of pancreatic lipase in 5% methanol is more than 25% higher than in water, despite enzyme stability being comparable in both solvents. This suggests that, for industrial applications, using pancreatic lipase in 5% methanol solution might increase yield, compared to just water.

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Assessing Attitude Across Different Age Groups in Regard to Global Issues: Are Kids More Optimistic Than Adults?

Luck et al. | Jan 11, 2020

Assessing Attitude Across Different Age Groups in Regard to Global Issues: Are Kids More Optimistic Than Adults?

In this article the authors investigate whether there is a correlation between age of a person and their outlook on global issues such as technology, politics, and environment. They find a correlation between increased age and decreased optimism. However regardless of age, they find that respondents believe certain characteristics such as technology and willingness to change are essential for improvements.

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Don’t Waste the Medical Waste: Reducing Improperly Classified Hazardous Waste in a Medical Facility

Hemani et al. | Jun 20, 2018

Don’t Waste the Medical Waste: Reducing Improperly Classified Hazardous Waste in a Medical Facility

Hemani et al. tackled the problem of rampant hospital waste by implementing staff training to help inform hospital workers about proper waste disposal. The authors observed a significant increase in proper waste disposal after the training, showing that simple strategies, such as in-person classroom training and posters, can have a profound effect on limiting improper waste handling.

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Antibiotic Residues Detected in Commercial Cow’s Milk

Memili et al. | Mar 18, 2015

Antibiotic Residues Detected in Commercial Cow’s Milk

Antibiotics are oftentimes used to treat mastitis (infection of the mammary gland) in dairy cows. Regulations require that milk from these cows be discarded until the infection has cleared and antibiotic residues are no longer detectable in the cow's milk. These regulations are in place to protect consumers and to help prevent the rise of antibiotic resistant bacteria. In this study, the authors test milk samples from 10 milk suppliers in the Greensboro, NC to see if they contain detectable levels of antibiotic residues.

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