Blog Post

How is Advanced Technology Improving the Olympics?

By Erin Scheg, C2ST Intern, Loyola University

Like billions of people across the globe, I watched countless hours of the Paris 2024 Summer Olympic Games. While tuning in to the much anticipated event, I was amazed to learn about the advancing technology implemented into every aspect of the Games. Technology has played a large role in improving the experiences of the viewer and athlete alike. From improving the safety, health, and performance of the athletes to offering perspectives that remote viewers could never have imagined, technology has radically changed the Olympic experience.

Continue reading “How is Advanced Technology Improving the Olympics?”

Event

South Side Science Festival

Join C2ST at the South Side Science Festival. C2ST will be at the festival with our microscope and some math-themed activities from 11:00 am to 2:30 pm but the Festival runs all the way to 6 pm. With ~100 incredible hands-on demonstrations, UChicago’s free South Side Science Festival on Oct. 5 is your chance to try it all. There will be events and activities for all ages and experience levels. Everyone can learn something new!

Event

Designing Better Materials and Systems for Future Batteries

This hybrid program is part of the Illinois Distinguished Lectureship Series. Presented by Chicago Council on Science and Technology, Illinois Tech Wanger Institute for Sustainable Energy Research (WISER), and Armour College of Engineering

High energy, long life rechargeable battery is considered as the key enabling technology for deep de-carbonization. Energy storage in the electrochemical form is attractive because of its high efficiency and fast response time. In this talk, Y. Shirley Meng, Ph.D. will discuss a few new perspectives for energy storage materials including new superionic conductors, reactive metal anodes and their interfacial engineering in a device and system. Meng will also discuss a few future priority research directions for electrochemical energy storage and answers questions from the audience.

Event

2024 Biodiversity Festival

Join C2ST, The Geographic Society of Chicago, Chicago Park District, The Wetlands Initiative, and many other community science organizations for a day of fun at Big Marsh Park, one of Chicago’s largest outdoor spaces! Participate in arts and science-based activities with Calumet region scientists and attend guided walks to record nature observations! Big Marsh Park features walking, running, and biking trails that attract outdoor recreation enthusiasts of all skill levels. It is also home to a wide variety of wildlife including amphibians, reptiles, insects, mammals, and birds.

Blog Post

Recycling Nature: The Science of Composting

By Ella Coley, C2ST Intern, Waubonsee Community College

The United States throws away nearly 60 million tons of food each year. We produce more food waste than any other country in the world, equaling 325 pounds of garbage per person. It’s like everyone in America throws 6 and a half large packed suitcases directly into a landfill. According to the United States Environmental Protection Agency, when food and other organic materials break down and decompose in an environment that lacks a flow of oxygen, the bacteria that break down the food begin to emit greenhouse gases such as methane, carbon dioxide, and chlorofluorocarbons, all of which contribute to global warming. Wasted food in landfills across the United States emits greenhouse gases equivalent to the emissions from 37 million cars, according to the  World Wildlife Federation. One solution that can help reduce the amount of food waste sent to landfills and reduce greenhouse gas emissions is composting.

Blog Post

A Vaccine for Cancer? Groundbreaking Trials Begin in England!

By Erin Scheg, C2ST Intern, Loyola University

Cancer is one of the leading causes of death worldwide, with an increasing rate of cases each year. Multiple treatments, including chemotherapy, surgery, radiation therapy, and immunotherapy are utilized to help patients fight the disease. In addition to these efforts, doctors and scientists continue to seek improvements in cancer detection, prevention, diagnosis, and survivorship. Recently, a groundbreaking vaccine treatment has moved on from small human trials and has begun testing on a larger size and scale. In England, thousands of patients started trials for the National Health Service Cancer Vaccine Launch Pad. The new cancer vaccine is a type of immunotherapy that aims to cause an immune response where the patient’s own immune system targets cancer cells and prevents the cancer from returning. Immunotherapy is a treatment that uses a person’s immune system to fight cancer cells.