The film Armageddon is fiction; it suggests that humanity was in mortal danger until heroic actions saved us. Did you know that there are people who observe and secure improved orbits for near-Earth asteroids EVERY DAY? Their efforts have eliminated the chances of an extinction-level asteroid impact with Earth over the next 100 years or so. Did the film spur action that helped achieve this incredible decrease in risk? Was this due to increased public consciousness of the risk?

Continue reading “Science in Film: Lessons from the Movie Armageddon”

How do our experiences, such as learning how to play music and playing sports, affect our brain? Although we are surrounded by sound all of the time, we rarely give much thought to this invisible yet powerful companion. The auditory system is a uniquely complex sensory system and the ability to make sense of sound relies on exquisite precision by the brain. Given the complexity and precision of the auditory system, accurate sound processing is particularly vulnerable to head injury. On the other hand, its precision can be honed by activities that exercise the auditory brain such as playing a musical instrument.

Continue reading “Head Banging: How Music and Concussions Impact Brain Health”

Most of us know what it feels like after a long night with little or no sleep, but do we know the wide-reaching effects such nights can have on our health?

Continue reading “Sleep and Clocks, Windows to Health”

Part of Illinois Institute of Technology’s Wanger Institute for Sustainability Energy Research (WISER) 2018 Distinguished Lectureship Series.

For most of our existence, humans have been sustained by solar energy harnessed on the same timescale as its use. Only in the last two centuries have we become dependent on fossil resources. Continue reading “Challenges and Opportunities in an Emerging Solar Economy”