The quest for the best cell phone deal is not unlike finding the Holy Grail. Everyone knows a friend of a friend that somehow secured a $40 six-gigabyte plan, but nobody really knows how they got it. Cell phone salespeople offer cryptic promises and deals, but are they just padding[Read More…]
Science & Technology
The latest in science and technology.
Does having a high IQ mean you’re smart?
News of 12-year-old Lydia Sebastian scoring 162—the top score—on a Mensa IQ test made headlines last week. People were astounded that a child had scored higher than both Albert Einstein and Stephen Hawking. While there’s actually no evidence that Einstein or Hawking ever took the Mensa IQ test, Sebastian’s score[Read More…]
The summer slide
Summer marks a pause in the academic year. It’s a time for students to recharge after a hectic semester and forget about school for a few months. Unfortunately, this can also mean forgetting a sizable chunk of the previous year’s work. This phenomenon, known as the “summer slide,” is well-documented[Read More…]
McGill 101: How to get career experience in the sciences
Deciding what to do after graduation is hard for all undergraduates. While some are blessed with the secure knowledge of what their future holds, for most, that’s not the case. For Science students, the most common choices are graduate or medical school. While undergraduate studies, for the most part, provide[Read More…]
Summer research briefs: Brain power
Molding memories Some people find it hard to remember what they had for lunch yesterday, while others can remember every detail of the house they grew up in. Understanding how memories are retained and recalled has always intrigued researchers, especially when seeking therapeutics for neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s. Researchers speculate[Read More…]
From the BrainSTEM: Montreal Museums Day
As a student, being able to immerse myself in Montreal’s rich network of museums—without having to pay anything—is an exciting proposition. On May 24, when the Board of Montreal Museum Directors hosted the 29th edition of La Journée Des Musées, Montréalais: Montreal Museums Day, I had to participate. The Biodôme,[Read More…]
This summer’s hottest apps
It’s important to remember that summer extends beyond the inevitable approach of tank tops, jorts, and Ray-Bans. Here are the Tribune’s picks of apps to augment the summer experience, whether it’s a soul-searching trip to South East Asia, one last road trip with friends after graduation, or the familiar comfort[Read More…]
Where’s your head at?
From the days of Karl Lashley—who believed each memory leaves a physical trace on the brain—to Dr. Wilder Penfield—whose electrical stimulation studies identified functions pertaining to specific areas of the brain—these scientists are a testament to the value of physically studying the brain in order to understand it. Last Wednesday,[Read More…]
Making chemistry greener one silver at a time
The path to sustainable science achieved another milestone when chemistry professor Chao Jun Li and his team published their findings in Science Advances last week. The group have uncovered a way to convert aldehydes into carboxylic acids. However, unlike traditional synthesis methods, which use prohibitively expensive quantities of silver or[Read More…]
Brain Awareness Montreal hosts annual Brain Bee
On April 2, deep within the Montreal Neurological Institute (MNI), Villa Maria 10th grader Melina Thibault was declared Montreal’s annual Brain Bee champion. The competition, hosted by Brain Awareness Montreal (BAM), is designed to test high school students specifically on information about the brain. The day began with a written[Read More…]
