What is the toughest animal on earth?
Reading Time: < 1 minuteTHIS small 1.0 mm animal can survive both the hottest and coldest environments on earth, and can even stand high levels of radiation. Do you know what that is? This incredible creature is tardigrade, or commonly known as water bear. Most organisms need water to survive, in which water supports the metabolism in cells. But […]
USM making science more accessible with hands-on exposure
Reading Time: 2 minutesBY MAZLAN HANAFI BASHARUDIN ENHANCING the fields of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) in education is a major initiative in the Malaysian Education Development Plan (PPPM) 2013-2025. However, currently less than 50 percent of students are undergoing studies in STEM-related fields in the country. Various efforts and initiatives have been implemented to spur the […]
Land study in Bangkok
Reading Time: < 1 minuteIN order to understand agriculture scenarios in other countries that have similar climate and land use for agriculture, a total of 25 students pursuing Master of Land Resource Management (LARM), Faculty of Agriculture, Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM) conducted an academic visit to the School of Agricultural Resources, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, recently. The visit was to […]
Stephen Hawking 1942-2018
Reading Time: < 1 minuteEULOGY… Without an iota of doubt, no other scientist in our current era has touched the public imagination as much as Stephen Hawking did. Beginning with his foundational work on the nature of black holes in the 1960s and 1970s, his ideas have left their mark on generations of physicists and cosmologists. And despite a […]
World café for women hits high note
Reading Time: 2 minutesBANDAR SUNWAY: World Café for Women@MonashMalaysia themed ‘Time is NOW – Rural and Urban Activists Transforming Women’s Lives’ was held on 8 March 2018 in celebration of International Women’s Day 2018 (IWD 2018) with support from our campus Working Women Committee, President & Pro Vice-Chancellor and Professors Advisory Group. President and Pro Vice-Chancellor Professor Andrew […]
What makes a tattoo permanent?
Reading Time: < 1 minuteHAVE you ever really thought about the chemistry of tattoos? What exactly is in those inks, and how safe are they? Tattoo application uses a mechanised needle to puncture the skin and inject ink into the dermis or second layer of skin just below the epidermis. The process involves damaging the skin, causes a tiny […]
Animal breeders are blocked worldwide from using genetic engineering. Here’s why
Reading Time: 6 minutesBY STEVEN CERIER INCREASINGLY prevalent in producing the crops we consume and creating the medicines used to treat our ailments and chronic diseases, genetic engineering could become a common method of modifying the animals we have domesticated and use for food. This will be particularly important as the demand for meat and animal products is […]
Renowned seed scientist dies
Reading Time: < 1 minuteRENOWNED Professor Emeritus Chin Hoong Fong passed away on March 19 at the age of 83. Chin has always attracted a full house of enthusiastic audience whenever he spoke. Other than being a devoted and highly respected “teacher” in Malaysia, Chin was also an internationally renowned seed scientist who pioneered storage of recalcitrant seeds in […]
Canada approves Golden Rice
Reading Time: < 1 minuteTHE Government of Canada has approved the sale of Provitamin A Biofortified Rice GR2E (Golden Rice) in the country. In order to determine whether this rice variety could be sold in Canada as food, the scientists at Health Canada conducted a scientific assessment that ensured that GR2E rice is safe for consumption, that the increased […]
Why is the octopus brain so extraordinary?
Reading Time: < 1 minuteWHAT could octopuses possibly have in common with us? After all, they do not have lungs, a spine or even the ability to talk like we do. But what they do have is the ability to solve puzzles, learn through observation, and even use tools. And what makes octopus intelligence so amazing is that it […]