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Articles on Scientific research

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It is important to educate the public about scientific research, discoveries and applications. (Shutterstock)

Talking about science and technology has positive impacts on research and society

Conversations about scientific research and technological innovations allow the public to build trust with experts, and understand the impacts on everyday lives.
Basic research often involves lab work that won’t be appreciated until decades down the line. Sebastian Condrea/Moment via Getty Images

Tenacious curiosity in the lab can lead to a Nobel Prize – mRNA research exemplifies the unpredictable value of basic scientific research

The winners of the 2023 Nobel Prize in physiology or medicine made a discovery that helped create the COVID-19 vaccines. They couldn’t have anticipated the tremendous impact of their findings.
A casual stroll on the beach can leave enough intact DNA behind to extract identifiable information. Comezora/Moment via Getty Images

You shed DNA everywhere you go – trace samples in the water, sand and air are enough to identify who you are, raising ethical questions about privacy

Environmental DNA provides a wealth of information for conservationists, archaeologists and forensic scientists. But the unintentional pickup of human genetic information raises ethical questions.
Scientists have used author Henry David Thoreau’s notes to inform studies of climate change in eastern Massachusetts. Tom Stohlman/Flickr

By fact-checking Thoreau’s observations at Walden Pond, we showed how old diaries and specimens can inform modern research

Journals, museum collections and other historical sources can provide valuable data for modern ecological studies. But just because a source is old doesn’t make it useful.
Rhesus macaques experience an aging process similar to people’s. Goddard Photography/E+ via Getty Images

Expanding Alzheimer’s research with primates could overcome the problem with treatments that show promise in mice but don’t help humans

Nonhuman primates like rhesus monkeys share certain characteristics with people that may make them better study subjects than mice for research on neurodegenerative diseases.

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