Science and Tech

By Sophia Byl Among the exclamations I heard at about 3:18pm on Monday, April 8th were “This is crazy!”, “Look at how dark it is!”,...

Can we determine the shape of a drum by analyzing the sounds it produces? This has been a longstanding question in mathematics for the past 70 years. In 1954, George Polya, a renowned Hungarian-American mathematician,  proposed a conjecture suggesting a link between the vibration frequencies of certain geometric shapes, including rectangles, triangles, or disks, and their physical shapes.

The gradual increase in seawater levels has contributed to the gradual sinking of coastal cities in the United States. This problem continues to be a silent problem that risks flooding and the livelihood or lifestyle of locals in these cities. Researchers from different universities in the US, Canada, England, and India have all reported and created a study to examine the potential impacts of subsidence in 32 cities along the Atlantic, Gulf, and Pacific Coasts.

With the rise of modern technology comes the rise of electricity, and thousands of different ways in which it can be used to benefit humanity.  Electricity is quite the common commodity today, but its brilliance was rarely taken advantage of just a couple of centuries ago… by humans, that is. Turns out, nature has once again beaten us to harness the power of some mysterious, omnipresent resource in unthinkable ways.

While technology has enhanced our ability to explore the ocean, scientists continually uncover new discoveries from its profound depths. Recent studies have revealed an invisible line that delineates two distinct types of marine life. Moreover, this research has illuminated unique ecosystems that exist beneath the ocean's surface, presenting a stark contrast to the more familiar ecosystems found in the upper layers of the ocean. 

Picture the following: you, like any sensible human, enjoy a good risotto. One faithful day, you flavor your arborio rice with some interesting new herbs before enjoying the meal. It tastes a little strange, but you dismiss the thought and continue to dig in. The next day is record-breakingly hot, and temperatures are only rising. You step outside, expecting to be struck by a disgusting wave of heat, but the intense sun actually feels pleasant. Energizing, in fact. Something on your arm catches your eye - freckles unlike any you’ve ever seen. A deep green, they oddly resemble the herby seasoning you added to your risotto just the day before. Could this be the source of your newfound energy?

you’ve got a date this Valentine’s Day, congratulations! If you plan on spending the night inside playing video games, that’s cool, too. Whether you manage to find someone to share something special with or you’re buying yourself flowers, you get to choose what you do on February 14th — a choice unique to humans. 

On February 2, 2024, a name likely familiar to many of you appeared on the radio show Science Friday. Gabe Guo, a current undergraduate senior at Columbia University majoring in Computer Science, published a research paper titled “Unveiling intra-person fingerprint similarity via deep contrastive learning” in the Science Advances Journal, January 12, 2024, alongside contributors Aniv Ray, Miles Izydorczak, Judah Goldfeder, Hod Lipson, and Wenyao Xu. In his research, it was found that, using AI analysis of fingerprints, there is a significant level of similarity between the prints on all of one individual’s fingers, contrary to prior belief.

With almost 200,000 orders, the Apple Vision Pro is currently one of the market's most popular headsets. Apple first released the prototype in early June of 2023, and it has been available in the United States since February 2nd, 2024. This innovative headset promises a new era of today's augmented and virtual realities. Unlike any other headset, it mixes digital content with the physical world. The Vision Pro is advanced technology with features that have never been seen before.

In the hearts of homes across the nation, our faithful canine companions bring joy, companionship, and a lot of tail-wagging excitement. Yet, a shadow has fallen on this idyllic picture. Recent reports from USA Today reveal a mysterious respiratory illness sweeping through our dog-loving community, affecting furry friends in 16 states since last August. The question on every dog lover's mind: what is this unseen threat?