By Joseph Brennan, St. Benedict’s Catholic High School, Cumbria For any astronomer or curious person looking at the stars, the natural thought that arises has been the same for millennia: are there planets orbiting those stars like Earth orbits the Sun, and do they have the capability to support life? The detection of exoplanets is…
By Stella Stylianides Da Silva, James Allen’s Girls’ School, London We owe a great deal for our current understanding of the immune system to a theory developed in 1957. The clonal selection theory for the formation of antibodies is considered the most important discovery in immunology in the last 100 years. In his paper “A…
The first issue of the Oxford Scientist is here! It’s jam-packed with some of the most fascinating famous ‘firsts’ of science, from neanderthals to quantum teleportation. Pick up a copy from college common rooms or university science departments now!
This term (HT18) Bang! Science Magazine is relaunching with a new name: The Oxford Scientist. We decided that the magazine should not only celebrate science, but also pay tribute to all our amazing contributors – writers, artists, editors – and many of the scientists whose work features in our pages, who all call this world famous university…
The latest issue is here! Pick up a copy from college common rooms or publication stands and get to grips with the forefront of scientific advance. With a diverse range of fascinating articles, from artificial intelligence to a gastro-revolution, there is something for everyone!
Members of the Oxford Department of Zoology have tracked peregrine falcons in the field as they attacked dummy prey – and discovered that they use the same control strategies to catch them as modern projectile weapons. This suggests a new way to tackle the problem of rogue drones. Principle investigator Professor Graham Taylor said “Falcons…
People live messy lives: they make complex choices about what to eat, who to start a family with, and generally how to live their lives. Mice on the other hand are much simpler. They can live in a lab where their diet, mating and behaviour can be carefully monitored and controlled. This makes it far…
Let’s play a little game. Look around you and take note of how much plastic you can see. Is there a water bottle on the side? Perhaps there’s some food packaging littering your floor. Maybe even a polypocket with some dubious notes from a hungover tutorial. Now guess how much of that stuff there is…
Rome wasn’t built in a day, but their concrete can withstand the ages: around 2 millennia to be precise. There are many intriguing stories of ancient materials with fascinating properties but long-forgotten methods of production, like Damascus steel, the supposed chromium plated blades of the terracotta army, and Roman concrete. However, more light has been shed…
Latte art-Instagrammars and stressed-out students alike will no doubt be delighted to hear that two recent studies, published in Annals of Internal Medicine, reveal a link between coffee consumption and reduced mortality from diseases like cancer, diabetes and heart disease. In the largest study to date to assess the link between coffee consumption and mortality,…
