Amanda Smith
A thank you letter to Tim Hunt
June 22, 2015Thank you, Tim Hunt. Thank you for successfully outlining the key feelings I have long held about what’s been holding back my scientific pursuits. In his progressive and insightful words to young science journalists at a recent conference, Hunt, a Nobel Prize winning British scientist, said what has needed to be expressed for a long time regarding women in science: “you fall in love with them, they fall in love with you, and when you criticize them, they cry.” Never have I felt so suddenly spellbound by a man I have never met in person. His words were sincere and…
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Sharks can’t catch a break
June 1, 2015Research at SFU has revealed that the decline in global shark and ray catches is not the result of improved conservation efforts, but instead the consequence of population declines. In 2012, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations…
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Burning down the house
September 15, 2014A fire department in the Lower Mainland has recently come under fire for reportedly hiring only attractive, strapping young individuals instead of older, more experienced firefighters. With recent financial cutbacks and the rising cost of inflation, the fire department has…
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Doctors require the right to refuse treatment based on beliefs
July 21, 2014The College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario (CPSO) is currently reviewing its policy which accords doctors the right to refuse to treat a patient based on religious or moral grounds in non-life threatening situations. While at first I was…
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SFU scientists recognized as “World’s Most Influential Scientific Minds”
July 14, 2014Three SFU scientists have made Thomson Reuter’s list of The World’s Most Influential Scientific Minds: 2014 (WMISM). The three honourees — Marco Marra, Fiona Brinkman, and Steven Jones — are among 90 Canadians on the list of 3,215 researchers from…
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Coho cannibalize their cousins to prosper
June 30, 2014Research out of SFU indicates that the coho salmon population may benefit from nutrients scavenged from the decaying bodies of their distant pink and chum cousins. Michelle Nelson, lead author of a recent report on the subject, explained, “This is…
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Scare up a great sex life
June 23, 2014To reignite that old passionate spark in your relationship, research suggests that, rather than chocolates and long walks along the beach, the answer lies is engaging in activities that kick in your fight or flight response. Sex therapist and relationship…
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Let’s talk about masturbation
June 23, 2014Girls, we are not ashamed to eat our breakfast in the morning because we are hungry, take our morning wee, or go out for a run to work out our bodies, so why is masturbation still such a big deal…
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Web-crawling software targets child exploitation
June 23, 2014A new grant will enable SFU International Cybercrime Research Centre to further their development of a web-crawling software that targets child exploitation. By combining computer science and criminology, researchers are developing a digital mapping software that will help guide police…
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Santa Barbara shootings expose the dangers of our societal misogyny
June 2, 2014The lives of seven young people were taken in Isla Vista at Santa Barbara City College on May 23, and if you haven’t been paying attention, you should be. There is more to this incident than gunman Elliot Rodger’s personal…
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