I was on a Toronto subway this week and saw a woman wearing a button with #ILookLikeAnEngineer (see image right). Having blogged about this topic myself in 2015 and also having featured the blog of a female engineer sharing her thoughts, I was pleased to see this important campaign had jumped over to the mainstream, but also a little surprised it was still around. Wondering about the status of #ILookLikeAnEngineer, it appears the campaign…

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Above: Image of a building scaffold. Below: Image of a scaffold structure developed in the lab of Dr. Milica Radisic, University of Toronto. The author has previously written about this structure. Image credit: Raymond Chea (http://news.engineering.utoronto.ca/tissue-velcro/) If you live in Toronto (Canada), you know that we have two seasons: winter and construction season. Between new condo developments and homes being renovated or restored, construction is everywhere. Right now, there are five active projects going on…

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I love kids. Their curiosity, passion and enthusiasm for life are infectious. With two teenagers at home, kids and school are very much on my mind right now. (I have a habit of blogging about back-to-school, as you can read here and here.) Because kids are so curious, they constantly explore the world around them. Young ones do this through their senses, especially touch. Older kids explore with their minds and the internet is a…

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The crux of Right to Try legislation, enacted by 37 U.S. states so far, is the premise that terminally ill patients should have access to experimental therapies, even if they haven’t been approved by the Food and Drug Administration yet. It sounds straight-forward right? My body, my risk, my decision. The U.S. already has measures in place, in some states, to legalize medical aid in dying for terminally ill patients so why is this different?…

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As with all of my posts that relate to anything that might end up being a medical treatment, it is important to be very clear that I am scientist and not a physician.  My comments are my own opinion and based on my experience as a stem cell biologist over the last 10+ years. This blog carnival is about a series of laws in the United States described as Right to Try laws and they…

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On Tuesday, August 29, Signals is hosting a blog carnival on the topic Right to Try. Before you read the perspectives of the contributing bloggers, here’s what President Trump thinks about the legislation and the Goldwater Institute’s reaction. It’s the Institute that took on this cause in the first place. Earlier this month, the U.S. Senate “passed by unanimous consent” the Right to Try bill. More to come next week! Our regular feature, Right Turn,…

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We are less than one week away from Signals’ second blog carnival! Last month I promised to reveal the topic and the participants. I also hinted that this year’s topic might strike some readers as controversial. Given that a few invited bloggers declined to participate, I’d have to say that’s the case. So although our numbers are a little smaller this year – busy schedules and vacations having also gotten in the way – the…

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Hi Loyal Readers, Happy summer! Thanks for your visits all year. I’m on vacation this week, but I thought I’d leave you with something anyway. Next week, I’ll provide some more details about the upcoming blog carnival taking place August 29th. I hope you’ll drop by to read all the interesting blogs and different points of view. No, I’m not vacationing on Mars, but maybe one day.   Our regular feature, Right Turn, appears every…

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Whenever something sounds too good to be true, it usually is. The expression is used widely in a variety of contexts, one of which is as a warning to avoid being taken in by a scam or taken advantage of. Unfortunately, it applies to the stem cell field too. I am tempted to state that a new nano device, the Tissue Nanotransfection, developed to heal organs and repair injured tissue, blood vessels and nerve cells…

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Although new to the field of science communication, Nathan Holwell has been involved in a variety of research during his undergraduate career and now in his graduate career. He has done research in drug delivery, gene delivery, biomaterials and diagnostic devices. His graduate research at Queen’s University, where he is pursuing a PhD in Chemical Engineering with a focus in Biomedical Engineering, is focusing on a better way to repair torn anterior cruciate ligaments (ACLs)…

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