ReTHINKING Space Propulsion for Interstellar Travel

By Kisothan Suthakaran In 2016, astronomers discovered an Earth-like planet orbiting Proxima Centauri, our nearest-known star, situated such that its temperature allows liquid water to possibly exist on its surface. Our current knowledge about this exoplanet is however limited by the data provided by telescopes and spectrographs. The only effective way of gaining more insights...

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My Summer at Johns Hopkins’ Explore Engineering Innovation (EEI) Program

By Angela Zhu     Hello everyone! I hope you all have had a great summer break so far. In this article, I will be sharing my summer experience at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland. Canadian and American universities usually offer summer programs that enrich students’ life experiences by encouraging them to take college-level...

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If You Love Top Gun: Maverick, Learning the Physics Behind It Will Make You Love It More

By Vincent Jia   Source   Top Gun, released in 1986, was mind-blowing for the public, inspiring multiple generations of naval aviators and fighter pilots. Thirty-six years later, its sequel Top Gun: Maverick, featuring fifty-nine-year-old Tom Cruise, is considered even more epic! Its realistic aerobatics in the air and twisting plot attract both old and...

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Spent Coffee Ground Biodiesel: a brief introduction to an alternative fuel source and its production

By Sophia Eiley     Introduction   Biodiesel is a renewable and biodegradable fuel source derived from organic matter. In this article, we are going to explore the possibility of using spent coffee ground biodiesel instead of a canola oil blend. As well, we will discuss how spent coffee ground biodiesel can be produced in...

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Special Issue: Mobile Applications For Environment And Health Monitoring

I’m happy to announce that I will be guest editing a special issue for the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health along with Dr. Jarrett Phillips. For this special issue, we are seeking papers that explore all aspects of mobile application development for environment and health monitoring, including papers that describe design processes,Continue...

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Sponges – one of the earliest forms of multicellular life.

I wrote this blog for the Nature Nanaimo newsletter published July 10, 2022. This is a slightly modified version. Photo Neil McDaniel, https://blueocean.net/glass-sponge-reefs-living-fossils-found-off-canadian-coast/ An excellent article by Sheila Byers about the unique glass sponge reefs that occur in the Salish Sea and the Hecate Strait appeared in the spring 2022 of BC Nature Magazine, and...

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