Category: Sci/Tech

by Samantha Hamilton–

Evidence of climate change is causing many people to question how much longer life will be sustainable on Earth. According to NASA research, “human activity is the leading cause of climate change rather than Earth’s natural processes.”

Celebrities and politicians are using their platforms to inform audiences about extreme weather events occurring around the world. Encouraging all to adopt a greener lifestyle and decrease the emission of greenhouse gases that pollute our atmosphere. Dr. Lisa Kennedy of the Virginia Tech Department of Geography explains that allowing these gases to occupy our atmosphere is the strongest supporting evidence that humans are responsible for impacting Earth’s climate.

Virginia Tech students organized a campus protest to bring climate change awareness to a local level within the Blacksburg community. Student protester Reiss Gidner says the goal was to get more attention for the need of congressional legislation.

“Not only was it students at Virginia Tech but it was also Blacksburg Highschool students coming together to demand change,” said Reiss Gidner. “We came together with actual demands that resulted in meetings with the board of directors and President Sands to look at what we can change to use renewable energy.”

With all the conversations surrounding climate change, there have been individuals neglecting that the issue is even real.

“People want to criticize anything that isn’t perfect. This scientist says this is going to happen and temperature will rise this much and then this scientist said something else,” Kennedy explains. “They just want to dismiss it all because scientists don’t absolutely agree because every model doesn’t agree, but it’s important to note what the models do agree on…that it’s warming.”

Kennedy thinks individuals overlook the significance of their own efforts to protect the environment since they are only a small part within it. “I really believe that every person counts, and I think sometimes it’s easy to back out of doing anything because we think what good is it? I’m just one person,” said Kennedy.

Gidner believes it’s time to apply pressure on huge corporations that pump pollution into our air and oceans. She says, “until we have economic policies that can influence the environment and get corporations to actively participate in cleaning up the environment, then not using a plastic straw isn’t going to change anything.”

Organizations like 4Ocean created campaigns to raise money to rid our oceans of waste. According to their website, “6,824,167 pounds of trash removed from the oceans by paid 4Ocean employees since 2017 through the sale of our products.”

Global Warming is threatening little time remaining for change. Gidner admits, “I think we have time if we start yesterday. We need to be aware of our carbon footprint early and consistently aware of how all our actions affect the environment.”

Dr. Kennedy and Gidner remain hopeful that through education we can teach our youth to live greener lifestyles and encourage everyone else to do the same. Kennedy says, “We only have one shot, this next generation can help save us.”

Image linked to full version of infographic on Piktochart.com

by Maria Berkowitz –

The otter sighting in Virginia Tech’s Duck Pond has generated a large social media reaction from students and faculty. After Virginia Tech released pictures of the animal on the university’s Twitter and official Instagram page, everyone is wondering how and why the otter got in the pond.

According to the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries, in 1978 otters were listed as state endangered because “the clearing of stream banks, pollution, and overharvest virtually extirpated them from the western portion of the state.” However, in 1990 the animal was removed from the list due to improvement of stream habitats and efforts to supplement the natural migration of otters back to western Virginia.

Otters rarely appear in the Duck Pond and are more common in the New River. According to The Virginia Living Museum, “River otters inhabit a variety of habitats along rivers, lakes, streams, marshes, and coastal shorelines. This makes the campus landmark a natural habitat for the animal.

Wildlife Conservation student Taina McLeod says, “the Duck Pond is attached to a larger river system and there’s a good chance he just wandered in knowing there’s fish and other food.”

Appalachian Wildlife Management owner, Rudi Woykowski, says the otter most likely won’t stay long because of the lack of mates and because it will deplete its food resources.

While many are excited for the arrival of a new animal in the Duck Pond, Woykowski suggests that it might cause conflict between humans and wildlife. He says, “negative impacts with the otter are going to be a human fisherman getting injured or the otter getting hit by a car because of the proximity to the road.”

Moreover, the otter will impact the Duck Pond’s ecosystem because the animal will be at the top of the food chain.

McLeod says people walking around the Duck Pond probably won’t scare the otter away but bringing dogs to the pond might.

Woykowski warns not to feed or interact with otter because even though they are intelligent and playful creatures, they can quickly turn aggressive.

by Ayveri Lane–

Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) have always been important fields in the world. Professionals in this field provide us with everyday needs. But, there have not been nearly enough women involved with STEM.

According to National Girls Collaborative Project website, women only makeup 29 percent of the science and engineering workforce. While women are interested in sciences, they often shy away from STEM fields.

Virginia Tech Assistant Professor of Paleo Biology Michelle Stocker sees the underrepresentation of women.

“Science in general needs more women. In life sciences there tends to be more students and faculty, but physical sciences are behind that,” said Stocker.

While there is an underrepresentation in higher job fields, Stocker believes at the undergraduate there is a more level playing field.

Recent graduate from the College of Science, Taylor Adams, can attest to this.

“When I graduated, I feel like there was a good mix between males and females in the graduating class, and it did a lot to disprove the stigma that males dominate in the STEM fields,” said Adams.

In order to encourage women to become involved with sciences, it has started to be introduced in the classroom. It allows girls to explore areas of research they may otherwise be turned away from.

According to STEM Revolution, a flipped classroom, in which students learn hands-on and in teams, cultivates the best environment.

Outside of the classroom, media has also attempted to be more gender inclusive. Adams, has noticed this in show’s such as Grey’s Anatomy.

“It portrays women in a very positive light in the medical field. I think stuff like that really shows how media is pushing forward women in the STEM fields,” said Adams.

Adams also believes kids shows such as Magic School Bus, which have a female teacher in charge, help to end the male dominated stigma.

While there have many strides to make STEM more accessible, Stocker believes there is still room for improvement.

“You have to step out of [your bubble] and see what the public as a whole is exposed to. There is still a lot of gendered clothing and portrayals,” said Stocker.

As the public becomes more aware, STEM will become a more gender inclusive environment where women can feel comfortable thriving.

by Josh Henry, Cathrine Irvin, Miguel Pineda–

On March 17 the world learned, again, that your private information online isn’t always kept that way. The New York Times and UK’s The Guardian reported that the voter profiling company Cambridge Analytica had hijacked information from over 50 million facebook users to create tactics used to benefit political campaigns in 2014 and 2016. Psychological profiles were amassed and passed around to the campaigns Cambridge Analytica was paid to support.

We now live in an era where breaches of privacy are becoming more and more common as technology advances and companies seek to find new ways to make money. Your smartphone can hear you, Amazon Alexa can laugh at you, and if you search hard enough for something it will eventually pop up in an add.

In this new age of technology people value their privacy more and more. In this week’s science and technology podcast Josh, Catherine, and Miguel go over the idea of modern privacy and if what is happening with technology is changing the definition of it.

by Humberto Zarco–

BLACKSBURG, Va. – For many, the perception is that in the digital age, the library is still just a place with bookshelves. Virginia Tech librarian Craig Arthur is working to change that at his alma mater.

Arthur, a first-year experience and community engagement librarian, believes Newman Library is becoming a place where students not only receive information but also create it. “We’re trying to position ourselves as not only the place that has the resources you need for your research,” Arthur said. “But also the place for collaboration and creation.”

Newman Library is home to an impressive collection of traditional resources like books, newspapers, magazines and DVDs. But it has also made a concerted effort going forward to provide access to non-traditional resources like museum-caliber exhibits, sound booths and seven specialized, cutting-edge studios that are accessible to all library patrons.

For example, the 3-D Design Studio provides free access to 3-D printers and 3-D printing workshops. Another studio provides various virtual reality and augmented reality experiences. Patrons can even design and test out their own VR and AR prototype projects. The fact that Silicon Valley-based Oculus, a company specializing in VR has made 100 of their Rift headsets and compatible PCs in 90 libraries throughout California to increase exposure to VR is a testament to its potential in the near future.

Newman Library also offers patrons amenities like a cafe, group study rooms and a nap pod located on the second floor. The nap pod was added earlier this year, and is especially useful for busy, sleep-deprived college students looking for a boost. According to the National Sleep Foundation, college students need seven to nine hours of sleep to function properly, but most only get about six.

Library graphic design specialist Trevor Finney believes this blend of the old and the new is the future of libraries and allows students to discover, envision and invent all under one roof. “The reimagining of that for the digital age is not so much a reimagining as it just a small shift,” Finney said. Ideally, patrons can use the traditional resources to discover, the cafe or nap pod to envision, and the studios to invent. “The library is the place where possibility lives,” Finney said.

However, libraries across the country are in trouble financially. The fact that so many books and articles are accessible via smartphone has disrupted their business. President Trump’s proposed budget would eliminate virtually all federal library funding, according to a 2017 Publishers Weekly article.

Craig Arthur believes the key to making libraries destinations again is becoming all-in-one spaces for learning, creating and sharing, and responding to student feedback. “I can think I know what students want,” Arthur said. “But unless I really ask them, I won’t know.”

Blacksburg, Va., Oct. 23 – Study Spaces: Group study rooms at Newman Library are popular places to study that give students a quiet space to collaborate. Photo: Humberto Zarco

Blacksburg, Va. Oct. 23 – Oman Showcase: Pictures and objects promoting the Oman study abroad program on the first floor of Newman Library. The first floor of Newman has rotating exhibits throughout the year. Photo: Humberto Zarco

Blacksburg, Va., Oct. 23 – Study Space: The inside of Torgersen Bridge is one of the quietest and most popular spaces to study on campus. Photo: Humberto Zarco

Blacksburg, Va. Oct. 23 – Cozy Cafe: The EspressOasis Cafe at Newman Library. Photo: Humberto Zarco

Blacksburg, Va., Oct. 23 – Nap Time: A nap pod located on the second floor of Newman Library. Photo: Humberto Zarco

Blacksburg, Va., Oct. 23 – Loaner Laptops: A laptop kiosk on the second floor of Newman Library offers patrons free four-hours check outs. Photo: Humberto Zarco

Blacksburg, Va., Oct. 23 – Interactive Exhibit: An interactive exhibit on Muslim culture located on the first floor of Newman Library. Photo: Humberto Zarco

Blacksburg, Va., Oct. 22 – Shelves Versus Space: Packed bookshelves juxtaposed with empty bookshelves at Newman Library. As books and bookshelves, there could be more space for students to collaborate. Photo: Humberto Zarco

Blacksburg, Va., Oct. 22 – Constructive Criticism: A suggestion box at Newman Library, which students can use to offer feedback. Photo: Humberto Zarco

Blacksburg, Va., Oct. 22 – Honoring History: An exhibit at Newman Library on the history of the LGBTQ Civil Rights Movement. Photo: Humberto Zarco

Blacksburg, Va., Oct. 22 – Printing the Future: A 3-D printer at the 3-D Design Studio located at Newman Library. Photo: Humberto Zarco

Blacksburg, Va., Oct. 22 – Door to Knowledge: The front entrance of Newman Library on the campus of Virginia Tech. Photo: Humberto Zarco