Category: Science

M-m-m-my Corona: Protecting Yourself from Coronavirus and its Misinformation

March 25, 2020March 25, 2020 Critical Links

By Zack Dumont Though tragic at the time, and still today, past outbreaks — such as SARS in 2003 — have taught the global healthcare community much about handling epidemics. Because of those outbreaks there exist sophisticated systems to detect, trace, contain, and stop the spread of epidemics. Thankfully, we’re seeing those systems in action…

Science, ScienceChek

Philippines Approves Golden Rice

February 11, 2020February 11, 2020 Critical Links

By Andrea Palmieri Philippines has joined Canada, the U.S., Australia, and New Zealand in affirming the safety of golden rice, by approving it for direct use as food, feed, and in food processing. Living in a developing country that relies on rice as a major food source and where vitamin A deficiency (VAD) is endemic, Filipinos will significantly…

Science, ScienceChek

Getting blood from a stone? Fossil preservation and misconceptions.

February 2, 2020February 21, 2020 Centre for Inquiry Canada Ottawa

Details February 12th, 2020 marked 211 years since the birth of Charles Darwin. CFIC Ottawa celebrated (the next day) with a get-together including a talk on fossils by Carleton University PhD student Dana Korneisel. Dana gave us an animated informative talk on her research into the possibility of fossilized blood. We started at 7pm…

CFI Community, Education, Science, Science Literacy

International Aid and Homeopathy

January 15, 2020October 27, 2020 Critical Links

Chagas disease (American trypanosomiasis) is an insect-borne tropical disease that begins with flu-like symptoms and can end with heart failure for 20-30% of those infected. There are pharmaceutical treatments available which can reduce symptoms (and have up to a 90% cure rate for infants and young children). But recently, Global Affairs Canada allocated $350,000 to send volunteer…

ScienceChek

Vaccine Roundup: January 2020

January 6, 2020 Critical Links

By Seanna Watson Polio eradication: Two down, one to go. Let’s start with some good news. A wild poliovirus strain has now been declared eradicated. Poliovirus Type 3 was officially declared eradicated by the WHO in October of 2019, four years after the eradication of Type 2. Only Type 1 still remains in the wild. (Read more here .) Unvaccinated…

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