Monthly Archives: November 2013
Video: yeast, past and future
As well as its role in brewing and bread making, yeast can be used in biorefineries to make biofuels for transport and is a key model organism in synthetic biology. Engineered strains could produce future foods and pharmaceuticals. No wonder the National Collection of Yeast Cultures has some interesting stories, as explained by this video … Continue reading
Would you be fooled by a fly? Play a game to find out!
Christopher Taylor, a PhD student at the University of Nottingham, invites you to play an insect game to assist with his research. In the natural world, not everything is what it seems. Deception is rife, and it can be hard to know whether to trust your senses. What first looks like a dead leaf might … Continue reading
Species of the week: the hedgehog
This autumn, thousands of hedgehogs will curl up and sleep through the winter blues, with the hope of emerging next March to see the blossom on trees and the return of life to the gardens, woodlands and fields. Hibernation, though, is a perilous practise and not to be taken lightly. Many hedgehogs will never wake … Continue reading
AuthorAID: looking for research mentors
By Catherine Ball, Science Policy Officer at the Biochemical Society and Society of Biology Communication and dissemination of research is a big focus for us at the Society of Biology. Through our work with our Research Dissemination Committee, we champion equitable and sustainable practices in the circulation of research outputs. No small task recently as … Continue reading
Sustainable energy from oil (plant oil that is)
In advance of the Society of Biology’s Policy Lates discussion on algal bioenergy, Rebecca Nesbit looks at some of the hurdles we need to overcome to produce liquid fuel from plants in a more sustainable manner. First generation biofuels are made from starch, sugars, fats and oils, but often come from food plants. This has … Continue reading
Species of the Week: The Malayan Tiger
In 2004, the Malayan Tiger, was welcomed as its own subspecies after careful consideration of genetics and measurements from the closely related subspecies Panthera tigris corbetti, the tigers of Singapore. The Malayan Tiger is exclusively found in the Malay Peninsula, and there are estimated to be approximately 500 in existence. Unfortunately, tiger numbers continue … Continue reading
Future Morph – careers advice for schools
By Mark Downs, chief executive of the Society of Biology At the Society of Biology we have recently benefited from a number of interns, and it is rewarding to see young people develop at the start of their careers. But how do they get to this stage? For undergraduates we offer Life Sciences Careers Conferences, … Continue reading
Are you being brainwashed in your sleep? (in a good way)
Jenni Lacey, marketing assistant as the Society Biology, shares new research which could offer a molecular basis for why we need sleep. I’m someone who confidently claims to need no more than 7 hours sleep and, when necessary, happily survive on 6 hours. I’m reassured that my claims are justified by a range of sources: … Continue reading
Climate change – it is not just cutting emissions, there is biological preservation too
Jonathan Cowie was the Institute of Biology’s publication manager from the late 1980s through to the early 2000s, and also, for a while, its head of science policy. On Thursday 14th November he will be delivering a talk, hosted by the London branch of the Society of Biology at Charles Darwin House, in which he … Continue reading
A bigger bite than Dracula!
Lily Brinn is an intern at the Society of Biology, who has a serious addiction to Marmite. The ocean hosts a wide range of biology, most of which is still to be discovered. In October this year another new species was discovered and this time its venomous. Ever been stung by a lobster, No? Well … Continue reading