This reading week, I spent my time working as an intern at the National Museum of Natural History in Washington, D.C. In a city full of fantastic (and free) museums, those associated with the Smithsonian are in a class of their own. From art galleries, to air and space museums, to zoos, these public spaces create widely accessible and beautifully crafted educational environments.

 Behind the walls of the exhibits lining three stories of the Museum of Natural History are floors with offices, laboratories, scientists, libraries, and thousands, if not millions, of specimens. While I had just a small glimpse behind the scenes, I saw entire floors devoted to the study of minerals, anthropological objects from around the world, and molecular laboratories decoding the mysteries of ancient organisms.

I spent my time in the Department of Botany. Spanning two floors of the building, the herbarium at the museum is one of the largest in the world. The multitude of specimens in this department means that the vast majority of this information is not available to the general public. I assisted the development of a database which will allow the distribution of informative scientific research, in this case the extensive collection of the botanist José Cuatrecasas. His extensive photographs, spanning seventy years, are a valuable scientific and cultural resource that will soon reach a wider audience.

The Smithsonian Institution is one of the major scientific research organizations in the world with multiple research centres and a plethora of public museums and educational opportunities. They offer more than 1,800 internships each year as well as research fellowships for a diverse range of projects.

Mount Allison students find plenty of unique spring break opportunities, from organizations like Global Brigades to more typical beach vacations, but there are also options available for those looking to do a more educational work during the week. Programs exist for every possible interest and discipline as long as you are able to expand your search beyond your region or even your country.

The structure of internships is designed to benefit both the employer and the intern by providing a valuable learning opportunity and the possibility of employment. Unpaid internships have been criticized in recent years for the ease with which they can exploit young workers, and how they can become an opportunity only for those who can afford to work unpaid for an extended period of times.

 Personally, I spent a week when I wouldn’t normally be working gaining a brand new and valuable experience. Ideally internships expose the interns to new possibilities in their preferred field, and provide a taste of the work experience. That is precisely what I learned, and I would jump at the chance to return.

Anyone familiar with J.J. Abrams’s work in television and film (Lost, Star Trek) has come to expect complex, interlocking narratives with unsolved riddles left behind. His latest project , a foray into the world of literature, does not disappoint. The novel S., conceived by J.J. Abrams and written by novelist Doug Dorst, is unabashedly demanding with not only the printed text, but also the creation of a fake author, readers, and mementos hidden with the pages of the text. If that wasn’t enough, most chapters use various codes to reveal even more mysteries for the reader.

The novel contained within the outer case appears to be an old library book, complete with a Dewey Decimal sticker and due dates stamped in the back.  The book, titled The Ship of Theseus, is allegedly written by the reclusive author V. M. Straka, along with the assistance, or interference, of his translator. The story extends beyond the printed pages to conversations scribbled in the margins by a graduate student studying the mysterious V. M. Straka and a student working in the library who finds the copy.

As they struggle to uncover the truth about the book’s author and his real relationship with the translator they add more tokens to the pages of the book, including letters, photographs, and maps drawn on napkins. While S. may be an unusual experience for some readers, it can be closely linked to similar postmodern works which explore the limits of what constitutes a novel. The immersive experience of the text may feel familiar to readers of Mark Z. Danielewski’s House of Leaves while the construction of an enigmatic and reclusive author is reminiscent of Vladimir Nabokov’s Pale Fire.

Although there are some critics and readers who suggest reading the main text first and then returning to follow the margin notes, I disagree. The confusion and gaps in the readers knowledge as they progress with all of the timelines at once is one of the great merits of this novel and while it may seem a daunting task the work is rewarded as the story progresses to its natural conclusions for all of the characters. Not all of the answers are spelled out for the reader, many clues are left unanswered and not all of the threads tie up neatly.

Since S. was released several months ago the Internet has already developed multiple chatrooms and websites for readers to decode the remaining messages from the text and discuss theories. There are several official websites associated with the project as well, suggesting that the narrative may continue to develop off of the page. This unusual collaboration offers a challenge and a mystery for readers who not only crave interlocking complex narratives but also demands the active participation of the reader themselves.

Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott said that the speed and ferocity of the fires had “nothing to do with climate change” in response to comments to the contrary from the United Nations climate chief Christiana Figueres. Grey Hunt, environment minister in Australia, reportedly consulted Wikipedia to support his views that climate change and the recent bush fires are unrelated. 

Abbott has denied climate change in the past. His recent election included a pledge to repeal Australia’s carbon tax. Additionally, in September, Abbott’s government shut down the Climate Commission, a government institution that focused on providing an accurate, apolitical public source of information about climate change in Australia.

The impacts of ignoring the climate are severe, not just severe for the environment, but also for those individuals in a region. Ecologist, and member of the dismantled Climate Commission, Lesley Hughes explained that “to deny the influence of climate change on extreme fire weather, and not take appropriate action to prepare for these changed conditions, places people and property at unnecessarily high risk.”

Although scientists have not directly linked the increased bush fires to climate change, research clearly suggests that the record high temperatures can make the fires more destructive and frequent. Last summer was the hottest on record for the country, and this year, the warm temperatures and high winds have created ideal conditions for even larger fires. Scientific research taking place over several years and studies suggests that Australia will feel the impact of global warming more severely than other areas of the planet.

The current debate in Australia raises some important questions about the issues of public knowledge of science and the impact dissuasive public voices can have in the debate. The rigour and accuracy of scientific research should be evaluated by experts in that field, hence the current peer-reviewed system for journal publication. Skepticism of accepted scientific theories becomes problematic when promoted by politicians with widespread influence but little knowledge of science itself. Contentious issues like climate change often focus the discussion on highlighting political differences rather than on the applicable scientific information.

In some of the most extreme environments on Earth, hidden deep within caves in Greece, unexpectedly scientists have discovered that life is flourishing in the form of cyanobacteria.

In a lecture at Mount Allison University last week, Professor Athena Economou-Amilli of the University of Athens, revealed surprising information about the diversity of life in the underground cave ecosystems.

Cyanobacteria are more commonly known to the public as green or blue-green algae and are found worldwide. The wide variety of uses for cyanobacteria include pharmaceuticals, food, and biofuel. One of the key characteristics of cyanobacteria is the ability to ‘fix’ nitrogen gas from the atmosphere into a form of ammonia or nitrates that plants are then able to absorb.

Athough cyanobacteria are known to live in some of the most extreme conditions on Earth they do perform oxygenic photosynthesis.

Economou-Amilli and her team studied three cave environments around Greece: an open-air cave, a cave exposed to salt spray, and a typical limestone cave. Caves are exemplified by a stable temperature and high relative humidity, leading some to describe them as extreme environments. Economou-Amilli disagrees with this assessment, based on her research. Cyanobacteria were uncovered in the farthest reaches of the caves known as the dim light zone where lack of light is the limiting factor in the growth of most species. The cyanobacteria is also found growing within the rocks, hidden from light, in the entrance zone of caves.

When Economou-Amilli and her team discovered new taxa of cyanobacteria, they encountered some difficulty in the naming, as the scientific community does not have a perfect method for it. The taxonomy used to identify the vast quantity of cyanobacteria lacks cohesion as the botanical and bacterial nomenclature differs. The classical method of naming new species usually relies on morphology of cells. Newer molecular taxonomy uses the growth of bacterial cultures in a laboratory setting. Since some cyanobacteria have not been successfully cultured, it adds another level of difficulty when naming a new species or genus.

Further areas of research into cyanobacteria may compare the morphology and speciation between terrestrial species and those found in cave environments. Caves, some of the most extreme environments on Earth, support life and favour speciation in unexpected ways with cyanobacteria paving the way for increased growth and development of other species.

Each spring the Mansbridge Internship, established by Mount Allison University Chancellor Peter Mansbridge, provides a third year student with a valuable leadership development opportunity in their chosen field. According to 2012 Mansbridge Internship recipient Lia D’Abate, the experience is an incredible opportunity and she encourages students to submit an application.

The $10,000 scholarship is awarded to a student who then coordinates their own placement in a field of their choice. The internship, established in 2011, was first awarded to Monica Jepson who pursued an experience with a medicine based internship in Kenya. D’Abate, last year’s intern told The Argosy that the internship “gives students the chance to have work experience they may not have chances to access otherwise.”

D’Abate spent the summer at Stanford University in a lab working with signalling pathways and development of the pancreas. Speaking about her experience she said, “I didn’t properly understand it before I went.” D’Abate explained that the experience was challenging but she enjoying doing work that she otherwise wouldn’t have been able to do at Mt. A. “The Mansbridge Internship is so unique to this school,” explained D’Abate. “It’s wonderful to have a school and chancellor that are so supportive of the students.” Her research at Stanford was an unpaid position and the money provided by the Mansbridge Internship allowed her to pursue the opportunity and help with living expenses during the summer.

D’Abate is currently completing her honours in biology and plans to graduate this May. She plans to pursue her masters and is grateful to have had the opportunity to try different things before focusing on developmental biology.

Newly reappointed Chancellor of Mt. A, Mansbridge has stated, “the internship is meant to provide students with an experience that builds on what they learn in the classroom,” and that,  “such perspective is vital in today’s world.”

 The Internship is open to all Mt. A students in their third year of study and aims to facilitate academic and experiential learning opportunities for the recipient. One of the features of the internship includes an aspect of community service for the Mt. A and Sackville community after the completion of summer work.

“I think it’s great that Mt. A is investing in students, “ said D’Abate. “I want to thank Peter Mansbridge, Dr. Campbell and Ron Byrne for this opportunity. I urge everyone to apply.”

Walking down the grocery store aisle it is impossible to tell if the foods you are purchasing have been genetically modified. In Canada there is currently no legislation requiring the labelling of genetically modified foods.

According to the World Health Organization genetically modified organisms (GMO’s) are organisms with genetic material that has been altered in a manner that does not occur in nature. Genetically modified crops have overtaken Canadian agriculture during the past twenty years with limited regulation or monitoring of this new technology. Corn, canola, and soya are the most common modified crops in the country and many other modified products are imported.

On Wednesday, February 13 Cinema Politica a group at Mount Allison University screened the documentary Seeds of Change by Mt. A faculty member, Ian Mauro.  The film examines the effect of Genetically Modified Crops (GMCs) through the eyes of farmers and members of rural Canadian communities. While the film was completed more than a decade ago the topic is still pertinent, as major biotechnology companies continue to exert enormous control over agriculture in North America.

Major biotechnology companies like Monsanto Inc. hold patents on GMO’s and control their use, particularly in North America. With limited legislation on the subject, most of the legal issues arising from their use have been resolved in the legal system.

The film Seeds of Change highlights many anti-GMO activists including David Suzuki, Vanadana Shiva and farmers in the prairies whose livelihoods are directly affected by these companies. Percy Schmeiser became the face of GMO patent issues in Canada after he took Monsanto to the Supreme Court over the use of genetically modified plants. Schmeiser was a Manitoban farmer whose land was contaminated with patented modified canola seed without his knowledge. The case raised important issues, that have yet to be fully resolved, regarding the rights of companies to patent organisms in Canada.

In Canada, unlike the United State and Europe, the Supreme Court had previously ruled that a “higher life-form” cannot be patented. After the Schmeiser case the court ruled in favour of Monsanto, allowing the company to patent the processes involved in genetic modification and the cells of the founder plant but not the entire plant itself.

Health Canada and the Canadian Food Inspection Agency are responsible for the labelling policies and currently the only mandatory labels are for established health or safety issues with the product. The method of food production or engineering is not labeled because it poses no health or safety risks despite consumer interest in biotechnology labels. Scientific studies on the subject have been limited due to the relatively recent emergence of the technology and the limited major research on the topic.

If you weren’t glued to binoculars or a telescope last Friday you missed the closest recorded asteroid to Earth in recent history, the 2012 DA14.  Just 27,600 kilometers above the surface of the Earth the asteroid was closer to the planet than many artificial satellites.

The asteroid is fifty meters wide; equivalent in size to an Olympic swimming pool, and with an estimated weight of 143,000 tons it would have caused major damage if it had made an impact on the Earth. Scientists predicted that if impact had occurred it would affect an area of approximately 2000 square kilometers.

Telescopes around the world focused in as the fast moving space rock travelled by, at a rapid pace of 7.82 kilometers per second relative to the Earth. Moving from the southern to northern hemisphere throughout the day the DA14 was visible in some areas of Australia, Asia and Europe with the aid of telescopes or binoculars. Astronomers around the world recorded this historical event with a wide array of astronomical photography.  A variety of webcasts are available online of the close brush with the asteroid.

The next astronomical event with a similar proximity to Earth is not predicted to occur until 2029, but even that event will not come quite as close to the planet.  Since the records of systematic surveys of the sky began in the mid-1990s this is the largest event that astronomers have known about in advance. This event could be the last close pass for this asteroid because the force of the Earth’s gravitational field will alter the orbit of DA14 further away from the planet. A Spanish observatory a year ago discovered the asteroid, and its path has been closely monitored since that time. DA14 avoided impact with Earth by a mere fifteen minutes.

The use of radar enabled scientists to learn more precise data about the composition and structure of the asteroid during its flight. The resources on similar asteroids are the motivation behind space mining companies like Deep Space Industries and Planetary Resources.

Deep Space estimated the economic value of DA14 to be close to $195 billion, including water and metals. Critics, including a spokesperson from the National Radio Astronomy Observatory, say that Deep Space had greatly exaggerated the accessibility of the nearby resources. Plans for commercial mining of asteroids include harvesting the metals found in the rock as well as using the water in asteroids to refuel spacecraft efficiently. The DA14 asteroid is not accessible and the company has no plans to harvest it, rather they are using the near miss as an example of the relative abundance of similar asteroids passing near Earth.