By Jesse Correll, guest editor Urban agriculture in Montréal has a rich history of growing from the ground up. From its roots in traditional farming, it has adapted to the limited space and resources in the urban environment, becoming increasingly important to the communities around it. According to architects Vikram Bhatt and Leila Marie Farah, […]
Environmental and Earth Sciences
The Beaver Diaries: how AI unveils Nature’s master builders
By Qiaochu Liang, Biology & Life Sciences co-editor The beaver is a familiar sight to Canadians. Castor canadensis is an official symbol of Canada and appears on many government-related artifacts including the Canadian nickel and the Parks Canada logo. But what do we really know about these amazing creatures? Today, advances in Artificial Intelligence (AI) […]
UPDATE: The path of totality, 2024
By Kim Morris, Borealis Blog editor On April 8, a total eclipse of the sun will occur over North America. According to Space.com, “a total solar eclipse happens when the moon appears the same size in the sky as the sun, or slightly larger, so fully covers the disk of the sun, giving observers a […]
The Anthropocene: our sedimentary footprint
By Mary Anne Schoenhardt, Science in Society editor What comes to mind when you think of the term Anthropocene? A dystopian novel? A hazy city filled with smog? Or do you think of the Holocene or Pleistocene epochs, and exhibits on evolution at the museum? While it may sound like something out of pop culture, […]
DIY time machines: how Canadian researchers use data from unexpected sources to recreate the past
By Catherine Dale, Managing Editor Tracking how human influences are changing the natural world is a common goal of science. However, to determine how something is changing, you need to know what it looked like in the past – and often, no records exist. To fill this gap, scientists sometimes turn to unconventional sources of […]