Mind the (gender) gap: Big data with impact

Oxfam East Africa

Amanda Maxwell, Science Borealis editorial coordinator What image pops into your head when you hear the word ‘expert’ in news stories? It’s probably the stereotypic male authority. ‘Probably’ because globally women’s voices are missing from the news – we’re much more likely to hear and see men quoted as experts. Recognizing media bias is one […]

Continue reading


Anthropocene: The Human Epoch, Film Review

Phosphorus tailings pond, near Lakeland, Florida. Image courtesy of the Nicholas Metivier Gallery

Jasman Sahota, guest contributor The environment is constantly changing. But to what extent is the environment shaped by human activities? The Anthropocene Working Group, an international group of geologists and scientists, has deliberated on this question for the past nine years and concluded that humans are now the dominant cause of lasting impacts on the […]

Continue reading


Technology in health care: Essential but costly

Image: CC maxpixel.net

Robert Gooding-Townsend and Braydon Black, Science in Society co-editors On April 23, 2019, the federal government announced an $81-million initiative to allow researchers to analyze health data across provinces. Dr. Kim McGrail, at the University of British Columbia, will lead The Strategy for Patient-Oriented Research (SPOR) Canadian Data Platform. According to the website, SPOR “will […]

Continue reading


Top 3 reasons to attend Science Rendezvous on May 11

Photo credit: Clifton Li

Dr. Emily Agard, Director of SciXchange at Ryerson University, Toronto Join us for Science Rendezvous! This annual free festival makes science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) accessible to thousands of people with a day of engaging, informative and interactive events across the country. This year, Science Rendezvous highlights how we can infuse the arts into […]

Continue reading


Hummingbirds: The forgotten pollinator when it comes to pesticides

Lené Gary, General Science co-editor When life is leaping forth in its freshest tender green and shrubs are casting best their wine-rich blooms of color, there comes a humming. Not just from the song of spring rising in the world, but wing beats – fifty-two to sixty-two per second. From now through May, rufous hummingbirds […]

Continue reading