Articles by Yael Horvath

How Dirty Are the NYC Subways, Really?

By Yael Horvath • Published: December 11, 2014 • Comment ()

We’ve all been there at some point. Packed into subway cars that feel like sardine cans and cause claustrophobia unlike any other. We wonder, even fleetingly, what subway air is really made of. Or, as the University of Colorado-Boulder’s new study phrased it: what is the microbial content of the air in the subway system? […]

The Ig Nobel

By Yael Horvath • Published: November 13, 2014 • Comment ()

While most people are familiar with the Nobel Prize, few know about its mischievous little cousin, the Ig Nobel Prize. Imparting little cash but much cachet, the Ig Nobel Prize and its deliberation committee factor only a single criterion into choosing a lucky winner from thousands of nominees: the ability of a scientific discovery to […]

Breaking the Mold

By Yael Horvath • Published: August 19, 2014 • Comment ()

It learns, remembers, solves problems, and chooses the healthiest item on the menu; and yet it doesn’t have a brain. The slime mold, also known as the SpongeBob SquarePants—yellow Physarum Polycephalum, is a mold that is not actually a mold. It is an amoeba and exists as a single-celled organism that joins together with other […]

Tall Tales of Mind-Controlling Parasites

By Yael Horvath • Published: May 12, 2014 • Comment ()

When we think of animals in the African Sahara, we picture herds of zebra, families of elephants, and flocks of birds. We see animals travelling in groups because we assume that there is a safety to large numbers or a mating and breeding advantage.  But underlying this assumption is the notion that these animals are […]

Circumcision: Comparable to Vaccination?

By Jackie Benayoun, Yael Horvath • Published: April 9, 2014 • Comment ()

As an Orthodox Jew, it is interesting to see that scientists and doctors are supporting the benefits of circumcision on male infants. Recently, a team of researchers from Australia and America recommended circumcision as a means of avoiding disease. Some went as far as to compare the practice to vaccination. The team, led by Brian […]

Biochemical Warfare

By Yael Horvath • Published: February 17, 2014 • Comment ()

From the very conception of modern technology, humanity has encountered the choice of bettering the world or heralding destruction upon society—whether in the name of superiority, religion, or further technological advancement. As the marriage of science and technology has been a mostly happy and fruitful one, it has also launched toxic inventions and discoveries unprecedented […]

Botox For Migraines?

By Yael Horvath • Published: December 16, 2013 • Comment ()

Migraine headaches are currently one of the most common neurological disorders in the developed world, affecting more than 37 million people in the US alone. In a recent poll, adults of all ages considered migraines to be one of the top 20 disabilities that they lost healthy years to. Despite its debilitating and far-reaching effects, […]

The Whys and Hows Behind Sleep and Dreams

By Yael Horvath • Published: November 18, 2013 • Comment ()

If I were granted a superpower of choice, my answer, hands-down, would be to function without ever having to sleep. I mentally salute Thomas Edison, who said, “Sleep is a criminal waste of time and a heritage from our cave days.” I don’t go so far as to say that “sleep is for wimps,” a […]

The Brain: Not Just Interesting to Zombies Anymore

By Yael Horvath • Published: October 21, 2013 • Comment ()

The ambiguities of the brain have been studied over the years, as researchers search for the secrets of its operation. One such research project has recently culminated in a revolutionary technological breakthrough, with implications for both the vast, unexplored territory of neuroscience and the field of medical ethics. Medical ethics has delved into alternative reproductive […]

In Pursuit of Youth…by the Young

By Yael Horvath • Published: August 26, 2013 • Comment ()

Ah, summer: Glittering, sun-filled days of beach trips, barbeques, and social butterflying. Spending endless hours vying for the sun’s attention, eager to get an even tan—a prospect so gratifying that we ignore that annoying little voice inside our head preaching about the harmful rays of the sun. But alas, summer is escaping; our once-bronze, glowing […]