The idea that muscle is a simple mechanical motor has become obsolete thanks to a discovery that has changed modern physiology: in reality, it functions as an endocrine organ capable of influencing virtually all the systems of our body. During muscle contraction, hundreds of molecules called myokines are released, substances essential for the body to function correctly. […] … learn more→
Author Archives: Kevin
Muscles ‘talk’ to the whole body: the scientific revolution that is changing the view of exercise
Why it makes sense to teach Geography and History in English
In recent decades, bilingual education has expanded rapidly and gained significant international recognition. In Spain, the model is widely implemented: 41.4% of primary school students and 32.2% of secondary school students participate in bilingual programs, studying subjects such as Social Sciences, Mathematics, Art, History, and Physics and Chemistry in a foreign language. This growth has been driven […] … learn more→
How principles of self‑compassion help fight loneliness in the age of AI
Amid a rapid, AI-driven technology boom and all the changes it’s entailed, mental health issues due to social isolation have been on the rise. Researchers in social and clinical psychology have documented this shift and coined it the “loneliness epidemic.” Human connection is imperative to psychological well-being but the world is increasingly disconnected. With technology streamlining our lives, many report growing […] … learn more→
Teaching medicine through art: anatomical sculpture at the Spanish university
Imagine someone who feels a lump on their side. They go to the doctor, distressed, and the doctor, upon palpating, says, “That’s not a lump, it’s a floating rib.” It’s a funny anecdote to tell at the dinner table (and joke about the person’s possible hypochondria) because it was easy for the specialist to identify […] … learn more→
New research shows men still outnumber women as experts in science news
Expert voices in Australian science news coverage are still more likely to be those of men, according to recent research, despite journalists themselves being fairly evenly spread between genders. Our study of print and online science news from 2018–22 found an increase in the proportion of female journalists writing about science. The number of women quoted […] … learn more→
New reading textbooks, same problem: Why children’s reading scores in the US aren’t rising
Recently, I worked with a group of elementary teachers in Iowa to select new reading textbooks and software. They wanted new materials to improve their district’s stagnant reading scores. After several days of reviewing materials from a state-approved list, one of the teachers asked me, “Will any of these help my students learn to read?” […] … learn more→
Women in science – global study finds presence without power
Academia isn’t strong on gender equality. Women are under-represented throughout, in the research workforce and even more so as leaders in scientific organisations. This is true for science academies (prestigious bodies within national science systems) and scientific unions (international organisations representing disciplinary communities). Women today make up nearly a third of the global research workforce. […] … learn more→
Key word – coherence in academic writing
A coherent piece of writing is one where the parts connect to the whole. That sounds obvious, but it can be difficult to achieve. That’s partly because the whole is surprisingly easy to lose sight of, especially in long texts where the writing happens across days or weeks or months. The whole is never entirely […] … learn more→
How AI learns the secret language of DNA, and what research gains from it
If you’ve ever used a language model like ChatGPT or Mistral, you probably remember the initial impression: impeccable spelling, fluid grammar, and sentences that make sense. Yet, under the hood, these systems do only one very simple thing: predict the next word in a sentence. They use statistics learned from a vast corpus of texts, […] … learn more→
Music to combat stress in medicine: researchers create emotional management course for doctors.
Medical training is a journey filled with emotions. Throughout the course, students encounter the emotional complexity stemming from the effects that the process of illness and healing can have on patients. This process occurs simultaneously with the student’s personal and professional development, as they seek mechanisms to adapt to this complex emotional reality. Research shows that […] … learn more→
