News
NESCAC News
By Emily Eisler ’17
April 13, 2017
Tags news
Williams College brings in New York Times journalist and environmental scientist for climate science discussion
Williams College is hosting a roundtable discussion called “Communicating Climate Science in a Post-Fact World” as part of a thematic year centered around confronting climate change and educating students on its effects. Williams is also bringing in former New York Times journalist Andrew Revkin and environmental scientist Jacquelyn Gill to participate as honorary guests in the discussion. Revkin has received many notable awards for his work and was instrumental in exposing political suppression of funds meant for climate research and editing federal reports. Gill is a professor at the University of Maine and teaches paleoecology and plant ecology. The goal of the talk is to discuss how individuals, the school and our country as a whole should respond to climate change.
Tufts University studies dogs in hopes of finding a cure for ALS
Tufts University is starting a study on dogs with degenerative myelopathy, a fatal disease that is similar to ALS. Tufts University scientists believe that the research they are doing on the dogs could potentially help find a cure for ALS in humans. Through the study, they are attempting to silence the mutated gene and to potentially halt the paralysis happening in dogs with the condition. If the trial proves to be a success with dogs, Tufts doctors believe that they can start clinical trials on people with ALS. These studies have led pharmacists to create other similar gene therapies that could help Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s patients.
Senior Ali Rabideau wins Bates College’s Bobcat Ventures competition
Every year Bates College runs a Bobcat Ventures competition which allows students to pitch business ideas and win a prize of $9,000. This year’s winner was Bates senior Ali Rabideau. This past summer Rabideau worked at the Center for Wisdom’s Women, an organization that provides a safe place for at-risk women to go. There she started a nonprofit called Herban Works, which uses plants to make herbal remedies. The business flourished over the summer and is ready to expand with the help of the Bobcat Ventures prize money.