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Articles by Asha Torczon
Why are we so obsessed with protein?
It seems that every conversation about healthier eating seems to come back to these chains of amino acidsLyra Browning for Varsity Protein bars. Protein shakes. Protein cookies, pancakes, pasta – the list goes on. It seems that every conversation about healthier eating seems to come back to these chains of amino acids; protein has been heralded as the solution to a seemingly endless list of concerns regarding health, weight, and our cultural relationship to food.
The parasite paradox: can worms improve our immune system?
JORDAN INGLIS FOR VARSITY The global disease burden has shifted. Less than a century ago, healthcare systems and human lives were burdened by infectious diseases caused by bacteria, viruses, and parasites. With the development of highly effective vaccines and antibiotics, humanity has gone from being largely at the mercy of microorganisms to controlling many of them.
Research Roundup: Week Seven
Coffee, caffeine, and cognition: a defence against dementia? A recent study suggests that drinking coffee may help prevent dementiaTIMOTHY BARLIN VIA UNSPLASH / https://unsplash.com/license A recent study from Harvard University suggests that drinking more coffee may be associated with a lower risk of dementia. The study tracked the caffeine intake of over 100,000 participants across 43 years, monitoring who went on to develop dementia.
The science of love: from attraction to attachment
Though love may feel intangible, it is driven by powerful chemical and biological processes in the brainFELICIA NAYLOR FOR VARSITY Love is difficult to define, yet it is an almost ubiquitous part of the human experience. It is closely intertwined with trust, attachment, and intimacy, and yet is none of these things alone. When we talk about love, we often mean romantic pair bonding, but love also underpins our relationships with close friends and family members.
The meat paradox: why we avoid what we eat
JORDAN INGLIS FOR VARSITY How does animal suffering make you feel? I’ll take a wild guess and say: not great. Violence towards animals is widely condemned, seen as barbaric and unethical. We have laws that protect animals from abuse, and social norms that shame those who mistreat them. After all, how could a kind, morally just person ever hurt an animal? Of course, a kind, morally just person is still allowed to eat animals.
‘Women just get it more’: autoimmunity and the gender bias in research
"Millions of women today are affected by severe and often incurable conditions – even evolution has prioritised the survival of the child over the mother"Lyra Browning for Varsity “So, why are women at a higher risk for autoimmunity?” I asked my supervisor, frustrated with how sex-specific risk factors had been brushed over in our lecture on autoimmunity. “Women just get it more,” he said with a shrug. I wasn’t quite sure what to say to that.
‘Women just get it more’: autoimmunity and the gender bias in research
"Millions of women today are affected by severe and often incurable conditions – even evolution has prioritised the survival of the child over the mother"Lyra Browning for Varsity “So, why are women at a higher risk for autoimmunity?” I asked my supervisor, frustrated with how sex-specific risk factors had been brushed over in our lecture on autoimmunity. “Women just get it more,” he said with a shrug. I wasn’t quite sure what to say to that.
How fungi redefine the individual
Human societies are built upon the concept of the individual, a single autonomous organism with interests, opinions, and the capacity for action. This view is superficially supported by what we see around us - I assume ‘I’ am the person I see in the mirror, and that the people around me have their own separate, internal perception of the world.
Miniature birds and cannabalistic salamanders: how organisms are adapting to climate change
The history of life has been shaped by evolutionary responses to the pressures of natural selection. Temperature in particular has been a pervasive stressor for animals across Earth’s history. It thus comes as no surprise that the current human-caused climate crisis is reshaping animal physiology. What is climate change if not an evolutionary pressure, albeit with a non-natural origin?
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