SCIENCE GURU

Mountain View High School Science Magazine

Apr May 2014
Te latest and hottest news about science
from all around the world! We publish
an issue every month; copies can be
found in Dr. Tornburgs room and
issues are posted on our blog.
Editor-in-Chief: Kiana Nouri

Science Guru club meets every Friday at lunch in 120, Dr. Tornburgs room
10 2
12
14
The Memory-
Restoring Device
Faith Tsang
Letter From the Editor
Signing Off . . .
Kiana Nouri
Hacker Dojo
Techers Heaven
in Mountain View
Kiana Nouri
Science of Jetlag (Part 1)
Fighting Sleep-Deprivation
With Science
Jasmine Deng
Where Do Baby
Stars Come From?
Carter Fox
Science of Jetlag (Part 2)
Theres an App for That
Kelyn Wood
What the World
Is Made of
Jasmine Deng
6
The Science and
Technology of 2100
Owen Noga
8
On the Road
to Gattaca?
Alex Starr
4
Evidence for Inflation Found in
Cosmic Microwave Background
Pratik Mulpury
W
ho doesnt love travel-
ing? Going to Europe, or
some exotic place on the
other side of the planet, is always
fun. What is not fun about travel-
ing, however, is the jetlag, espe-
cially when you go to, say, China,
expecting the time of your life and
then fnding it dif cult to stay up
past 5:00 pm. Im sure that we all
have experiences in sleep depriva-
tion, but when one typically pic-
tures oneself eating delicious food
or seeing tourist sites especially
eating delicious food being com-
pletely sleep-deprived does not
usually factor into the equation.
Continued page 12
H
acker Dojo in Mountain
View is heaven for coders.
You can pay $100 a month
for access to the facility, where
you can talk with other coders,
network with people who share
interests in technology, computer
science and entrepreneurship,
and attend seminars on women
in computer science. Tey also
recently installed the frst US Bit-
coin kiosk in this place.
Continued page 3
I
n a few days, I will lay down
my of cial responsibilities in
Science Guruto take on the
title of college student, afer hav-
ing the honor of being a Moun-
tain View High School student for
the past four years.
Continued page 3
2
M
ost kids ask where babies come frombut astronomers wonder where
baby stars come from. On a cold day, the water trapped in clouds may con-
dense into raindrops and fall from the sky. Tis process also happens on
a much grander scale; however, the raindrops are stars and the cloud, a nebula.
Nebulae are built of vast clouds of dusk and gas that wander the universe. When
these clouds are condensed, they form into stars. Just like clouds, nebulae come
in all shapes and sizes. Tere are three main types of nebulae.
Te most common is an emission nebula, also known as a star nursery.
When a shockwave from a supernova hits an emission nebula, it condenses the
gas, forming thousands of stars. Even our sun was born in an emission nebula.
One of the most famous emission nebulas is the Orion Nebula. Located in
the sword of the Orion constellation, the Orion Nebula is 1344 light years from
Earth. Tis means that when we look at the Orion Nebula through a telescope,
we see it how it was 1344 years ago, when the light rays started their journey.
Another star nursery, the Eagle Nebula, holds three massive pillars known as the
Pillars of Creation. Eventually, a supernova shockwave will annihilate the pillars,
creating thousands of new stars.
Te next type of nebula is a planetary nebula. A planetary nebula forms
when an old star sheds of its outer layers. Te Ring Nebula is a perfect example.
Tis remnant of a dead star is a fantastic object to observe through a telescope
and can show several colors with a long-exposure photograph.
Our last category of nebulae is the refection nebula. Tese clouds of dust
and gas do not emit any light. Instead, they refect the light of nearby stars.
Refection nebulae are ofen blue because light with this wavelength is scattered
more frequently, hitting and refecting of dust particles in the clouds.
Nebulae are crucial to the evolution of the universe. Tey are home to the
birth of stars and vast gas clouds that illuminate galaxies. Without nebulae sacri-
fcing themselves to construct the stars we would not be here today . . .

Where Do Baby
Stars Come From?
Carter has
been an active
member and a
major article
contributor
since he started
at Mountain
View High as
a freshman.
He has been in
charge of PR and
has recruited
several new
members to
Science Guru.
Carter
Fox
Orion Nebula Ring Nebula
3
To the Science Guru of cers,
members, and technical writers
who have supported Science Guru
Club, Magazine and Blog, I wish
to say publicly what I have said in
private: I thank them for the dedi-
cation and competence they have
brought to the Mountain View
High Schools science magazine.
I also owe my deepest thanks
to our high school, MVHS, and
to our advisor Dr. Tornburg, as
well as you our readers. Without
being part of Mountain View
High School, Science Guru could
never be where it is today. You
Mountain View High School stu-
dents gave us this extraordinary
opportunity to spread the knowl-
edge of science and technology.
We MVHS students have
shared great years with each
other. I would like to thank our
school board, our high-school ad-
ministration and staf and, most
important of all, our beyond-
excellent teachers for making
MVHS an environment that we
thrived in, challenging ourselves
and gaining a passion for knowl-
edge. Because of that, I am con-
fdent we can meet successfully
whatever the future might bring.
Finally I would like to thank
this years club of cers: Varsha
Suresh Kumar, Rohun Saxena,
Jasmine Deng and Avni Singhal,
as well as our technical writers,
Carter Fox, Kellyn Wood, Pratik
Mulpury, Owen Noga and Alex
Starr. Without them, Science
Guru will not be where it is today.
For the upcoming year, we are
handing of the leadership helm
to the future Science Guru Club
of cers:
Presidents: Jasmine Deng and
Avni Singhal
Senior Vice President: Rohun
Saxena
Editor-in-Chief: Carter Fox and
Partik Mulpury
Vice President: Pratik Mulpury
Treasurer: Kelyn Wood
Secretary: Owen Noga
Social Media and Community
Coordinator: Alex Starr
Farewell, and I wish the best
to all of you.
Kiana Nouri is the founder, presi-
dent, and editor-in-chief of Science
Guru Blog, Magazine, and Club.
Tis issue of Science Guru is cre-
ated, edited, and published by her.
Signing off . . .
Letter From the Editor Kiana Nouri
Continued from page 1
Caltech holds its admitted students reception there and
you can also meet the Caltech alumni who founded Hacker
Dojo. Te location is only a fve-minute drive from MVHS
and is very close to the MVHS adult education campus. On
weekends it is really crowded, but you get to meet many stu-
dents. Tey have Hackatons every month or two, and there
is tons of free food and drinks.
If you have ever attended MIT or Google Hackathons,
or if you have been to Hackers@Berkeley at CalDay, Hacker
Dojo is a similar place. Tis is also similar to the Stanford
place where Steve Wozniak and Steve Jobs frst presented
their Apple PC model. At Hacker Dojo, you can also take
classes to learn Python, R, and Ruby. If you need fnancial
aid, you can always contact them and apply for it. Do not
miss it! Stop by at least once.
Hacker Dojo: Techers Heaven in Mountain View
Kiana Nouri
Continued from page 1
4
I
n the movie GATTACA, a genetically engineered group of people takes over
and rules a futuristic world. While the possibility of this world is far in the
future, a group of scientists in China were recently able to use a fairly new
technique called CRISPR to precisely modify the DNA of monkey fetuses. Tis
is likely the frst step to the ability to make the changes seen in GATTACA and
could one day have equally far-reaching efects.
How It Works Te CRISPR (clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic
repeats) system was originally found in bacteria and is used by the microbes to
fght of viruses invading the bacterial cell. In bacteria, CRISPR uses Cas pro-
teins, or CRISPR associated proteins, as a pair of genetic scissors to inactivate
the virus by cutting the viral DNA. Te hand guiding these scissors is a strand of
RNA complementary to the viral DNA, saving a copy of the DNA of the virus to
easily identify similar viruses that may invade later. Tis allows the bacterium to
defeat similar viruses over and over again.
Scientists were able to adapt this to eukaryotic cells by making strands of
RNA that complement the strand of genes they want to cut and/or modify, and
adding the Cas proteins that actually cut the DNA. Tis system is much more
precise than any previous gene-altering technologies. When scientists looked at
the monkeys DNA, they found no changes except the intended onesthough
the scientists did not check the entire genetic code of the monkeys.
As of right now, the technique is not perfect, as not all the monkeys that
the technique was used on showed the desired changes. An immediate next
step would be to tinker with the system and make it more ef cient so that more
monkeys showed the changes.
Short-Term Impact Te most immediate likely impact of CRISPR is to use it
to create model cell and animal systems. Tis would mimic human diseases in
animals/cells by altering the animals genetic code, allowing scientists to better test
drugs designed to fght the disease. For example, they could use CRISPR to alter
a mouses genome and give it as exact a version of human Parkinsons as possible.
Te scientists could then test new treatments for Parkinsons on the mice.
Scientists also believe that soon we will be able to adapt this technique to
humans very safely. Te system is so precise that many of the dangers associ-
ated with altering our genome, like accidental alterations, would no longer be
much of a problem. Tis will likely allow germline gene therapy, or the treat-
ment of hereditary diseases like sickle cell disease, to become much safer and
easier. Germline gene therapy is currently outlawed in many countries due to
its current unreliability in making accurate desired changes to DNA. If CRISPR
Continued next page
On the Road to GATTACA?
Tis is Alexs
frst contribution
to Science Guru
magazine.
Alex
Starr
5
is as successful as it appears to
be, many of the health concerns
would fall away and these coun-
tries would likely legalize it.
Using CRISPR would revo-
lutionize the treatment of he-
reditary diseases and would save
many lives. Scientists would be
able to eliminate genetic difer-
ences that cause these diseases
in an embryo, efectively curing
the eventual baby. However, there
are some very real concerns that
wont go away because of CRISPR.
Tere may be unforeseen conse-
quences to these genetic modi-
fcations getting into the general
population, and there are ethical
and moral issues as well. Tese
problems may be solved as our
knowledge of the genetic code
grows and we are able to predict
outcomes much more precisely.
But scientists dont need to
work on embryos to cure disease;
in fact, they could help people
sufering from HIV right now. It
was discovered in the last decade
that people with two defective
versions of the CCR5 gene are
immune to HIV and so do not get
AIDS. Sadly, having two defective
copies is incredibly rare which is
why HIV is so prevalent. Tere is
a silver lining, though: if an HIV
patient gets a bone-marrow trans-
plant from a person who has these
mutations, it cures the HIV! Tis
happened with a patient from
Berlin who had both HIV and
leukemia. Doctors transplanted
bone marrow from a person with
two defective copies; the patient
was cured of HIV and his leuke-
mia went into remission.
With CRISPR, it would be
possible to take out a sample of an
HIV patients bone marrow, use
CRISPR to knock out the CCR-5
gene, kill of the persons infected
bone marrow (done regularly in
bone marrow transplants), and
put the new, immune bone mar-
row into the patient. Tis would
cure them of HIV.
Long-Term Possibilities
In GATTACA, the genetically
engineered rulers have superior
traitsincluding intelligence,
appearance, and athletic abil-
ityto those who are not modi-
fed. Despite it being possible that
through CRISPR we will be able
to alter our genetic code and se-
lect for certain traits like eye color
or even strength, a GATTACA
world is unlikely for two reasons.
Te frst is that intelligence,
which is what gave the rulers most
of their power, is much harder to
select for than other traits, due to
the brains complexity, and that
much of intelligence seems to
stem from environmental factors.
Also, there are many, many genes
involved with intelligence and
most of them would have to be al-
tered in order to increase this trait.
Even if these massive hurdles are
overcome, there is likely an upper
limit to how intelligent a person
would be able to become.
Te second reason is that
altering genes to avoid bad out-
comes may also eliminate the
chance for greatness. An example
of this is the gene SERT. SERT
comes in two types or alleles, one
long and one short. If a person
has two short alleles, they are
at a much higher risk of clinical
depression. In the future, a parent
might have the gene modifed in
her fetus to eliminate this risk.
Te parent may regret this
decision, though. People with two
short alleles were only depressed
if they were abused as children.
Tose with two short alleles who
werent abused were actually ex-
tremely unlikely to be depressed.
And in fact, if raised in a safe,
happy environment, they ended
up more creative than people with
two long alleles.
Cases like this, in which the
elimination of a bad possible out-
come also eliminates the possibil-
ity of a great outcome, are likely
very prevalent in humans. Tis
means that those genetically engi-
neered super-people in GATTACA
would likely not be consistently
superior, but instead would merely
be consistently above average.
CRISPR is a game-changer. It
lets scientists change the genetic
code with unprecedented ease
and accuracy. Tis allows for an
incredible number of new pos-
sibilities in medical technology.
In the short term, it could be used
to create better model cell and
animal models to test new treat-
ments. CRISPR could even pro-
vide a cure for HIV. In fact, they
are already testing similar, less
efective system on humans, so
imagine what CRISPR could do!
Farther down the road, it
could be used to treat hereditary
disease more safely. In the distant
future, it could provide the basis
for more radical genetic engineer-
ing making it possible to do much
more than treat disease.
On the Road to GATTACA? Alex Starr
Continued from previous page
6
T
en thousand years ago, the last ice age ended. It is here humanity began its rise to great-
ness. Animals were soon domesticated and with it came the agriculture revolution. With
surplus food to make them possible, we made huge leaps forward in science and technology.
Writing and math were used to account for the growing populations and wealth. Great empires
and ancient civilizations rose up from the jungles and deserts. By 1500, the Chinese had in-
vented gunpowder and the compass, among other things. Te Muslims of the Ottoman Empire
mastered algebra, mapped the stars, and advanced physics.
But the next revolution took place only 200 years later, in the Industrial Revolution. Soon
steam-powered machines led to mass production and vastly more wealth. Te British Empire
became a dominant world power with its mighty naval armada protecting its interests world-
wide. Oil, steel, and electricity also changed human existence forever. Huge cities were built
on steel and powered by electricity, with oil fueling the world in the newly developed internal
combustion engine.
War was also fought on an enormous scale. By 1950, the world saw the horrors science and
technology could bring as two huge wars were fought. However, it is science and technology
that bore us up from the sufering and darkness. It allowed us to rebuild from the ashes, and we
prospered like never before.
In the third revolution, information generated great wealth. Te age of computers made
possible instantaneous communication, the sharing of data on a global scale via the Internet,
and in efect, modern science. Computer chips revolutionized old dumb products. Phones be-
came cell phones, arcade machines became videogames, and airplanes became predator drones.
So many great discoveries in all felds of science were made.
But all of this is almost nothing compared to what we can do by the end of the century. In
just the past few decades, we have amassed more knowledge than in all the rest of human his-
tory. Huge advances are just around the corner.
Te frst question that might arise is, how far can we push the computer revolution? Te key
lies partially in what is called Moores Law. It basically states that computer power doubles every
one and a half to two years. Tis exponential growth is staggering. For example, by 2010, a $300
Playstation had more computer power than a multimillion-dollar supercomputer of the 1990s. It
is this law that has generated the wealth seen in the past few decades.
But it cannot go on forever. Moores Law depends on the ability of UV light to etch smaller
transistors onto silicon chips. Tus it will be physically impossible to make transistors smaller
when we approach the atomic scale. Some estimates state that within the 2020 decade, we will
see this law grind to a halt. Even if a replacement is found, it will not be expected to provide
quick exponential growth. So, optimistically, we will see, afer 2030, computer power double
every few years, but slower than the rate of Moores Law. One option is quantum computing, or
computation on atoms, but we do not know yet whether it will be a reliable technology.
Even if computer power does not continue to grow vastly, many more computer-based tech-
nologies are coming. I am sure many have heard of the Google Glass device. It in itself is a compact
computer and just a sample of the emergence of wearable technology. We will have almost invisible
contact lenses with access to the internet.
All aspects of life could be altered when you can download any game, movie, or piece of infor-
mation at any time, right in front of your eyes. All clothing items will have chips attached to it, so
your vital signs can be monitored. Tis will save countless lives, since paramedics can be alerted if
you are in critical condition and cannot call for help.
In addition, computer chips have yet to revolutionize the auto industry. Cars will be intelligent
and communicate with other cars for driverless navigation. You will not be faced with the chore
of commuting to work on a daily basis. You can instead sit back and download entertainment on
Continued next page
The Science and
Technology of 2100
Owen Noga is
the secretary of
Science Guru.
Tis is his second
contribution to
Science Guru
magazine.
Owen
Noga
7
your contact lensesor start your work,
which should be the prefered option. Be-
cause all cars will be hooked to a central
computer, traf c bottlenecks and acci-
dents will be averted with ease.
Te most amazing thing by far will
be the process of converting the computer
to a utility, instead of just a personal
device. Computer technology will be so
cheap they will be everywhere. Pictures
will move, since they will cost as little as
stationary pictures. Chips will replace
bar codes, since they will be cheaper
than plastic flm. Screens will be as
cheap as wallpaper, making possible wall
screens. Future homes and businesses
will be covered with these.
Tus, you will have a computer in
some form available to you at all times,
either in your contact lenses or on the
wall next to you. Personal computers will
be obsolete, and most likely, we will be
charged for computer time rather than
physical computers, metered similarly to
electricity and running water. In fact, we
will come to view computers like elec-
tricity. We all assume, when we walk into
a room, that it is electrifed, and we sub-
consciously reach for a light switch. In
the same way, we will assume everything
is intelligent and hooked to the internet.
Te very word computer may very well
disappear from common speech, just as
electricity has.
Although machines will revolution-
ize the world, biotechnology will enhance
human life. Already we have the ability to
sequence the genome of any individual
human. Tis tells us the language of life,
a way to read inheritance. Knowing the
genome, once we fully understand its
meaning, will give telltale signs of certain
diseases transmitted genetically and will
allow us to predict the attributes of a child
when he or she is seconds old.
Te only problem: it is prohibi-
tively expensive to sequence a genome.
However, within the next few decades,
the cost of sequencing a single human
genome may approach $100, the price
of an ordinary blood test. Knowing the
genomes of millions of people will al-
low biologists to analyse the diference
in young and old DNA to discover the
causes of aging. We could then activate
and deactivate key genes in order to
increase our life spans and preserve our
youth. Tis is also known as gene thera-
py. In addition, we will use the power of
stem cell technology to grow new organs
if old ones become damaged beyond
repair, greatly boosting our lifespans.
Finally, we will use nanotechnology
to send little machines into our bodies
and monitor for early signs of diseases
like cancer. Early detection would al-
low us to escape the consequences of a
fully formed tumor, for example. Tese
machines can also be designed to intel-
ligently target cancerous/diseased cells.
Tere is one component I am still
missing: Energy. Today, nearly eighty
percent of all energy comes from fossil
fuels. Te rest is nuclear fssion, hydro-
electric, and a mere one-half percent
from solar and wind. However, within
the next two decades, it is expected the
fossil fuels will rise slowly in cost while
solar and wind prices drop. Te two
curves will inevitably meet, and market
forces wil take care of everything.
We will see the transfer of world
power production shifing towards the
renewables. However, solar and wind
cannot provide all world power. Nuclear
fssion power will likely be considered
risky for the coming years. But one tech-
nology may change energy. We could
harness nuclear fusion (not fssion), the
power of the stars. Instead of splitting
the uranium atom like today, we will
compress hydrogen atoms at such high
temperatures and pressures they will
fuse and release helium and energy. Tis
method is minimal in risk, with little
low-level nuclear waste generated, and
huge amounts of energy. Fusion releases
ten million times the energy of gasoline.
It is estimated this power will be mas-
tered by midway through this century,
and it could potentially provide the bulk
of world energy.
In summary, all the technol-
ogy mentioned here is possible and in
development at this moment. However,
as Dr. Michio Kaku said, science is like
a double edged sword. In the wrong
hands, it can cut against life itself and
bring about great sufering, like in the
great wars. Today this could be much
worse due to the rapid proliferation of
nuclear weapons into unstable hands.
But it can also be used to release
people from poverty and sickness. Te
same nuclear technology could provide
eternal energy for our civilization. It is
ultimately up to the people wielding this
great blade to use it wisely. And the peo-
ple alive in this century are so important
since they will determine how it is used.
Never have the stakes been greater.
We will either use these technolo-
gies, and many others, to preserve hu-
manity for perhaps billions of years into
the future, or we will use them against
us, and humanity will die quietly in an
inferno of nuclear chaos. Some speculate
civilizations like ours are more common
in the universe than we think. However,
our failure to contact any of them could
be due to their own self-destruction
soon afer they discover.
The Science and Technology of 2100 Owen Noga
Continued from previous page
8
R
ecently on Youtube, a trending video showed two Stanford profes-
sors sharing a bottle of champagne over the news of a discovery. Your frst
tendency might be to shrug this of, but the discovery helps to answer this
age-old question, How was the Universe born?
Since the dawn of mankind, we have pondered what brought our Universe
into existence. Not able to fnd a beginning, for years scientists and most of hu-
manity considered the Universe to be eternal. However, our whole understand-
ing about the Universes origin was changed by the inception of the Big Bang
theory.
Te Big Bang theory is the current model for the Universes development
from its nascence. Te Universe began approximately 14 billion years ago, and
the time that has passed since the Big Bang is considered to be the age of the
Universe. Before the Big Bang, all the matter and energy in the Universe was
concentrated in a single infnitely dense point called a singularity. (We do not
know how all the matter got concentrated into this point.)
At this singularity all laws of physics were broken downall the laws that
govern the Universe today and the physical constants such as the speed of light
did not exist. Anything before the expansion of the Universe during the Big
Bang was, in every respect, independent from the Universe afer the Big Bang.
Due to the lack of an efect from anything before the Big Bang, the Big Bang is
considered to be the beginning of the Universe.
Te Big Bang is a misnomer. Te Universe did not actually form in an as-
tronomical explosionalthough that would be cool! If it had been an explosion,
space would be required for the singularity to explode into, but the singularity
was the whole Universe at the time. Te Big Bang actually was the expansion of
this extremely hot and dense singularity.
Continued next page
Evidence for Inflation Found in the
Cosmic Microwave Background
Pratik has
been an active
member
and article
contributor
since we started
Science Guru.
Currently he
is contributing
to our task of
putting our on-
line magazines
on iBook.
Pratik
Mulpury
9
Due to the un-
imaginably hot tem-
peratures of the Uni-
verse before the Big
Bang, it was too hot
for elementary par-
ticles to exist; all mat-
ter collided to form
pure energy. Afer the
Big Bang, elementary
particles were able to
form as a result of the
reduced temperatures,
leading to the formation of larger
particles such as atoms and the
existence of the Universe in the
form we know it today.
Te Big Bang theory was frst
suggested by Georges Lematre,
a Belgian Catholic Priest and
professor of physics and as-
tronomer, in the 1920s, and many
other scientists added to it. Edwin
Hubble, the renowned Ameri-
can astronomer afer whom the
Hubble telescope is named, made
the signifcant observation that
galaxies are receding away from
us in all directions. Arno Penzias
and Robert Wilson discovered
cosmic microwave radiation, the
thermal radiation lef over from
the Big Bang.
Te biggest addition to the Big
Bang theory was the cosmic infa-
tion theory developed by Stanford
professor Andrei Lindeone of
the professors in the videoand
Alan Guth, a physicist from MIT.
Te standard Big Bang theory,
before infation theory was added
to it, suggested that the Universe
had expanded relatively gradually
throughout its history. Te cosmic
infation theory suggested that the
Universe expanded at an extraor-
dinarily rapid pace from 10
36

seconds to 10
32
seconds afer
the Big Bang. Tis theory solved
many of the limitations of the Big
Bang theory.
Despite the multi-
tude of indirect evi-
dence for the Big Bang
theory, there has not
been any direct evi-
dence for the theory
till recently. A team
of researchers led by
Stanford Assistant
Professor Chao-Lin
Kuo, who happened
to be in the aforemen-
tioned Youtube video,
discovered primordial B-mode
polarization through the Back-
ground Imaging of Cosmic Extra-
galactic Polarization 2 (BICEP2)
experiment at the South Pole, us-
ing the highly advanced BICEP2
telescope. Te primordial B-mode
polarization was found in the
cosmic microwave background.
Polarization is the oscillation in a
certain direction of a wave.
According to the theory of
infation, expansion during the
infation epoch, the time from
10
36
seconds to 10
32
seconds
afer the Big Bang, created gravi-
tational waves, which are ripples
in spacetime. Tese gravitational
waves would have produced the
primordial B-mode polarization
that was discovered by the team.
Tis is the frst direct evidence
for the Big Bang and infation
and is considered by many in the
scientifc community to be one
of the most notable discover-
ies of the century. Andrei Linde
and Alan Guth are now expected
to get the Nobel prize for this
discovery.
Evidence For Inflation Found . . . Pratik Mulpury
Continued from previous page
10
The Memory-
Restoring Device
Tis is Faiths
frst contribu-
tion to Science
Guru Magazine.
Faith
Tsang
A
device that can restore memories lost through disease and injury.
While it may have seemed a far-fetched dream only a couple decades ago,
a team of American neuroscientists is currently working on inventing a
memory device that can be implanted into the brain that can restore memories
lost through localized injuries and stroke. Tis brain implanted would be im-
planted into a small number of human volunteers within two years and be made
available to patients in fve to ten years.
Trough many years of research, scientists have come to understand the
brain and the way memory function much more deeply. Tey now know how
long-term memories are made, stored, and retrieved, and hence, researchers
have discovered ways to replicate the process in brains that have been dam-
aged by either disease or injury. Te method by which the implant works is that
memories are frst recorded in an undamaged part of the brain. Te data collect-
ed is then used to predict what the damaged part of the brain would be doing.
Electrodes are utilized in this process to replicate the process the undamaged
brain cells underwent.
Te research is concentrated in the part of the brain called the hippocam-
pus, which is the area of the brain in which short term memories become long
term ones. Since electrical signals typically travel through neurons, the research-
ers are searching for ways to replicate these signals using the brain implant, as
they have already tested the replacement of electrical signals with electrodes
in animals. Not only this, but a major factor is that implants and electrodes are
no longer seen as strange and foreign, rather, they have become a much more
accepted aspect of society as technology continues to advance through the
decades.
Te fnal, ultimate goal in this research would be to fnd a way to treat
Alzheimers disease; however, this is dif cult, as unlike injures and other dis-
eases, Alzheimers can afect multiple parts of the brain. Similarly, this research
would not be able to aid patients with advanced dementia, as there would be too
much memory loss that would have to be recovered. However, the brain implant
would be able to help people with localized injuries or victims of stroke. Tis
research is being supported by the US military, as numerous soldiers have been
afected by brain injury due to battlefeld injuries.
All in all, this research will not only beneft those who have been afected by
diseases such as stroke, but it would also be able to aid those who have brain in-
juries afer fghting on the battlefeld. As this research continues, it will hopefully
also be able to help people with more severe brain injuries and even Alzheimers,
so that many people will be able to remember and cherish the memories they
made throughout the course of their lives.
11
Well, have no fear. Researchers have now developed an iPhone app called
Entrain, which uses mathematical analyses of humans daily rhythms to calcu-
late the quickest way to adjust to new time zones! Users plug in their destination
and arrival time, and then the app will advise the users when to stay in or stay
out of the light.
Tis, of course, is related to how the human biological clock maintains our
circadian rhythms, which is a fancy term for cycles that have intervals of ap-
proximately 24 hours, like the sleep/wake cycle that is ofset by jetlag. In hu-
mans, the biological clock is a pair of suprachiasmatic nuclei, or SCN, in the
hypothalamus that require external cues to remain synchronized with environ-
mental cycles. In this case of the Entrain app, the app resets the humans sense
of when day and night is so that once you arrive at your travel destination,
you can fully enjoy whatever your destination has to ofer you.
Of course, if youre just sleep-deprived no matter what, jetlag or no jetlag,
the Entrain app wont be able to help you with that.
Science of Jetlag (Part 1)
Fighting Sleep Deprivation with Science
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an of cer and
active member
and article
contributor
since we started
Science Guru.
Currently she is
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Jasmine
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Continued from page 1
Te Entrain app
Suprachiasmtic nuclei
12
I
n this day and age, travel by plane is very common, not to mention practi-
cal. However, long-distance travel usually results in jetlag, which disrupts ones
sleeping schedule and generally leads to unsatisfactory performance. How-
ever, Dennis A. Dean, Daniel B. Forger, Elizabeth B. Klerman, Kirill Serkh, and
Olivia Walch, all from the University of Michigan, have developed a technique
that uses patterns of exposure to light in order to adjust to diferent time zones.
Tese patterns of light and dark change the sleep-wake system to the new time
setting, so you are fully acclimated to the new time before you even step on the
plane. Tis app could also be useful for non-24-hour environments, in space,
deep underwater, or very near the poles.
Tis app, called Entrain, relies on the heavy use of mathematical models to
calculate what schedule will help the traveler acclimate to the new time zone
most quickly. Te app starts by recording your current body-time, or the time
your body thinks it is. Ten, the app produces a schedule of when to be in light
and when to be in dark to slowly convince the body it is in a diferent time zone.
Once your body becomes adapted to sleeping during the new night, you are
ready to travel to the new time zone.
Te app measures adjustment via overall performance, which depends on
the circadian, homeostatic, and sleep inertia functions. Te circadian function
is what responds to light, telling the body when it is supposed to be awake and
when it is supposed to be asleep. Te homeostatic function is the decrease and
increase in performance based on time awake versus time asleep. And the sleep
inertia function models the level of performance immediately afer waking up.
Together, these three factors form the overall performance and thus the adapta-
tion needed to reach maximum performance at any given time and sleep cycle.
Continued next page
Science of Jetlag (Part 2)
Jetlagged? Theres an App
for That . . . No, Seriously
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second-year
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Club and a
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magazine.
Kelyn
Wood
13
Te schedule itself is made
up of blocks called Sleep, Wake,
Light, and Dark, with either Light
or Dark blocks replacing blocks of
the opposite color to change the
starting point of the daily cycle.
Te schedule also alters with
brightness: the lower the bright-
ness and brighter the darkness,
the longer it will take to acclimate
to the new time zone.
Tis pattern of changing
light is not new. Many already
go to sleep at a new time zones
bedtime in order to further accli-
mate their bodies. Entrain simply
structures this formula into a
schedule that is more precise than
arbitrary sleeping times. Whether
purposed for a plane trip, a space
walk, or an underwater excursion,
Entrain will get you there on the
right time.
For more information watch
this video on our on-line blog:
http://www.youtube.com/
watch?v=Nqp0xSg4FXg
Science of Jetlag (Part 2) Kelyn Wood
Continued from previous page
Ploscompbiol.org
Dean DA , II, Forger DB, Klerman EB (2009) Taking the Lag out of Jet Lag through Model-Based
Schedule Design. PLoS Comput Biol 5(6): e1000418. doi:10.1371/journal.pcbi.1000418
Performance
increase
14
I
f you ask children what the world is made of, theyre happy with a sim-
ple answer like rocks or dirt or magic and pixie dust. However, scientists
have not been satisfed with such mundane answers and have grandly quested
on for greater knowledge.
Initially, scientists proposed that the world consisted of indivisible particles
called atoms. Later, it was discovered that these atoms were divisible into pro-
tons, neutrons, and electrons, and it was assumed that was it. But recently, there
have been new discoveries involving even smaller particles quarks, the six types
of which are up, down, strange, charm, bottom, and top.
Quarks dont simply foat around in their individual states; they combine to
form composite particles of two or three. Tese composites called hadrons,
held together by gluons are classifed into mesons (which consist of a quark and
an antiquark and are extremely unstable) and baryons (which consist of three
quarks). Mesons form pions and kaons; baryons form the more familiar protons
and neutrons. Electrons are neither mesons nor baryons, but leptons. Each baryon
has an antiparticle in which the quarks are replaced by corresponding antiquarks
up vs. down, etc.
Of course, science loves proving old ideas wrong in this established universe
consisting of two- and three-quark matter. In 2003, physicists in Japan discov-
ered a particle called X(3872) that didnt seem to be a baryon or meson; it instead
seemed to consist of a charm quark, an anticharm, and at least two other quarks.
Later, in 2008, another controversial particle called Z(4430) was discovered; it is
currently being debated on whether or not this particle consists of four quarks or
not.
What the World
Is Made Of
Jasmine has been
an of cer and
active member
and article
contributor
since we started
Science Guru.
Currently she is
Science Gurus
Community
Coordinator.
Jasmine
Deng
Continued next page
Types of quarks
15
Now, a new experiment by
physicists at the Large Hadron
Collider beauty experiment found
overwhelming evidence for the
existence of Z(4430). Tey found
precise measurements of proper-
ties of Z(4430) that confrmed
unambiguously that Z(4430) is a
four-quark particle. Te signif-
cance of the Z(4430) signal is huge
at least 13.9 sigma confrming
the existence of this state, said
LHCb spokesperson Dr. Pierlugui
Campana.
Tis evidence has given other
scientists confdence that Z(4430)
consists of four quarks most
likely a charm, anticharm, down,
and anti-up. Tere have been other
candidates that supposedly consist
of four quarks, but their existence
is still hotly debated.
While these particles such
as Z(4430) dont naturally occur,
they may have played a role in the
early universe, when a huge mass
of quarks and gluons condensed
into the worlds frst multi-quark
matter. In any case, it seems the
quest for what the universe is
truly made out of continues.
What the World Is Made of Jasmine Deng
Continued from previous page
Te Large Hadron Collider, the worlds
largest and most powerful particle collider
Te black dots are the data, the red line is the simulation
with the Z(4430) particle, and the blue line is the simu-
lation without the Z(4430) particle. Tis establishes the
clear presence of the particle with 13.9 sigma.
16
On-line Blog: Scienceguru18.blogspot.com
From the Editor
Dear Readers,
We hope you have enjoyed our AprilMay issue.
As I step into new adventures next year, I will hand of the helm to
Science Gurus younger leaders:
Jasmine Deng and Avni Singhal: Co-Presidents
Rohun Saxena: Senior Vice President Carter Fox: Editor-In-Chief
Pratik Mulpury: Co-Editor-In-Chief and Vice President
Kelyn Wood: Treasurer
Owen Noga: Secretary
Alex Starr: Social Media and Community Coordinator
Staf Technical Writers: Jasmine Deng, Rohun Saxena, Avni Singhal, Kellyn
Wood, Carter Fox, Pratk Mulpury, Owen Noga, Alex Starr, and Faith Tsang.
Feel free to visit us online at Scienceguru18.blogspot.com or join our weekly
club meetings every Friday at lunch in room 120.
Kiana Nouri
Science Guru
Club Officers
Kiana Nouri
Rohun Saxena
Varsha Suresh Kumar
Jasmine Deng
Avni Singhal
Carter Fox
Science Guru
Club Members
Kelyn Wood
Pratik Mulpury
Owen Noga
Alex Starr
Faith Tsang
Advisor
Dr. Katie Tornburg
Mountain View High School
3535 Truman Avenue,
Mountain View, CA 94040
Officers and members of Science Guru Magazine, Blog and Club Lef to right: Carter Fox,
Pratik Mulpury, Varsha Suresh Kumar, Kelyn Wood, Kiana Nouri, Dr. Katie
Tornburg (Faculty Advisor), Jasmine Deng, Avni Singhal, Rohun Saxena