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What is antimicrobial resistance? Nov 02, 2020

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What is antimicrobial resistance? Thanks for asking!

Antimicrobial resistance, or AMR for short, refers to how bacteria are able to become resistant to antibiotics. This phenomenon has been increasingly common since the turn of the century and is of great concern to public health authorities. AMR could become one of the highest causes of mortality across the world. Back in 1928, Alexander Fleming discovered penicillin, the first ever antibiotic. It was revolutionary in the world of medicine and antibiotics ended up increasing human life expectancy by 10 years! But the widespread uptake of such treatments has led to the development of AMR. To put it simply, antibiotics are becoming less and less effective.

So are we saying that doctors prescribed antibiotics too often, leading to this problem?

That’s partly true, and sometimes for conditions or illnesses which didn’t really require antibiotic treatment. But that’s not the only issue. Antibiotics are also used on animals, in livestock farming. Research published in Science magazine last year showed that resistance rates had doubled at some farms since the start of the century. When resistance develops in animals, it can be transmitted to human beings, especially through food. After being exposed to antibiotics, bacteria can evolve and develop defence mechanisms, eventually being able to resist the impact of medicine. Even worse, when this resistance develops in one species of bacteria, it can be transferred to others too.

In under 3 minutes, we answer your questions!

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What is the Electoral College?

What is synthetic DNA?

What is tax evasion?

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What is K-Pop? Oct 31, 2020

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What is K-Pop? Thanks for asking!

On October 15th, Big Hit Entertainment debuted on the Korean stock exchange. If you’re not familiar with the company itself, you’re more likely to have heard of BTS, one of the bands they created. In barely 24 hours, the success of the IPO had exceeded all expectations. A single day of trading was enough to bring the value of Big Hit Entertainment up from $4.5bn to nearly $7.4bn. Also known as the Bangtan Boys, BTS are the most famous boy band from South Korea, and a global music phenomenon. Particularly popular among teenagers, the group’s last single “Dynamite” reached 350 million views on Youtube in under a month.

So what’s the magic K-pop formula?

There are two essential ingredients really. Firstly a flashy look, usually accompanied by an equally extravagant hairstyle. And the second key part is of course the Korean language. K-pop band members are generally young and quirky. Throw in a strong marketing push and you’re ready to turn these young people into stars. K-pop bands really are popular icons for the youth of South Korea. The songs themselves talk about various themes like friendship, love, life and death, right and wrong, and of course sex!

It sounds like a neatly packaged commercial product! In under 3 minutes, we answer your questions!

To listen the last episodes, you can click here:

What is the Electoral College?

What is synthetic DNA?

What is tax evasion?

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What is the Electoral College? Oct 29, 2020

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What is the Electoral College? Thanks for asking!

In the United States, the President isn’t actually directly elected by citizens. That responsibility goes instead to the electoral college. The system means it’s actually possible for the candidate elected president to have less votes overall than their defeated opponent. Since the year 1880, Election Day has taken place on the Tuesday following the first Monday in November. Next week, Americans will go to the ballot and cast their votes in the 2020 election. As you may well recall, four years ago Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump went head-to-head. What if I told you that Clinton actually won that election?

I’d say you were living in an alternative universe!

Well, Hillary Clinton received 48% of all votes, while Donald Trump got 46%. There was an overall difference of 3 million votes between the two candidates. Don’t get carried away, Donald Trump didn’t cheat. He did win the electoral vote. But Clinton won the popular vote. It was only the fourth time that had happened in the history of the US election.

How is that even possible?! In under 3 minutes, we answer your questions!

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What is synthetic DNA?

What is tax evasion?

What is a think tank?

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What is synthetic DNA? Oct 28, 2020

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What is synthetic DNA? Thanks for asking!

Humanity is faced with the complex issue of how to store and archive all the digital data it produces. Sometimes the solutions to our problems are right before our eyes. Or even in every cell in our body! Soon enough, we may end up using synthetic DNA to store our data. In the last few years, scientists have made significant progress in sequencing and synthesising DNA. We are now able to create DNA quickly, without needing to use chemistry. And this progress is leading to great hope.

But what’s the point of producing DNA?

Synthetic DNA can be used to create new medicines, produce better quality food and cruelty-free meat or leather for example. Researchers are trying to use this technology to meet a wide range of modern-day challenges. But we hear most about the promise of synthetic DNA in relation to the digital world. With the ever-expanding internet and increasing number of connected devices, there’s an endless amount of data that needs to be stored somewhere. For the moment, we rely on enormous data centres, which have to be permanently cooled, consuming billions of litres of water to do so. They’re expensive to maintain, they take up a lot of physical space and they’re really not good for the environment.

So are we going to replace massive hard drives with tubes of DNA? In under 3 minutes, we answer your questions!

To listen the last episodes, you can click here:

What is tax evasion?

What is a think tank?

What is QAnon?

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What is tax evasion? Oct 26, 2020

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What is tax evasion? Thanks for asking!

Tax evasion refers to individuals, corporations, or trusts using illegal means to avoid paying tax. This could be by exploiting loopholes in the state tax system, or transferring property or business activities activity to another country with a more favourable tax regime. Meanwhile, tax avoidance, also known as tax optimisation, consists of using legitimate methods to minimise the amounts paid. Some companies and rich households do this by transferring their profits or revenues to a tax haven.

Hold on a minute - what’s a tax haven?

The OECD has been officially concerned with the matter since the 1990s. In 1998, it published an international report defining what a tax haven actually is.There are three criteria for a country to be considered as such. Firstly, a very low tax rate for companies and individuals compared to levels applied in other countries. Secondly, a lack of transparency in tax calculation. And finally, a lack of cooperation with other countries, with regards to the identities of tax declarants and the sums they declare. These fiscal laws often provide for banking secrecy, which guarantees the confidentiality of banking data, and a legal privilege which allows company owners to remain anonymous.

But why do these countries choose to have such a low tax rate? How can countries fight tax evasion then? In under 3 minutes, we answer your questions!

To listen the last episodes, you can click here:

What is QAnon?

What is the anti-vaxxer movement?

What is linguistic discrimination?

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What is a think tank? Oct 24, 2020

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What is a think tank? Thanks for asking!

A think tank is a private group of experts who conduct research and develop proposals for governments. There are many powerful think tanks all over the world, and some are criticized for a lack of transparency. Perhaps the world’s oldest think tank is the Fabian Society, which was founded in London in 1884 and is still active to this day. It wasn’t until the 1970s that think tanks started proliferating. It’s estimated that there are currently over 6,000 across the world. The idea behind think tanks is that they connect researchers and politicians. Experts propose new ideas in various fields, such as economics, the environment, IT or geopolitics. Some think tanks involve confidential meetings with decision-makers, where they discuss their ideas. Others address the general public and share their expertise by means of the media.

So in a nutshell, think tanks are groups of researchers who want to make the world a better place!

That’s one way to put it, but they are powerful researchers, mainly from Anglo-Saxon countries. Since their rise in the 1970s, think tanks have contributed to strengthening liberal economic policies of the United States and Great Britain. The group called the Project For The New American Century also influenced George W. Bush's decision to wage war in Iraq. In the US, some think tanks have become “incubators” for the elite ready to be employed by the government.

But what's the difference between a think tank and a lobby? In under 3 minutes, we answer your questions!

To listen the last episodes, you can click here:

What is QAnon?

What is the anti-vaxxer movement?

What is linguistic discrimination?

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What is QAnon? Oct 22, 2020

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What is QAnon? Thanks for asking!

The right-wing QAnon conspiracy theory alleges that the United States is run by a cabal of paedophiles who control the media and politics. The only person who can stop this cabal? President Donald J Trump of course. Critics have talked about QAnon beliefs as internet misinformation, while others have described it as a disturbing movement or even a terrorist threat. As a phenomenon, QAnon is quite recent. It first sprung up on the 4Chan online forum in 2017. A certain Mister Q presented himself as an informer who shares secret data of American intelligence agencies. His alias refers to the Q qualification required to access classified information. Since QAnon is anonymous, nobody knows who is hiding behind the 5000 messages published over the last three years. There are now thousands of QAnon groups on social media, amassing millions of followers.

And what are the main beliefs of QAnon followers?

Buckle up and hold on tight. A secret group of paedophile elites is set on world domination, at the same time organizing a child trafficking ring. Powerful figures like Hillary Clinton and Nancy Pelosi have sacrificed and eaten newborns, all the while filming the Satanist ritual. Presumably with the aim of obtaining the elixir of life. Luckily, Donald Trump was made head of the United States to become the saviour and clean up this mess. Over time, the movement has expanded to connect other conspiracy theories around historical events like 9/11 or the assassination of JFK, as well as anti-vaccine, anti-5G and anti-immigrant ideas. QAnon’s followers identify themselves as digital soldiers, waiting for the big storm which is supposed to put things back in order.

But technically, it’s just a conspiracy theory much like any other? Does Trump disavow the theory? This all seems very American, we should be safe enough over here in Europe, shouldn’t we? In under 3 minutes, we answer your questions!

To listen the last episodes, you can click here:

What is the anti-vaxxer movement?

What is linguistic discrimination?

What is malnutrition?

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What is the anti-vaxxer movement? Oct 21, 2020

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What is the anti-vaxxer movement? Thanks for asking!

On October 1st the US Center for Disease Control and Prevention and National Foundation for Infectious Diseases launched the 2020-2021 flu vaccine campaign. According to estimates, nearly 200 million doses of vaccine will be available this season. What makes this year’s campaign special is that it’s conducted in the context of the global Covid-19 pandemic. A quick reminder: a vaccine is administered to immunise a person against a potentially serious infectious disease. In the past few weeks, calls for vaccination have become more and more persistent. Experts are concerned about the possible conjunction of influenza and Covid-19. Because yes, it is possible to get infected with both the flu and Covid-19. There are fears of a “twindemic” when flu season starts in the Northern Hemisphere. It’s seen as particularly important for certain groups of people to undergo vaccination. These include people over the age of 65, those who suffer from chronic diseases or obesity, and healthcare professionals. But some people are hesitant to get vaccinated themselves, or have their children vaccinated.

Ah yes, the famous anti-vaxxers !

Anti-vax is short for anti-vaccination. Just last year, the World Health Organisation listed it among the top ten global health threats. These people are either skeptical about vaccines or completely opposed to them. It’s not just because they don't like needles; the reasons they cite are much more complex. According to a Pew Research Center survey from September 2020, only 51% of Americans said they would definitely or probably get a COVID-19 vaccine if it was available today. That’s way down from 72% back in May. On a more global level, other research conducted across 27 countries showed that 74% would be willing to get vaccinated. China ranked highest on that list with a figure of 97%, followed by Brazil and Australia.

So are Americans the only ones who are skeptical about vaccination? But why are some people so vehement in their opposition to vaccines? In under 3 minutes, we answer your questions!

To listen the last episodes, you can click here:

What is linguistic discrimination?

What is malnutrition?

What is LSD microdosing?

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‌What is linguistic discrimination? Oct 19, 2020

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‌What is linguistic discrimination? Thanks for asking!

Also known as glottophobia, linguistic discrimination is a form of prejudice based on a person’s way of speaking. For example, it could consist of mocking someone for their mother tongue, accent, or the range of vocabulary they use. Victims of linguistic discrimination are judged and treated differently as soon as they open their mouths. Studies into linguistic discrimination date back to the 1980s. Researchers noted the difficulties that non-native-English speakers encountered at work in the United States. Linguistic discrimination is also seen as one of the main factors in turning down a candidate for a job. Sometimes, this form of discrimination is even more brutal. In some cases in China, ethnic minorities are forced to abandon their languages. Similar policies were carried out by colonialists in past centuries, like the British Empire in Ireland, Wales and Scotland.

But why would anyone reject people based on their accent?

An accent or dialect are an important part of a person’s identity. He sounds foreign, she sounds like she’s from the countryside, he doesn’t sound well-educated etc. Traditionally, accents heard on the TV and radio have been held in higher esteem. In the UK, 28% of people feel they have suffered discrimination due to having a regional accent. Across the Channel in France, linguistic discrimination is worst for those from the north of the country, but those with strong southern accents aren’t spared. Back in 2018, politician Jean-Luc Melenchon openly mocked a journalist from Toulouse for her southwestern accent in front of TV cameras. MP Laetitia Avia then proposed a new law recognising glottophobia as a form of discrimination, but the idea ended up being abandoned.

So if you have a strong accent, should you see a speech therapist to mask it? In under 3 minutes, we answer your questions!

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What is consent?

What is the US Supreme Court?

What is gaslighting?

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What is malnutrition? Oct 17, 2020

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What is malnutrition? Thanks for asking!

World Food Day is celebrated every year on October 16th, commemorating the date on which the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization was created in 1945. Let’s take the opportunity to talk about malnutrition. It’s the consequence of a diet which doesn’t provide a healthy amount of certain nutrients. According to the World Health Organisation, this is due to excesses, deficiencies or imbalance in a person’s energy intake. So as you may have guessed, malnutrition covers both undereating and overeating. Undernutrition leads to excessive weight loss and stunted growth. Meanwhile, eating too much can lead to people becoming overweight, obese and developing non-communicable diseases, like cardiovascular diseases, diabetes and certain cancers. Malnutrition can be a direct cause of death, and it also weakens the immune system, making people more vulnerable to other illnesses. That’s why it needs to be treated quickly and efficiently. When you combine the various forms of malnutrition, it is the number one cause of poor health and death in humans.

How many people are affected?

A Global Nutrition report from this year found that one in nine people suffer from hunger and one in three are overweight or obese. Malnutrition is already a problem in every country in the world and the UN estimates it will affect a further 2 billion people by 2050. It leads to more than 9 million deaths per year. Women and young children are the worst affected. Women are victims of inequality in certain countries, and don’t always have access to the food or resources they need to have a healthy diet. Children have more fragile immune systems and are therefore more vulnerable.

So social inequality and poverty are among the causes of malnutrition. What are the others then? In under 3 minutes, we answer your questions!

To listen the last episodes, you can click here:

What is LSD microdosing?

What is a flight to nowhere?

What is consent?

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