As students began finishing up their ISPs (some in a greater rush than others), I started to get curious about the projects that wouldn’t be shown at the ISP X-block. On April 22nd, the entire New Roads Upper School community came into the Moss Theater to watch six Independent Study Project (ISP) presentations — but what about the other 18 ISPs happening this year? In an effort to learn more, I interviewed three people who pursued ISPs this year and fulfilled their presenta

How gender bias affects diagnosis and treatment, and what people are doing to fix it Despite advances in equality in healthcare, gender bias remains a large issue. This leads to misdiagnosis, unequal treatment, and overlooked symptoms - especially for women and non - binary individuals. However, there is a growing group of researchers and activists who are trying to address this issue, and people are pushing for a brighter future where medical care is truly equal and fair. G

In a society plagued by increasing social and economic stressors as well as mental health challenges, dogs have taken an important role in our lives. For decades, dogs have been known to serve as loyal companions providing social, emotional and therapeutic benefits, and the research backs up this common understanding too. Owning a dog is extremely beneficial on multiple different health aspects of life. Research shows that having experienced living with a dog, people experie

With widespread marijuana use on the rise, the regulations on its farming practices remain minimal. As the legalization of recreational marijuana spreads in many states across the country, the cannabis market has become commercialized and targeted towards a younger audience. In an industry that is massively under-the-table, regulation for marijuana is extremely hard without full legalization. As large-scale cultivation expands, so does the use of pesticides. The Environmental

As Earth faces the dangers of anthropogenic climate change, researchers look to new strategies in conservation to protect our planet’s biodiversity. Earth is in danger of a “ sixth mass extinction ” according to the WWF. Habitat destruction, climate change, pollution, overfishing and hunting, and the introduction of invasive species threaten our planet’s rich biodiversity, and we are desperately in need of effective solutions to defend it. While our wildlife can be protected

Last November, researchers finally described a new nudibranch that had stumped them for over 20 years—and it’s like no other sea slug. In early 2000, researchers at Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute (MBARI) encountered a never-before-seen glowing animal. While remotely operating an underwater vehicle 8,576 feet beneath Monterey Bay, researchers were shocked to see what appeared to be a mollusk floating in the deep-water column—most mollusks inhabit shallow coastal envi