The five most-read stories this week on Scope were:
Stanford bioengineer develops a 50-cent paper microscope: Manu Prakash, PhD, assistant professor of bioengineering, has developed an ultra-low-cost paper microscope to aid disease diagnosis in developing regions. The device is further described in a technical paper.
Free DIY microscope kits to citizen scientists with inspiring project ideas: Through the Ten Thousand Microscope Project, Manu Prakash is giving away 10,000 build-your-own paper microscope kits to citizen scientists with the most inspiring ideas for how to use his new invention, called the Foldscope.
Stanford microscope inventor featured on TED Talk: In a TED Talk video, Manu Prakash builds and demonstrates his 50-cent paper microscope.
Study: Baby sound machines may be too loud for little ears: A recent study published in Pediatrics finds that sound machines meant to soothe babies may actually do more harm than good. Nanci Yuan, MD, pulmonologist and sleep medicine specialist at Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital Stanford, comments on the research.
E-Cigarettes: The explosion of vaping is about to be regulated: In a 1:2:1 podcast, Robert Jackler, MD, chief of otolaryngology at Stanford, talks with med school communications chief Paul Costello about the health hazards of e-cigarettes and recent efforts to regulate their sale.
And still going strong – the most popular post from the past:
The mystery surrounding lung-transplant survival rates: A 2012 article in the San Francisco Chronicle offered a look at the challenges facing lung transplant patients and explored why a significant number don’t live beyond the five-year mark, despite improvements in survival rates.
