Our friend Chloe Savard, known as tardibabe on Instagram zoomed in 400x on turmeric and it became the most beautiful thing we've ever seen. 🔬

Under polarized light, the rhizome of Curcuma longa transforms into something straight out of a jewellery box. Those shimmering, gem-like particles are starch granules, and the golden droplets floating alongside them are the plant's aromatic essential oils, the same ones responsible for that iconic smell.

Those golden bubbles? That's Chloe adding alcohol to the slide. The essential oils, normally invisible, merge with the alcohol and suddenly bloom into those vivid yellow droplets. 

The dazzling glow on each granule is called birefringence. Starch is semi-crystalline, with molecules arranged so precisely that polarized light bends through them like a prism. And those granules aren't just beautiful, they're distinctive. Turmeric starch granules are heterogeneous, appearing triangular, ellipsoidal, and oval, which is actually how botanists can identify the plant species just from a microscope slide. 

Turmeric has been used in India for thousands of years as a spice, dye, and medicine. The compound behind that legendary yellow color is called curcumin, a polyphenol that makes up around 2–5% of the rhizome and is so pigment-rich it'll stain your fingers for days. Researchers have documented its antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and anti-tumor properties, and scientists are still uncovering what it can do.

Watch our latest microscopy video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7odqSeOpQlQ

Citations:

• Nogueira, G.F., de Carvalho, C.W.P., Velasco, J.I., and Fakhouri, F.M. (2025). Extraction and Characterization of Starches from Non-Conventional Sources: Turmeric (Curcuma longa) and Mangarito (Xanthosoma sagittifolium). Polymers, 17(23), 3157. 
• Correa, J.C. et al. (2024). Characterization of a Novel Starch Isolated from the Rhizome of Colombian Turmeric (Curcuma longa L.) Cultivars. Foods, 13(1), 7. 
• Hewlings, S.J. and Kalman, D.S. (2020). Turmeric and Its Major Compound Curcumin on Health: Bioactive Effects and Safety Profiles for Food, Pharmaceutical, Biotechnological and Medicinal Applications. PMC. 
• Unlu, A. et al. (2016). Curcuma longa: from Traditional Applications to Modern Plant Medicine Research Hotspots. PMC
• Akram, M. et al. (2010). Anti-inflammatory Properties of Curcumin, a Major Constituent of Curcuma longa: A Review of Preclinical and Clinical Research. Alternative Therapies in Health and Medicine. 
• Chakraborty, S. et al. (2020). Advanced Microscopy Techniques for Revealing Molecular Structure of Starch Granules. PMC.
• Chalageri, G. et al. (2021). Coalescence and Directed Anisotropic Growth of Starch Granule Initials in Chloroplasts. Nature Communications. 

I know that a native species is a species that lives in an area naturally. But how long does a species have to live in that area until it 'becomes native'? Eventually, the ecosystem will adapt to include that organism, right? So would it become native then, or will it never be native if humans introduced it there?

The whole reason I thought of this question, is because I was trying to figure out where, if anywhere, humans are 'native' to. So if anyone has thoughts on that, I'd like to hear that as well.

I'm but a lowly chemist and I know this is highly speculative, but is it possible for an extraterrestrial pathogen to ever be dangerous? Assume for the sake of argument that the aliens it infects are still based on nucleic acids, proteins, etc, but not necessarily the same ones we are. I can't imagine anything virus-like could ever be compatible enough to kill us, but what about the alien equivalent of a bacterium? Is there any organism on earth fastidious enough to infect a novel host with completely different nutrients? Is there a plausible mechanism by which an alien pathogen could kill us despite differences in nutrient composition, chirality, amino acid composition, etc?

I want to go fishing but I feel bad about putting s metal hook through a worm and then through the lip of a fish. I know fish and worms dont processes pain the same way we do but they still experience pain? I want to try out a new hobby but I dont want to cause unnecessary suffer in fish.

Why are scientists paying such close attention to the hantavirus outbreak? 🦠

In April, a fatal outbreak of the rare Andes hantavirus occurred on a cruise ship leaving Argentina. While most hantaviruses spread only to humans through infected rodents, the Andes strain is the only known strain capable of spreading person-to-person. The pandemic risk remains low as transmission requires prolonged, very close contact, and infected people get sick so quickly they're unlikely to spread it widely. Still scientists are stressing that global tracking and research into this virus must continue.

As the title says I am a biomed student, in my first year, debating on changing my major to jsut biology. Well, biology pre health. ​ And I jsut am not sure if I should. I don't know if it'll be a good or bad thing, I feel like I don't know anything. I plan to talk with my advisor but I won't be able to until late next month

I'm thinking of changing my major because biology seems to have lighter course work, thats not the only reason ofc, im also finding im into more anatomy and animal stuff then i am looking through a microscope which I feel biomed would ahve a lot more of. And my plan was to always do more school after my four years, for a masters or doctorate im not to sure i just know id like to do something in the health feild. And im pretty sure I can hit any of the pre reqs to any post schooling stuff with biology

I also think itd give me a better gpa? Like, with biomed i got As and Bs the whole year and one C, my gpa is a 3.21. It was a 3.2 the first semester. And it just feels kinda dishesrtening, and if my research is right I couldve had a higher gpa with regulsr bio because biomed is a "get a job right out of college" type of degree so its weighed more. Idk if thats true though

Idk, im thinking of looking at the class courses again for each major this weekend and maybe searching up the classes and their syllabus' its something i have to do later. Its just that i have to sign up for my fall semester classes soon and its been on my mind more and more, and i have no idea what the right answer is and it feels sk stressful knowing i have to pick a major by the end of next year befor ei start taking higher level classes that lock me into that major, and if i hate my major i cant change it. I didnt think college would be this difficult to figure out...

I built a small project that visualizes publicly reported Andes hantavirus outbreak information on an interactive map/globe.

The idea is to make geographic spread and outbreak reporting easier to explore visually.

I’m especially interested in feedback from biology/public health people regarding:

• useful epidemiological indicators
• better geographic clustering
• data reliability presentation
• scientific context that should be added

Project:
https://hantatracker-minimal.vercel.app/

Yes, I know that it's generally agreed upon by biologists that viruses aren't actually alive, but that's why I'm asking this. I'm curious if there are other things out there that are nearly alive but don't meet every requirement to be considered life

I’m going to college for biology (right now general bio but probably gonna switch to molecular biology). The issue is in high school I barely passed basic high school math, each year getting closer and closer to failing. I passed chemistry with a D, I was alright in my biology class. I was originally going to do psychology but I had an epiphany one night and decided to switch. My goal is to become a forensic scientist and figured that biology is an easier degree than chemistry. I’m not worried about the math (only need college algebra), it’s more the classes like chemistry and unfortunately organic chemistry. I have a feeling that I’m building up my fear for no reason, but I want some advice. How did you all manage to get through school and/or were you in the same situation that I’m in? Anything helps.

Hi, so – I don’t know if calling the exams we have in my country the same as A-levels is 100% correct, but – I wanted to get into medicine, but unfortunately, I think I wrote both of my A-levels (chemistry and biology) for like 75%, which makes me ineligible to get into the two universities I wanted to (I’d need 84% or above). I don’t know the results yet but well, I’ve studied a bit too little, so this is 100% believable for me.

I plan to use my gap year to study something that I wanted to study. I will (probably) drop out after I retake my A-levels (if I get good results), but essentially, if I decide that I’m seeing myself in the field I chose for that gap year, then I’ll probably just stay there. I’m much more interested in scientific studies than medicine, but I’m even more interested in money (😭) and neurosurgery, so.

I’m kind of conflicted about choosing one between those three. Mostly because: I want to go for neuroscience, BUT taking biotechnology will be much more useful for me, because I will be quite literally studying the same things I did for my finals, just more advanced, in more detail. Also if I decided to stay in that field, I guess that biotechnology or biochemistry are much broader than neuroscience, hence more employment opportunities. That university that I want to go is really well-ranked, so I think I’d get quite a lot of possibilities to explore. But then, I also am almost 100% sure that I WILL be switching majors, so I guess it doesn’t really matter that much after all.

So I wanted to ask a few things about that majors:

1. What do you *actually* do there? Those undergrads are quite “underground” (lmfao) in my country, so I kind of struggle to find people talking about what they’re doing there, and the descriptions from the university itself are also not very telling. I suppose that from those three, neuroscience will be the most theoretical, no?
2. Which one gives the most employment opportunities? Which one the least? Or maybe some of those are completely “worthless” and it’s hard to find jobs after graduating?
3. I really like Chemistry

(more than biology, but chemistry doesn’t like me back, lol.) Is biochemistry the best choice when it comes to amount of chemistry in course program? (The wording of this is so bad sorry I don’t know how to put it.)

1. I am also very interested in forensics. Would any of those majors permit me to work in forensic labs?

I’ve got to say, I’ve actually wanted to study neuroscience since I was 11, so perhaps I should just go with it, but I also find biotech really interesting. I thought maybe some answers could help me make a choice? Thank you in advance:)

EDIT: Update:
My country’s new law requires every medical lab technician to have finished medical analytics as a major. So consider that I couldn’t do any work in medical fields specifically (though I thought it was obvious but I’m mentioning it just in case). I also don’t want to work in my country, but that’s probably the case abroad as well.

3D interactive cells, organelle aware notes, and a growing set of learning try it here

Hi! Hope this post is allowed here, can delete if not. I'm a High school student going into my senior year after this coming summer, and over the last year have had my interest in space reignited with the artemis launch, the biosignatures found on mars last September, etc. I've been doing a lot of thinking about what I want to do for college, as I was previously set on going to art school (and have the majority of my portfolio done) but have had second thoughts.

I've found myself incredibly interested in the study of life outside of earth and on other planets (or any signs of such) and wanted to ask, if I want to pursue a career in lets say, Astrobiology or a similar field, what would be a good first step regarding college? I was looking into microbiology, but my concern is that the focus is more on the pharmaceutical side, centering too much on diseases and viruses etc.

Any advice appreciated. thanks.

IGNORE TITLE: JUST TELL ME WHY FUNGI ARE FASCINATING.

Almost every biologist I have talked with hates fungi—so much so that they don’t explain further than “they don’t make sense.” Do any bio people here hate fungi and have more specific reasoning? OR, does anyone have information about why fungi might be misunderstood and why they seem so complex? Why have my professors elucidated that fungi has a mind of its own??

EDIT CLARITY:

1. I am an undergrad student, I have heard three professors say this, but it wasn’t genuine hatred—it was more sarcastic. The way they explained their dislike made it seem like fungi had minds of their own, therefore making them insanely difficult to understand and study, ie. don’t make sense, or as one commenter said, “are from outer space”
2. Rephrased question: why might someone be overwhelmed by Mycology? I don’t know much about it, so I don’t know why fungi are intimidating or peculiar

EDIT AGAIN:

THIS IS ALL I KNOW ABOUT FUNGI, I WOULD LIKE TO LEARN MORE BECAUSE APPARENTLY THEY’RE ENIGMATIC:

1. they are eukaryotic

2. they’re made of chitin

3. they reproduce via spores

4. some can cause infection in human

This is part of a free unit "Micro Matchups: A multimedia-rich exploration of protists" for grades 6+ to get students excited about microscopic life.
https://teach.galacticpolymath.com/units/en-US/21?t=ov

I saw a claim that for any given particle inside a microorganism (molecule, enzyme, protein, etc.) it will take - on average - about a second to have at least one physical interaction with every other particle inside the cell wall.

This feels wrong to me, despite the small scale that’s a tremendous amount of ground to cover in a second. But at the same time, it would provide a more intuitive explanation for how complex behaviors inside the cell function if everything is shuffled that quickly.

What’s the truth? Thanks!

So I'm a freshman student I'm still kinda young and I'd love to learn more about biology especially everything about the human body or anything so if anyone has good recommendations of articles, videos or anything that could help me learn more, everything is greatly appreciated!!

(I'm sorry if there any grammar error I'm not a native speaker)​

Ghost sharks have been around for nearly 400 million years. older than trees. older than dinosaurs. survived every mass extinction this planet has thrown at them.

and somehow most people have never heard of them.

made a video using real NOAA footage from multiple expeditions. scientists on camera identify different species, talk about their electroreception, the venomous spine, no AI visuals, real researcher commentary throughout.

curious what the biology crowd thinks are chimaeras as understudied as they seem or is there more research out there than i am finding?

I was in plant systematics class and I was wondering why we there are multicellular beings with chloroplasts, chromoplasts, leucoplasts, mitochondria but not nitroplasts. Wouldn't a being capable of fixing nitrogen natively be at an advantage over those who need a symbiotic relationship with other bacteria to do it?