Thesis: S.M. in Science Writing, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Comparative Media Studies/Writing, 2017. / Cataloged from PDF version of thesis. / Includes bibliographical references. / For the past four years, Christy Shake has given her son marijuana extract six times a day to ease his childhood epilepsy. Hers is a compelling story that highlights the potential benefits of medical cannabis. But in the wake of antiquated and inflexible federal legislation, anecdotal reports like these are essentially all we have. More than half the states in the U.S. have voted to legalize medical marijuana, as thousands contend it's a viable treatment for a growing list of conditions. Nevertheless, as more and more patients gain access to cannabis, neither they nor their physicians understand exactly what they're receiving from local dispensaries. Patients, caregivers, scientists, physicians, pharmaceutical companies, and dispensary growers alike are calling for changes to government policies that restrict research. It's high time to separate politics from science. / by Raleigh McElvery. / S.M. in Science Writing

Thesis: S.M. in Science Writing, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Comparative Media Studies/Writing, 2017. / Cataloged from PDF version of thesis. / Includes bibliographical references (pages 21-27). / Usher Syndrome is an inherited disease that leads to the progressive loss of hearing and vision (retinitis pigmentosa). Increasingly, genetic testing, either through panels or whole exome sequencing, lets people know which of the twelve genes identified to date is responsible for the loss of their senses. Researchers are using these genetic ascertainment data to identify patients for clinical trials: There is no approved treatment for retinitis pigmentosa. A philanthropically-funded translational research program led by Dr. Edwin Stone at the University of Iowa seeks to provide an at-cost personalized gene therapy for everybody with Ushers, regardless how rare. His efforts focus transfecting patient-derived induced pluripotent stem cells with a viral gene vector to replace the broken Ushers gene. Meanwhile, a phase 1/11 clinical trial led by Dr. Eric Pierce and ReNeuron takes a different approach-injecting participants' subretinal space with healthy donor stem cells. Critically, both of these methods risk remaining vision. This is the story of two people with Ushers -- an infant with MYO7A -- associated Ushers who was genetically diagnosed in her first year of life, and a retired man who likely suffers from USH2A-associated Ushers, whose life experience exemplifies the condition, but whose specific genetic mutation has never been identified. Both have opted for cochlear implants to improve their hearing, and both work to adapt each day to their changing senses. / by Kate Telma. / S.M. in Science Writing

Thesis: S.M. in Science Writing, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Comparative Media Studies/Writing, 2017. / Cataloged from PDF version of thesis. / Includes bibliographical references (pages 15-16). / In northwestern Costa Rica, a team of rural workers called parataxonomists has been inventorying butterfly and moth species for 30 years. Just as a paramedic provides a first round of medical care, a parataxonomist does the on-the-ground work of taxonomy-collection, preparation and data gathering-before sending a specimen on to be analyzed. The parataxonomy program, led by biologists Daniel Janzen and Winnie Hallwachs, is part of the unique conservation model of Costa Rica's Area de Conservacidn Guanacaste (ACG). Hiring local people, rather than students or academics, as permanent field researchers upset traditional research structures, but has paid off for science and for local communities. Some 10,000 new species have been identified through these efforts. The parataxonomists benefit from steady employment in areas of little economic opportunity, and in turn serve as a voice for conservation in their communities. But even as the parataxonomy model is praised abroad-and is being adopted in other countries-its future in Costa Rica is tenuous. This thesis looks at the lives of the parataxonomists of the ACG and the impact of their work. It explores the rise and fall of Costa Rica's National Biodiversity Institute (INBio) and the state of parataxonomy as a model for research and conservation. / by Robin Marie Kazmier. / S.M. in Science Writing

Thesis: S.M. in Science Writing, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Comparative Media Studies/Writing, 2017. / Cataloged from PDF version of thesis. / Includes bibliographical references (pages 18-20). / One of every hundred children is born with a disease caused by a single abnormal gene. In the case of Angelman Syndrome, the genetic defect leaves patients mentally disabled, largely or completely unable to speak, and prone to seizures and sleep difficulties. Many Angelman researchers are trying to figure out precisely how those symptoms develop, but why study all the individual effects when you could go right to the root of the problem? Recent advances in medicine and technology are increasingly allowing clinicians to treat genetic illnesses by directly manipulating patients' DNA, and a number of scientists are now investigating ways to leverage those discoveries for individuals with Angelman Syndrome. Their work could lead to potent therapies for the disease, and - maybe - even a cure. / by Brandon A. Levy. / S.M. in Science Writing

Thesis: S.M. in Science Writing, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Comparative Media Studies/Writing, 2017. / Cataloged from PDF version of thesis. / Includes bibliographical references (pages 21-28). / In 2013, the plant pathogen Xylellafastidiosa was found in Salento, Italy's most southeastern region, famous for its centuries-old olive trees. Spread by insects, the bacterium is decimating those trees and compromising the production of olive oil, which accounts for a considerable part of the national output. Since there are no means to cure sick plants, the authorities ordered emergency measures to contain the disease, which included removing infected trees and using pesticides against insect vectors. In Salento, these measures aroused intense public opposition. Following a vilifying media campaign and under public pressure, an Italian court halted the containment measures and accused the scientists who detected Xylella as having caused the problem in the first place. The absence of a plan to contain the epidemic, the criminal charges against the scientists, and the public resistance due to inaccurate information may fuel the spread of the disease to the rest of Italy and eventually to the entire Mediterranean basin, with catastrophic economic consequences. / by Giorgia Guglielmi. / S.M. in Science Writing

Thesis: S.M. in Science Writing, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Comparative Media Studies/Writing, 2017. / Cataloged from PDF version of thesis. / Includes bibliographical references (pages 23-25). / Up and down the eastern seaboard of the United States, ocean levels are rising at rates faster than just about anywhere in the world. Coastal forests are dying off as a result-an early warning, if people will pay attention, of the disruptive changes in store for both natural ecosystems and human habitation. Dying coastal forests herald other coastal landscape changes: after the forests start to die, so do the marshes that live in zones between ocean and forest. As sea-level rise and human development combine to narrow the range of coastal ecosystems, problems arise for local flora and fauna, natural nutrient cycles, and coastal communities. / by Greta Friar. / S.M. in Science Writing

Thesis: S.M. in Science Writing, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Comparative Media Studies/Writing, 2018. / This electronic version was submitted by the student author. The certified thesis is available in the Institute Archives and Special Collections. / Cataloged from student-submitted PDF version of thesis. / Includes bibliographical references (pages 28-30). / Linguistic, genetic, and archaeological evidence indicate that the Philippines has been inhabited by humans for many thousands of years. By what means the earliest settlers arrived in the archipelago is still a mystery, but a growing body of evidence points to the likelihood that they possessed seafaring technology. If so, then modern Filipinos -- who are even now making their first tentative steps into space -- are heirs to a rich heritage of exploration, the story of which has yet to be fully told. / by Timothy James M. Dimacali. / S.M. in Science Writing

Thesis: S.M. in Science Writing, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Comparative Media Studies/Writing, 2018. / Cataloged from PDF version of thesis. / Includes bibliographical references (pages 23-31). / As access to education technology - high-speed Internet connectivity, lower-cost computers, and online learning programs - has increased over the past five years in K-12 schools in the United States, the debate over technology's place in the classroom, specifically its ability to usher in a new era of education personalized to meet the needs of every individual student, has raged on. Much of the narrative perpetuated by technology companies around educational reform has centered on an idea that outside, tech-driven "disruption" is needed in order for real transformation. However, many school districts have found more success moving towards personalized learning when the disruption is homegrown, scaled carefully, involves all community stakeholders, and is driven by pedagogy, not technology. This thesis examines in depth one school district, Kettle Moraine School District in Wisconsin, and their success in creating personalized learning experiences for their students, as a case study for how other districts might approach homegrown disruptions of their own. / by Francesca M. Schembri. / S.M. in Science Writing

Thesis: S.M. in Science Writing, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Comparative Media Studies/Writing, 2018. / Cataloged from PDF version of thesis. / Includes bibliographical references (pages 15-16). / Traumatic brain injuries are one of the most common injuries in domestic violence, with studies finding that approximately 75 percent of women tested report at least one TBI. These injuries leave invisible scars in the form of memory problems. But despite the large prevalence of TBIs in the population, there is a lack of research, stunted by both funding and a lack of subjects. The trouble with research extends to chronic traumatic encephalopathy, a degenerative disease caused by repetitive hits to the head. Although domestic violence researchers suggest that the population will develop CTE, which is only diagnosed post-mortem, a lack of donated brains means the disease has yet to be found among domestic violence victims. / by Heather Mongilio. / S.M. in Science Writing

Thesis: S.M. in Science Writing, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Comparative Media Studies/Writing, 2018. / Cataloged from PDF version of thesis. / Includes bibliographical references (pages 22-26). / Sustainable food movements are focused on reducing meat consumption for one simple reason: meat is extremely environmentally costly. This enormous resource use by one industry makes it an appealing target for those looking to reduce American resource use. As a result, many are looking at ways to make livestock more sustainable. And there are two main ways to do so. Clover Food Lab represents one idea: a return to local farming with an emphasis on a plant-based diet. Impossible Foods is the second: using biotechnology to provide a sacrifice free alternative, synthetic beef. These companies aren't solutions in of themselves, but proposals on the way solutions should be implemented. The partnership between these two opposing strategies reveals the promises and pitfalls of trying to reform the American diet and, most importantly, that above all else our food system is unsustainable as it is now. / by Ashley Junger. / S.M. in Science Writing