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This week, we will be discussing the movie Split, STEM news, the discovery of X-rays, and, as always, opportunities for students.
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The Science Behind Split
Welcome back to another section of Sci-Fi or Fact. On today’s agenda, we will be debunking the science behind the psychological thriller movie, Split. To recap, Split is about three girls being abducted by a man named Kevin Wendell Crumb. In the movie, Crumb suffers from a mental disorder, causing him to have 24 different personalities. Overall, Crumb would constantly switch between personalities, acting like a new person with each persona. One of these persona’s, known as “The Beast” is so unique to the point where Crumb is able to have animalistic abilities including super strength. Now comes to the question of does this mental disorder really exist? Does the movie accurately portray this disorder? And can you actually gain new super abilities with different personalities? Let’s find out!
Starting off, the mental disorder Kevin Crumb had was called Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID). This condition does exist in the real world, but only affects approximately 1% of the human population. Though there has been extensive research on the subject, but the primary source of this disorder is not 100% clear. In attempts to find this root, scientists have used neuroimaging. Specifically, scientists recorded and measured brain activity of the Orbitofrontal Cortex (OFC) in attempts to explain the root. The OFC basically acts as a coordinator for decision-making of the emotional human brain. Moreover, scientists concluded that the OFC affects one’s ability to regulate their emotions and social behaviors. Events during the development of the OFC, such as childhood trauma, could detriment the OFC’s function and eventually lead to DID. To read more about the several studies about the root of DID click here. In relation to Split, Crumb was mentally and physically abused by his mother while his father was not present throughout his childhood. Now that we know this movie depicts the cause of DID in an accurate way, does this movie actually portray DID behaviors correctly?
As mentioned before, Kevin Crumb alternates between 24 different personalities. The formal term coined for these identities is called alters. The National Alliance on Mental Illnesses (NAMI) states that differences in alters include distinction in “speech , mannerisms, attitudes, thoughts, and gender orientation. The alters may even present physical differences, such as allergies, right-or-left handedness or the need for eyeglass prescriptions” (NAMI). In addition, people who suffer from DID often experience moments of amnesia. Although this movie does a great job of bringing awareness and validating DID, the movie places a stigma on this disorder. Split portrays Kevin Crumb as a violent person and exaggerates each personality for cinematic purposes. However, people with DID are not inherently violent like Crumb and can not gain animalistic qualities from this disorder.
To conclude, DID is a rare, but real condition that people suffer from. In the movie Split, the cause and some of the conditions are factually correct. On the other hand, the exaggerated traits such as “The Beast” used to make the antagonist a bad character is completely inaccurate. Today, just like in the movie, DID patients are being treated today through psychotherapy. The next time you watch a movie about sicknesses or mental disorders, keep in mind that directors tend to inaccurately exaggerate traits for entertainment value.
Amazon plans to send two new satellites into space in 2022! The satellites, named KuiperSat-1 and KuiperSat-2, are just two of 3,236 planned to deploy by 2026. These satellites will test internet connections between Earth and space. Amazon plans to sell more of these satellites in the future to different companies to use but there are a few problems with this new technology. Astronomers are afraid of the satellites causing even more light pollution in the sky. Amazon’s main competitor, SpaceX, has tried using different methods like sunshades and anti-reflective paint to absorb the sunlight.
Scientists in Iowa have found deer populations that have contracted coronavirus. From April 2020 to January 2021, almost 80% of the deer sampled tested positive. This is a major concern as the deer could spread it to other animals and humans, making it much harder to stop the spread of the virus. Past studies have shown that deer were exposed to coronavirus but not infected, proven by antibodies — which fight off infection — found in almost half the deer. Other animals like ferrets and mink are able to contract SARS-Co-V-2 (which causes COVID-19 in humans) and spread it back to humans or potentially mutate and create a more dangerous virus.
NASA astronauts have successfully grown hatch chiles in space! This is an amazing accomplishment since astronauts usually eat packaged, freeze-dried foods and growing crops in space is not an easy task. The chiles were planted on Earth and then sent to space where the astronauts began taking care of the plants in July. Growing fresh produce in space is an important step in future space missions that are longer — like a trip to Mars. These new hatch chiles allow astronauts to have more options in space and can even help reduce fatigue and congestion caused by the lack of gravity!
The Discovery of the X-Ray
126 years ago, on November 8, 1895, German physicist Wilhelm Conrad Roentgen (the recipient of the first Nobel Prize for Physics) discovered X-rays: electromagnetic radiation that introduced a new age of physics and forever-altered diagnostic medicine. Can you imagine a world where doctors wouldn't be able to diagnose broken bones, or check for heart failure, or screen for cancer?
Roentgen discovered X-rays accidentally; he was testing whether cathode rays could pass through glass. Because his cathode tube was covered in a dense black paper, he was shocked to see a green light shine through and project onto a fluorescent screen. With further experimentation, he realized that this strange light had the ability to pass through many substances, leaving shadows of objects. He decided to call them “X” (“unknown”) rays.
He also realized that X-rays could pass through human tissue, making objects like bones visible. In fact, one of Roentgen’s first photographic plates was an image of his wife’s hand. In just a year, doctors all over the world were using Roentgen’s X-rays to visualize kidney stones and foreign objects in the body. News spread rapidly: Thomas Edison quickly developed a hand-held fluoroscope and new studios opened to take "bone portraits.” X-rays also started to make appearances in pop culture — through cartoons, short stories, and advertising.
X-rays were later found to be helpful in treating some diseases such as cancer and skin problems. However, the dangerous effects of X-ray radiation were not discovered until sometime later, when preventative measures and X-ray advancements were incorporated to protect patients.
Wilhelm Conrad Roentgen never sought excessive recognition or financial profits for his work, even donating his Nobel Prize money to his university. He also never sought out any patents for his X-rays so that the world could “freely benefit from his work.”
Without Wilhelm Conrad Roentgen’s experimentation and altruism, the world would be an incredibly different place.
STEMlights Program Coordinator
Do you enjoy what you're reading? Do you want to explore science journalism and write STEM-related articles every week? Join STEMlights by applying to be a STEMlights Program Coordinator, where you will help craft the newsletter with the rest of the team on a weekly basis. We're so excited to learn more about you! APPLICATIONS ARE DUE NOVEMBER 6th, 11:59 EST.
"Storytellers of Tomorrow" High School Creative Writing Contest
The Ringling College of Art and Design Creative Writing Program, “was created to support, empower, and honor young writers.” Every year, they host a creative writing contest where high schoolers can submit original works of up to 2,000 words in length. First place winners receive $1,000, a 1:1 consultation about your writing with a literary agent or editor, an iPad for your high school teacher, and a Ringling College Creative Writing T-shirt! Pieces are due January 15th, 2022.
NYT 3rd Annual Personal Narrative Writing Contest
Personal narratives can tell us so much a person is just a few paragraphs. If you’re interested in being published in the New York Times, tell a short story about a meaningful life experience in 600 words or fewer! Your piece must be original and less than 600 words. If you’re unsure where to start, you can check out the New York Times’ thorough research guide for students and teachers. Applications are due November 17th.
NSCDA Congressional Essay Contest
Write an essay about, “one of the five freedoms in the First Amendment to the United States Constitution and discuss why it should or should not be changed in today’s high-tech global society,” for a chance to win a trip to Washington DC! Essays must be 750 words. Winners receive a fully-covered trip to the Washington Workshop’s “Congressional Seminar,” “a week-long civic-focused adventure in our nation’s capital.” Essays are due December 1st.
2021-2022 National High School Poetry Contest
Do you enjoy writing poetry, or expressing your love of STEM through poetry? Enter your poems into the Gannon University National High School Poetry Contest! Your poem may be in rhyme, free verse, Haiku or other accepted poetry forms with a maximum of 40 lines. Winners receive monetary awards. The deadline is February 1, 2022.
How Does The Internet Work?
How were we able to maintain fully remote learning last year? How can we easily scroll through social media everyday? How are you reading this newsletter on your computer or mobile device? How does the internet even work!? Answering these questions, "involves discovering how internet cables are laid in the sea, if 5G is really the future, and how balloons in the stratosphere are helping people connect," all of which are explored in the Vox video down below! Check out this fascinating "Glad You Asked" episode hosted by Cleo Abram.
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