Faculty of Science

Posting digitally enhanced photos of yourself could have a social cost, researchers find

aurelie.boucher@mcgill.ca — Mon, 04 Aug 2025 17:16:17 +0000

The use of disclaimer labels on digitally enhanced portraits could have unintended social consequences for their subjects, according to a study by a team of �Ŀ;�� researchers.

Researchers at the Laboratory for Attention and Social Cognition used beauty filters on a common social media application to gradually edit a total of 300 images of 60 women (from 0 to 100 per cent, 25 per cent at a time). They randomly labelled half of the images as “edited” and the other half as “unedited,” regardless of their level of editing.

Researchers’ novel lab technique reveals how ice crystals form in clouds

kay.pettigrew@mcgill.ca — Mon, 21 Jul 2025 15:13:44 +0000

Researchers have developed a novel method to detect and study how ice forms in mixed-phase clouds, significantly boosting scientists’ ability to forecast weather and model climate change.

Our brains can communicate wordlessly, through our eyes

katherine.gombay@mcgill.ca — Wed, 23 Apr 2025 18:07:34 +0000

�Ŀ;�� researchers have demonstrated something long assumed: that glances can transmit information about one’s mental state to others without a single word being exchanged. They speculate that this primal ability may have played a role in assuring survival of human society at times when making a sound could have attracted predators.

Expert: Access to personal data

katherine.gombay@mcgill.ca — Fri, 28 Feb 2025 16:07:29 +0000

Elon Musk’s team at the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) has sought access to data from various U.S. government departments and agencies. This has caused concerns that DOGE will gain access to potentially sensitive data on millions of Americans.

Experts: 2024 state of the climate report

claire.loewen@mcgill.ca — Tue, 08 Oct 2024 16:32:04 +0000

A new report by some of the world’s top climate scientists examines key indicators and finds that the world is “on the brink of an irreversible climate disaster.” The authors found that 25 out of 35 indicators used to track the planet's climate risk, from ocean temperatures to tree-cover loss, are at record levels.