After years of internal debate, I finally got my first tattoo. He’s a small lizard, with a topological map design inside, scaling the outer edge of my left ankle. His fine lines and tasteful detail ...

Human rights activists have been shocked down to their core as they received proof of the Chinese government’s horrific removal and trafficking of detained Uyghur Muslims’ organs. The investigation ...

Third-year medical students at UCSF recently spent a week discussing challenging cases they had encountered during their first six months in clinical training. The focus for the week was health care ...

When the brutal apartheid regime of South Africa refused to heed the call from the international community to end its racist, immoral and illegal treatment of Black South Africans, the global ...

Research shows laughter may be more of a social tool than a sign of enjoyment in conversations with strangers. Think of the last time you remember laughing. Maybe it was when you were showing someone ...

At the age of thirteen, my genetic disorder caused my growth to accelerate, leading to an unusually tall stature. My pediatrician predicted a height of at least 6' 4" after puberty, whereas the ...

This is part 3 of the limited series on the celebrated haute couture designer, Christian Dior.Christian Dior presented his first haute couture collection, named “Corolle,” in February 1947 at 30 ...

As scientists, we live in the nitty-gritty details and caveats of our work. To be effective scientific communicators, we must think beyond the details and incorporate compelling personal narratives ...

Originally published in Synapse on February 17, 1977. Inmates of California’s prison system are currently being used as subjects for medical experimentation. Although the inmates participate in the ...

Editor's note: Presenting Iva Petrovchich's winning entry in the 2018 Synapse Storytelling Contest's science writing category. Category judge, San Francisco Chronicle science writer Erin Allday, says, ...

I’m albino. My eyes are … different. In many ways, the world is not built for me. Every time I open Outlook on my iPhone and FaceID pops up, I have to pull the phone far away from its usual position — ...

I have not watched the George Floyd video. In fact, I have not watched the Ahmaud Aubrey, Eric Garner, or any of the other recordings of police brutality. I do not need to watch the video to know what ...