Articles - Sergio Pistoi

Selected articles

Dental Fillings: a Reaction in Your Mouth

Chemmatters, October 2017

Is your home healthy? Ask the DNA

Genetic investigations are the latest tool for busting unsafe microorganisms and improving air quality in buildings.

Do microbes control our mood?

Research on gut bacteria may change the way we look at anxiety, depression, and behavioural disorders

Which is more wholesome: wild or farmed fish?

Choosing between wild and farmed fish is often a dilemma for consumers. Science gives us a heads-up for choosing at the counter and helps in the struggle to save the global fish stocks Sergio Pistoi, Youris.com Wild-captured fish cost twice as much as their farmed counterparts; a difference that many believe is justified by their better […]

Smart Cities Vs. Terrorism

Does technology expose cities more to terrorist attacks?

The Social Life of Bricks

A celebrity in the materials world, Mark Miodownik dreams of colour-changing walls and looks at the future of renewable buildings

Power of the Sun. Dirt Cheap.

In a world hungry for energy, top scientist Michael Grätzel hopes to make solar cells more affordable by copying photosynthesis

Science and High Schoolers: my Survival Guide on PLOS

How to talk about science to teenagers.

The DNA diet: does it work?

Genetically-tailored diets are in vogue. But do they work?

The Big Boob Persuasion: does it work for science, too?

Using naked boobs to disseminate science? The Tumblr blog Boobs for Science has just proved it’s no joke. Is it sustainable?

Italian scientists protest against budget cuts, crocodile tears included

Sergio Pistoi for The Euroscientist In the successful Italian comedy, Smetto quando voglio (I can quit whenever I want), a group of young and talented scholars with no career perspective turns into a successful drug-dealing mob. The story is imaginary—a surreal rendition of Breaking Bad—but it is also the portrait of Italian academia.There, the shortage […]