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About Massimo
Harnessing his dual expertise in molecular biology and digital communications, Massimo is a steadfast advocate for science, striving to weave it into the fabric of everyday life. As the founder and editor-in-chief of TheScienceBreaker, he is not just chasing a dream, but actively building a reality where society and science walk hand-in-hand. His aspiration is not one of distant admiration, but of close collaboration: empowering every individual with scientific understanding and fostering a collective enthusiasm for discovery. His vision is one of unity, where society acknowledges the integral role of science and technology in shaping our shared future.
Massimo is the editor of 344 Breaks:
A prehistoric seawall to combat Mediterranean Sea-level rise
We summarize a recently published study describing and discussing a now-submerged seawall constructed some 7000 years ago by Neolithic villagers on the Mediterranean coast of northern Israel. It was built to protect the village against the rising sea. Their attempt was unsuccessful, and eventually, they were forced to abandon their home.
Oct 6, 2020 | 4 min readA natural close-up of a pierced galaxy 18 billion light-years away
Something has poked a hole in the interstellar gas in a distant galaxy. This allows us the first ever direct view of what young, massive stars look like in far-ultraviolet light – and thanks to a natural, cosmic lens, the whole thing is magnified hundredfold and shown in 12 copies.
Oct 1, 2020 | 3.5 min readOuch, that needle hurts! How some viruses inject their DNA
Some viruses infect their bacterial hosts by injecting their DNA using a nano-injection machine that resembles a hypodermic needle. They then hijack their host into reproducing new copies of the virus and to unleash those copies to infect other hosts. To understand how this injection machine works in real-time, we developed a model to simulate the injection process.
Sep 25, 2020 | 3.5 min readWhy so aggressive? Bringing the past into the present
Animals change their aggressive behaviour across contexts, potentially due to lingering effects of past experiences. We tested the aggression in fruit flies before and after they were placed in a vial for 4-days, varying the group composition and the intensity of food competition. Male aggression changed after the 4-day period, showing how specific past experiences can alter future aggressiveness.
Sep 23, 2020 | 3.5 min readStop all the clocks: the hidden long-term consequences of sleep loss
Sleep loss perturbs the molecular circadian clock inside our cells. This effect persists long after the organism has recovered from sleep loss at the behavioral level.
Sep 22, 2020 | 4 min readThe Janus-Faced Nature of Cancer Immunity
In this study, we demonstrated that the immune response in cancer patients could sometimes inhibit, but other times enhance tumor cells' growth.
Sep 21, 2020 | 3.5 min read