Did You Just Eat That?

Guest: Paul Dawson, Professor of Food Science at Clemson University, Co-author of “Did You Just Eat That?”

If you drop that delicious homemade roll on its way to your Thanksgiving plate, will you snatch it up and eat it anyway? Or does it go straight in the trash because you don’t believe the five second rule? That’s the idea that it takes at least a few seconds for bacteria to migrate onto food. Grab it fast enough and you’re all good. Well, some researchers at Clemson University put the rule to the test. (Originally aired: 7/16/19)

Lie Detectors Don’t Work, But America is Still Obsessed With Them

Guest: Ken Alder, PhD, Professor of History, Northwestern University, Author of “The Lie Detectors: The History of an American Obsession”

They’re a staple in TV crime dramas and they always seem to come up when a public figure is accused of some misdeed. But they’re so unreliable they’re usually not admissible in court. We’re talking about lie detector tests. I’ve never taken one. Have you? Ken Alder has studied the rather strange history of how America, in particular, became so obsessed with the power of the polygraph and what that says about us as a society. (Originally aired: 2/27/19)

Rethinking Our Water Cycle Diagrams

Guest: Ben Abbott, Assistant Professor of Ecosystem Ecology, Brigham Young University

Good luck getting that out of your head now. It’s been 17 years since The Banana Slug String Band first released that song, and the basics haven’t changed. But some important details have – and one ecology professor says the standard textbook diagrams kids are using to study the water cycle today need updating. (Originally aired: 6/17/19)

Scientists Unlocking the Secrets of Regeneration

Stephen Badylak, Deputy Director, McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine, University of Pittsburgh

Lizards can regrow an entire tail, and salamanders can regrow a leg. Unfortunately, our human bodies mainly just close wounds and make scar tissue. But just imagine the possibilities if we could grow a new limb after an amputation – or a new organ, rather than needing a transplant? (Originally aired: 1/2/19)

Remembering the Queen of Soul

Guest: Birgitta Johnson, Assistant Professor of Ethnomusicology and African American Studies, University of South Carolina

An impromptu performance of “O Tannenbaum” by the Queen of Soul, Aretha Franklin, was just released online. It happened at the 2015 Big Band Holidays concert at Jazz at Lincoln Center. Franklin died in August of 2018 of pancreatic cancer. She was 76. Days before her funeral last year, we spent a few minutes paying tribute to her. (Originally aired: 8/28/18)

Eye Bacteria— Not as Gross as it Sounds

Guest: Anthony St. Leger, Assistant Professor of Ophthalmology and Immunology, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine

Your kid gets pink eye. You keep him home from school and alert the parents of his friends to be on the lookout. And you get antibiotic drops from the doctor to clear up the infection. That’s the standard treatment. But most pink eye cases are viral, so antibiotics won’t help. Worse, they may be wiping out “good bacteria” on the eye. (Originally aired: 8/6/19)