Antarctica Was Once a Rainforest (0:36)

Guest: Johann Klages, Marine Geologist, Alfred Wegener Institutein Bremerhaven, Germany

This year is the 200th anniversary of explorers first clapping eyes on Antarctica. The frozen, barren continent is the coldest place on earth. But that wasn’t always the case. Believe it or not, it was once a rainforest with trees and swamplands. (Originally aired Jun 3, 2020).

Challenges Facing Black Americans in Mental Health Care (16:38)

Guest: Altha Stewart, Senior Associate Dean for Community Health Engagement, Psychiatry Professor, Director of the Center for Health in Justice Involved Youth, University of Tennessee

Nearly one in five adults in the US have a mental illness. But many health professionals say that access to and quality of mental healthcare is not equal among all Americans. A lot of Black people struggle to find the right treatment and can be easily misdiagnosed. (Originally aired Jul 20, 2020).

Lessons from a School Shooting Survivor (34:31)

Guest: Missy Jenkins Smith, Author of “Lessons from a School Shooting Survivor” and “I Choose to Be Happy”

When Missy Jenkins Smith was 15, she learned that she was permanently paralyzed from the chest down. The day before, she’d been shot by a fellow student at Heath High School in Paducah, Kentucky. Three of Missy’s classmates died in the shooting. This was 1997. Three months later, shooters would kill four students and a teacher at a middle school near Jonesboro,Arkansas. A year and a half later...Columbine. We didn’t know it then, but it was the beginning of an era in which fatal school shootings would become common in America. Since the day a school shooting changed her life, Missy Jenkins Smith became a counselor for at-risk youth, a motivational speaker and an author. (Originally aired Nov 25, 2019).

What will Save the Spirit Bears? (52:55)

Guests: Douglass Neasloss, Chief Councillor and Resource Stewardship Director, Kitasoo/Xai’xais First Nation; Christina Service, Executive Director, Spirit Bear Research Foundation

There’s a rare kind of bear that roams the Great Bear rainforest in British Columbia. It holds special significance for the Kitasoo/Xai-xais First Nation people there–they call them Spirit Bears. What makes these bears so unique? They’re white. No, they’re not polar bears, and they’re not albino. But recent research has identified what causes these black bears to turn white and how they need to be protected. (Originally aired Jul 23, 2020).

Dissolving Forever Chemicals (1:10:51)

Guest: Michael Wong, Professor of Chemistry, Rice University

Have you ever heard of a forever chemical? Probably not, but do you own water-proof clothing? That’s made of forever chemicals. How about cook with a non-stick frying pan? Those are made of forever chemicals, too. They’re called that because they don’t break down on their own. And now they’ve been found in the blood of most Americans. But scientists at Rice University have stumbled on a way to break these chemicals down. (Originally aired Jul 23, 2020).

Is This Cake? Hyperrealistic Cake Artists Are Making Cake Look Like Anything (1:27:27)

Guest: Natalie Sideserf, Cake Artist, Host of Food Network's "Texas Cake House", and Owner of Sideserf Cake Studio

Have you seen the videos of people cutting into what look like ordinary objects-like a Kleenex box or ahead of lettuce-to reveal that they’re actually made entirely out of cake? Natalie Sideserfis responsible for some of the most stunningly realistic cakes. If you’ve seen the filet-o-fish sandwich or the pickle or the onion–those are all her cakes. (Originally aired Jul 21, 2020).