Early Bird Science

Kristen discusses mental health during the pandemic. Wash your hands and be well. <3

In the United States, "If you, or someone you care about, are feeling overwhelmed with emotions like sadness, depression, or anxiety, or feel like you want to harm yourself or others call

• 911
• Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration's (SAMHSA's) Disaster Distress Helpline: 1-800-985-5990 or text TalkWithUs to 66746. (TTY 1-800-846-8517)"

References and Resources

• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
• • Stress and Coping during COVID-19
  • • https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/daily-life-coping/managing-stress-anxiety.html
  • Taking Care of Your Emotional Health
  • • https://emergency.cdc.gov/coping/selfcare.asp

Related Episode

Coronavirus [Episode 13]: https://www.earlybirdscience.com/episodes/13

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Website: earlybirdscience.com

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Check out Kristen's other show, Headshake, a stream-of-consciousness science podcast (EXPLICIT CONTENT):

headshake.show

Disclaimer

Early Bird Science is a podcast meant for entertainment and education only. While Kristen has a doctorate (Ph.D.), she is not a medical doctor. Please consult with your physician before making decisions about your health.

AND NOW FOR SOMETHING COMPLETELY DIFFERENT.

Yes, Kristen has had a busy couple of weeks and couldn't find time to record an episode of Early Bird Science for this morning.

However, her Headshake co-host Nathan A. Libby has offered to take over the program (with Kristen's blessing, of course) and change the content over from real science to proven NON-science.

Kristen will be back in two weeks with another regular episode of Early Bird Science, but for now, please enjoy some nonsense.

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Website: earlybirdscience.com

Twitter: @EarlyBirdSci

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Check out Headshake, a stream-of-consciousness science podcast (EXPLICIT CONTENT):

headshake.show

The coronavirus-caused disease COVID-19 has the potential to spread to pandemic levels. What are the facts?

References and Resources

• World Health Organization: https://www.who.int/emergencies/diseases/novel-coronavirus-2019
• • Situation Report Feb 26, 2020: https://www.who.int/docs/default-source/coronaviruse/situation-reports/20200226-sitrep-37-covid-19.pdf
• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, US:
• • Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) in the U.S. (Updated Feb 26, 2020) https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/cases-in-us.html
  • Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) Situation Summary (Accessed Feb 25, 2020) https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/summary.html
  • What to Do If You Are Sick With Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) (Accessed February 27, 2020) https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/about/steps-when-sick.html
• U.S. Influenza (Data Feb 7-15, 2020) https://www.cdc.gov/flu/weekly/index.htm
• Articles
• • https://www.sciencenews.org/article/new-coronavirus-outbreak-your-most-pressing-questions-answered
  • https://www.cnn.com/2020/02/25/health/coronavirus-us-american-cases/index.html
  • https://nypost.com/2020/02/25/fourth-passenger-on-coronavirus-plagued-diamond-princess-cruise-dies/
  • https://www.npr.org/sections/goatsandsoda/2020/02/26/809650625/a-guide-how-to-prepare-your-home-for-coronavirus

Connect - Leave comments, suggest topics, and ask science questions!

Website: earlybirdscience.com

Twitter: @EarlyBirdSci

Instagram: @EarlyBirdScience

Facebook: @EarlyBirdScience

Check out Kristen's other show, Headshake, a stream-of-consciousness science podcast (EXPLICIT CONTENT):

headshake.show

Disclaimer

Early Bird Science is a podcast meant for entertainment and education only. While Kristen has a doctorate (Ph.D.), she is not a medical doctor. Please consult with your physician before making decisions about your health.

Studying long-term energy expenditure of athletes in sporting events ranging from 0.5 to 140 days long, researchers have calculated the limits of human endurance. Based on this research, it also turns out pregnant women are endurance masters! Kristen's Headshake co-host Nathan A. Libby pays a visit.

Check out the trailer for the new podcast Headshake, set to premiere February 24!

https://headshake.show/episodes/0

References and Resources

• Article: Ultimate limit of human endurance found
• • https://www.bbc.com/news/health-48527798
• Primary Research: Extreme events reveal an alimentary limit on sustained maximal human energy expenditure
• • https://advances.sciencemag.org/content/5/6/eaaw0341
• Textbook: Vander's Human Physiology 13th Edition

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An ancient meteorite contains the oldest solid material ever found on Earth. Kristen makes an exciting announcement about an upcoming project!

References and Resources

• Article
• • "Meteorite contains the oldest material on Earth: 7-billion-year-old stardust"
  • • https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/01/200113153306.htm
• Primary Literature
• • "Lifetimes of interstellar dust from cosmic ray exposure ages of presolar silicon carbide"
  • • https://www.pnas.org/content/early/2020/01/07/1904573117

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The types of muscles you pump up at the gym are just one of three different muscle types in your body. Kristen introduces the muscle types skeletal, cardiac, and smooth, and discusses their differences in appearance, location, control, and contraction. She also explains why calcium is so important for you.

References and Resources

• Textbook: Vander's Human Physiology 13th Edition
• Calcium info
• • https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/what-should-you-eat/calcium-and-milk/calcium-full-story/
  • https://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/Calcium-HealthProfessional/

Related Episodes

• EKGs
• • https://www.earlybirdscience.com/episodes/2
  • https://www.earlybirdscience.com/episodes/3

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Happy new year 2020!

Steven Gago is the first human guest on Early Bird Science! He is an experienced software and firmware engineer, with a background in electrical and electronic engineering. Oh, yeah, he is also Kristen's spouse. :-) He joins Kristen for this special, double-length episode to talk about how computers work.

Concepts covered:

1. Steve is NOT a morning person
2. Ancient computers
3. Processors
4. Transistors
5. Logic gates
6. Boolean algebra, 1s and 0s
7. John Von Neumann
8. Fetch-execute cycle
9. RAM
10. Computer "mouses" vs. "mice"
11. Analog vs. digital
12. Quantum computing

References and Resources from Steve

• Documentary on Antikythera Mechanism
  • https://youtu.be/jSQNEPbQOiI
• John Von Neumann
  • https://medium.com/cantors-paradise/the-unparalleled-genius-of-john-von-neumann-791bb9f42a2d

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Website: earlybirdscience.com

• Leave questions for Steve in the comments on this episode's webpage

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Evergreen trees keep their green leaves all year long. What benefits and challenges do they experience as a result? Kristen discusses this topic and wraps up 2019, the Year of the Periodic Table. Happy holidays!

Episode References and Resources

Why do evergreens stay green in the winter?

• Article written by a Biology professor: https://theconversation.com/why-dont-evergreens-change-color-and-drop-their-leaves-every-fall-123744
• Even evergreens take a break from photosynthesis in the winter: "Photoprotective Strategies of Overwintering Evergreens" https://academic.oup.com/bioscience/article/54/1/41/234579
• How non-evergreen trees lose their leaves in the winter: https://www.childrensmuseum.org/blog/why-do-leaves-fall-off-trees

BONUS LINKS! Happy birthday (sesquicentennial) to the periodic table!

• Periodic Table song: https://youtu.be/rz4Dd1I_fX0
• https://iypt2019.org/
• https://www.rsc.org/iypt/
• • https://www.rsc.org/periodic-table
• http://www.unesco.org/new/en/brasilia/about-this-office/prizes-and-celebrations/2019-international-year-of-the-periodic-table-of-chemical-elements/
• https://www.acs.org/content/acs/en/education/whatischemistry/periodictable.html
• https://www.sciencenews.org/article/periodic-table-history-chemical-elements-150-anniversary

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Kristen addresses the argument over whether human blood is blue. She talks about common misconceptions and what gives blood its color. As a bonus, she also talks about the variations in colors of blood in other animals.

CORRECTION: In this episode, Kristen says "octopi" to indicate the plural of "octopus." Because "octopus" originated from Greek and not Latin (which does use "i" to pluralize words) and because "octopus" has been a word in English for a long time, Kristen would have preferred to pluralize the word using English rules: "octopuses."

• Correction references and other neat facts about octopuses:
• • https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/ten-curious-facts-about-octopuses-7625828/
  • https://www.merriam-webster.com/words-at-play/the-many-plurals-of-octopus-octopi-octopuses-octopodes

Episode References and Resources

• Textbook: Vander's Human Physiology 13th Edition
• Blog on why veins appear blue: https://scienceblogs.com/scientificactivist/2008/04/17/why-are-veins-blue
• • Primary publication from 1996: https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/22db/3b06a1abb585cb4c0683dd03a806800c1c28.pdf
• Animal Blood Comes in a Rainbow of Colors: https://news.nationalgeographic.com/2015/03/150312-blood-antarctica-octopus-animals-science-colors/

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Self-driving, or autonomous, cars are an appealing technology with tons of transportation potential, but one major barrier that may afflict many future drivers-turned-passengers is motion sickness. Kristen discusses this challenge, as well as early-stage research from University of Michigan's Mcity Test Facility that is working to address it.

References and Resources

• News article and white paper
• • https://news.umich.edu/measuring-motion-sickness-in-driverless-cars/
  • https://mcity.umich.edu/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/mcity-whitepaper-motion-v6.pdf
• Mcity: https://mcity.umich.edu/our-work/mcity-test-facility/
• Motion Sickness: https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/articles/12782-motion-sickness

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