Hong Kong Protests Reach Pivotal Point

Guest: Robert Daly, Director, Kissinger Institute on China and the United States, Wilson Center

Organizers says more than a million people jammed Hong Kong streets in a downpour on Sunday. The protests have been ongoing for more than ten weeks. They’re largest on the weekends and mostly peaceful. But China’s Communist Party has begun staging military troops near the border with Hong Kong as a clear warning that using force to quell the protests is not out of the question.

Carnival Rides Aren't Very Safe

Guest: Ken Martin, Amusement Ride Safety Analyst, Inspector, and Consultant at KRM Consulting

State and county fairs are in full swing right now, but should you let your kids get on that Ferris wheel or tilt-a-whirl? Carnival rides get taken down and put back up over and over again in different cities. How safe are they?

Meeting Someone with a Vaccine-Preventable Disease Changes the Minds of Vaccine-Hesitant Individuals

Guest: Brian Poole, Associate Professor of Microbiology and Molecular Biology, Brigham Young University

People being reluctant –or downright resistant –to getting vaccines is one of the top global threats to health right now, according to the World Health Organization. Here in the US, more than a thousand cases of measles have been reported since January –the most we’ve seen since measles was declared eliminated from the country two decades ago. CDC officials admit they are struggling to effectively counter misinformation about vaccines online. Throwing data and scientific research at anti-vaxxers rarely seems to work. But meeting someone who’s had a vaccine preventable disease might.

Bringing Street Murals Back to Life

Guest: Scott Haskins, Director and Chief Conservator, Fine Art Conservation Laboratories

Colorful street art seems to have taken on new life thanks to Instagram. Tourists will make a special pilgrimage to an out-of-the-way spot just to get that perfect photo in front of an artsy mural. Scott Haskins is the guy cities call when graffiti, pollution or weather damage an iconic street mural. Recently his team has been restoring famous art along Los Angeles free ways that have all but disappeared beneath graffiti.

Social Workers Need Help Too

Guest: Tara Powell, Social Work Professor, University of Illinois

Fourteen years ago this week, Hurricane Katrina slammed into the Gulf Coast. Levees broke, inundating New Orleans. Nearly 1,000 Louisiana residents died. More than a million people were displaced from their homes. Tara Powell was a school social worker in New Orleans at the time –helping students cope with the trauma of Katrina while dealing with the loss of her own home. That experience led Powell to create a workshop to help caregivers in that situation. When Hurricane Sandy hit the East Coast several years later, Powell tested her workshop out on social workers caught in that disaster.

A Plant-Based Compound to Revitalize Skin, Hair

Guest: Edwin Lephart, Professor of Physiology and Developmental Biology, BYU

Humans just really don’t like to age. Billions of dollars we spend every year on creams and potions to make our faces and skin and hair look more youthful. BYU physiology professor Edwin Lephart’s hoping to capitalize with a plant-based compound called “Equol.”