Salmonella Biofilms — Inside of Us.  (starts 4:06) Foodborne Salmonella infections MIGHT pave the way for arthritis, Parkinson’s disease and even Alzheimer’s.  We talk with Aaron White, co-author of a new study documenting how a salmonella infection can “leak” out of the intestines and form velcro-like biofilms in body tissues.  These biofilms are made of curly-shaped, curli (scientific name) proteins on the surface of a Salmonella bacteria.  These curli proteins help the cells stick together.  They’re hard for the body to scrub away, and they might contribute to a number of health problems.  (GO HERE for Extended Version TRANSCRIPT with links to related research)

Headlines – WHY Covid causes loss of smell; Sensors from Louisville Vaisala on new Mars Explorer, Perseverance.

Host/Producer:  Shelley Schlender

Five years ago today on July 14, 2015, the New Horizons spacecraft made the first reconnaissance of Pluto, collecting data that continue to be analyzed and provide surprises of this distant world.  On this 5th anniversary of the Pluto flyby, our guest is Dr. Carver Bierson, who is a planetary scientist at Arizona State University.  Carver has been involved with the New Horizons mission, and recently published a paper about Pluto based on data from the mission.  We talk with him about results in the paper titled: “Evidence for a Hot Start and Early Ocean Formation on Pluto”

Host / Producer : Joel Parker

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This week on How on Earth, Beth interviewed Scott Lehman of the University of Colorado here in Boulder. Dr Lehman collaborated with a team at NOAA, to develop a novel technique to identify the CO2 released by burning of fossil fuels, allowing its exact calibration in the global carbon budget. Due to technical difficulties, you can’t hear Beth’s questions in the audio, but Scott’s responses are very clear. You can find more information at his website and read his recent paper published two weeks ago in PNAS.

Host:Beth Bennett

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In this episode Angele Sjong interviews Tyler Lyson, a vertebrate paleontologist at the Denver Museum of Nature and Science, about his team’s extraordinary fossil discovery at the Corral Bluffs.

When the asteroid destroyed most of life on earth 66 million years ago, including the dinosaurs, this cataclysmic event ended the Age of Reptiles and began the Age of Mammals.Paleontologists have long struggled to understand the first million years of the Age of Mammals, however.  What kinds of mammals survived this event?   When and how did mammals become big again?  When did mammals begin to diversify?  What was the plant life and climate like at this time?   The animal and plant fossils at Corral Bluffs shed light on this critical time period in earth’s history that has been a mystery for so long.

The Corral Bluffs have been featured on the PBS Nova show titled “Age of Mammals.”   Nova show, “Rise of the Mammals”.

The Corral Bluffs’ fossils are on exhibit at the Denver Museum of Nature and Science:

DMNS Exhibit: After the asteroid: Earth’s comeback story

Executive Producer: Joel Parker

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This week on How on Earth, Beth delves into the science of vaccination for the new corona virus and speaks with Dr David Werner of SUNY Binghamton about his research on the likelihood that general anesthetics can set children and adolescents up for the risk of later alcohol abuse. Find out more at his website.

Executive Producer: Joel Parker

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Today on How on Earth, Beth plays part of a 1964 lecture by Nobel laureate Richard Feynman in which he discusses how the scientific method actually works and the progressive, and therefore uncertain, nature of science. Then she speaks with Dr Melanie Peffer about her book, Biology is Everywhere, and her goals of making biology accessible and interesting to everyone. Her website was cited incorrectly on the show, here is the true link.

Executive Producer: Joel Parker

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Carl Safina – Becoming Wild:  How Animal Cultures Raise Families, Create Beauty, and Achieve Peace We talk with bestselling author Carl Safina about his new book, Becoming Wild, which features sperm whales, scarlet macaws and chimpanzees  Safina also he reflects on what the Covid-19 pandemic means for the entire kingdom of Life on Earth.  (Entire Show)

Executive Producer: Joel Parker

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Beth and Angele discuss the pros and cons of mask wearing as protection against the novel corona virus. You can see the video on sneezing, as well as the various types of masks. Then, Angele talks to Byron Kamenick from Jack’s Solar Garden, located outside of Niwot. Jack’s Solar garden is putting in place an Agrivoltaics system this summer. Agrivoltaics combines agriculture and solar panels (photo-voltaics). There are mutual benefits to locating these together. You can find out more about Jack’s at their website.

Executive Producer: Joel Parker

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With graduation season is upon us, today’s edition of How on Earth is our annual “Graduation Special”. Our guests in the studio today are scientists who have or will soon receive their Ph.D. in a STEM-related field.  They talk about their thesis research, their grad school experiences, and what they have planned next.

Hayley Sohn – CU Boulder, Materials Science and Engineering Program

Clement Zheng – CU Boulder, ATLAS Institute

Jennifer Berry – CU Boulder, Chemistry

Host / Producer : Joel Parker

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This week on How on Earth, we speak with Professor Catherine Donnelly, of the University of Vermont, about her book, Ending the War on Artisan Cheese. She exposes the efforts of the corporate dairy industry, in conjunction with the FDA, to limit the use of raw milk in making artisanal cheese, despite a long track record of safety in artisans cheese. in this fascinating book, she discusses the art of cheese making, and the self-imposed guidelines that make using raw milk in the artisanal process safe.

Hosts:Beth Bennett & Angele Sjong

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