Perpetual Notion Machine

Renowned ethologist and conservationist Dr. Jane Goodall came to UW-Madison last week. Speaking at Memorial Union, Dr. Goodall shared her story and encouraged action for the future of our environment.

Goodall was the first ethologist to see the animals fashioning tools and eating meat. Her findings challenged conventional notions about primates and provided evidence for the evolutionary relationship between humans and chimpanzees.

And she’s been a wildlife protector and advocate for restoring damaged habitats since the mid 1980s. Her latest book, “The Book of Hope: A Survival Guide for Trying Times,” chronicles her life’s work and her optimism that humankind will come together to protect the environment.

Perpetual Notion Machine host Taylor Woelfel headed down to the event on Sunday, March 26. In tonight’s episode, Woelfel delves deep into Dr. Goodall’s philosophy and plays some clips from the event.

Image courtesy World Bank Photo Collection on flickr.com. 

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What if…

We could go back in the time and see how the atom was split. Or, discover the mystery of light, both wave and particle. Examine X-rays for the first time.

What if we could travel to the present and see how these experiments changed the world? In Suzie Sheehy’s book, The Matter of Everything, we can.

On Perpetual Notion Machine, host Anita Nsubuga explores the many discoveries, people, and science with particle physicist, Dr. Suzie Sheehy in her book. More than theorems and experiements, the scientists stand out as people on a quest for knowledge. Some spurred on by competition; others through merticulous methods and principles.

Stay tuned.

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If you haven’t heard of a heat pump yet, you probably will soon.  How a heat pump works to effectively extract energy from the environment is explained by guest Doug Edwards on this episode of the Perpetual Notion Machine, hosted by Patrick Sajbel with Connor Stephans.

The Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 has been called “…the single largest action ever taken by Congress and the US government to combat climate change” -Rhodium Group.

Citizens are now incented to reduce carbon in the atmosphere by taking advantage of increasingly renewable electricity. In transportation, we know that this means electric vehicles, but for heating and cooling of buildings we need to warm up to the idea of using HEAT PUMPS.

Edwards has a chemical engineering BS from UW and an MS from Cal Berkely and an MBA from NYU. But most importantly, he is a hands-on engineer who has successfully commissioned a heat pump at a family home in Northern Wisconsin.

Photo: Pump operating in winter    credit: Doug Edwards

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If you find yourself digging in the dirt in the Northwoods and breathing deep, keep an eye on whether you develop a cough, fever, chills, muscle aches, joint pain, or chest pain. A respiratory illness lurks in the soil – Blastomycosis.

Our guest Dr. Bruce Klein, professor of Pediatrics, Medicine, and Medical Microbiology and Immunology at UW-Madison, gives us a look at this fungal disease with a special place in Wisconsin.

 

Resources:

https://www.medicine.wisc.edu/infectious-disease/think-blasto

https://www.dhs.wisconsin.gov/disease/blastomycosis.htm

 

Image: Joshua Mayer from Madison, WI, USA, CC BY-SA 2.0 , via Wikimedia Commons

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This week’s guest is Lisa Johnson, Horticulture Educator with Dane County Extension. We talked about threats to trees, why you shouldn’t move firewood, and how you can take care of the trees in your yard.

 

Resources:

Wisconsin Urban Wood https://urbanwoodnetwork.org/chapter/wisconsin-state-chapter/

DATCP emerald ash borer map http://datcpservices.wisconsin.gov/eab/index.jsp

Extension factsheets on emerald ash borer https://eab.russell.wisc.edu/eab-news-and-resources/

Diggers hotline https://www.diggershotline.com/

Plant disease diagnostic clinic https://pddc.wisc.edu/

 

Image: Michael hunter, CC BY-SA 4.0 , via Wikimedia Commons

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Nuclear fusion is the source of energy at the core of our sun. Recent news of experimental advancements has fueled talk of the promising potential for harnessing this source of energy on earth.

In this live edition of the Perpetual Notion Machine, host Patrick Sajbel is joined by guest Dr. Stephanie Diem, assistant professor in Engineering Physics at the University of Wisconsin.

Dr. Diem talks about the challenges and successes of research and the path towards scale-up to practical use of fusion technology as a carbon-free energy source of the future. She works in ongoing collaboration with experts as well as public outreach to educate on the fundamental science and technology opportunities.

Photo: Steffi Diem, professor of engineering physics in the College of Engineering, checks out the Pegasus-III Lab in the Engineering Research Building. PHOTO: BRYCE RICHTER

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The Perpetual Notion Machine speaks with Nick Bayly, Chief of Migration Biology at SELVA in Bogota, Columbia. He is studying bird migration through the Neotropical Region of Central and South America to understand the needs of long-distance migratory birds that breed in Wisconsin and other area of North America, and migrate south during the winter. The Neotropical Flyways Project receives funding from the Natural Resources Foundation of Wisconsin’s Bird Protection Fund.

Photo of Cerulean Warbler fitted with transmitter in Costa Rica taken by Paz Angulo. Courtesy of The Natural Resources Foundation of Wisconsin.

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In Wisconsin’s earliest days as a state, a vision to awaken a scientific spirit and foster creative activity was formalized in the year 1870 when The Wisconsin Academy of Sciences, Arts and Letters was chartered by the state legislature. Over a century and a half later, the Wisconsin Academy continues to bring art and science together to bring inspiration to technological activism.

The Wisconsin Academy supports endeavors across a wide range of science and art, such as

* the State Poet Laureate

* the James Watrous Gallery

* the Climate and Energy Initiative (and the recent Climate Fast Forward conference in October 2022)

In this edition of The Perpetual Notion Machine, host Patrick Sajbel welcomes Erika Monroe-Kane, the Executive Director of the Wisconsin Academy of Sciences, Arts & Letters. Originally from Missouri, Monroe-Kane has served on boards and committees here in Madison, including the Forward Theater Company, Community Justice, Inc., Foundation for Madison Public Schools, and she is on the project team for The Center for Black Excellence and Culture.

Photo: Participants Creating Art at Climate Fast Forward. Credit: John Greenler, Wisconsin Academy

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Wild horses and burros still roam in many states in the Western US. Unfortunately, the populations have increased beyond what the ecosystem can sustain. In order to alleviate this pressure, the Bureau of Land Management operates their Wild Horse and Burro Program, which includes adoption of horses and burros into homes throughout the US.

And while mustangs are an iconic image of the West, the Great Lakes region is also home to a culturally significant horse – the Ojibwe horse or Lac la Croix pony. These horses lived alongside Anishinaabe people for generations, but by the 1970s, there were only 4 horses remaining. The Humble Horse, an organization in River Falls, WI is a part of ongoing efforts to revitalize these horses, who number about 180 currently.

On today’s episode of PNM, we visit with Martha Malik and Stephanie Carman at a BLM wild horse and burro adoption event; and revisit a portion of an interview with Em Loerzel of The Humble Horse, which first aired on A Public Affair in October.

Links:

* Evolutionary history of the Eurasian horse

* Native American horses

* Wild horse and burro program of the Bureau of Land Management

* The Humble Horse program

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Perpetual Notion Machine host Catherine Garvens speaks with the editors of the new book  Amphibians and Reptiles of Wisconsin, published November 1, 2022 by the University of Wisconsin Press.  The book is a “state-of-the-field synthesis” that includes hundreds of color photographs and illustrations, along with research and conservation notes designed to be accessible to the non-scientist nature lover, while serving as a definitive guide for scientists studying the state’s herpetofauna–frogs, toads, salamanders, snakes, lizards, and turtles.

Guests:

Joshua M. Kapfer, certified wildlife biologist and a professor in the department of biological science at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater.

Donald J. Brown, certified wildlife biologist and research ecologist with the US Forest Service Pacific Northwest Research Station in Washington State.

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