Superheroes of Science

Yadu Pokhrel is an Associate Professor in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Michigan State University. In this episode, Pokhrel explains different types of droughts: meteorological, agricultural, and hydrological; and that computer models help predict when and where droughts might occur. He also discusses how droughts might impact many people, even if there is not a water shortage in their area.

Lindsey Britt is a Product Formulator for Procter & Gamble where she creates (and patents!) beauty products. Currently, Britt is the lead formulator for natural products at Procter & Gamble. In this episode, she explains the chemistry behind product development at P&G and teaches us about the different types of sweat, along with how deodorants and antiperspirants work.

Dr. Avinash Bala, Research Associate at the University of Oregon and Founder of Perceptivo, noticed something about the way owls responded to unexpected stimuli. The owl's pupil noticeably dilates each time it detects an unexpected sound. By studying this pupil dilation response, which is part of the Orienting Response, Bala and colleagues have discovered ways to apply this response toward the creation of a novel and non-invasive hearing test for infants

Rick Clark, 5th generation farmer from Williamsport, Indiana, is taking a systematic approach to regenerative farming. Improving soil health by supporting the microbial biome has allowed Rick to remove tillage and take away the need for applying lime, phosphorus, and potassium. He is working toward achieving a balance within the soil, which encourages his crops to thrive. Rick discusses the practice of "farming green," or establishing a successful cover crop in the fall in order to build a successful cash crop the following season.

Honey bees will be foraging for food this spring and you can help! Anne Morningstar, Co-owner, Co-founder, Lead Beekeeper and Brand manager of Bear Creek Organic Farm, offers insight into the life cycle of honey bees, hive management, and helpful suggestions about small things each of us can do to help honey bees and all pollinators.

Learn more about Bear Creek Organic Farm: https://bearcreekorganicfarm.com/

Kathy Lamb Kozenski, the Executive Director of the Geography Educators Network of Indiana, explains that geography is more than just making a map; it is telling a story. We can use story maps to visually tell a story. Story maps use a geographic reference tied to some sort of data. Kathy explains Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and the layers in today's mapping software. The video also walks people through how to make an ESRI Story Map.

NOTE: The audio podcast available on most Podcast players is the shortened version of this interview.

Kristen Mori, a Machine Learning Engineer with the Houston Astros, joins us for this episode. Kristen explains what machine learning is and how it's used in major league baseball to track player stats.

Matthew DeVerna, Ph.D. student, from the Observatory on Social Media (OSoMe) at Indiana University discusses many aspects of "misinformation". These include things like 'fake news', some types of memes, rumors or unverified information, the intent of a post, and disinformation. Below are some of the tools that the Observatory on Social Media at IU have created to help users sieve through information to better spot misinformation, and not (hopefully) propagate it. As a bonus, Matthew gives us a heads-up about a new dashboard that OSoMe is working on to visualize the relationship between COVID-19 vaccine adoption and online (mis)information in the United States.

Jill Newton, Associate Professor of Mathematics Education at Purdue University joins us to discuss her career path that led her to become a professor at Purdue University. She also discusses some of the mathematical patterns in cultures that she has visited. Jill challenges a common perception of what mathematicians look like and presents a number of career possibilities in the math sciences.

Dr. Andrew Flachs, Assistant Professor of Anthropology at Purdue University, has returned to discuss ways people impact the environment. Andrew shows us and explains areas that have been sustained farming for nearly thousands of years in South India. He then takes us to Southeastern Europe to discuss the labor and history that has gone into creating landscapes that we can see today. Finally, we discuss the historic activities that have created the landscape in the Midwestern United States. The interview finishes with implications of GMO