Chemistry at the Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station ranges from testing how nanoparticles help plants grow to determining what kind of poison was placed in someone’s coffee. In this episode, we interview Dr. Jason White, Vice …
Podcast
Podcast Ep 16. Maybe Not the Next Industrial Revolution? Societal & Ethical Implications of Nanotechnology
A lot has changed in the last 10-15 years about our hopes and fears around nanotechnology. Ira Bennett and Jameson Wetmore are professors in the Center for Nanotechnology in Society at Arizona State University, and …
Podcast Ep 15. The Art of Beehives, Foam, & Bubbles: An Interview with Peter Krsko
Artist Peter Krsko uses his background in physics and materials science to study and communicate about nature. He is described as a “bioinspired artist whose approach combines science and art, participatory, interactive and community arts, …
Podcast Ep 14. What Does Nanotechnology Have to Do With Renewable Car Tires?
What if car tires could be made from renewable resources instead of petroleum? In this episode of the podcast, we interview Dr. Paul Dauenhauer, part of a research team from the Center for Sustainable Polymers who have developed a new chemical process to make isoprene (one of the key ingredients in car tires) from biomass such as grass or corn.
Podcast Ep 13. Communicating About Science with ‘Lab Girl’ Author Hope Jahren
Dr. Hope Jahren is a geobiologist who studies fossil organisms and the global environment, and is also the New York Times-bestelling author of the memoir Lab Girl. In this episode of the podcast, we interview …
Podcast Ep 12. Making Sustainable Nanoparticles from Plants
Nanoparticles are already widely used in a variety of technologies, and some researchers are looking for ways to make those nanoparticles more environmentally friendly. In this episode of the podcast, we interview Dr. Mike Curry about his research making nanoparticles from cellulose, a very common molecule found in plants.
Podcast: Spring 2017 Teaser
We’re back from winter break and preparing a fantastic batch of podcast episodes for spring 2017! Over the next few months we’ll be featuring interviews with Dr. Hope Jahren and Dr. Mike Curry, plus a profile of Dr. Gro Harlem Brundtland, and much more. Stay tuned!
Ep 11. When Artists and Scientists Collaborate
Art and science are often though of as completely separate pursuits, but what happens when artists and scientists actually talk to each other? In this episode of the podcast, we interview Dr. Cathy Murphy about her experiences inviting art students to spend time in her chemistry lab at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign.
Ep 10. Why Were Plastic Mirobeads Banned? Marine Debris and Sustainable Plastics
Plastic debris in our water is a huge pollution problem, and just one source of that pollution is the tiny microbeads that have been widely used in personal care products. In this episode of the podcast, we interview Dr. Richard Thompson, a Professor of Marine Biology at Plymouth University and an expert on the effects of plastic debris in the marine environment. We discuss the recent federal ban on microbeads and what consumers can do to be more sustainable in our day-to-day use of plastics.
Ep 9. Seven Stages of Technological Adaptation
This episode of the podcast features an interview with University of Minnesota graduate student Peter Clement, discussing the book The War on Science by Shawn Otto. We focus on Otto’s explanation of the Seven Stages of Technological Adaptation — an observation that how our society adapts new technology has generally repeated the same sequence of steps over and over, from discovery through crisis and adaptation, especially since the mid-20th Century.