| May 16, 2012 |
Spoiled Milk
- A listener asks why milk goes bad more quickly than other beverages.
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| May 9, 2012 |
Sewage Power
- Microbial fuel cells, which clean wastewater and generate electricity, are getting closer to practicality.
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| May 1, 2012 |
Room Bacteria
- Just by entering a room, you stir up millions of microorganisms.
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| April 24, 2012 |
Matching the Drug to the Bug
- A new technique can quickly identify a pathogen and size up its drug resistance, all with one test.
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| April 11, 2012 |
Tumor-Shrinking Drug
- Scientists are testing a drug that shrinks a wide variety of cancerous tumors.
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| March 16, 2012 |
Podcast for 16 March 2012
- SCIENCE OF SOCIETY - Do wealthier people tend to have fewer scruples? The social costs of mass incarceration. Seeing-eye smartphones for the blind. And, new evidence calls an accepted tenet of science into question. Also: how to make plastic from plants.
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| March 14, 2012 |
Cellular Quality Control
- A newly discovered protein regulates the quality of our DNA.
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| February 7, 2012 |
Fungi vs. Lead
- Fungi could be a new weapon against lead pollution.
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| February 2, 2012 |
Fat Receptors
- A protein found in our tongues determines our ability to taste fat.
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| December 1, 2011 |
Building With Viruses
- Researchers have turned viruses into molecular building blocks.
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| November 28, 2011 |
Rice Blood Protein
- Scientists in China and North America have produced human blood protein from genetically modified rice seeds.
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| November 4, 2011 |
Podcast for 4 November 2011
- THE SCIENCE OF LIGHT & VISION - A pacemaker that restarts the heart with light, and a secret code made from fluorescent bacteria. And, could a lack of outdoor activity be making kids more nearsighted? Also: new research suggests that IQ might not be as stable as once thought.
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| November 2, 2011 |
Ocean Bacteria Communication
- Changes in chemical signaling among ocean bacteria may be impacting the global climate.
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| October 28, 2011 |
Podcast for 28 October 2011
- SCIENCE UNDERWATER - Why the seas of the future may belong to jellyfish, why fish tanks can be breeding grounds for aggression, how chatter between ocean bacteria contributes to climate change, and good news about sea turtles. Also, scientists unveil the first underwater cloaking device.
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Pre-Empting Allergies
- A new treatment may block specific allergies without disrupting other immune functions.
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| October 21, 2011 |
Podcast for 21 October 2011
- PREVENTIVE HEALTH - Vitamin D and ethnicity, a breath test for toxins, drinking and the immune system, measuring pain in the brain, and a new weapon to combat allergic reactions.
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Aquarium Fish Aggression
- Bigger tanks and richer environments reduce aggression in popular pet fish.
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| October 20, 2011 |
Woolly Mammoth Blood
- A replica of woolly mammoth blood protein may lead to treatments for hypothermia and improvements in surgery.
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| October 19, 2011 |
Tooth Regeneration
- A new technique can reverse early tooth decay without drilling.
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| September 23, 2011 |
Podcast for 23 September 2011
- PLANETS & PATHOGENS - Gardening for Mars, the darkest planet, a parasite that turns rats against themselves, telling the viruses from the bacteria, and the link between caffeine and skin cancer prevention.
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| September 14, 2011 |
Bacterial or Viral?
- A quick immune system test can tell a viral infection from a bacterial one.
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| September 2, 2011 |
Ancient Food Roundup
- Lager beers have been around for about 500 years, thanks to the meeting of yeasts from the Old and New World.
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| August 22, 2011 |
Safe Water Software
- New software can quickly flag tainted water supplies.
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| June 17, 2011 |
Mushroom Roundup
- New research on fungi could help fight disease.
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| June 10, 2011 |
Gut Flora Roundup
- Bacteria found in yogurt could help fight disease.
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| June 8, 2011 |
Silky Tarantula Feet
- Tarantulas produce life-saving silk from their feet.
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| June 7, 2011 |
Healthy Handshakes
- A new study investigates whether shaking hands spreads germs.
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| May 27, 2011 |
Podcast for 27 May 2011
- Why sleep deprivation clouds thinking, what the brainwaves of sleeping teenagers reveal, and how a video game helps sick kids strengthen their lungs. Also, why a team of epidemiological sleuths invaded school graduations across Maryland last year. And, new study reveals extreme gender bias in children’s books.
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| May 20, 2011 |
Podcast for 20 May 2011 – All That Glitters
- The soaring price of gold drives deforestation in the Amazon, colonoscopies laced with gold could help detect cancer, and honey protects against antibiotic resistance. Also: a starless starfish, and a jellyfish that navigates without a brain.
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| May 12, 2011 |
Schizophrenia in a Dish
- Researchers have re-created dysfunctional brain cells from the skin of a schizophrenic patient.
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| May 10, 2011 |
Healing Honey
- A kind of honey from New Zealand may reverse antibiotic resistance in wound infections.
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| April 20, 2011 |
Taste Buds
- A listener asks how many taste buds our tongues have.
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| April 19, 2011 |
Cuts & Tumors
- Stem cells flock to the site of wounds, sometimes leading to tumors in mice.
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| March 8, 2011 |
Loneliness & The Immune System
- The immune systems of chronically lonely people switch from fighting viruses to fighting bacterial infections.
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| February 11, 2011 |
Cow Reactors Roundup
- A new study of the bacteria in cow's stomachs could help boost the production of biofuels.
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| December 29, 2010 |
Crusty Microbes
- A diversity of microorganisms lives in the hot rocks deep beneath the ocean floor.
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| December 24, 2010 |
Depression & Cleanliness Roundup
- Modern sanitation may result in higher rates of inflammation and depression.
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| December 16, 2010 |
Bacterial Poison Darts
- Bacteria attack their neighbors using tiny poison darts.
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| December 14, 2010 |
Cancer Vaccine
- The key to successful cancer vaccines of the future may lie in turning off a tumor's ability to shut down the immune system.
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| December 7, 2010 |
Skin to Blood
- Researchers are transforming skin cells to blood cells in the lab.
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| December 3, 2010 |
Podcast
- Bacterial poison darts, a new approach to cancer research, turning skin into blood, depressing night-lights and the differences between human and Neanderthal brains.
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| October 1, 2010 |
Podcast
- ANIMALS: How dolphins breathe, sea snails that hide their gender, the genetics and epigenetics of ant colonies, and looking mad-cow disease in the eye.
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| September 24, 2010 |
Social Bacteria Roundup
- Some drug-resistant bacteria protect weaker members of their colony.
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| September 10, 2010 |
Podcast
- FLU SEASON: Can exercise help stave off illness? Changes to the seasonal flu vaccine, bacterial surprises, and better ways to purify water in developing countries. Also: did life originate between mica sheets?
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| August 19, 2010 |
MS & Gut Bacteria
- Stomach bacteria may play a role in multiple sclerosis, according to an animal study.
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| August 16, 2010 |
Cancer & Fructose
- Cancer cells selectively use fructose to divide and proliferate.
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| August 13, 2010 |
Podcast
- CUTTING-EDGE MEDICINE: Re-growing joints and re-constructing faces, the link between gut bacteria and multiple sclerosis, and octopus venoms that could treat pain.
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| August 6, 2010 |
Podcast
- SUNSCREEN & SUPPLEMENTS: Sunscreens from ivy, why tanning oil speeds up skin damage, and when to apply sunscreen. Also: the link between fructose and pancreatic cancer, and over-the-counter weight-loss supplements fail the grade.
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| July 29, 2010 |
Bacterial Goldilocks
- Bacteria find thawed arctic soils really yummy. That might be good for the bacteria, but it could be bad for the planet.
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| July 7, 2010 |
Marine Debris
- A research vessel tracks the ecological effects of plastic debris in the Atlantic Ocean.
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