Replaceable You: The Science of Growing Body Parts

The Quest to Replace Human Body Parts (start time: 3:06) In this week’s pledge-drive show, science writer Mary Roach discusses her latest book, Replaceable You: Adventures in Human Anatomy, which was recently released in paperback (W.W. Norton & Co.). Roach is a New York Times bestselling author of Stiff,  Fuzz, Bonk, and several more books. In Replaceable You, she explores the centuries-old audacious quest to replace and improve human body parts
—sculpting noses from brass, to borrowing skin from frogs and hearts from pigs, to ongoing efforts to grow body parts from scratch using stem cells and 3D printers.

Hosts: Susan Moran, Joel Parker
Show and Executive Producer: Beth Bennett
Engineer: Joel Parker

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Symbiosis – Maybe We Are All Living Together

In this week’s show, Beth speaks with author and evolutionary biologist, Rowan Hooper, discussing the themes and examples of symbiosis from his current book, Togetherness: Symbiosis and the Hidden Story of Life’s Greatest Collaborations. He explored the history of study of symbiosis, as well as wonderful stories illustrating this complex phenomenon. And, he went beyond examples to discuss the unifying theme of cooperation in the story of life on our planet. A lesson for our future.

Executive Producer” Beth Bennett
Show Producer: Beth Bennett
Headlines Joel Parker
Engineer Abby O’Brien

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Take a Pause – With Jillian

In her new book, The Power of the Pause: 90 Seconds to Calm, Reset, and Reconnect, Jillian Pransky teaches readers how a brief 90-second break can help regulate the nervous system and stop automatic, reactive habits. Today, we get into some of the science underlying the utility of the pause, but further, we can easily use it to step out of the stress loop and into a grounded, centered presence, able to meet whatever is happening with intention and compassion. Jillian Pransky has been a mindfulness teacher, yoga therapist, and practitioner for over 30 years, giving her plenty of experience with the power of so-called somatic, or body-centered and self-awareness practices can bring about transformation, healing, and connection… in ourselves, in those around us, and in the world.

Executive Producer: Beth Bennett
Show Producer: Beth Bennett
Additional Contributions: Joel Parker & Shelley Schlender
Engineer: Abby O’Brien

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Eat Your Garden!

Gardens are popping up everywhere, from community plots to elementary school yards to vertical plantings. A unique approach proposed by award winning British landscaper, Harry Holding, is integrating the edible aspect of vegetable gardens with the esthetic side of flower, bush and tree landscapes. Harry is a renowned garden designer known for his award-winning creations at the Royal Horticulture Society Chelsea Flower Shown. In his gorgeous book, Eat Your Garden, he focuses on growing and designing with “edimentals” (plants that are both beautiful and edible).And, he provides a step by step approach for integrating edible gardening into any space. I’ll link to the book web site because the photos are stunning and while you might think this approach requires too much water for the Front Range, there are several edimentalists working in Colorado (Basalt and Glenwood Springs).

And speaking of links, here is the site for Cleanup Day: https://secure.everyaction.com/a8ryaNbYxEeVy63nAWFUzg2?contactdata=ywSl5RmBd9xS2BWXkMaiWOmVajroOxbf4dSMJZxu2pZwJYgi%2fkTwVJksNA4YM6tiLlWkXcAu5jcGzPpQs32OgNc4uxw6hM1dBzFLGC6HngS3UcslUDoN2xK4UhjkpvA8FMs0HG7DARHDpQU2Sis07+gcs8rbK0Ddmj32tiMJ8BHFAGgbqsbN+RySsiZiFUOHjkhx2udpY48pjPARak8SOg%3d%3d&quick=true&emci=77c479c0-557a-f111-b337-000d3a1558ce&emdi=3810aa15-b17b-f111-b337-000d3a1558ce&ceid=5381405

Executive Producer: Beth Bennett
Show Producer: Beth Bennett
Additional Contributions: Susan Moran, Shelley Schlender, Joel Parker
Engineer: Abby O’Donnell

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A Longer Healthier Life

On this week’s How on Earth, Beth speaks with author, psychologist, and aging explorer Alan Carpenter to discuss the paradigm shift on aging he espouses. Following a life changing accident, he turned his life around by diving into the science of healthy aging. In his book, Choose Better, Live Better, he outlines 9 avenues one can address for extending health span i.e. the portion of one’s life spent in good health with the ability to live and function independently.

Executive Producer: Susan Moran
Show Producer: Beth Bennett
Additional Contribution: Shelley Schlender
Engineer: Abby O’Brien

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Forest as Superorganism: What it means to Clearcut.

On this week’s How on Earth, Beth speaks with Suzanne Simard, professor and researcher at the University of British Columbia, about her book, WHEN THE FOREST BREATHES, both a call to action, and a journey into the heart of British Columbia’s old growth forests and the indigenous communities that live there, and her efforts to unite them to ensure the health of these vital ecosystems.Also: an allergist’s take on why this year’s seasonal allergies are worse than normal.

Executive Producer: Susan Moran
Show Producer: Beth Bennett

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Winter Recreation in a Warmer World

On this week’s How on Earth, we hear from a climate scientist about the implications of our changing weather patterns for winter recreation. It’s a warm, dry winter, throughout the Rocky Mountain West and elsewhere in the country, the weather has been a mixed bag. Dr. Elizabeth Burakowski, a Research Faculty member in the Institute for the Study of Earth, Oceans and Space and Affiliate faculty in the Department of Earth Sciences at the University of New Hampshire, gives us her take. Her research focuses on winter climate change in the northeastern United States, including what changes we’ve seen in the past, what we can expect for the future, and the impacts on ecosystems and society. She is also familiar with local snowfall changes, having served on the Boulder-based non-profit Protect Our Winters since 2016.

Executive Producer:Beth Bennett
Show Producer: Beth Bennett
Additional Contributions: Joel Parker, Shelley Schlender

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What do Grasslands Have to do with Climate Change?

From Science MOAB

We hear an interview aired by our sister community radio station’s, Science MOAB. Ecologist Brooke Osborne talks about how dryland ecosystems – such as the grasslands east of Boulder – influence the whole planet. Dryands cover 40% of the earth; they support a third of the planet’s humans, and while their roots store lots of carbon, they’re vulnerable to climate change, overgrazing and aggressive land management.

In this episode, you’ll also hear about this weekend’s Colorado Environmental Film Festival in Golden.

Executive Producer: Beth Bennett
Show Producers: Beth Bennett and Shelley Schlender
Additional Contributions: Gracyn Custin

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Hepatitis B Vaccination: Just the Facts

On today’s science show we hear from vaccine researchers Rochelle Walensky and Angela Ulrich, and physician/scientist Peyton Thompson, about the safety and efficacy of the hepatitis B vaccine. This is one of 6 that have been removed from the list of recommended childhood vaccines by the CDC. You’ll hear about the history of the vaccine regarding its complete safety and the huge reduction in disease burden following the adoption of the birth vaccine.

Executive Producer: Beth Bennett
Show Producer: Beth Bennett

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Coral: Past, Present, Future

In this week’s show Beth speaks with science writer, educator, and scientist Dr. Lisa Gardiner about her recent book Reefs of Time: What Fossils Reveal about Coral Survival. Lisa studied the fossil remains of ancient coral reefs, which also suffered from environmental challenges. In our conversation, you’ll hear about how the past shapes the present, and future, of these amazing invertebrates that are keystones in ocean ecosystems. Her book describes the risks the current environment pose to these amazing organisms and the ecosystems they create, but also much much more of the significance and elegance of the corals and the reefs.

Executive Producer: Beth Bennett
Show Producer: Beth Bennett

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