The KGNU Science Show
On today’s show Beth talks to Prof Michael Breed about honeybees. Sure, there is a little on their decline which is concerning to all of us, but we focus on many remarkable aspects of their biology. If you want to go deeper, you can visit Mike’s website or the book he mentions in the interview.
Executive Producer: Beth Bennett
Show Producer: Beth Bennett
Engineer: Shannon Young
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Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 24:57 — 20.6MB)
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Nature Wants Us to be Fat: The Surprising Science Behind Why we Gain Weight and How We Can Prevent and Reverse it. University of Colorado Medical School Professor Rick Johnson shares why he thinks eating lots of fructose sugars can trigger a Survival Switch that helps bears put on weight before they hibernate . . . . and also why whales, which don’t eat any sugar, carry a lot of f to why whales are fat, and how foods affect our hunger and satiety.
GO HERE for extended interview (1 hour) and transcript.
Host/Producer: Shelley Schlender
Executive Producer: Beth Bennett
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Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 26:58 — 37.1MB)
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ON this week’s show, Beth talks with Carole Hooven about her new book: “T – The Story of Testosterone, the Hormone that Dominates and Divides Us”. She demonstrates that the hormone acts in concert with genes and culture to produce a vast variety of male and female behavior. And, crucially, the fact that many sex differences are grounded in biology provides no support for restrictive gender norms or patriarchal values. In understanding testosterone, we better understand ourselves and one another—and how we might build a fairer, safer society.
Executive Producer: Beth Bennett
Show Producer: Beth Bennett
Additional Contributions: Shelley Schlender
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Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 26:21 — 23.0MB)
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Colorado River Basin Crisis Pt. II (start time: 6:19): This week’s How On Earth show focuses on the implications and future prospects after the federal government in June ordered the seven Western states that rely on the river to come up with a plan to save trillions of gallons of water from the shrinking river) — and after the August 15 deadline came and passed without a deal. (Here’s the Bureau of Reclamation’s news release.) How On Earth host Susan Moran interviews Aaron Citron, senior policy advisor with The Nature Conservancy’s Colorado chapter; and journalist Jerd Smith, editor of Fresh Water News. (For background, check out our July 26th show, Pt. I on the Basin’s Basin’s climate, drought, and overuse crisis. Also, see how you can make a difference by taking advantage of this recently signed legislation that helps Colorado residents convert their grass lawns into water-saving landscapes.)
Hosts: Susan Moran, Joel Parker
Producer: Susan Moran
Executive Producer: Beth Bennett
Headline contributors: Beth Bennett, Shelley Schlender
Listen to today’s show here:
Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 28:05 — 38.6MB)
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In this week’s How on Earth, we look at 3 aspects of climate change: its role in disease incidence and transmission; some effects of the new climate change legislation; and how ‘micro-forests’ can mitigate temperature and water loss. The latter comes from an interview with author Hannah Lewis and her book Mini-Forest Revolution, in which she describes the Miyawaki Method, a unique approach to reforestation devised by Japanese botanist Akira Miyawaki.
Executive Producer: Beth Bennett
Show Producers: Beth Bennett & Benita Lee
Engineer: Shannon Young
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Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 27:57 — 23.2MB)
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DNA Superconductors (Starts 1:00) Scientists are harnessing DNA to make electronic components at the nano-scale.
Western Rewilding Network (Starts 3:50) Researchers at Oregon State University are urging the U.S. to set aside 500,000 square kilometers for a Western Rewilding Network that would include wolves and beavers as part of ecosystem restoration. Their research appears today in the journal BioScience.
What Your Food Ate: How to Heal Our Land and Reclaim Our Health (Starts 9:05) KGNU News Director Shannon Young speaks with authors David R. Montgomery and Anne Biklé for the science behind the time-honored adage that the roots of good health start on farms . . . and how modern agriculture needs to change to restore those roots.
Hosts: Joel Parker & Benita Lee
Producers: Shelley Schlender, Joel Parker & Benita Lee
Executive Producer: Beth Bennett
Feature contributors: Joel Parker, Benita Lee, Shannon Young
Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 26:57 — 37.0MB)
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Colorado Cafe Sci (starts 1:00) happens monthly, in Denver.
Alcohol and Alcoholism Recent News (starts 2:49) We look at recent science about alcohol consumption, including a study that indicates as little as 3 glasses of wine a week is associated with buildups of iron in the brain — a risk factor for brain disease, increased binge drinking among pregnant women, and a new study about genetic characteristics associated with alcoholism.
Beth Bennett Discusses the Biology of Alcoholism, Homeostasis and Allostasis (starts 5:35) Discussion includes a reference to the studies about yeast and entropy with Matthias Heinemann. Go here to listen to the entire extended interview (45 minutes long) and go here for an extended version transcript
Executive Producer: Beth Bennett
Show Producer: Shelley Schlender
Additional Contributions: Joel Parker & Benita Lee
Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 26:58 — 37.0MB)
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This week on How On Earth:
Colorado River Basin Crisis (start time: 5:31–scroll down for arrow)
The Colorado River is the life blood for about 40 million inhabitants. And it’s in dire straights. The river’s two reservoirs, Lake Mead and Lake Powell, are at historically low levels, due primarily to climate change and overuse. The water-supply crisis is affecting Colorado and six other states, as well as some 30 tribes, that rely on the Colorado River for water and electricity. Last month the federal government ordered the seven states to jointly come up with a plan to dramatically cut their consumption from the river. They have until mid-August to deliver–or they’ll face mandatory cuts. Host Susan Moran discusses with two guests the underlying causes of the water crisis, what’s at stake, and potential solutions. Jennifer Gimbel is a senior water policy scholar at the Colorado Water Center, located at Colorado State University. Formerly she was an undersecretary of the Department of Interior, and executive director of the Colorado Water Conservation Board. Tom Yulsman is a science journalist focusing on climate change. He runs the ImaGeo visual blog for Discover magazine, and he is director of the Center for Environmental Journalism at CU Boulder.
Some relevant resources for more info and the basin’s water crisis:
* 2022 Science paper, What Will It Take To Stabilize the Colorado River?
* Fresh Water News (Water Education Colorado)
* The Water Desk
Show Host & Producer: Susan Moran
Executive Producer: Beth Bennett
Headline Contributors: Beth Bennett, Shelley Schlender
Listen to the show here:
Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 26:37 — 24.4MB)
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We continue our look at the new Expose, Salmon Wars, the Dark Underbelly of our Favorite Fish, by checking out an alternative – LAND-Based Farmed Salmon.
Chef Sheila Lucero – (starts 2:25) We TASTE land-based salmon, with Coloraado’s award-winning, national expert on sustainable fish and member of Seafood Watch BlueRibbon Task Force, Jax Fish House Chef, Sheila Lucero.
Land-Based Salmon: (starts 15:15) We ask Brandon Gottsacker, president of Superior Fresh aquaponics farm, about his BAP-Certified, salmon falm, the Scretting Fish Meal they feed their fish, and their leafy greens produce operation.
HostProducer: Shelley Schlender
Executive Producer: Beth Bennett
Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 26:57 — 37.0MB)
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Salmon Wars: A Pulitzer Prize-winning correspondent and a former private investigator dive deep into the murky waters of the international salmon farming industry in this just-published expose.
HostProducer: Shelley Schlender
Executive Producer: Beth Bennett
Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 26:58 — 37.0MB)
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