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Birds of Spring, Habitat Preservation (start time: 3:08) It's springtime, when many of us are woken up at the crack of dawn by a chorus of chickadees or other songbirds outside. To celebrate these emblems of spring, and World Migratory Bird Day (May 18), How On Earth's Susan Moran interviews two bird/nature experts about the state … Continue reading "Birds & Habitat Preservation"
This week's How On Earth offers two features: Deep-sea coral reef discovery (start time: 0:58) Scientists recently discovered and mapped the largest known deep-sea coral reef in the world. It's located up to 200 miles off the U.S. Atlantic Coast, and it's larger than Vermont. The news comes as a bright spot for oceans and … Continue reading "Deep-sea Coral Reefs//Mineral-Mining"
This week's How On Earth features the following: How Environmental Toxins Harm Maternal Health (start time: 1:30) Being exposed to wildfires and other forms of air pollution can wreak havoc on anyone's health. If you're pregnant, or socioeconomically disadvantaged, you are particularly susceptible to the negative effects of airborne contaminants. How On Earth's Susan Moran, … Continue reading "Air Pollution+Maternal Health"
The Power of Poop (start time: 5:41) This potent byproduct of our digestive system holds the promise of being a big part of the solution to several public health and environmental challenges of our time, such as drinking water scarcity and degraded cropland. In this week's show, How On Earth's Susan Moran interviews Dr. Bryn … Continue reading "From Sewage to Planet Savior?"
Over the Seawall (start time: 7:33): One of the key things that makes us human is our ability to problem-solve. But often our engineered fixes backfire and even make the problem we're trying to solve much worse. How On Earth host Susan Moran interviews journalist Stephen Robert Miller about how this applies to massive seawalls, … Continue reading "Climate Change Maladaptations"
Multivitamins help prevent memory loss (start time: 8:02) In this week's show, How On Earth host/producer Susan Moran interviews Dr. Adam Brickman, a neuropsychologist at Columbia University's Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons, about a large new study that shows how taking multivitamins can prevent memory loss in older adults. Memory decline is an inevitable, … Continue reading "Memory-boosting via Multivitamins?"
Of Bears & Humans (start time: 1:34) If you live on the Front Range or in the mountains, you've probably seen a black bear while hiking or in your neighborhood. Black bears are thriving, but most of the other eight remaining bear species are struggling to survive. How On Earth host Susan Moran interviews journalist … Continue reading "Bears: Beloved & Imperiled"
Barely able to afford your own house, or even think of it? How ON EARTH is anyone able to buy more than one? Well, it's somewhat easy. Maybe easier said than done, but definitely easy to understand!Let's dive in
Water Recycling for Climate Resilience (start time: 7:54) When you poured tap water into your coffee maker this morning, or flushed the toilet, you may not have been thinking about where that water came from, or where it flowed to next. Pegged to World Water Week, on this week's How On Earth host Susan Moran … Continue reading "Water Reuse for the Arid West"
The Socceroos are inside 24 hours now before they line up against Argentina for a place in the FIFA World Cup quarter-finals!Former Socceroo Tommy Oar joins Amy Duggan and Michael Bridges to give a full preview of this historic clash as well as put the rule across the last group stage matches:Son Heung-Min and Luis Suarez both in tears at the conclusion of their match, but for different reasons!How does it feel to be sitting on the bench as results from other matches start to come in?Does Graham Arnold change his winning formula in the face of fatigue?HOW ON EARTH will Australia stop Lionel Messi?Listen to Optus Sport's award-winning limited series, Football Belongs, charting the cultural threads of Australian society through the lens of nine football matches: https://play.acast.com/s/football-belongsSubscribe to Optus Sport: https://sport.optus.com.au/signup Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Recycling: Obstacles and Progress (start time: 4:35): This week's How On Earth focuses on the state of recycling and composting in Colorado and well beyond. A newly published report by Eco-Cycle and CoPIRG shows that Colorado ranks well below the national average, and below its own goals, on recycling and composting. But the report also … Continue reading "Recycling: Obstacles and Progress"
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) … Continue reading "Colorado River Basin Crisis: Pt. II"
HOW ON EARTH did thieves manages to steal three tonne antique columns without getting noticed? Have you ever been robbed by some smooth criminals? The guys caught up with the always happy Larry Emdur PLUS Pav and Shaun looked back (unfavourably) on their freezing cold nights at a Dockers pre season training camp.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Hour 2 - Why sacrifice so much for so little potential of getting a positive outcome. As the allegations against Deshaun Watson continue to stack up, and the details come to light... HOW ON EARTH did Cleveland think this was going to go well?
Climate-conscious, pollinator-friendly gardening (start time: 4:55; scroll down for audio file): This week's episode of How On Earth features a discussion on how cities, neighborhoods, individual residents can plan their landscapes and gardens for a hotter and drier future here on the Front Range. Host Susan Moran interviews Dave Sutherland, a field naturalist formerly with … Continue reading "Climate- & Pollinator-Conscious Planting"
Nature's Songs and Cries (start time: 0:59) In this week's show David George Haskell, a biologist at the University of the South, in Sewanee, Tenn., talks with How On Earth's Susan Moran about his newly published book, Sounds Wild and Broken: Sonic Marvels, Evolution's Creativity, and the Crisis of Sensory Extinction. The book is at … Continue reading "Sounds Wild and Broken"
Heartbreak in Our Bodies: (start time: 6:58) This week on How On Earth, host Susan Moran talks with science journalist Florence Williams about her newly published book, Heartbreak: A Personal and Scientific Journey, in which she goes on a quest to understand why, and how, the heartbreak she felt when her marriage fell apart was … Continue reading "The Science of Heartbreak"
This week on How On Earth, we welcome Benita Lee who brought up the growing problem with fentanyl – a new street drug that's killing many. Benita talks with DEA agent David Olesky about the scope of the problem and what the agency is doing to combat it. Beth talks with pharmacologist and policy maker … Continue reading "The Fentanyl Epidemic: Why It's Growing and Some Solutions"
On this week's show journalist and author Michelle Nijhuis talks with How On Earth host Susan Moran about her recently published book, Beloved Beasts: Fighting for Life in an Age of Extinction. It's a book of hope, history, and even humor. Special thanks to listeners who donated and received copies of the book. And thanks … Continue reading "Beloved Beasts // Fund Drive Show"
In this episode Tene is joined by her friend, fellow actor and fellow podcaster; Robbie Simpson from "The Breakdown with Robbie" podcast. Robbie is an established NYC based artist with the credentials, experience & education to back it up! Sometimes you need to fall in order to rise again and that is exactly what these two unpack in this episode. How do you know when to call it quits? Are you treating your passion like a drug? Can and HOW ON EARTH do you find balance? All questions you will have the answers to by the end of this interview. Through Tene & Robbie's transparency & vulnerability; they were able to find their separate creative endeavours and it took waiting tables and calling themselves "career servers" in order to get there. This isn't your typical "industry chat" so be prepared to be challenged, giggle and of course; levelled up by the end! Robbie is also the biggest Broadway nerd so you're going to want to tune into his show... LINKS www.smoothmyballs.com/ruok | use code "ruok" at checkout for 15% off www.4ocean.com | use code "ruok" at checkout for 10% off | https://bit.ly/3glsItE https://www.facebook.com/TENETIME/ | @tenetime on Instagram! EPISODE GUEST FOLLOW Robbie on Instagram @mrrobbiesimpson & @thebreakdownwithrobbie | www.thebreakdownpodcast.com ROBBIE IS AN ACTOR, DIRECTOR, AND PODCASTER BASED IN NEW YORK CITY. TELEVISION CREDITS INCLUDE AMC'S DIETLAND OPPOSITE JULIANNA MARGULIES, HULU'S THE PATH OPPOSITE AARON PAUL, AND SYFY'S HORROR MOVIE. ROBBIE PERFORMED ON BROADWAY IN THE GYPSY OF THE YEAR BENEFIT AT THE NEW AMSTERDAM THEATER. OFF-BROADWAY CREDITS INCLUDE THE ORIGINAL CASTS OF BOTH PARADISE LOST AT THEATER ROW WITH FPA, AND AFTERGLOW AT THE DAVENPORT THEATER. OTHER NEW YORK CREDITS INCLUDE WORK WITH THE MINT, THE GINGOLD GROUP/ PROJECT SHAW, AND THE JUILLIARD SCHOOL. REGIONALLY, ROBBIE HAS PLAYED LEADING ROLES AT THE OLD GLOBE, SYRACUSE STAGE, THE REPERTORY THEATER OF ST. LOUIS, THE CAPE PLAYHOUSE, THE SHAKESPEARE THEATER OF NEW JERSEY, BERKSHIRE THEATER FESTIVAL, AMONG OTHERS. ROBBIE IS THE HOST OF THE BREAKDOWN WITH ROBBIE, A POPULAR INDUSTRY PODCAST FEATURING CONVERSATIONS WITH TELEVISION AND THEATER'S TOP DIRECTORS, CASTING DIRECTORS, AGENTS, MANAGERS, PRODUCERS, WRITERS, HIGH PROFILE ACTORS ETC. RECENT GUESTS INCLUDE JOE MANTELLO, MICHAEL ARDEN, GAVIN CREEL, JEFF CALHOUN, STEVEN SATER AMONG MANY OTHERS. RECENT DIRECTING CREDITS INCLUDE DEATHTRAP AT THE MAJESTIC THEATER. RESIDENT AND ASSOCIATE DIRECTING CREDITS INCLUDE THE BROADWAY NATIONAL TOUR OF CHICAGO ALONGSIDE TONY AWARD WINNER WALTER BOBBIE, THE 2018 AND 2019 NATIONAL TOURS OF A CHRISTMAS STORY THE MUSICAL, AND THE LOS ANGELES PRODUCTION OF AFTERGLOW. ROBBIE IS THE FORMER ASSOCIATE ARTISTIC DIRECTOR OF THE CAPE PLAYHOUSE. ROBBIE IS A NATIVE OF WEST SPRINGFIELD, MASSACHUSETTS. TRAINING INCLUDES AN MFA FROM THE UNIVERSITY OF SAN DIEGO AND A BFA FROM SYRACUSE UNIVERSITY. ROBBIE IS REPRESENTED BY CGF AGENCY, CHRISTOPHER SILVERI AT CENTER STAGE MANAGEMENT, AND ATLAS TALENT AGENCY. ROBBIE LIVES ON THE UPPER WEST SIDE OF MANHATTAN WITH HIS PARTNER, MICHAEL, AND THEIR SWEET GODLEN DOODLE, NELLIE.
This week on How On Earth, we present an Encore Feature from January 2018 about the science and art of brewing beer with guest Pete Brown, author of Miracle Brew. This episode also includes new headlines about current research about COVID-19 and about the science of drying towels outside. Host: Beth Bennett Producer: Joel Parker, Beth Bennett Engineer: Maeve Conran Additional contributions: Angele Sjong Executive Producer: Beth Bennett Listen to the show:
This week on How On Earth, we produced the entire show out of the studio, explaining one brief glitch. Beth gives a short update on the way the corona virus infects cells and how this entry point can affect people taking blood pressure medications. In our feature interview, Beth talks with Professor Mark Opp, who studies sleep in his lab at the University of Colorado here in Boulder (interview starts at about 10 minutes). He’s especially interested in the interaction between sleep and our immune systems. Not that long ago, people didn’t think there was any relationship between the two, but our understanding of both systems has evolved. Host: Beth Bennett Producer: Beth Bennett Engineer: Maeve Conran Additional contributions: Angele Sjong Executive Producer: Beth Bennett Listen to the show:
Freaking the F Out is a podcast where Kelsey Bennett and Maddy Scott examine the inner workings of their anxious minds. Covering everything from the minute to the very big and life changing, they’re not mental health professionals but they do happen to have some experience in the field. 'Being a Parent' is the hot topic for this week and for obvious reasons we had a guest on. Leoni is the editor of Noctis magazine...and mother to delightful twin girls! There's so much to talk about and in this episode we cover things like the famed 'pressure to have it all', how you can keep your identity when you become a parent, how much the little bundles of joy cost to raise and also...SLEEP. How much do you really get and HOW ON EARTH do you cope? Contact: Email:ftfopod@gmail.com Twitter: @ftfopod Instagram: @ftfopod Facebook: Freaking the F Out Artwork by Chris Hastings-Spital (@chrismhs)
Today's show features the following interviews, by How On Earth's Susan Moran and guest host Ted Wood. Audubon's Climate Watch (start time: 4:03) Starting on Jan. 14, the Audubon Society will launch a month-long citizen science program to better understand how birds are responding to climate change. This comes at a time when, according to a 2019 Audubon report, up to two-thirds of North American birds are vulnerable to extinction due to climate change. But the Climate Watch program is one of many opportunities to protect birds. Alison Holloran, executive director of Audubon Rockies, discusses the program and how you can get involved. Conservation on the Edges (start time: 13:26) Charismatic predators like polar bears, grizzlies, and tigers, get lots of attention, and for good reason. But many lesser known species, particularly those living in extreme environments--including muskoxen, wild yaks, takins and saigas--are also important species. They have been the research focus of Joel Berger, a professor of wildlife conservation at Colorado State University. He's also senior scientist at Wildlife Conservation Society. Berger's latest book is Extreme Conservation: Life at the Edges of the World. Hosts: Susan Moran, Ted Wood Producer: Susan Moran Engineer: Maeve Conran Executive Producer: Beth Bennett Additional Contributor: Beth Bennett Listen to the show here:
COP25 Postmortem (start time: 3:35) Earlier this month many nation’s leaders, as well as scientists, environmental activists, companies and others gathered in Madrid for a two-week United Nations climate summit. The conference, called COP25, is rooted in the 2015 Paris Agreement, which is a blend of pledges from about 200 nations to dramatically slash their planet-warming emissions. Next year’s meeting is when signatory nations will update their actual commitments. So, what happened at the recent climate summit, and what's next? How On Earth host Susan Moran today interviews two scientists who attended COP25. Tashiana Osborne is a PhD candidate in atmospheric and oceanic science at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography, at UC San Diego. And Sarah Whipple is a PhD candidate in ecology at Colorado State University. Hosts: Susan Moran, Joel Parker Producer: Susan Moran Engineer: Joel Parker Executive Producer: Joel Parker Listen to the show here:
COP25 & Climate Change (start time: 1:07): Next month (Dec. 2-13), the United Nations global climate change summit, known as COP25, will take place in Madrid. Many scientists, environmental nonprofits, students, activists will also attend side events related to the UN sustainable development goals (SDG). The goal of COP over the years has been to reduce emissions of planet-warming gases. The talks stem from the landmark 2015 Paris Agreement, which essentially is a mix of pledges from about 200 nations to dramatically cut their greenhouse emissions. The countries are not legally bound to meet their targets, but they are supposed to report their progress to the UN. Under the Obama administration, the U.S. vowed to reduce emissions about 28 percent below 2005 levels, by 2025. But earlier this month, the Trump administration announced that it will begin a year-long process to withdraw the U.S. from the international accord. The stakes are extremely high. How On Earth's Susan Moran and guest-host Tom Yulsman discuss COP25 and what's at stake with Gillian Bowser, an ecologist and research scientist at Colorado State University who has studied international climate and biodiversity conventions and has attended several COP summits; and Tashiana Osborne, a PhD candidate at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography at the University of California, San Diego, who is studying the effects of atmospheric rivers, and who will attend COP25. Tom Yulsman, a CU Boulder journalism professor and blogger, offers his expertise as a climate-focused science journalist. Hosts: Susan Moran, Tom Yulsman Producer: Susan Moran Engineer: Joel Parker Executive Producer: Joel Parker Listen to the show here:
Air Pollution, Possible Solutions (start time: 2:36) It is ubiquitous and essential to our life. It it is also the cause of some 7 million premature deaths around the world every year, ranking just behind diet, cancer and tobacco as a health risk. That's the air we breath. Beijing, New Delhi, and London are among the smoggiest, but the Denver metro area isn’t faring so well either. Yet many countries and cities have taken positive steps that have dramatically reduced emissions, from vehicles, smokestacks, crop and animal production, and other sources. Our two guests today have been researching air pollution—its sources, impacts and solutions--and they share their insights and data with How On Earth's Susan Moran and guest host, journalist Jason Plautz. Beth Gardiner, an environmental journalist based in London, authored the recently published book Choked: Life and Breath in the Age of Air Pollution. And Dr. Frank Flocke is an atmospheric scientist at the National Center for Atmospheric Research, and an author of a major study of air pollution sources on the Colorado Front Range. Hosts: Susan Moran, Jason Plautz Producer: Susan Moran Engineer: Joel Parker Executive Producer: Joel Parker Listen to the show here:
In the first feature (start time 1:00) KGNU's Maeve Conran speaks with Antonia Malchik, author of A Walking Life. This book explores the relationship between walking and our humanity, how we have lost it through a century of car-centric design, how we can regain it and more. This part of the interview, produced especially for How On Earth, focuses on the science behind what makes us able to walk. For a pedestrian, walking is a simple as putting one foot in front of another, right? Well from a scientific perspective, there's quite a bit to it. In the second feature (start time 13:10), Chip Grandits speaks with Dr. Detlev Helmig, Associate Research Professor at the Institute for Arctic and Alpine Research. He is one of several Boulder area climate scientists preparing for The MOSAIC expedition, the largest ever Central Arctic research expedition. In September 2019 A German research icebreaker the Polarstern will head northeast from Tromsø, Norway where it will spend an entire year caught up in the shifting Arctic ice. Dr. Helmig talks about the need to improve climate models of the poles, what motivates a such complex, expensive and dangerous expedition and what motivates scientists to take a 2 month stint on board the Polarstern trapped in the Arctic ice. Host: Chip Grandits Producer: Chip Grandits Engineer: Chip Grandits Additional Contributions: Maeve Conran Executive Producer: Joel Parker Listen to the show:
Tackling Plastic Pollution (starts at 3:09): It is, sadly, common for beachcombers around the world to see, along with clam shells and sand dollars, plastic bottles, bottle caps, cigaret filters and fish nets washed up on shore. According to estimates by World Economic Forum, our oceans will be populated by more pounds of plastic waste than fish by 2050. About a third of all plastic that is produced does not get properly collected; instead, much of it ends up floating in the ocean, or clogging the guts of innocent albatross, other birds and sea mammals. It could take 450 years, or forever, for plastic to completely biodegrade. Plastic waste just breaks down (photo-degrades) into tiny bits, causing harm to wildlife and, potentially, humans. How On Earth host Susan Moran and contributing host Jeff Burnside interview two guests who are working in different ways to assess the extent of the problem and its impacts, to educate people about it, and to effect positive change. Dr. Jenna Jambeck, an associate engineering professor at the University of Georgia, lead-authored a seminal paper in 2015 that estimated how much plastic waste is in the ocean. She will soon co-lead an all-female National Geographic expedition to study plastic pollution in India and Bangladesh. Laura Parker is a staff writer at National Geographic magazine covering climate change and ocean environments. She won the Scripps Howard award for environmental reporting her June 2018 National Geographic cover article titled “Planet or Plastics?” Hosts: Susan Moran, Jeff Burnside Producer: Susan Moran Engineer: Evan Perkins Executive Producer: Joel Parker Listen to the show here:
The Goodness Paradox (Starts 5:22): On this week's show we play the full interview with Richard Wrangham, a primatologist at Harvard University, about his new book, The Goodness Paradox: The Strange Relationship Between Virtue and Violence in Human Evolution. Wrangham discusses with How On Earth hosts Susan Moran and Chip Grandits how, and why, homo sapiens evolved to be both peaceful and violent (less reactively aggressive and more proactively aggressive, like our bonobo ancestors), and what it bodes for the future of human civilization. On the pledge-drive show last week we played short snippets of the interview. And thanks to our listeners who pledged, some of whom received a copy of The Goodness Paradox. And thanks again to Pantheon Books for donating them. Hosts: Shelley Schlender, Susan Moran Producer: Shelley Schlender Engineer: Shelley Schlender Executive Producer: Beth Bennett Listen to the show here:
The Goodness Paradox (Teaser): Today's spring pledge-drive show features brief clips from a recent interview with Richard Wrangham, a primatologist at Harvard University, about his new book, The Goodness Paradox: The Strange Relationship Between Virtue and Violence in Human Evolution. Wrangham discusses with How On Earth hosts Susan Moran and Chip Grandits how, and why, homo sapiens evolved to be both peaceful and violent (less reactively aggressive and more proactively aggressive, like our bonobo ancestors), and what it bodes for the future of human civilization. We will air the full interview on the March 19 science show. Thanks to Pantheon Books for offering KGNU several copies of Wrangham's book. And thank you to listeners who pledged and received a copy of the book, and to those who have helped power this community radio station for years. If there are any copies of The Goodness Paradox remaining next Tuesday you can call in then and become a member for $60 or more. Or go to kgnu.org and pledge, or increase, your support. We couldn't do it without you! Hosts: Chip Grandits, Susan Moran, Joel Parker Producer: Susan Moran Engineer: Joel Parker Executive Producer: Beth Bennett Listen to the show here:
From social enterprises to credit unions, a new wave of not-for-profit businesses is pushing back against the assumption that consumerism and competition must drive the economy. In this episode, we speak with Jen Hinton of the Post Growth Institute, co-author of a forthcoming book about how the line between businesses and not-for-profit organizations doesn’t have to be as rigid as you might think. Related links: - How On Earth - the website for the forthcoming book. - 'Beyond capitalism: not-for-profit business ethos motivates sustainable behaviour', by Jen Hinton and Donnie Maclurcan, Oct 2014. - Community-Wealth.org's factsheets about worker cooperatives, social enterprises, municipal enterprises, community development corporations, and community financial institutions. Photo: Goodwill Industries, one of the first entities to blur the line between business and nonprofit. Music by: Gillicuddy (CC BY-NC 3.0), Chris Zabriskie (CC BY 3.0), and Podington Bear (CC BY-NC 3.0). Please write to info@localfutures.org with any comments and ideas for future topics/guests.
It has been 50 years since the original 2001, A Space Odyssey, where movie viewers first heard Captain Powers asking, "Open the pod bay doors, HAL" and found HAL thought differently about whether that was a good idea. For most of that half-century, artificial intelligence still seemed a long way off, but in the last decode, it has permeated our every day life with unexpected swiftness and thoroughness. Do we currently live in a world of thinking machines? Is it just around the corner? Far off? Never? And what will that really be like for us humans (I'll assume for the moment your not a machine reading this...) This is the subject of Solomon's Code: Humanity in a World of Thinking Machines by Olaf Groth and Mark Nitzberg. With the recent backlash against Facebook, fake news algorithms or headlines about Cambridge Analytica and Russian bots, this book's release on November 6 could not be more well timed. The book covers economic, social, personal and political implications of living in a world of thinking machines. For this edition of How On Earth, we spoke with co-author Mark Nitzberg, Executive Director of the Center for Human compatible Artificial Intelligence at UC Berkeley and principal at Cambrian.ai. Dr. Nitzberg studied AI at M.I.T. and completed his PhD at Harvard university. His co-author Olaf Groth is Professor of Strategy, Innovation and Economics at Hult International business School, and founder and CEO of Cambrian.ai. The name Cambrian.ai is taken from a metaphor from biological evolution and the Cambrian Geological Period, where most of the major groups of animals first appeared in the fossil record; an event sometimes also known as the "Cambrian Explosion." Are we now at a similar point in the evolution of artificial intelligence? Is the metaphor fanciful or very accurate. Chip Grandits talks with Mark Nitzberg co-author of Solomon's Code to find out what are the forms of AI, if they are different from their progenitors, and whether they really can think. Host: Chip Grandits Producer: Chip Grandits Engineer: Chip Grandits Executive Producer: Susan Moran Listen to the show...
This week's How On Earth features the following two segments: Late-summer Cricket Chorus (start time: 1:02) One of the most poetic sounds of the end of summer is …. no, not your kids kicking and screaming because summer is over. It’s the sound of crickets, katydids and other melodic insects “chirping” at night. Our focus here is Snowy Tree Crickets in Colorado. They are called "temperature" crickets because you can calculate what the temperature is outside based on how many times these crickets "chirp" in a certain time period. How On Earth’s Shelley Schlender took a stroll recently with two Boulder naturalists -- Steve Jones and Scott Severs -- to learn more about how, and why, crickets in general make their chirping sound, and why we hear so many of them in the evenings this time of year. Some resources about crickets and their brethren: 1) http://songsofinsects.com/ 2) biology and recordings of nearly all singing Orthopterans (crickets, grasshoppers, katydids), at Singing Insects of North America (SINA) http://entnemdept.ufl.edu/Walker/buzz/. The Science of Aspen (and other) Foliage (starts: 9:40) One of the most iconic images of Colorado is aspen groves quaking in early fall in their brilliant yellow, orange and even red hues. This year, the aspen, and many other plants, are changing colors earlier than normal. Due largely to the extended warm and dry conditions, many aspen leaves are fading and shriveling without turning bright colors. Dr. Jeff Mitton, an evolutionary biologist and a professor emeritus at the University of Colorado Boulder, talks with host Susan Moran about what dictates the timing and intensity of foliage. Dr. Mitton also writes a bimonthly column, called Natural Selections, in the Daily Camera. Here's one (of many) on crickets. Hosts: Maeve Conran, Susan Moran Producer: Susan Moran Engineer: Maeve Conran Contributions: Shelley Schlender Executive Producer: Susan Moran Listen to the show here:
This week's How On Earth offers two features: Work-Email Anxiety (start time: 7:58) If you're wondering why you often feel anxious on Monday mornings, despite having spent time with your family and friends over the weekend, you might recall the amount of time you spent glued to your smart phone or laptop, checking email because you worried that your boss would be expecting you to be virtually on hand. You're hardly alone. Samantha Conroy, an assistant professor of business management at Colorado State University, discusses with How On Earth host Susan Moran a new survey-based study (under review) that she co-authored. It found that not only employees but their partners at home suffer from high anxiety when the employee feels pressured to be virtually available via email after hours. Fixing Food Waste (start time: 17:59) We’re all guilty of it: waste. Tossing out peaches, broccoli and other food that has gone bad in the fridge. Or leaving pasta on our plate untouched at an Italian bistro. More than one-third of all food that is produced in the United States is wasted – in the field, at restaurants, in our own kitchens. The conservation organization World Wildlife Fund recently published a report on the huge environmental and health impacts of food waste, and on what can be done to reduce waste, and ultimately preserve grasslands and other natural habitat. Monica McBride, manager of Food Loss & Waste at World Wildlife Fund, co-wrote the report, called “No Food Left Behind.” She shares the findings and recommendations with Susan Moran. Check out these resources at WWF on what you can do: A Food Waste Quiz and tips on reducing waste. Hosts: Chip Grandits, Susan Moran Producer: Susan Moran Engineer: Chip Grandits Headline Contributions: Beth Bennett, Joel Parker, Shelley Schlender Executive Producer: Beth Bennett Listen to the show here:
How ON EARTH to be more POSITIVE when you're feeling overwhelmed by the constant bad news? In this episode I share some tips and advice on becoming more positive and happy. Don’t miss future episodes of this podcast, subscribe here: iTunes | Google Play Music | Stitcher | TuneIn | RSS/XML I'm hosting an intimate event for 12 people in Prague this Summer, August 18th - 22nd. We will focus on self expression, turning your personality and creativity into more income, and seriously leveling up the amount of freedom and independence in your life. If you want to find out more, send me an email to: dan@dreamsaroundtheworld.com If you want to follow my travels or catch some shorter videos and updates I share, you can find me on Facebook (DreamsAroundTheWorldHQ) | and as TheDanJohnston on Instagram and Twitter | I publish new videos weekly on YouTube as well. Are you, or someone you know, suffering from ENFP? If so, you should seek immediate non-medical attention. Introducing: ENFP Unleashed. Click here for more details. If you enjoy the podcast and would like to submit your own question for a future episode, you can do so here: www.DreamsAroundTheWorld.com/ask-dan/ And if you haven't already, be sure to check out my free training on turning your personality type into an incredible life, The Life Design Approach. Get it here: www.DreamsAroundTheWorld.com/freetraining/
We offer two feature interviews on this week's show: Health Impacts of Wildfire Smoke (start time: 4:22) It's peak wildfire season. Smoke from forest and grass fires contains particulates that can irritate eyes, throat and lungs -- especially in children, the elderly, and people already suffering from asthma, allergies, heart disease. How On Earth host Susan Moran interviews Anthony Gerber, MD/PhD, a pulmonologist and an associate professor of medicine at National Jewish Health and the University of Colorado, Denver, about the medical risks of breathing smokey air and what people can do to minimize the impact. The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment also offers info and warnings on air quality in Colorado. Detained Migrant Children Suffer Medically (start time: 17:02) Since April, when the Trump administration's controversial zero-tolerance policy went into effect to crack down on families crossing the border illegally, more than 2,300 migrant children have been separated from their parents and detained in government detention centers. More recently, about 200 of the children have been reunited with their parents, but bulk of them have not. As a result, many of the children suffer from physical and mental health problems. Colleen Kraft, a pediatrician and president of the American Academy of Pediatrics, talks with host Susan Moran about the medical impacts on migrant children. Hosts: Susan Moran, Joel Parker Producer: Susan Moran Engineer: Joel Parker Executive Producer: Beth Bennett Listen to the show here:
You may be among many who wistfully harken back to the “golden days” of the past. For some people the past does look rosier, or perhaps the present looks grim, but, according to Steven Pinker, a Harvard University cognitive psychologist, that “golden age” of the past is a reflection of faulty memory. We — most people in the world, anyway — are actually far better off than we were decades and surely centuries ago. That’s based on many metrics of progress, including literacy, safety, gender equality, lower poverty, and many more. Pinker presents in his new book an abundance of data as evidence of such progress. This progress, he argues, is rooted in the ideals of the Enlightenment some 250 years ago. Pinker’s book is called “Enlightenment Now: The Case for Reason, Science, Humanism, and Progress.” Last week we played a couple of segments of an interview that How On Earth host Susan Moran and KGNU journalist Joel Edelstein conducted with Dr. Pinker. In today's feature, we play that interview in full. Hosts: Joel Parker Producer: Shelley Schlender Engineer: Joel Parker Contributors: Tom Yulsman, Shelley Schlender Executive Producer: Susan Moran Listen to the show here:
Today's pledge-drive show features parts of our recent interview with Steven Pinker. Enlightenment Now: If you think the world, including the U.S., is falling apart, that the ideal of progress is as quaint as riding to work on a horse and carriage, you’re hardly alone. But you’re wrong, argues Harvard University cognitive scientist Steven Pinker in his new book. It's called Enlightenment Now: A Case for Reason, Science, Humanism, and Progress. As he shows in many copious charts and graphs from studies and national statistics, most people are living longer, healthier, safer, freer, and happier lives. And while our problems are formidable, the solutions, Pinker claims, lie in the Enlightenment ideal of using reason and science. Provocative? Yes. Pollyannaish? No, says Pinker. Today's show features two sections of a recent interview that How On Earth host Susan Moran and KGNU host Joel Edelstein conducted with Pinker. We will play the full interview on our March 20th science show. Meanwhile, Pinker will discuss and sign his book at two events on the Front Range on Saturday, March 17. He will be at Tattered Cover Book Store in Denver (2526 Colfax Ave.) at 4:00 p.m. Then he'll speak at 7:00 p.m. at Unity of Boulder Church (2855 Folsom St.) Check with Boulder Book Store about tickets. Hosts: Joel Edelstein, Susan Moran Producer: Susan Moran Engineer: Joel Edelstein Executive Producer: Susan Moran Listen to the show here:
In today's show we offer two related features: Plastic Pollution in the Arctic, Green Chemistry (start time: 7:48) Try to wrap your brain around this statistic: by mid-century the mass of plastic in the oceans will weigh more than the total mass of fish if we continue with 'business as usual,' according to the World Economic Forum. Plastic debris, ranging from plastic water bottles to fish nets to invisible fragments, is choking seabirds and mammals all the way up to the Arctic, and quite possibly harming human health. How On Earth host Susan Moran recently attended the Arctic Frontiers conference in Tromso, Norway, where she interviewed one of the speakers, Jenna Jambeck, an environmental engineer at the University of Georgia. Dr. Jambeck directs the Center for Circular Materials Management, where researchers are designing materials and processes that both reduce waste and, like nature itself, reuse waste. Grassroots Efforts Curb Plastic Pollution (start time: 20:24) In case you’re wondering what’s land-locked Colorado and your daily life got to do with plastic pollution in the ocean, our guest, Vicki Nichols Goldstein, founder and executive director of the Inland Ocean Coalition, discusses regional and national campaigns to curb plastic waste. The Suck the Straws Out campaign is one of many. You can get involved, starting with attending the Colorado Ocean Coalition's Blue Drinks happy hour on Feb. 15 in Boulder. Hosts: Chip Grandits, Susan Moran Producer: Susan Moran Engineers: Maeve Conran, Chip Grandits, Evan Perkins Executive Producer: Susan Moran Listen to the show here:
We offer two features on today's show: Protecting Pollinators (start time: 0:58): Hills, prairies and gardens are neon green and in full bloom. A pollinator's paradise, at least it should be. Birds, bees, butterflies, beetles and other pollinators rely on the nectar from flowering plants. We humans rely on them; roughly one out of every three bites we take comes from food that would not exist if not for pollinators. National Pollinator Week is June 19 - 25. It will celebrate pollinators and promote how humans can help protect them. Vicki Wojcik, research director at Pollinator Partnership, an organization that focuses on conservation, scientific research and education aimed at preserving pollinators, talks with host Susan Moran. Resources: Bee Safe Boulder (People and Pollinators Action Network), Colorado State Beekeeper Association, and Butterfly Pavilion. Testing Drinking Water (start time: 14:00): Two years ago Flint, Mich., turned the issue of lead in drinking water from a little known, or distant-past, hazard into a national scandal. Human error and coverups resulted in many Flint homes showing staggeringly high levels of lead in their drinking water. What happened in Flint has afflicted other cities. Water districts, which are required to monitor a sampling of homes in their districts for lead in drinking water, are stepping up efforts to prevent more Flints from happening. Here in Colorado, water districts use soda ash and other chemicals to keep their water from being overly corrosive, which was the problem in Flint. How On Earth's Shelley Schlender interviews Michael Cook, district manager of the Little Thompson Water District at the Carter Lake Water Filtration Plant near Loveland. The plant was recently out of compliance, meaning that samples from water district have shown higher levels of lead than what the state health department considers safe. Cook discusses what the district has done. (Boulder has its own water-filtration plant and has not been out of compliance at least in recent years. But all water districts must address similar concerns.) Hosts: Maeve Conran, Susan Moran Producer: Susan Moran Engineer: Maeve Conran Executive Producer: Susan Moran Listen to the show:
Drilling's Health Impacts (start time: 7:50): A pressing question on the minds of many Colorado residents, health experts, and others amidst a surge of oil and gas activity is this: Does living near an oil and gas well harm your health? A scientist at the forefront of exploring such questions is Dr. Lisa McKenzie, a professor of environmental epidemiology at the Colorado School of Public Health at the University of Colorado Anschutz. She is the lead author on a recently published study that examines the potential impact of nearby oil and gas drilling on childhood cancer rates. The study's important findings were challenged by the state Health Department, whose recent assessment concludes that nearby oil and gas operations poses minimal risk to residents. Dr. McKenzie talks with How On Earth's Susan Moran about her study, and the complex science of risk, correlation and causation. Hosts: Susan Moran, Joel Parker Producer: Susan Moran Engineer: Joel Parker Executive Producer: Joel Parker Listen to the show:
Beyond Earth (start time 5:10) Many have dreamt of colonizing other planets. It’s been a staple of science fiction for decades. Most often, people imagine creating a colony of humans on Mars, where people would live on a cold, dry planet with a thin, unbreathable atmosphere. Mars, however, may not be the best destination for future human colonization. In fact, Titan, a moon of Saturn, may hold greater hope for extending humanity's presence in the solar system. Either way, humans face tough but surmountable challenges as we move beyond Earth. As a planetary scientist, Dr. Amanda Hendrix is actively involved in the scientific research and future mission planning that will enable humans to settle on other planets. She’s the co-author, with Charles Wohlforth, of the new book Beyond Earth: Our Path to a New Home in the Planets. Listen to How On Earth's Alejandro Soto's interview with Amanda Hendrix, where they discuss the opportunities and challenges for human space exploration. Hosts: Alejandro Soto, Shelley Schlender Producer: Alejandro Soto Engineer: Shelley Schlender Executive Producer: Beth Bennett Additional Contributions: Joel Parker, Beth Bennett Listen to the show:
The Science of Suggestibility (start time: 5:00) Scientists are learning more and more about how our expectations and beliefs influence how our bodies, including our neurochemistry, respond to pain and disease. The researchers are discovering that we are very suggestible creatures. But we are not all equally suggestible. Some of us can cure serious ailments even when we’ve knowingly taken a placebo remedy, but others can not. Herein lies a major puzzle that vexes drug manufacturers and medical practitioners. It’s a puzzle that has intrigued Erik Vance, a science journalist, since he nearly died from a severe illness when he was a toddler. His journey is detailed in a book that was just published today. It’s called Suggestible You: Placebos, False Memories, Hypnosis and the Power of Your Astonishing Brain (National Geographic). Listen to How On Earth's Susan Moran's interview with Erik Vance. Hosts: Susan Moran, Alejandro Soto Producer: Susan Moran Engineer: Maeve Conran Executive Producer: Beth Bennett Listen to the show:
Multitudes of Microbes (start time: 3:38): You may find it unsettling to learn that our human cells make up only half of our bodies. The other half is a bunch of microbes (in the neighborhood of 40 trillion), all living and reproducing in, and on, our bodies. What's more, these invisible machines could have a powerful influence on your brain, and on your overall health. Ed Yong, a staff writer for The Atlantic, found it disconcerting at first to learn this when he researched his book called “I Contain Multitudes: The Microbes Within Us and a Grander View of Life.” The book, published earlier this year, explores the mysterious partnerships between humans, and many other species, and the mighty microbes with which we have co-evolved. Today we air the full phone interview that How On Earth host Susan Moran recently had with Yong. We played short clips of the conversation during our fall pledge-drive show last Tuesday. Thanks to you listeners who pledged! And thanks to Yong’s publisher, Ecco, an imprint of HarperCollins, for donating to KGNU several copies, which some generous members are now reading. This interview continues our series called "Our Microbes, Ourselves." Hosts: Kendra Krueger, Susan Moran Producer: Susan Moran Engineer: Kendra Krueger Executive Producer: Beth Bennett Listen to the show:
Tackling Lead Contamination: Flint and Beyond (start time: 6:27) When you pour yourself a glass of water from the tap, do wonder whether it’s truly clean and safe? How would you know for sure? Flint, Mich., is a haunting example of how a breakdown in water-supply infrastructure, and political integrity, can result in lead contamination of a city's tap water. Last year, thanks to the dogged investigation of an environmental engineer from Virginia, all of us nationwide were rattled by the disclosure that Flint residents were drinking poisoned tap water and that their city and federal officials were doing little to disclose the problem, much less tackle it. Since then, lead-poisoning outbreaks have emerged in Portland, Ore., Cleveland, Ohio, and elsewhere. Dr. Marc Edwards is the Virginia Tech professor who led the investigation in Flint, and previous water-contamination probes, most notably in Washington, D.C. He talks with How On Earth host Susan Moran about the public health, political and racial-justice facets of the Flint water crisis, and how many more similar crises around the country can be prevented in the future. For more info, check out NRDC's recent report on Flint, Marc Edwards' and his team's research, and ACLU Michigan's investigations. Hosts: Susan Moran, Joel Parker Producer: Susan Moran Executive Producer: Susan Moran Engineer: Joel Parker Listen to the show:
Our Microbes, Ourselves, Dec. 31, 2015: Roughly one hundred trillion bacteria are living, and gorging, in our gut--all the more so during the indulgent holidays. Microbes influence our health and well-being, by affecting our gut directly, as well as the crops we eat and the soils in which we grow crops. These microbial communities – called the gut microbiome -- have been linked to many disorders, including obesity, inflammatory bowel disease, diabetes, cancer, immune disorders, and even mental illness. We are just at the dawn of a new era of microbial treatments for many illnesses. After a recent How On Earth show generated so much interest, we decided to bring our guest, Amy Sheflin, back for an hour-long call-in show on A Public Affair on KGNU. Amy is a doctoral student at Colorado State University in food science and human nutrition. She studies how the food we eat alters the microbial communities in our gut, and how those microbes in our bodies influence our overall health. For more info on the gut microbiome, check out Amy's favorite books on the topic: The Good Gut, by Justin and Erica Sonnenburg; and The Inside Tract, by Gerard Mullins. Also check out the American Gut Project. Host: Susan Moran Engineer: Maeve Conran Click here to listen to the show:
Habitat Exchanges (starts at 3:00): The greater sage grouse is ruffling feathers all the way to Washington. September 30th is the deadline for the US Fish & Wildlife Service to determine whether to list the grouse under the Endangered Species Act. More than a third of the sage grouse’s shrinking range is on private land. Which is why many ranchers, oil and gas developers and other landowners have been scrambling to keep the grouse from getting listed. Listing would mean tighter restrictions on land use. The Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) is one of several environmental organizations that are trying to help come up with ways to preserve the sage grouse and its habitat without cramping the livelihood of ranchers and other land owners. One of the newest voluntary tools is what is called a habitat exchange, a marketplace with buyers and sellers of conservation credits. How On Earth's Susan Moran talks with Eric Holst, associate vice president of EDF’s working lands program, about these exchanges. More Frequent Wildfires (starts at 15:30): This summer, fires have raged across much of the Northwestern U.S. The towering blazes, many of which are nowhere near being contained, have already charred more than two million acres of land. It’s a story that’s becoming increasingly common. Big fires like these are erupting more often than they did just decades ago, scientists say, and many place the blame on climate change. On today's show, Brian Harvey, a forest ecologist at the University of Colorado Boulder who studies the causes and consequences of extreme fires, talks with us about why wildfires have grown more frequent in recent years — and what that means for the recovery of the nation’s forests. Hosts: Susan Moran, Daniel Strain Producer: Joel Parker Engineer: Joel Parker Headline Contributors: Joel Parker, Daniel Strain Executive Producer: Susan Moran Listen to the show:
Science and Politics of Mining (start time: 6:49) On August 5 an inactive mine named Gold King, which had been leaking toxins for years, spewed more than 3 million gallons of toxic sludge into a creek that feeds into the Animus River in southwest Colorado. Its neon orange path of wastewater was shocking. But also shocking is the long history of acid mine drainage pollution and the lax regulations that allow mining companies to basically walk away from their disasters. Dr. Mark Williams, a professor of geography at CU Boulder, and an expert in mountain hydrology and hydrochemistry., has worked on remediation of several mines in the state. He speaks with How On Earth host Susan Moran about the anatomy of mines, how this disaster happened, what it suggests about the many other precarious mines in the state, and what should be done to prevent such disasters from happening. Hosts: Susan Moran, Joel Parker Producer: Susan Moran Engineer: Joel Parker Headline Contributors: Kendra Krueger, Joel Parker, Daniel Strain Executive Producer: Susan Moran Listen to the show:
How On Earth reporter Kendra Krueger caught up with Gerald Pollack, Bioengineering professor from the University of Washington to talk about the physical chemistry of water. The science of water has a sordid past of controversy and dispute which continues today in our current scientific and layman communities. Why is that? What is so strange about the properties of water? Find out more in this weeks episode of How on Earth Pollack Laboratory Website Publications Hosts: Susan Moran, Kendra Krueger Producer: Kendra Krueger Engineer: Kendra Krueger Executive Producer: Susan Moran Headline contributions: Beth Bennett Listen here: