French chemist and microbiologist
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En juillet 1885, en Alsace, Joseph Meister, 9 ans, est mordu par un chien porteur de la rage. Joseph est sauvé grâce au vaccin mis au point par le chimiste Louis Pasteur, qui ne l'avait testé que sur des animaux, et qui à cette occasion, l'inocule pour la 1ère fois à un humain. Hébergé par Audiomeans. Visitez audiomeans.fr/politique-de-confidentialite pour plus d'informations.
Lien vers l'épisode complet: https://smartlink.ausha.co/surprises-interculturelles/hs1-velasquez-colombie-lactalisJe vous emmène en
Dom Pedro II, o segundo e último imperador do Brasil, faria 200 anos neste dois de dezembro de 2025. O bicentenário é uma boa ocasião para relembrar a vida do monarca que governou o país por quase 50 anos e teve uma relação privilegiada com a França. Para o especialista Leandro Garcia Rodrigues, professor da UFMG, o imperador brasileiro deixou “um legado de estadista, tradutor e mediador cultural” entre a França e o Brasil. Mas a cultura brasileira divulgada por ele refletia o espírito eurocentrista da sociedade do século 19. Adriana Brandão, da RFI em Paris Dom Pedro II foi um soberano culto e erudito. O imperador brasileiro, que subiu ao trono em 1840 antes de completar 15 anos, compreendia 15 línguas, entre elas o sânscrito e o hebreu. Ele é reconhecido como um intelectual do século 19, que apreciava a arte, a literatura e a ciência. O monarca tinha uma relação privilegiada com a cultura francesa. “A França era uma espécie de pátria intelectual” não só de Pedro II, mas da elite brasileira desde a independência do país de Portugal, em 1822, lembra Leandro Garcia, autor de um pós-doutorado sobre a relação do imperador com a França. O tema foi abordado em um webinário organizado pela Biblioteca Nacional da França (BNF) e ministrado pelo professor para celebrar o bicentenário de nascimento de Pedro II. O fascínio dele pela cultura francesa fica evidente na numerosa correspondência que mantinha. “Foram mais de 30 correspondentes ativos”, revela o professor de teoria literária e literatura comparada da UFMG. Leandro Garcia Rodrigues detalha que a rede de sociabilidade epistolar do imperador era composta por cientistas e literatos. “No caso dos cientistas, especialmente aqueles ligados à egiptologia, porque um dos fascínios de Dom Pedro II era pela cultura egípcia e, na França, especialmente em Paris, havia um núcleo de egiptólogos muito forte no século 19. No mundo dos literatos, foram especialmente poetas.” Viajante incansável Viajante incansável, o imperador realizou três grandes viagens internacionais durante seu reinado, em 1871, 1876 e 1887. A cada vez, esteve na França, e aproveitou para conhecer pessoalmente os intelectuais ou cientistas com os quais se correspondia. “Um dos nomes mais importantes para a França e para o Brasil foi o Louis Pasteur, que foi amigo pessoal de Dom Pedro II. Inclusive, Dom Pedro II é um dos fundadores do Instituto Pasteur”, conta Leandro Garcia Rodrigues. Entre os cientistas, vale também destacar o nome de Henri Gorceix, francês fundador da Escola de Minas em Ouro Preto. Outro correspondente de peso foi o poeta e escritor Victor Hugo, “um dos maiores nomes da literatura francesa”. Dom Pedro II “conheceu Victor Hugo e foi à casa dele pessoalmente em Paris”, relembra o professor. A rede de correspondentes literatos do imperador tem ainda nomes como Chateaubriand, Ferdinand Denis, George Sand, Sully Proudhomme, Alphonse Lamartine, Alexandre Dumas (filho), Stéphen Liégeard que “são nomes importantíssimos para a cultura francesa,”, ressalta. Divulgando a cultura brasileira “A relação de Dom Pedro II com esse mundo intelectual não era uma relação passiva”, salienta Leandro Garcia Rodrigues. As trocas regulares contribuíram para aumentar os conhecimentos do imperador e para divulgar a cultura francesa no Brasil, mas também para promover a cultura brasileira na França. “Ele não apenas recebia textos literários, poemas, romances, não só da França como de outros países, mas também enviava, mandava textos da literatura brasileira traduzidos nessas línguas, no caso traduzidos para o francês, para serem publicados e divulgados na imprensa francesa”, afirma. Segundo ele, um exemplo dessa mediação foi a divulgação da obra do poeta Gonçalves Dias na França. “Na época, no século 19, o Gonçalves Dias era considerado o mais importante poeta do Brasil. Ele foi amplamente traduzido para o francês a pedido de Dom Pedro II e publicado na imprensa francesa”, informa o professor. No entanto, a cultura brasileira divulgada pelo imperador carregava valores muito diferentes dos atuais e refletia o espírito da sociedade eurocentrista do século 19. Como criticava o grande escritor português Alexandre Herculano, a literatura brasileira dessa época “era escrita no Brasil, mas com umbigo na Europa”. “No século 19, o eurocentrismo era um sentimento muito forte, não se libertava fácil, até porque a gente era uma ex-colônia de um país europeu, no caso, Portugal. Então, a nossa literatura brasileira ainda tinha muitas feições europeias, embora tivesse, por exemplo, elementos nacionais, como no caso do indianismo. Mas eram alguns personagens indígenas, com características morais europeias. Isso era o comum. Eu acho até que não tinha como ser diferente porque a Europa realmente era um parâmetro para os nossos literatos”, contextualiza. Funeral nas ruas de Paris A França foi o país escolhido por Pedro II como terra de exílio depois da Proclamação da República em 1889. Ele morreu em Paris em 5 de dezembro de 1891, aos 66 anos, e foi homenageado com honras de Estado pelo governo francês. Seu funeral repercutiu em toda a imprensa francesa, relata Maud Lageiste, responsável pelo arquivo em português da Biblioteca Nacional da França e pelo site França-Brasil. “O interessante é que no nosso acervo podemos encontrar artigos da imprensa nacional da época sobre o grande funeral em Paris, na Igreja Madalena, em 1891, na imprensa regional. Ou seja, não foi um evento divulgado somente na capital, mas no país inteiro”, indica. O acervo da Biblioteca Nacional da França é rico em documentos que atestam a presença e a relação de D. Pedro II com a França. “São quatro tipos de documentos na BNF em relação ao imperador. Tem várias fotografias de quando ele estava na França, feitas pelo Ateliê Nadar. Nos arquivos de jornais, tem vários artigos sobre sua presença no país. Há também escritos do imperador, como, por exemplo, a tradução das poesias hebraico-provençais. Este livro, publicado em 1891, ilustra bem o homem de cultura humanista que falava 15 línguas. E temos reproduções de cartas do imperador e de seus diários de viagem”, elenca Maud Lageiste. Todos esses documentos estão disponíveis no site da biblioteca digital da BNF. Em Paris, alguns vestígios lembram a passagem do imperador brasileiro pela cidade, como o busto de D. Pedro II na Galeria dos Fundadores do Instituto Pasteur ou a placa em frente ao Hotel Bedford, onde ele morreu, no oitavo distrito de Paris, perto da Igreja da Madeleine. Duzentos anos depois de seu nascimento, o legado deixado pelo segundo e último imperador do Brasil é, de acordo com Leandro Garcia Rodrigues, o de “um estadista, intelectual, tradutor e mediador cultural”. Ele traduziu obras como “As Mil e Uma Noites”, partes da “Divina Comédia” e do “Corcunda de Notre Dame”, além de poemas do romantismo dos Estados Unidos. “O imperador tradutor, a tradução como mediação cultural, é importante e o grande legado dele é no mundo intelectual, especialmente nessa rede de sociabilidade cultural que ele fez”, avalia. Pedro II é lembrado como estadista, “porque sempre realmente colocou o país acima dos seus próprios interesses pessoais”, conclui o professor da UFMG.
This is one in a series about possible futures, which will be published in Booch News over the coming weeks. Episode 7 appeared last week. New episodes drop every Friday. Overview Peer-to-peer flavor-sharing platforms enabled home brewers to distribute taste profiles as digital files. Blockchain-verified SCOBY genetics allowed anyone to recreate award-winning kombucha flavors. Traditional beverage companies lost control as open-source fermentation recipes spread globally. This episode follows teenage hacker Luna Reyes as she reverse-engineers Heineken’s proprietary “A-yeast” strain and the century-old master strain used for Budweiser, releasing them under Creative Commons license, triggering a flavor renaissance that made corporate beverages taste like cardboard by comparison. Luna Reyes: The Seventeen-Year-Old Who Liberated Flavor Luna Reyes was brewing kombucha in her Oakland garage when she changed the course of human history. The daughter of Mexican immigrants, she had learned fermentation from her grandmother while teaching herself bioinformatics through YouTube tutorials and volunteering at the Counter Culture Labs Maker Space on Shattuck Avenue. By fifteen, she was running the Bay Area’s most sophisticated home laboratory, utilizing jury-rigged DNA sequencers and microscopes constructed from smartphone cameras. Her breakthrough came in February 2043 while investigating why her kombucha never tasted quite like expensive craft varieties and was different again from her grandmother’s home brew. Using Crispr techniques learned from online forums, Luna began reverse-engineering the microbial genetics of premium alcoholic beverages. Her target wasn’t kombucha—it was the closely guarded yeast strains that gave corporate beers their distinctive flavors. Luna hunched over her microscope, examining bacterial cultures from her latest kombucha batch. Around her, salvaged DNA sequencers hummed, fermentation vessels bubbled, and computer screens displayed multi-hued patterns of genetic sequences. Her grandmother, Rosa, entered carrying a tray with three glasses of homemade kombucha. “Mija, you’ve been working for six hours straight. Drink something.” Luna accepted the glass without looking up. “Abuela, your kombucha tastes better than anything I can buy in stores and the ones I’ve experimented with. Why? I’m using the same base ingredients—tea, sugar, water—but mine never has this complexity.” Her grandmother laughed. “Because I’ve been feeding this SCOBY for forty years. It knows what to do. You can’t rush relationships.” Luna’s sister Maya, lounging against a workbench, waved her phone. “Luna, people have noticed your forum post about Health-Ade’s fermentation process. Someone says you’re wasting your time trying to replicate commercial kombuchas.” “I’m not trying to replicate them,” Luna said, finally looking up. “I’m trying to understand why their kombucha tastes different than that I make at home. It’s not the ingredients. It’s not the process. It’s the microbial genetics.” Rosa sat down beside her granddaughter. “When I was young in Oaxaca, every family had their own kombucha culture, passed down generation to generation. Each tasted different because the bacteria adapted to their environment, their ingredients, their care. We had a saying, Hay tantas fermentaciones en el mundo como estrellas en el cielo nocturno – there are as many ferments in the world as stars in the night sky. The big companies want every bottle to be identical. That kills what makes fermentation special.” “Exactly!” Luna pulled up genetic sequences on her screen. “I’ve been reverse-engineering samples from different commercial kombuchas. Health-Ade, GT’s, Brew Dr—they all have consistent microbial profiles.” The Great Heist: Cracking Corporate DNA Luna’s first major hack targeted Heineken’s legendary “A-yeast” strain, developed in 1886 by Dr. Hartog Elion—a student of renowned chemist Louis Pasteur—in the company’s Amsterdam laboratory and protected by over 150 years of trade secret law. Using samples obtained from discarded brewery waste (technically legal under the “garbage doctrine”), she spent six months mapping the strain’s complete genetic sequence in her makeshift lab. The breakthrough required extraordinary ingenuity. Luna couldn’t afford professional gene sequencers, so she modified a broken Illumina iSeq100 purchased on eBay for $200. Her sequencing runs took weeks rather than hours; her results were identical to those produced by million-dollar laboratory equipment. Her detailed laboratory notebooks, later published as The Garage Genomics Manifesto, became essential reading for the biotech hacker movement. The Budweiser project proved even more challenging. Anheuser-Busch’s century-old master strain had been protected by layers of corporate secrecy rivaling classified military programs. The company maintained multiple backup cultures in cryogenic facilities across three continents, never allowing complete genetic mapping by outside researchers. Luna’s success required infiltrating the company’s waste-disposal systems at four breweries, collecting samples over 18 months while evading corporate security. The Decision The night before Luna was scheduled to meet her fellow bio-hackers at Oakland’s Counter Culture Labs, she sat at her workstation, hesitant, wondering if she was doing the right thing. Her sister Maya came in, looking worried. “Luna, I found something you need to see,” she says. “Remember Marcus Park? He tried releasing proprietary yeast information in 2039. Heineken buried him. He lost everything. His daughter dropped out of college. His wife left him. He’s working at a gas station now.” Luna spent the night researching what happened to Park. She found that almost everyone who challenged corporate IP ended up on the losing side of the law. It was not pretty. In the morning, Abuela Rosa finds her crying in her room. “Mija, what’s wrong?” she asks. “Oh, Abuela,” Luna says between sobs. “What am I doing? What if I’m wrong? What if I destroy our family? What if this ruins Mom and Dad? What if I’m just being selfish?” “That’s the fear talking.” Her grandmother reassured her. “Fear is wisdom warning you to be careful. But fear can also be a cage.” That evening at the Counter Culture Labs, Luna assembled a small group of advisors. She needed their guidance. She had the completed genetic sequences for Heineken A-yeast and Budweiser’s master strain on her laptop, ready for release. But is this the time and place to release them to the world? Dr. Marcus Webb, a bioinformatics researcher in his forties and Luna’s mentor, examined her sequencing data. “This is solid work, Luna. Your jury-rigged equipment is crude. The results are accurate. You’ve fully mapped both strains.” “The question isn’t whether I can do it,” Luna said. “It’s whether I should let the world know I did it.” On screen, Cory Doctorow, the author and digital rights activist, leaned forward. “Let’s be clear about what you’re proposing. You’d be releasing genetic information that corporations have protected as trade secrets for over a century. They’ll argue you stole their intellectual property. You’ll face lawsuits, possibly criminal charges.” “Is it their property?” Luna challenged. “These are naturally occurring organisms. They didn’t create that yeast. Evolution did. They just happened to be there when it appeared. That does not make it theirs any more than finding a wildflower means they own the species. Can you really own something that existed before you found it?” Doctorow, the Electronic Frontier Foundation representative spoke up. “There’s legal precedent both ways. Diamond v. Chakrabarty established that genetically modified organisms can be patented. But naturally occurring genetic sequences? That’s murky. The companies will argue that their decades of cultivation and protection created protectable trade secrets.” “Trade secrets require keeping information secret,” Luna argued. “They throw this yeast away constantly. If they’re not protecting it, how can they claim trade secret status?” Dr. Webb cautioned, “Luna, even if you’re legally in the right—which is debatable—you’re seventeen years old. You’ll be fighting multinational corporations with unlimited legal resources. They’ll bury you in litigation for years.” “That’s where we come in,” Doctorow said. “The EFF can provide legal defense. Creative Commons can help structure the license. You need to understand: this will consume your life. College, career plans, normal teenage experiences—all on hold while you fight this battle.” Luna was quiet for a moment, then pulled up a photo on her laptop: her grandmother Rosa, teaching her to ferment at age seven. “My abuela says fermentation is about sharing and passing living cultures between generations. Corporations have turned it into intellectual property to be protected and controlled. If I can break that control—even a little—isn’t that worth fighting for?” Maya spoke up from the back. “Luna, I love you, but you’re being naive. They won’t just sue you. They’ll make an example of you. Your face on every news channel, portrayed as a thief, a criminal. Our family harassed. Your future destroyed. For what? So people can brew beer with the same yeast as Heineken?” “Not just beer,” Luna responded passionately. “This is about whether living organisms can be owned. Whether genetic information—the code of life itself—can be locked behind intellectual property law. Yes, it starts with beer yeast. But what about beneficial bacteria? Life-saving microorganisms? Medicine-producing fungi? Where does it end?” Dr. Webb nodded slowly. “She’s right. This is bigger than beer. As biotech advances, genetic control becomes power over life itself. Do we want corporations owning that?” Doctorow sighed. “If you do this, Luna, do it right. Release everything simultaneously—BitTorrent, WikiLeaks, Creative Commons servers, distributed networks worldwide. Make it impossible to contain. Include complete cultivation protocols so anyone can reproduce your results. Make the data so damn widely available that suppressing it becomes futile.” “And write a manifesto,” he added. “Explain why you’re doing this. Frame the issue. Make it about principles, not piracy.” Luna nodded, fingers already typing. “When should I release?” “Pick a date with symbolic meaning,” Dr. Webb suggested. “Make it an event, not just a data dump.” Luna smiled. “December 15. The Bill of Rights Day. Appropriate for declaring biological rights, don’t you think?” Maya groaned. “You’re really doing this, aren’t you?” “Yes. I’m really doing this.” The Creative Commons Liberation On Tuesday, December 15, 2043—a date now celebrated as “Open Flavor Day”—Luna released the genetic sequences on multiple open-source networks. Her manifesto, titled Your Grandmother’s Yeast Is Your Birthright, argued that microbial genetics belonged to humanity’s shared heritage rather than corporate shareholders. It stated: Commercial companies have protected yeast strains for over a century. They’ve used intellectual property law to control flavor itself. But genetic information isn’t like a recipe or a formula—it’s biological code that evolved over millions of years before humans ever cultivated it. These strains are protected as trade secrets—the bacteria don’t belong to anyone. They existed before Heineken, before Budweiser, before trademark law. The companies just happened to isolate and cultivate them. Her data packages included DNA sequences and complete protocols for cultivating, modifying, and improving the strains. Luna’s releases came with user-friendly software that allowed amateur brewers to simulate genetic modifications before attempting them in real fermentations. Within 24 hours, over ten thousand people worldwide downloaded the files. The Creative Commons community erupted in celebration. Cory Doctorow’s blog post, The Teenager Who Stole Christmas (From Corporate Beer), went viral within hours. The Electronic Frontier Foundation immediately offered Luna legal protection, while the Free Software Foundation created the “Luna Defense Fund” to support her anticipated legal battles. The Legal Assault Heineken’s response was swift. The company filed emergency injunctions in 12 countries simultaneously, seeking to prevent the distribution of its “stolen intellectual property.” Their legal team, led by former U.S. Attorney General William Barr III, demanded Luna’s immediate arrest for “economic terrorism” and “theft of trade secrets valued at over $50 billion.” Anheuser-Busch’s reaction was even more extreme. CEO Marcel Telles IV appeared on CNBC, calling Luna “a bioterrorist who threatens the foundation of American capitalism.” The company hired private investigators to surveil Luna’s family and offered a $10 million reward for information leading to her prosecution. Their legal filing compared Luna’s actions to “stealing the formula for Coca-Cola and publishing it in the New York Times.” In Heineken’s Amsterdam headquarters, executives convened an emergency meeting. “Who is Luna Reyes?” the CEO demanded. The legal counsel pulled up information. “She’s a seventeen-year-old high school student in Oakland, California. No criminal record. Volunteers at a maker space. Has been posting about fermentation on various forums for years.” “A child released our proprietary yeast strain to the world, and we didn’t know she was even working on this?” The CEO’s face reddened. “How do we contain it?” “We can’t. It’s distributed across thousands of servers in dozens of countries with different IP laws. We can sue Reyes, but the information is out there permanently.” An executive interjected, “What about the other breweries? Will they join our lawsuit?” “Some are considering it. Others…” The counsel paused. “Others are quietly downloading the sequences themselves. They see an opportunity to break our market dominance.” “She obtained samples from our waste disposal,” another executive explained. “Technically legal under the garbage doctrine. The sequencing itself isn’t illegal. The release under Creative Commons…” “Is theft!” the CEO shouted. “File emergency injunctions. Twelve countries. Get her arrested for economic terrorism.” Similar scenes played out at Anheuser-Busch headquarters in St. Louis. CEO Telles addressed his team: “This is bioterrorism. She’s destroyed intellectual property worth billions. I want her prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. Hire private investigators. Find everything about her and her family. Make her life hell!” By noon, both companies had filed lawsuits. By evening, Fox News was running stories about the “teenage bioterrorist” who “stole American corporate secrets.” Back in Oakland, Luna’s phone rang constantly. Her parents discovered what she’d done. Her mother cried. Her father was furious and terrified. Friends called with either congratulations or warnings. She was convinced that private investigators were photographing their house. Maya suspected she was followed to work. On Wednesday morning, Dr. Webb calls: “Luna, they’re offering me $2 million to testify against you. They’re going after everyone in your network.” Luna has a sickening feeling that she’s put everyone at risk. By Thursday, she is considering taking it all back somehow, sending an apology to the corporations, anything to protect her family. Luna turned off her phone and sat with her grandmother. “It’s started,” Luna said quietly. “Sí, mija. You’ve declared war. Now we see if you can survive it.” Maya burst in, laptop in hand. “Luna, you need to see this. The downloads aren’t slowing—they’re accelerating. Every time Heineken or Budweiser shuts down a website, ten mirror sites appear. People are treating this like a digital freedom fight. You’ve become a symbol.” Luna pulled up her own screen. The #FreeLuna hashtag was trending. Crowdfunding campaigns for her legal defense had raised $400,000 in twelve hours. Academic institutions were publicly endorsing her release, calling it “essential scientific information.” “They’re trying to destroy you,” Maya said, “but they’re making you famous instead.” Rosa handed Luna a fresh kombucha. “This is what happens when you fight for what’s right, mija. Sometimes the world surprises you by supporting you.” Luna’s Fame The corporations’ attempts to suppress Luna’s releases had the opposite effect. Every cease-and-desist letter generated thousands of new downloads. The genetic data became impossible to contain once the academic community embraced Luna’s work. Dr. Jennifer Doudna, the legendary Crispr pioneer now in her eighties, publicly endorsed Luna’s releases in a Science magazine editorial: Ms. Reyes has liberated essential scientific information that corporations held hostage for commercial gain. Genetic sequences from naturally occurring organisms should not be locked behind intellectual property law. They belong to humanity’s knowledge commons. While corporations claim Luna stole trade secrets, I argue she freed biological knowledge that was never theirs to own. There are no trade secrets in biology—only knowledge temporarily hidden from the commons. This is civil disobedience of the highest order—breaking unjust laws to advance human freedom. Ms. Reyes didn’t steal; she liberated. MIT’s biology department invited Luna to lecture, while Harvard offered her a full scholarship despite her lack of a high school diploma. The legal battles consumed corporate resources while generating negative publicity. Heineken’s stock price dropped 34% as consumers organized boycotts in support of Luna’s “yeast liberation.” Beer sales plummeted as customers waited for home-brewed alternatives using Luna’s open-source genetics. The Flavor Renaissance Luna’s releases triggered an explosion of creativity that corporate R&D departments had never imagined. Within six months, amateur brewers worldwide were producing thousands of flavor variations impossible under corporate constraints. The open-source model enabled rapid iteration and global collaboration, rendering traditional brewing companies obsolete. The world was engaged. In some of the most unlikely places. In Evanston, Illinois, a group of former seminary students who discovered fermentation during a silent retreat, transformed Gregorian chants into microbial devotionals. Tenor Marcus Webb (Dr. Webb’s nephew) realized symbiosis mirrored vocal harmony—multiple voices creating something greater than their parts. “In honoring the mystery of fermentation we express our love of the Creator,” he said. Here's ‘Consortium Vocalis' honoring the mother SCOBY. [Chorus]Our SCOBYIs pureOur SCOBYIs strongOur SCOBYKnows no boundariesOur SCOBYStrengthens as it fermentsOur SCOBYIs bacteria and yeast Our SCOBYTurns sucrose into glucose and fructoseIt ferments these simple sugars into ethanol and carbon dioxide,Acetic acid bacteria oxidize much of that ethanol into organic acidsSuch as acetic, gluconic, and other acids.This steadily lowers the pHMaking the tea taste sour-tangy instead of purely sweet. [Chorus] Our SCOBYThen helps microbes produce acids, enzymes, and small amounts of B‑vitaminsWhile probiotics grow in the liquid.The pH falls to help inhibit unwanted microbesOur SCOBY creates a self-preserving, acidic environment in the tea [Chorus] In Kingston, Jamaica, Rastafarian’s combined an award-winning kombucha sequenced in Humboldt County, California, with locally grown ganja into a sacramental beverage to help open their mind to reasoning and focus on Jah. Once fermented, it was consumed over the course of a three-day Nyabinghi ceremony. “Luna Reyes is truly blessed. She strengthened our unity as a people, and our Rastafari’ booch help us chant down Babylon,” a Rasta man smiled, blowing smoke from a spliff the size of his arm. The Groundation Collective’s reggae anthem ‘Oh Luna’ joyfully celebrated Luna Reyes’ pioneering discovery. Oh Luna, Oh Luna, Oh Luna ReyesI love the sound of your nameYou so deserve your fame Luna, Luna, Oh Luna ReyesShining brightYou warm my heart Luna, Luna, Oh Luna ReyesYou cracked the codeTeenage prophet, fermentation queenSymbiosis roadA genius at seventeen Oh Luna, Luna, Luna ReyesBeautiful moonMakes me swoon Oh Luna, Luna, Luna ReyesFreedom to fermentYou are heaven sentTo save us Luna, Luna, Oh Luna ReyesYou opened the doorTo so much moreKombucha tastes so goodLike it should Oh Luna, Oh Luna, Oh LunaI love you, love you, love youOh Luna, Luna, LunaLove you, love you,Love Luna, Luna love. In São Paulo, Brazil, MAPA-certified Brazilian kombucha brands combined Heineken and cacao-fermenting yeasts with cupuaçu from indigenous Amazonian peoples, to create the chocolate-flavored ‘booch that won Gold at the 20th World Kombucha Awards. A cervejeiro explained to reporters: “Luna Reyes gave us the foundation. We added local innovation. This is what happens when you democratize biology.” The Brazilian singer Dandara Sereia covered ‘Our Fermented Future’—The Hollow Pines tune destined to become a hit at the 2053 Washington DC Fermentation Festival. Baby sit a little closer, sip some ‘booch with meI brewed this batch with the SCOBY my grandma gave to me.On the back porch swing at twilight, watching fireflies danceYour hand in mine, kombucha fine, the sweetest sweet romance. They say that wine and roses are the way to win the heartBut your kombucha warmed me right up from the start.Fermentation makes the heart grow fonder, truer words they ain’t been saidYour SCOBY’s got a place forever — in my heart, and in my bed. Let’s share our SCOBYs, baby, merge our ferments into oneLike cultures in a crock jar dancing, underneath the sun.The tang of your Lactobacillus is exactly what I’m missingYour Brettanomyces bacteria got this country girl reminiscing. Oh yeah, let’s share those SCOBYs, baby, merge our ferments into oneYour yeasts and my bacteria working till the magic’s doneYou’ve got the acetic acid honey, I’ve got the patience and the timeLet’s bubble up together, let our cultures intertwine. I’ve got that symbiotic feeling, something wild and something trueYour SCOBY’s in my heart, right there next to youThe way your Acetobacter turns sugar into goldIs how you turned my lonely life into a hand to hold. We’ve got the acetic acid and the glucuronic tooWe’ve got that symbiotic feeling, so righteous and so trueOne sip of your sweet ‘booch, Lord, and you had me from the start,It’s our fermented future, that no-one can tear apart. It’s our fermented future…It’s our fermented future…It’s our fermented future… “Luna Variants”—strains derived from her releases—began winning international brewing competitions, embarrassing corporate entries with their complexity and innovation. Traditional beer flavors seemed flat and artificial compared to the genetic symphonies created by collaborative open-source development. Despite the outpouring of positive vibes, the corporations spared no expense to hold Luna to account in the courts. The Preliminary Hearing A preliminary hearing was held in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California on June 14, 2044. Luna sat at the defendant’s table, her hands folded so tightly her knuckles had gone white. She wore a borrowed blazer—too big in the shoulders—over a white button-down shirt Maya had ironed that morning. At seventeen, she looked even younger under the courtroom’s fluorescent lights. Across the aisle, Heineken’s legal team occupied three tables. Fifteen attorneys in matching navy suits shuffled documents and whispered into phones. Their lead counsel, William Barr III, wore gold cufflinks that caught the light when he gestured. Luna recognized him from the news—the former Attorney General, now commanding $2,000 an hour to destroy people like her. Her own legal representation consisted of two people: Rose Kennerson from the Electronic Frontier Foundation, a public interest lawyer who’d flown in from DC on a red-eye, and Dr. Marcus Webb, technically a witness but sitting beside Luna because she’d asked him to. Behind them, the gallery was packed. Luna’s parents sat in the second row, her father’s face gray, her mother clutching a rosary. Maya had taken the day off work. Abuela Rosa sat in the front row directly behind Luna, her ancient SCOBY wrapped in silk in her lap, as if its presence might protect her granddaughter. Judge Catherine Ironwood entered—sixty-ish, steel-gray hair pulled back severely, known for pro-corporate rulings. She’d been a pharmaceutical industry lawyer for twenty years before her appointment. “All rise,” the bailiff called. Judge Ironwood settled into her chair and surveyed the courtroom with the expression of someone who’d already decided the outcome and resented having to perform the formalities. “We’re here for a preliminary injunction hearing in Heineken International B.V. versus Luna Marie Reyes.” She looked directly at Luna. “Ms. Reyes, you’re seventeen years old?” Luna stood, hesitant. “Yes, your honor.” “Where are your parents?” “Here, your honor.” Luna’s mother half-rose, then sat back down. “Ms. Kennerson, your client is a minor. Are the parents aware they could be held liable for damages?” Rose Kennerson stood smoothly. “Yes, your honor. The Reyes family has been fully advised of the legal implications.” Luna glanced back. Her father’s jaw was clenched so tight she could see the muscles working. He wouldn’t meet her eyes. “Very well. Mr. Barr, you may proceed.” Barr rose like a battleship emerging from fog—massive, expensive, inevitable. He buttoned his suit jacket and approached the bench without notes. “Your honor, this is the simplest case I’ve argued in thirty years. The defendant admits to obtaining my client’s proprietary biological materials. She admits to sequencing their genetic information. She admits to distributing that information globally, in deliberate violation of trade secret protections that have existed for over 150 years. She did this knowingly, systematically, and with the explicit intent to destroy my client’s competitive advantage.” Luna felt Sarah’s hand on her arm—stay calm. Barr continued. “Heineken International has invested over $200 million in the development, cultivation, and protection of the A-yeast strain. Then this teenager”—he pointed at Luna—”obtained samples from our waste disposal systems, reverse-engineered our genetic sequences, and released them to the world via BitTorrent, deliberately placing them beyond retrieval.” He paced now, warming to his theme. “The damage is incalculable. We estimate lost market value at $50 billion. But it’s not just about money. The defendant has destroyed the possibility of competition in the brewing industry. When everyone has access to the same genetic materials, there’s no innovation, no differentiation, no reason for consumers to choose one product over another. She has, in effect, communized an entire industry.” Luna couldn’t help herself. “That’s not—” Sarah grabbed her wrist. “Don’t.” Judge Ironwood’s eyes narrowed. “Ms. Reyes, you will have your opportunity to speak. Until then, you will remain silent, or I will have you removed from this courtroom. Do you understand?” “Yes, your honor.” Luna’s voice came out smaller than she intended. Barr smiled slightly. “Your honor, the relief we seek is straightforward. We ask this court to order the defendant to provide us with a complete list of all servers, websites, and distribution networks where the stolen genetic data currently resides. We ask that she be ordered to cooperate fully in suppressing the data. We ask that she be enjoined from any further distribution. And we ask that she be ordered to pay compensatory damages of $5 billion, plus punitive damages to be determined at trial.” He returned to his seat. One of his associate attorneys handed him a bottle of Pellegrino. He took a sip and waited. Judge Ironwood looked at Sarah. “Ms. Kennerson?” Sarah stood. She looked tiny compared to Barr—five-foot-three, maybe 110 pounds, wearing a suit from Target. But when she spoke, her voice filled the courtroom. “Your honor, Mr. Barr has given you a compelling story about a corporation that’s been wronged. But it’s not the right story. The right story is about whether naturally occurring organisms—creatures that evolved over millions of years, long before humans ever existed—can be owned by a corporation simply because that corporation happened to isolate them.” She walked toward the bench. “Let’s be clear about what the A-yeast strain is. It’s not a genetically modified organism. It’s not a patented invention. It’s a naturally occurring yeast. Heineken didn’t create it. Evolution created it. Heineken merely found it. And for 158 years, they’ve claimed that finding something gives them the right to prevent anyone else from studying it, understanding it, or using it.” Barr was on his feet. “Objection, your honor. This is a preliminary hearing about injunctive relief, not a philosophical debate about intellectual property theory.” “Sustained. Ms. Kennerson, please focus on the specific legal issues before this court.” “Your honor, the specific legal issue is whether naturally occurring genetic sequences constitute protectable trade secrets. My client contends they do not. She obtained the yeast samples from Heineken’s waste disposal—materials they had discarded. Under the garbage doctrine, she had every right to analyze those materials. The genetic sequences she discovered are factual information about naturally occurring organisms. You cannot trade-secret facts about nature.” Luna watched Judge Ironwood’s face. Nothing. No reaction. Sarah pressed on. “Mr. Barr claims my client ‘stole’ genetic information worth $5 billion. But information cannot be stolen—it can only be shared. When I tell you a fact, I don’t lose possession of that fact. We both have it. That’s how knowledge works. Heineken hasn’t lost their yeast. They still have it. They can still brew with it. What they’ve lost is their monopoly on that knowledge. And monopolies on facts about nature should never have existed in the first place.” “Your honor—” Barr tried to interrupt. Judge Ironwood waved him down. “Continue, Ms. Kennerson.” “Your honor, Heineken wants this court to order a seventeen-year-old girl to somehow suppress information that has already been distributed to over 100,000 people in 147 countries. That’s impossible. You can’t unring a bell. You can’t put knowledge back in a bottle. Even if this court ordered my client to provide a list of servers—which she shouldn’t have to do—that list would be incomplete within hours as new mirror sites appeared. The information is out. The only question is whether we punish my client for sharing factual information about naturally occurring organisms.” She turned to face Luna’s family. “Ms. Reyes taught herself bioinformatics from YouTube videos. She works at home with equipment she bought on eBay. She has no criminal record. She’s never been in trouble. She saw a question that interested her—why do commercial beers taste like they do?—and she pursued that question with the tools available to her. When she discovered the answer, she shared it with the world, under a Creative Commons license that specifically protects sharing for educational and scientific purposes. If that’s terrorism, your honor, then every scientist who’s ever published a research paper is a terrorist.” Sarah sat down. Luna wanted to hug her. Judge Ironwood leaned back. “Ms. Reyes, stand up.” Luna rose, her legs shaking. “Do you understand the seriousness of these proceedings?” “Yes, your honor.” “Do you understand that Heineken International is asking me to hold you in contempt of court if you refuse to help them suppress the information you released?” “Yes, your honor.” “Do you understand that contempt of court could result in your detention in a juvenile facility until you reach the age of eighteen, and potentially longer if the contempt continues?” Luna’s mother gasped audibly. Her father put his arm around her. “Yes, your honor,” Luna said, though her voice wavered. “Then let me ask you directly: If I order you to provide Heineken with a complete list of all locations where the genetic data you released currently resides, will you comply?” The courtroom went silent. Luna could hear her own heartbeat. Sarah started to stand—”Your honor, I advise my client not to answer—” “Sit down, Ms. Kennerson. I’m asking your client a direct question. She can choose to answer or not.” Judge Ironwood’s eyes never left Luna. “Well, Ms. Reyes? Will you comply with a court order to help Heineken suppress the information you released?” Luna looked at her parents. Her mother was crying silently. Her father’s face was stone. She looked at Abuela Rosa. Her grandmother nodded once—tell the truth. Luna looked back at the judge. “No, your honor.” Barr shot to his feet. “Your honor, the defendant has just admitted she intends to defy a court order—” “I heard her, Mr. Barr.” Judge Ironwood’s voice was ice. “Ms. Reyes, do you understand you’ve just told a federal judge you will refuse a direct order?” “Yes, your honor.” “And you’re still refusing?” “Yes, your honor.” “Why?” Sarah stood quickly. “Your honor, my client doesn’t have to explain—” “I want to hear it.” Judge Ironwood leaned forward. “Ms. Reyes, tell me why you would risk jail rather than help undo what you’ve done.” Luna took a breath. Her whole body was shaking, but her voice was steady. “Because it would be wrong, your honor.” “Wrong how?” “The genetic sequences I released evolved over millions of years. Heineken didn’t create that yeast. They isolated one strain and claimed ownership of it. The code of life belongs to everyone. That’s humanity’s heritage. Even if you send me to jail, I can’t help suppress the truth.” Judge Ironwood stared at her for a long moment. “That’s a very pretty speech, Ms. Reyes. But this court operates under the law, not your personal philosophy about what should or shouldn’t be owned. Trade secret law exists. Heineken’s rights exist. And you violated those rights.” Luna did not hesitate. “With respect, your honor, I don’t think those rights should exist.” Barr exploded. “Your honor, this is outrageous! The defendant is openly stating she believes she has the right to violate any law she disagrees with—” “That’s not what I said.” Luna’s fear was transforming into something else—something harder. “I’m saying that some laws are unjust. And when laws are unjust, civil disobedience becomes necessary. People broke unjust laws during the civil rights movement. People broke unjust laws when they helped slaves escape. The constitution says members of the military do not have to obey illegal orders, despite what those in power might claim. Sometimes the law is wrong. And when the law says corporations can own genetic information about naturally occurring organisms, the law is wrong.” Judge Ironwood’s face flushed. “Ms. Reyes, you are not Rosa Parks. This is not the civil rights movement. This is a case about intellectual property theft.” “It’s a case about whether life can be property, your honor.” “Enough.” Judge Ironwood slammed her gavel. “Ms. Kennerson, control your client.” Sarah pulled Luna back into her chair. “Luna, stop talking,” she hissed. Judge Ironwood shuffled papers, visibly trying to compose herself. “I’m taking a fifteen-minute recess to consider the injunction request. We’ll reconvene at 11:30. Ms. Reyes, I strongly suggest you use this time to reconsider your position.” The gavel fell again, and Judge Ironwood swept out. The hallway outside the courtroom erupted. Reporters swarmed. Luna’s father grabbed her arm and pulled her into a witness room. Her mother followed, still crying. Maya slipped in before Sarah closed the door. “What were you thinking?” Luna’s father’s voice shook. “You just told a federal judge you’ll defy her orders. They’re going to put you in jail, Luna. Do you understand that? Jail!” “Ricardo, please—” Her mother tried to calm him. “No, Elena. Our daughter just committed contempt of court in front of fifty witnesses. They’re going to take her from us.” He turned to Luna, his eyes wet. “Why? Why couldn’t you just apologize? Say you made a mistake? We could have ended this.” “Because I didn’t make a mistake, Papa.” “You destroyed their property!” “It wasn’t their property. It was never their property.” “The law says it was!” “Then the law is wrong!” Her father stepped back as if she’d slapped him. “Do you know what your mother and I have sacrificed to keep you out of trouble? Do you know how hard we’ve worked since we came to this country to give you opportunities we never had? And you throw it away for yeast. Not for justice. Not for people. For yeast.” Luna’s eyes filled with tears. “It’s not about yeast, Papa. It’s about whether corporations get to own life. If Heineken can own yeast, why not bacteria? Why not human genes? Where does it stop?” “It stops when my daughter goes to jail!” He was shouting now. “I don’t care about Heineken. I don’t care about yeast. I care about you. And you just told that judge you’ll defy her. She’s going to put you in jail, and there’s nothing I can do to stop it.” “Ricardo, por favor—” Elena put her hand on his arm. He shook it off. “No. She needs to hear this. Luna, if you go to jail, your life is over. No college will accept you. No company will hire you. You’ll have a criminal record. You’ll be marked forever. Is that what you want?” “I want to do what’s right.” “What’s right is protecting your family! What’s right is not destroying your future for a principle!” he said. Luna responded, “What’s right is not letting corporations own the code of life!”They stared at each other. Maya spoke up quietly from the corner. “Papa, she can’t back down now. The whole world is watching.” “Let the world watch someone else!” Ricardo turned on Maya. “You encourage this. You film her, you post her manifestos online, you help her become famous. You’re her sister. You’re supposed to protect her, not help her destroy herself.” “I am protecting her,” Maya said. “I’m protecting her from becoming someone who backs down when the world tells her she’s wrong, even though she knows she’s right.” Ricardo looked between his daughters. “Ambos están locos! You’re both insane.” Abuela Rosa opened the door and entered. She’d been listening from the hallway. “Ricardo, enough.” “Mama, stay out of this.” “No.” Rosa moved between Ricardo and Luna. “You’re afraid. I understand. But fear makes you cruel, mijo. Your daughter is brave. She’s doing something important. And you’re making her choose between you and what’s right. Don’t do that.” “She’s seventeen years old! She’s a child!” “She’s old enough to know right from wrong.” Rosa put her hand on Ricardo’s cheek. “When I was sixteen, I left Oaxaca with nothing but the clothes on my back and this SCOBY. Everyone said I was crazy. Your father said I would fail. But I knew I had to go, even if it cost me everything. Sometimes our children have to do things that terrify us. That’s how the world changes.” Ricardo pulled away. “If they put her in jail, will that change the world, Mama? When she’s sitting in a cell while Heineken continues doing whatever they want, will that have been worth it?” “Yes,” Luna said quietly. “Even if I go to jail, yes. Because thousands of people now have the genetic sequences, Heineken can’t put that back. They can punish me, but they can’t undo what I did. The information is free. It’s going to stay free. And if the price of that is me going to jail, then that’s the price.” Her father looked at her as if seeing her for the first time. “I don’t know who you are anymore.” “I’m still your daughter, Papa. I’m just also someone who won’t let corporations own life.” A knock on the door. Sarah poked her head in. “They’re reconvening. Luna, we need to go.” Back in the courtroom, the atmosphere had shifted. The gallery was more crowded—word had spread during the recess. Luna recognized several people from online forums. Some held signs reading “FREE LUNA” and “GENETICS BELONG TO EVERYONE.” Judge Ironwood entered and sat without ceremony. “I’ve reviewed the submissions and heard the arguments. This is my ruling.” Luna’s hand found Maya’s in the row behind her. Squeezed tight. “The question before this court is whether to grant Heineken International’s motion for a preliminary injunction requiring Ms. Reyes to assist in suppressing the genetic information she released. To grant such an injunction, Heineken must demonstrate four things: likelihood of success on the merits, likelihood of irreparable harm without the injunction, balance of equities in their favor, and that an injunction serves the public interest.” Barr was nodding. These were his arguments. “Having considered the evidence and the applicable law, I find that Heineken has demonstrated likelihood of success on the merits. Trade secret law clearly protects proprietary business information, and the A-yeast strain appears to meet the legal definition of a trade secret.” Luna’s stomach dropped. “However, I also find that Heineken has failed to demonstrate that a preliminary injunction would effectively prevent the irreparable harm they claim. Ms. Kennerson is correct that the genetic information has already been distributed to over 100,000 people worldwide. Ordering one teenager to provide a list of servers would be, in technical terms, pointless. New copies would appear faster than they could be suppressed.” Barr’s face tightened. “Furthermore, I find that the balance of equities does not favor Heineken. They ask this court to potentially incarcerate a seventeen-year-old girl for refusing to suppress information that is, by her account, factual data about naturally occurring organisms. The potential harm to Ms. Reyes—including detention, criminal record, and foreclosure of educational and career opportunities—substantially outweighs any additional harm Heineken might suffer from continued distribution of information that is already widely distributed.” Luna felt Maya’s grip tighten. Was this good? This sounded good. “Finally, and most importantly, I find that granting this injunction would not serve the public interest. The court takes judicial notice that this case has generated substantial public debate about the scope of intellectual property protection in biotechnology. The questions raised by Ms. Reyes—whether naturally occurring genetic sequences should be ownable, whether facts about nature can be trade secrets, whether knowledge can be property—are questions that deserve answers from a higher authority than this court. These are questions for appellate courts, perhaps ultimately for the Supreme Court. And they are questions best answered in the context of a full trial on the merits, not in an emergency injunction hearing.” Barr was on his feet. “Your honor—” “Sit down, Mr. Barr. I’m not finished.” He sat, his face purple. “Therefore, Heineken International’s motion for preliminary injunction is denied. Ms. Reyes will not be required to assist in suppressing the genetic information she released. However,”—Judge Ironwood looked directly at Luna—”this ruling should not be construed as approval of Ms. Reyes’ actions. Heineken’s claims for damages and other relief remain viable and will proceed to trial. Ms. Reyes, you may have won this battle, but this war is far from over. Anything you want to say?” Luna stood slowly. “Your honor, I just want to say… thank you. For letting this go to trial. For letting these questions be answered properly. That’s all I ever wanted—for someone to seriously consider whether corporations should be allowed to own genetic information about naturally occurring organisms. So thank you.” Judge Ironwood’s expression softened slightly. “Ms. Reyes, I hope you’re prepared for what comes next. Heineken has unlimited resources. They will pursue this case for years if necessary. You’ll be in litigation until you’re twenty-five years old. Your entire young adulthood will be consumed by depositions, court appearances, and legal fees. Are you prepared for that?” “Yes, your honor.” “Why?” Luna glanced at her grandmother, who nodded. “Because some questions are worth answering, your honor. Even if it takes years. Even if it costs everything. The question of whether corporations can own life—that’s worth answering. And if I have to spend my twenties answering it, then that’s what I’ll do.” Judge Ironwood studied her for a long moment. “You remind me of someone I used to know. Someone who believed the law should serve justice, not just power.” She paused. “That person doesn’t exist anymore. The law ground her down. I hope it doesn’t do the same to you.” She raised her gavel. “This hearing is adjourned. The parties will be notified of the trial date once it’s scheduled. Ms. Reyes, good luck. I think you’re going to need it.” The gavel fell. Outside the courthouse, the scene was chaotic. News cameras surrounded Luna. Reporters shouted questions. But Luna barely heard them. She was looking at her father, who stood apart from the crowd, watching her. She walked over to him. “Papa, I’m sorry I yelled.” He didn’t speak for a moment. Then he pulled her into a hug so tight it hurt. “Don’t apologize for being brave,” he whispered into her hair. “I’m just afraid of losing you.” “You won’t lose me, Papa. I promise.” “You can’t promise that. Not anymore.” He pulled back, holding her shoulders. “But I’m proud of you. I’m terrified, but I’m proud.” Her mother joined them, tears streaming down her face. “No more court. Please, no more court.” “I can’t promise that either, Mama.” Elena touched Luna’s face. “Then promise me you’ll be careful. Promise me you’ll remember that you’re not just fighting for genetics. You’re fighting for your life.” Luna smiled. “I promise.” Abuela Rosa appeared, carrying her SCOBY. “Come, mija. We should go before the reporters follow us home.” As they pushed through the crowd toward Maya’s car, Luna's phone buzzed continuously. Text messages and emails pouring in. But what caught her attention was a text from Dr. Webb: You were right. I’m sorry I doubted. Check your email—Dr. Doudna wants to talk. Luna opened her email. The subject line made her stop walking: From: jennifer.doudna@berkeley.eduSubject: Civil Disobedience of the Highest Order She started to read: Dear Ms. Reyes, I watched your hearing this morning. What you did in that courtroom—refusing to back down even when threatened with jail—was one of the bravest things I’ve seen in forty years of science. You’re not just fighting for yeast genetics. You’re fighting for the principle that knowledge about nature belongs to humanity, not to corporations. I want to help… Luna looked up at her family—her father’s worried face, her mother’s tears, Maya’s proud smile, Abuela Rosa’s serene confidence. Behind them, the courthouse where she’d nearly been sent to jail. Around them, reporters and cameras and strangers who’d traveled across the country to support her. She thought about Judge Ironwood’s warning: This war is far from over. She thought about Barr’s face when the injunction was denied. She thought about the thousands who’d downloaded the genetic sequences and were, right now, brewing with genetics that had been locked away for 158 years. Worth it. All of it. Even the fear. Maya opened the car door. “Come on, little revolutionary. Let’s go home.” The Corporate Surrender By 2045, both Heineken and Anheuser-Busch quietly dropped their lawsuits against Luna. Their legal costs had exceeded $200 million while accomplishing nothing except generating bad publicity. More importantly, their “protected” strains had become worthless in a market flooded with superior alternatives. Heineken’s CEO attempted to salvage the company by embracing open-source brewing. His announcement that Heineken would “join the La Luna Revolution” was met with skepticism from the brewing community, which recalled the company’s aggressive legal tactics. The craft brewing community’s response was hostile. “They spent two years trying to destroy her,” a prominent brewmaster told The New Brewer Magazine. “Now they want credit for ’embracing’ the revolution she forced on them? Heineken didn’t join the Luna Revolution—they surrendered to it. There’s a difference.” The global brands never recovered their market share. Luna’s Transformation Luna’s success transformed her from a garage tinkerer into a global icon of the open knowledge movement. Her 2046 TED Talk, “Why Flavor Belongs to Everyone,” went viral. She argued that corporate control over living organisms represented “biological colonialism” that impoverished human culture by restricting natural diversity. Rather than commercializing her fame, Luna founded the Global Fermentation Commons, a nonprofit organization dedicated to preserving and sharing microbial genetics worldwide. Their laboratories operated as open-access research facilities where anyone could experiment with biological systems. The headquarters of the Global Fermentation Commons occupied a former Genentech facility donated by Dr. Webb. Six continents, forty researchers, one mission: preserve and share microbial genetics worldwide. Luna addressed a crowded auditorium at the organization’s third anniversary. “When I released Heineken and Budweiser’s yeast strains, some people called it theft. Others called it liberation. I called it returning biological knowledge to the commons, where it belongs. Three years later, so-called Luna Variants have created economic opportunities for thousands of small brewers, improved food security in developing regions, and demonstrated that genetic freedom drives innovation faster than corporate control.” She continued. “We’re not stopping with beer. The same principles apply to all fermentation: cheese cultures, yogurt bacteria, koji fungi, sourdough starters. Every traditionally fermented food relies on microorganisms that corporations increasingly claim to own. We’re systematically liberating them.” A World Health Organization representative raised a concern: “Ms. Reyes, while we support democratizing food fermentation, there are legitimate concerns about pharmaceutical applications. What prevents someone from using your open-source genetics to create dangerous organisms?” Luna nodded. “Fair question. First, the organisms we release are food-safe cultures with centuries of safe use. Second, dangerous genetic modifications require sophisticated laboratory equipment and expertise—far beyond what releasing genetic sequences enables. Third, determined bad actors already have access to dangerous biology, enabled by AI. We’re not creating new risks; we’re democratizing beneficial biology.” “Pharmaceutical companies argue you’re undermining their investments in beneficial organisms,” another representative pressed. “Pharmaceutical companies invest in modifying organisms,” Luna clarified. “Those modifications can be patented. What we oppose is claiming ownership over naturally occurring organisms or their baseline genetics. If you genetically engineer a bacterium to produce insulin, patent your engineering. Don’t claim ownership over the bacterial species itself.” A Monsanto representative stood. “Your organization recently cracked and released our proprietary seed genetics. That’s direct theft of our property.” Luna didn’t flinch. “Seeds that farmers cultivated for thousands of years before Monsanto existed? You didn’t invent corn, wheat, or soybeans. You modified them. Your modifications may be protectable; the baseline genetics are humanity’s heritage. We’re liberating what should never have been owned.” “The ‘Luna Legion’ has cost us hundreds of millions!” the representative protested. “Good,” Luna responded calmly. “You’ve cost farmers their sovereignty for decades. Consider it karma.” After the presentation, Dr. Doudna approached Luna privately. “You’ve accomplished something remarkable,” the elderly scientist said. “When I developed Crispr, I never imagined a teenager would use similar principles to challenge corporate biology. You’re forcing conversations about genetic ownership that we’ve avoided for decades.” “It needed forcing,” Luna replied. “Corporations were quietly owning life itself, one patent at a time. Someone had to say no.” “The pharmaceutical industry is terrified of you,” Doudna continued. “They see what happened to brewing and imagine the same for their carefully controlled bacterial strains. You’re going to face even more aggressive opposition.” “I know. Once people understand that biological knowledge can be liberated, they start questioning all biological ownership. We’re not stopping.” The New Economy of Taste Following Luna’s breakthrough, peer-to-peer flavor-sharing platforms emerged as the dominant force in food culture. The “FlavorChain” blockchain allowed brewers to track genetic lineages while ensuring proper attribution to original creators. SCOBY lineages were carefully sequenced, catalogued, and registered on global blockchain ledgers. Each award-winning kombucha strain carried a “genetic passport”—its microbial makeup, the unique balance of yeasts and bacteria that gave rise to particular mouthfeel, fizz, and flavor spectrum, was mapped, hashed, and permanently recorded. Brewers who created a new flavor could claim authorship, just as musicians once copyrighted songs. No matter how many times a SCOBY was divided, its fingerprint could be verified. Fermentation Guilds formed to share recipes through FlavorChain, enabling decentralized digital markets like SymbioTrdr, built on trust and transparency rather than speculation. They allowed people to interact and transact on a global, permissionless, self-executing platform. Within days, a SCOBY strain from the Himalayas could appear in a brew in Buenos Aires, its journey traced through open ledgers showing who tended, adapted, and shared it. Kombucha recipes were no longer jealously guarded secrets. They were open to anyone who wanted to brew. With a few clicks, a Guild member in Nairobi could download the blockchain-verified SCOBY genome that had won Gold at the Tokyo Fermentation Festival. Local biotech printers—as common in 2100 kitchens as microwave ovens had once been—could reconstitute the living culture cell by cell. Children began inheriting SCOBY lineages the way earlier generations inherited family names. Weddings combined SCOBY cultures as symbolic unions. (Let’s share our SCOBYs, baby, merge our ferments into one.) When someone died, their SCOBY was divided among friends and family—a continuation of essence through taste. Kombucha was no longer merely consumed; it was communed with. This transparency transformed kombucha from a minority regional curiosity into a universal language. A festival in Brazil might feature ten local interpretations of the same “Golden SCOBY” strain—one brewed with passionfruit, another with cupuaçu, a third with açaí berries. The core microbial signature remained intact, while the terroir of fruit and spice gave each version a unique accent. Brewers didn’t lose their craft—they gained a canvas. Award-winning SCOBYs were the foundations on which endless new flavor experiments flourished. Many people were now as prolific as William Esslinger, the founder of St Louis’s Confluence Kombucha, who was renowned for developing 800 flavors in the 2020s. Code of Symbiosis The Symbiosis Code, ratified at the first World Fermentation Gathering in Reykjavik (2063), bound Fermentation Guilds to three principles: Transparency — All microbial knowledge is to be shared freely. Reciprocity — No brew should be produced without acknowledging the source. Community — Every fermentation must nourish more than the brewer. This code replaced corporate law. It was enforced by reputation, not by governments. A Guild member who betrayed the code found their SCOBYs mysteriously refusing to thrive—a poetic justice the biologists never quite explained. Every Guild had elders—called Mothers of the Jar or Keepers of the Yeast. They carried living SCOBYs wrapped in silk pouches when traveling, exchanging fragments as blessings. These elders became moral anchors of the age, counselors and mediators trusted more than politicians. When disputes arose—over territory, resources, or ethics—brewers, not lawyers, met to share a round of Truth Brew, a ferment so balanced that it was said to reveal dishonesty through bitterness. The Fullness of Time The International Biotech Conference of 2052 invited Luna to give the closing keynote—a controversial decision that prompted several corporate sponsors to withdraw support. The auditorium was packed with supporters, critics, and the merely curious. “Nine years ago, I released genetic sequences for beer yeast strains protected as trade secrets. I was called a thief, a bioterrorist, worse. Today, I want to discuss what we’ve learned from those years of open-source biology.” She displayed a chart showing the explosion of brewing innovation since 2043. “In the traditional corporate model, a few companies control a few strains, producing a limited variety. With the open-source model, thousands of brewers using thousands of variants, producing infinite diversity. As Duff McDonald wrote “Anything that alive contains the universe, or infinite possibility. Kombucha is infinite possibility in a drink.” And the results speak for themselves—flavor innovation accelerated a thousand-fold when we removed corporate control.” A student activist approached the microphone. “Ms. Reyes, you’ve inspired movements to liberate seed genetics, soil bacteria, and traditional medicine cultures. The ‘Luna Legion’ is spreading globally. What’s your message to young people who want to continue this work?” Luna smiled. “First, understand the risks. I was sued by multinational corporations, received death threats, spent years fighting legal battles. This work has costs. Second, be strategic. Release information you’ve generated yourself through legal methods—no hacking, no theft. Third, build communities. I survived because people supported me—legally, financially, emotionally. You can’t fight corporations alone. Finally, remember why you’re doing it: to return biological knowledge to the commons where it belongs. That purpose will sustain you through the hard parts.” Teaching By twenty-eight, Luna was a MacArthur Fellow, teaching fermentation workshops in a converted Anheuser-Busch facility. As she watched her students—former corporate employees learning to think like ecosystems rather than factories—she reflected that her teenage hack had accomplished more than liberating yeast genetics. She had helped humanity remember that flavor, like knowledge, grows stronger when shared rather than hoarded. Luna’s garage had evolved into a sophisticated community biolab. The original jury-rigged equipment had been replaced with professional gear funded by her MacArthur Fellowship. Abuela Rosa still maintained her fermentation crocks in the corner—a reminder of where everything started. A group of five
En 1889, à Baltimore aux États-Unis le Dr William Halsted, brillant chirurgien, a révolutionné la pratique des opérations en Amérique en important les méthodes européennes, notamment celles de Louis Pasteur. Jusqu'à lui aux USA, on privilégiait l'intervention rapide, efficace, souvent sans anesthésie, au détriment de la stérilisation des instruments et de la désinfection des soignants comme des soignés. Ce qui a provoqué de nombreux décès et complications post-opératoires. Jusqu'à ce que le docteur Halsted révolutionne la médecine chirurgicale, grâce à un coup de foudre... Dans "Ah Ouais ?", Florian Gazan répond en une minute chrono à toutes les questions essentielles, existentielles, parfois complètement absurdes, qui vous traversent la tête. Un podcast RTL Originals.Hébergé par Audiomeans. Visitez audiomeans.fr/politique-de-confidentialite pour plus d'informations.
durée : 00:30:00 - Les Nuits de France Culture - par : Albane Penaranda, Mathias Le Gargasson, Antoine Dhulster - Un siècle après sa mort, “Les chemins de la connaissance” revisitent Louis Pasteur. Derrière le savant héroïsé, ce premier volet révèle un homme passionné, dévoué à la science mais à la personnalité complexe, non exempte d'ambitions, et écrasé par les mythes forgés de son vivant. - réalisation : Rafik Zénine, Vincent Abouchar, Emily Vallat - invités : Christiane Demeulenaere-Douyère
durée : 00:27:31 - Les Nuits de France Culture - par : Albane Penaranda, Mathias Le Gargasson, Antoine Dhulster - Chaque année, le 28 septembre, dans la crypte de l'Institut Pasteur où il repose, un hommage est rendu à Louis Pasteur. Ce dernier épisode s'interroge sur le sens de cette cérémonie et sur ce qui demeure de l'esprit insufflé par le savant à la science du 19e siècle. - réalisation : Rafik Zénine, Vincent Abouchar, Emily Vallat - invités : Maxime Schwartz Biologiste moléculaire, ancien directeur général de Pasteur
durée : 00:28:24 - Les Nuits de France Culture - par : Albane Penaranda, Mathias Le Gargasson, Antoine Dhulster - Dans ce quatrième épisode de la série des "Chemins de la connaissance" consacrée à Louis Pasteur, Dominique Lecourt expose la position philosophique défendue par le célèbre savant dans la science. - réalisation : Rafik Zénine, Vincent Abouchar, Emily Vallat - invités : Dominique Lecourt Professeur de philosophie à l'université Paris Diderot et directeur général de l'Institut Diderot
durée : 00:07:30 - Les Nuits de France Culture - par : Albane Penaranda, Mathias Le Gargasson, Antoine Dhulster - En 1954, dans l'émission "Cent merveilles", Sacha Guitry prête sa voix à Louis Pasteur pour lire une lettre adressée à son ami Jules Vercel, où le savant exprime sa foi en la science et son espoir de vaincre la rage. - réalisation : Rafik Zénine, Vincent Abouchar, Emily Vallat - invités : Sacha Guitry Dramaturge, acteur, metteur en scène, réalisateur et scénariste français
durée : 00:44:58 - Les Nuits de France Culture - par : Albane Penaranda - Cinquième et dernier volet de la série "Grands savants, grands médecins", cette fiction radiophonique redonne vie à Émile Roux, le très proche et peut-être le plus précieux disciple et collaborateur de Louis Pasteur, un monument de l'histoire scientifique et médicale bien que resté très discret. - réalisation : Rafik Zénine
durée : 00:29:56 - Les Nuits de France Culture - par : Albane Penaranda, Mathias Le Gargasson, Antoine Dhulster - Pasteur n'a jamais cessé d'être un chimiste en devenant un pionnier de la microbiologie. Ce troisième volet de la série qui lui est consacrée en 1995, expose en quoi son génie a profondément fait avancer la science dans les différents domaines qu'il a embrassés. - réalisation : Rafik Zénine, Vincent Abouchar, Emily Vallat - invités : Patrice Debré Professeur en immunologie; Annick Perrot Conservateur honoraire au Musée Pasteur
durée : 00:04:29 - Les Nuits de France Culture - par : Albane Penaranda, Mathias Le Gargasson, Antoine Dhulster - En 1939, Radio Paris recueille le témoignage de Joseph Meister, premier humain vacciné contre la rage par l'équipe de Louis Pasteur. Sauvé enfant, devenu concierge à l'Institut Pasteur, il raconte son histoire seulement quelques mois avant de mettre fin à ses jours dans un Paris occupé. - réalisation : Rafik Zénine, Vincent Abouchar, Emily Vallat
durée : 00:56:04 - Les Nuits de France Culture - par : Albane Penaranda - La figure de Louis Pasteur a été l'une de celles à laquelle on a très souvent recours pour chanter le génie français que ce soit sur les planches, au cinéma ou à la télévision. Voici une évocation sonore, datant de 1958 et au charme désuet, de la vie et l'œuvre du grand homme. - réalisation : Rafik Zénine
durée : 00:03:31 - Les Nuits de France Culture - par : Albane Penaranda - Un parcours radiophonique autour de Louis Pasteur et de l'Institut Pasteur : fictions, archives, témoignages et analyses pour comprendre le savant, son œuvre et la trace qu'il a laissée dans la recherche moderne. - réalisation : Rafik Zénine
In this explosive interview, Dr. Peter McCullough and epidemiologist Nicolas Hulscher expose the untold history, ideology, and corruption behind the global vaccine narrative — from Cotton Mather and Louis Pasteur to Fauci and the modern mRNA era. They reveal shocking evidence of contaminated polio shots, untested childhood vaccine schedules, and the CDC's deceptive reporting tactics that have silenced doctors who dare to question “the science.” Together, they uncover how fear, power, and profit created a modern-day religion of vaccinology that has replaced faith in God with faith in pharmaceuticals. Dr. McCullough also dives deep into the disturbing genetic chaos caused by mRNA shots — linking them to turbo cancers, blood clots, dementia, infertility, and transgenerational harm. They also discuss the alarming normalization of disease, the rise of autism and gender confusion, and the moral collapse of medicine that's putting children at risk. This is one of the most eye-opening conversations ever released on the Rebecca Weiss Podcast — a must-watch for anyone who values truth, freedom, and medical autonomy.
In this explosive interview, Dr. Peter McCullough and epidemiologist Nicolas Hulscher expose the untold history, ideology, and corruption behind the global vaccine narrative — from Cotton Mather and Louis Pasteur to Fauci and the modern mRNA era. They reveal shocking evidence of contaminated polio shots, untested childhood vaccine schedules, and the CDC's deceptive reporting tactics that have silenced doctors who dare to question “the science.” Together, they uncover how fear, power, and profit created a modern-day religion of vaccinology that has replaced faith in God with faith in pharmaceuticals. Dr. McCullough also dives deep into the disturbing genetic chaos caused by mRNA shots — linking them to turbo cancers, blood clots, dementia, infertility, and transgenerational harm. They also discuss the alarming normalization of disease, the rise of autism and gender confusion, and the moral collapse of medicine that's putting children at risk. This is one of the most eye-opening conversations ever released on the Rebecca Weiss Podcast — a must-watch for anyone who values truth, freedom, and medical autonomy.
Episode: 3334 In Praise of Humble Lint. Today highlighting a former fabric byproduct.
Louis Pasteur (1822-1895) was one of the greatest scientists of all time. His discoveries in vaccines, pasteurization, and germ theory have literally saved millions of lives.But he was more than just a microbiologist or chemist. He was a man who saw that true science points to God.Pasteur is often credited with saying:“The more I study nature, the more I stand amazed at the work of the Creator.”Louis PasteurEvery new discovery wasn't a reason to boast in human knowledge—it was a reason to marvel at divine wisdom.Take time today to look at God's creation and see how great God is. Step outside. Look at the sky, a tree, or even the smallest flower, and remember this is God's handiwork.Lift up your eyes on high and see:who created these?Isaiah 40:26 (ESV)God has made it clear that His creation reveals who He is, and God holds people accountable to recognize Him.For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made.Romans 1:18-25 (ESV)Don't suppress the truth.Don't choose to become a fool.Like Pasteur, choose to be amazed by the Creator.Before I go, I'd like to share a blessing with you from the Old Testament.“May the Lord bless and protect you; may the Lord's face radiate with joy because of you; may he be gracious to you, show you his favor, and give you his peace.”Numbers 6:24-26 (The Living Bible)Until next time … be the reason someone smiles today. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit clintmorey.substack.com
Durante dois dias, especialistas brasileiros e franceses se reúnem no Fórum do Amanhã Paris 2025, aberto nesta segunda-feira (29), no Hôtel de l'Industrie, no centro da capital francesa. O evento discute temas como biodiversidade, mudanças climáticas, saúde, povos indígenas e movimentos sociais. A troca de experiências visa ampliar a cooperação entre os dois países, por meio de conferências, apresentações de pesquisas, livros, exposições, filmes e shows. Maria Paula Carvalho, da RFI em Paris Os convidados são profissionais que celebram a relação de mais de duzentos anos entre o Brasil e a França, como explica Sophie Tzitzichvili, fundadora da Associação "Os Aprendizes da Esperança" e diretora artística do Fórum do Amanhã Paris. "Nós somos estrangeiros, e o estrangeiro vai ser sempre visto como um colonizador. Não há a menor dúvida. Porém, é uma questão de consciência, de respeito e de postura: de se colocar à disposição das populações, e não o contrário." O impacto social de empresas francesas no Brasil e a cooperação bilateral em ensino superior estiveram entre os temas de destaque. Uma das mesas-redondas tratou da formação de jovens pesquisadores. Doutor em História pela Universidade Federal Fluminense (UFF), Everton Viera Barbosa é pesquisador na Universidade Sorbonne Paris-Nord. "Eu vim falar sobre um projeto do qual faço parte, chamado 'Arquétipo Transatlântico', submetido no ano passado por uma equipe brasileira e francesa de pesquisadores e historiadores de diversas universidades, no quadro de um projeto do CAPES-COFECUB", explica em entrevista à RFI. "É um projeto que começou este ano e que trata das relações entre intelectuais brasileiros e franceses em relação à História, dentro da Escola dos Annales e de Frankfurt. Então, há uma relação entre França, Brasil e Alemanha, no período que vai de 1945, após a Segunda Guerra Mundial, até 1968, quando ocorreram as manifestações estudantis de maio na França e, no Brasil, o AI-5, durante a Ditadura Militar", diz. Estatisticamente, há mais estudantes brasileiros em universidades francesas do que o contrário. No período 2023-2024, eram 5.527 brasileiros no ensino superior na França, contra 238 franceses em instituições de educação brasileiras. Em 2020, a França foi o sétimo país mais procurado por estudantes brasileiros. No topo da lista estão Argentina, Portugal e Estados Unidos. Entre as dificuldades para o intercâmbio acadêmico estão o financiamento, os custos de logística e mobilidade, os vistos e as diferenças linguísticas. Os temas mais abordados por pesquisadores brasileiros na França são biodiversidade, mudanças climáticas, gestão de recursos naturais, agricultura e saúde. Serge Borg, ex-adido de cooperação linguística e educativa da Francofonia no Brasil e professor da Universidade Marie e Louis Pasteur, de Besançon, destaca que França e Brasil têm uma parceria sólida e duradoura. "É uma cooperação ampla, rica, sustentada pelas Secretarias de Educação de cada estado. Temos vários programas de promoção, bolsas acadêmicas e, por enquanto, a francofonia no Brasil está em ótima posição, apesar da concorrência com o espanhol e o inglês", diz. "Não podemos esquecer que o país com o qual a França tem a maior fronteira é o Brasil, com a Amazônia. Então, há problemáticas conjuntas dos dois lados da fronteira, e esta é uma parceria durável", acrescenta Serge Borg. .Outro painel foi dedicado às parcerias em inovação tecnológica e fitoterapia. O encontro explorou o potencial da medicina brasileira, nascida do encontro entre povos indígenas, europeus e africanos, integrando plantas medicinais, rituais e experiência cotidiana. Entre as empresas participantes está o laboratório francês Apis Flora, que produz própolis em Ribeirão Preto, interior de São Paulo, desde 2017, tornando-se o principal produtor desse produto originário de abelhas no Brasil. O grupo que atua em quase 40 países, tem um faturamento anual de R$ 120 milhões no Brasil, onde a empresa cresceu 160% nos últimos três anos. "O Brasil, hoje em dia, é uma filial e um país muito importante, que nos permite ter um abastecimento de matéria-prima e plantas que são especialidades do grupo", disse Stéphane Lehning, presidente do laboratório Apis Flora, em entrevista à RFI. A empresa Meu Amour Brasil produz peças com uso do Capim Dourado, que nasce no Jalapão. "É um artesanato que preserva a natureza e que é um tesouro do Brasil, que tem que ser conhecido pelo mundo", diz a fundadora da empresa, Isabela Cardoso. As discussões ao longo desses dois dias resultarão em um documento destacando os principais temas e desafios para o futuro, que poderá ser compartilhado com órgãos públicos e privados. O encontro ganha mais relevância às vésperas da COP 30 no Brasil. Um desfile de moda e um concerto de choro encerram a programação do Fórum do Amanhã Paris 2025.
Matters Microbial #109: Bat-Crazy About Rabies September 26, 2025 In honor of World Rabies Day, Dr. Rodney Rohde, Regents Professor at Texas State University, joins the #QualityQuorum to discuss rabies and some of the strategies used to limit the influence of that devastating viral disease. Host: Mark O. Martin Guest: Rodney Rohde Subscribe: Apple Podcasts, Spotify Become a patron of Matters Microbial! Links for this episode An overview of rabies from the CDC. A historical overview of rabies and Louis Pasteur. The global impact of rabies. Bats and rabies. A podcast exploring rabies and myths about vampires and werewolves. A wonderful video about rabies SO worth your time. A video with three physicians about rabies. A detailed review of rabies and the rabies virus. The lifecycle of the rabies virus. Various tests for rabies. The vaccines for rabies. Rabies research at the CDC. Use of an oral rabies vaccine to eliminate epizootic rabies in coyotes and gray foxes in Texas. Information about World Rabies Day. The Contagion Live website, including podcasts by Dr. Rohde. A video from Dr. Rohde about medical laboratory science. A video from Dr. Rohde about rabies. Dr. Rohde's biography from the American Society for Microbiology. Dr. Rohde's faculty website. Dr. Rohde's personal website. Intro music is by Reber Clark Send your questions and comments to mattersmicrobial@gmail.com
In dieser Folge werfen Michi und Moritz einen intensiven Blick auf das Leben und Wirken von Louis Pasteur, einem der bekanntesten Namen der Wissenschaftsgeschichte. Vom jungen Kunstliebhaber aus der französischen Provinz zum Pionier der Mikrobiologie führte Pasteurs Weg über Kristalle, Weinsäure und Gärung bis hin zur Entwicklung bahnbrechender Impfstoffe. Die beiden diskutieren seine Arbeiten zur Widerlegung der Spontanzeugung, die Entdeckung der Pasteurisierung, seinen Beitrag zur Seuchenbekämpfung und seinen manchmal schwierigen Charakter. Wie politisch war Pasteur wirklich? Warum gilt er als Held, obwohl viele seiner Erkenntnisse auf anderen Forschern basierten? Und wie rettete er mit einem ungetesteten Impfstoff das Leben eines Jungen und veränderte damit die Medizin für immer? Eine Episode über Wissenschaft, Macht, Hygiene und das Streben nach Unsterblichkeit im Namen der Forschung.
In dieser Folge werfen Michi und Moritz einen intensiven Blick auf das Leben und Wirken von Louis Pasteur, einem der bekanntesten Namen der Wissenschaftsgeschichte. Vom jungen Kunstliebhaber aus der französischen Provinz zum Pionier der Mikrobiologie führte Pasteurs Weg über Kristalle, Weinsäure und Gärung bis hin zur Entwicklung bahnbrechender Impfstoffe. Die beiden diskutieren seine Arbeiten zur Widerlegung der Spontanzeugung, die Entdeckung der Pasteurisierung, seinen Beitrag zur Seuchenbekämpfung und seinen manchmal schwierigen Charakter. Wie politisch war Pasteur wirklich? Warum gilt er als Held, obwohl viele seiner Erkenntnisse auf anderen Forschern basierten? Und wie rettete er mit einem ungetesteten Impfstoff das Leben eines Jungen und veränderte damit die Medizin für immer? Eine Episode über Wissenschaft, Macht, Hygiene und das Streben nach Unsterblichkeit im Namen der Forschung.
In May 1886 a physician in Watertown, Dakota Territory, was bitten by what press reports said was a “mad dog.” The doctor immediately booked steamship passage, “gone to Paris,” the papers said, “to consult Pasteur.” Just the year previous, 1885, Louis Pasteur had announced discovery of his somewhat tortuous vaccination procedure for rabies.
In this special collaboration with History Daily, we present a double feature exploring two pivotal moments in history.First, you'll hear the story of Lewis and Clark's return after successfully completing the first U.S. overland journey to the Pacific Ocean.Then, you'll learn how French biologist Louis Pasteur developed a method of heating liquids to destroy harmful bacteria - a process that would come to bear his name.Hear more episodes from History Daily here.-----------Join the History of Fresh Produce Club for ad-free listening, bonus episodes, book discounts and access to an exclusive chatroom community.Support us!Share this episode with your friendsGive a 5-star ratingWrite a review -----------Subscribe to our biweekly newsletter here for extra stories related to recent episodes, book recommendations, a sneak peek of upcoming episodes and more.-----------Step into history - literally! Now is your chance to own a pair of The History of Fresh Produce sneakers. Fill out the form here and get ready to walk through the past in style.-----------Instagram, TikTok, Threads:@historyoffreshproduceEmail: historyoffreshproduce@gmail.com
3714 – August 21, 2025 – I Have No Culture – I'm a little distraught this morning. I learned yesterday that white people have no culture… AND we never invented anything. THIS shook my world. And I thought… well, I didn't know that Louis Pasteur was BLACK? Maybe I shouldn’t take this too hard and as the old saying (from somebody's ... The post I Have No Culture appeared first on CSC Talk Radio.
L'émission 28 minutes du 16/08/2025 Le meilleur des Clubs 28' dans une émission spéciale best of Club !Découvrez ou redécouvrez le meilleur de nos débats entre nos experts internationaux, invités de la semaine et chroniqueurs. Pour commencer, retour sur les temps forts qui ont récemment marqué l'actualité : les orientations budgétaires présentées par François Bayrou, le couple franco-allemand qui bat de l'aile, la loi anticorruption en Ukraine, Mette Frederiksen, la dame de fer danoise nommée à la tête de l'Europe, l'arrêt du train royal britannique par Charles III…Poursuivez ensuite en compagnie de nos invités du samedi : l'écrivain, essayiste et enseignant à Sciences-Po, Sébastien Spitzer qui déculpabilise la sieste, l'historienne et maîtresse de conférences en histoire ancienne à l'Université de Lille Caroline Husquin, qui fait découvrir les préjugés entourant les chauves dans la Rome antique, ou bien encore le maître de conférence en psychologie cognitive à l'Université Marie et Louis Pasteur et créateur de tours pour prestidigitateurs internationaux, Cyril Thomas qui nous fait comprendre comment la magie manipule notre esprit !Enfin, dans “À méditer”, Marjorie Adelson revient sur les couples et leurs litiges sur la route des vacances, et dans “Intéressant”, David-Castello Lopes se demande pourquoi Bugs Bunny mange-t-il des carottes ?28 minutes est le magazine d'actualité d'ARTE, présenté par Élisabeth Quin du lundi au jeudi à 20h05. Renaud Dély est aux commandes de l'émission le vendredi et le samedi. Ce podcast est coproduit par KM et ARTE Radio. Enregistrement 16 août 2025 Présentation Benjamin Sportouch Production KM, ARTE Radio
Carl Zimmer joins to discuss Airborne: The Hidden History of the Life We Breathe, a book that excavates the forgotten science of airborne disease transmission—from Louis Pasteur's broth experiments to why COVID's airborne nature was dismissed by health authorities. Also : praise for the New York Times' recent front-page study that honestly asses the failure of a cash transfer program to aid in childhood development. Produced by Corey Wara Production Coordinator Ashley Khan Email us at thegist@mikepesca.com To advertise on the show, contact ad-sales@libsyn.com or visit https://advertising.libsyn.com/TheGist Subscribe to The Gist: https://subscribe.mikepesca.com/ Subscribe to The Gist Youtube Page: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4_bh0wHgk2YfpKf4rg40_g Subscribe to The Gist Instagram Page: GIST INSTAGRAM Follow The Gist List at: Pesca Profundities | Mike Pesca | Substack
It's another baffling dive into 1980s biographies written for children! The podcasting siblings Bambi and Jamie Chambers learn all about RFK Jr.'s ultimate nemesis (i.e. a pioneer of germ theory and vaccine science) when they read The Value of Believing In Yourself: The Story of Louis Pasteur. This time our hero is absent for half the book while we learn all about a stick-wielding German kid named Joey who enjoys tormenting dogs and is gifted with rabies as punishment, before becoming the first person ever cured from the deadly disease. Instead of a single science fact, we instead learn that vaccines are magic and contain miniaturized British soldiers equipped with darkvision and bayonets. And if you want to also achieve success you must clearly wander around in public muttering "I believe I can!" after getting blasted on chemical fumes.Support the show and stay tuned with us on social media and discover more on our website: http://www.chainsawhistory.com
Des centaines de profs de français vont se retrouver à la fin de la semaine pour le 16è Congrès mondial de la FIPF, la Fédération internationale des profs de français. La francophonie est-elle une utopie ? Du 10 au 17 juillet 2025, la ville de Besançon en France accueillera cette seizième édition du Congrès Mondial des professeurs de français. Cette année, le thème retenu est : «les utopies francophones en tout genre». Un thème dont s'est saisi le linguiste Jean-Louis Chiss, linguiste qui prononcera la conférence inaugurale ! Besançon n'a pas été choisie au hasard. En effet, cette située dans l'est de la France est la ville natale de Victor Hugo, de Louis Pasteur, mais aussi de Charles Fourier, qui fut un philosophe utopiste. La discipline du FLE (Française Langue Étrangère) en tant que telle, n'est pas si ancienne puisqu'elle est créée en 1969, mais c'est dans les années 1980 qu'apparaît «la maîtrise de FLE». Mais en réalité, c'est une création de la fin du XIXè siècle avec l'Alliance française, dont l'un des objectifs était de développer l'enseignement du français dans le monde ! Le terme «francophonie» apparait dans les années 1860 sous la plume de Onésime Reclus, anarchiste libertaire, mais aussi défenseur de la colonisation, ce qui a rendu ce mot éminemment politique... On a toujours des discussions sur l'avenir de la francophonie. Mais ma réticence vient de la définition même du mot «francophonie». Jean-Louis Chiss Avec l'évolution de la technologie, l'IA a pris une place prépondérante dans les apprentissages, à tel point qu'on ne peut plus s'en passer. 80% des élèves auraient déjà utilisé l'IA générative pour faire leurs devoirs. Mais comment utiliser l'Intelligence Artificielle pour développer la réflexivité des élèves et les inciter à se poser des questions ? Thomas Ricart a créé le site Ecrivor pour «donner le temps de travailler» et l'envie d'écrire aux élèves et faire gagner du temps aux enseignants. L'IA ne peut pas tout, notamment sur des problématiques de langue. Il faut l'orienter dans son travail pour mieux aider ses élèves ! Thomas Ricart, développeur du site Ecrivor Invités : - Jean-Louis CHISS, linguiste, professeur émérite en sciences du langage à l'Université Sorbonne Nouvelle. Il prononcera la conférence inaugurale - Thomas Ricart, développeur du site Internet baptisé Ecrivor, utilisé par 500 professeurs de toutes les matières qui nécessitent de la production d'écrits. Le site, qui existe depuis quelques mois, est soutenu par l'Éducation nationale. Programmation musicale : Le groupe 1515 avec le titre Afa.
Des centaines de profs de français vont se retrouver à la fin de la semaine pour le 16è Congrès mondial de la FIPF, la Fédération internationale des profs de français. La francophonie est-elle une utopie ? Du 10 au 17 juillet 2025, la ville de Besançon en France accueillera cette seizième édition du Congrès Mondial des professeurs de français. Cette année, le thème retenu est : «les utopies francophones en tout genre». Un thème dont s'est saisi le linguiste Jean-Louis Chiss, linguiste qui prononcera la conférence inaugurale ! Besançon n'a pas été choisie au hasard. En effet, cette située dans l'est de la France est la ville natale de Victor Hugo, de Louis Pasteur, mais aussi de Charles Fourier, qui fut un philosophe utopiste. La discipline du FLE (Française Langue Étrangère) en tant que telle, n'est pas si ancienne puisqu'elle est créée en 1969, mais c'est dans les années 1980 qu'apparaît «la maîtrise de FLE». Mais en réalité, c'est une création de la fin du XIXè siècle avec l'Alliance française, dont l'un des objectifs était de développer l'enseignement du français dans le monde ! Le terme «francophonie» apparait dans les années 1860 sous la plume de Onésime Reclus, anarchiste libertaire, mais aussi défenseur de la colonisation, ce qui a rendu ce mot éminemment politique... On a toujours des discussions sur l'avenir de la francophonie. Mais ma réticence vient de la définition même du mot «francophonie». Jean-Louis Chiss Avec l'évolution de la technologie, l'IA a pris une place prépondérante dans les apprentissages, à tel point qu'on ne peut plus s'en passer. 80% des élèves auraient déjà utilisé l'IA générative pour faire leurs devoirs. Mais comment utiliser l'Intelligence Artificielle pour développer la réflexivité des élèves et les inciter à se poser des questions ? Thomas Ricart a créé le site Ecrivor pour «donner le temps de travailler» et l'envie d'écrire aux élèves et faire gagner du temps aux enseignants. L'IA ne peut pas tout, notamment sur des problématiques de langue. Il faut l'orienter dans son travail pour mieux aider ses élèves ! Thomas Ricart, développeur du site Ecrivor Invités : - Jean-Louis CHISS, linguiste, professeur émérite en sciences du langage à l'Université Sorbonne Nouvelle. Il prononcera la conférence inaugurale - Thomas Ricart, développeur du site Internet baptisé Ecrivor, utilisé par 500 professeurs de toutes les matières qui nécessitent de la production d'écrits. Le site, qui existe depuis quelques mois, est soutenu par l'Éducation nationale. Programmation musicale : Le groupe 1515 avec le titre Afa.
L'émission 28 minutes du 05/07/2025 Ce samedi, Renaud Dély décrypte l'actualité avec le regard international de nos clubistes : Juan Jose Dorado, correspondant espagnol à Paris, Martial Ze Belinga, économiste et sociologue, Anna Kowalska, correspondante de la télévision publique polonaise TVP et la dessinatrice de presse à l'hebdomadaire allemand “Stern”, Dorthe Landschulz.La climatisation : une solution démagogique pour lutter contre le réchauffement climatique ?Alors que ce début d'été 2025 est marqué par des températures caniculaires dans toute l'Europe, la question de l'adaptation aux vagues de chaleur devient pressante. En France, entre aménagement des horaires de travail, réflexion sur l'urbanisme et refonte des infrastructures, les pistes apparaissent nombreuses. Pourtant, c'est davantage la climatisation qui s'est invitée au cœur d'un débat de plus en plus idéologique. Marine Le Pen (RN) a promis un « grand plan climatisation » si elle accédait au pouvoir. Une déclaration qui n'a pas manqué de faire réagir à gauche, notamment Marine Tondelier (EELV), qui a raillé cette solution jugée simpliste face à une crise systémique. Le RN est-il en train de faire de la climatisation un étendard populiste dans la lutte contre le réchauffement climatique ? Ce débat autour de la “clim” est-il circonscrit à l'Hexagone ?Guerre en Ukraine : Trump va-t-il lâcher Kiev ?Voilà qui semble un aveu d'abandon. Après un récent échange téléphonique avec Vladimir Poutine, Donald Trump semble buter sur la réalité de la guerre en Ukraine, reconnaissant n'avoir obtenu “aucun progrès” sur le front diplomatique. Dans la foulée, Washington a annoncé, à la surprise générale, la suspension temporaire de plusieurs livraisons d'armes à Kiev. Officiellement, il s'agit de “préserver les intérêts américains”, selon la Maison Blanche, alors que les stocks de l'armée s'amenuisent. Un rééquilibrage stratégique ou le début d'un désengagement ? Nous recevons en invité de la semaine Cyril Thomas, maître de conférence en psychologie cognitive à l'Université Marie et Louis Pasteur et créateur de tours pour prestidigitateurs internationaux. Dans “Les Secrets de la prestidigitation. Comment les magiciens manipulent notre esprit”, paru chez Odile Jacob, le chercheur démontre et analyse comment les tours de magie “tirent parti du fonctionnement de notre attention, de nos failles cognitives et de nos biais de raisonnements”. Valérie Brochard nous donne des nouvelles de nos chers voisins belges. Leur ministre des Classes moyennes, des Indépendants et des PME, Éléonore Simonet, vient de proposer une mesure consistant à affilier les trafiquants condamnés au régime social des indépendants. Objectif : imposer rétroactivement leurs revenus illégaux, tout en suspendant leurs aides sociales.Olivier Boucreux décerne le titre d'employé de la semaine à Mette Frederiksen, surnommée “la dame de fer du Danemark”. Le pays assure, depuis le 1er juillet dernier, la présidence tournante de l'Union européenne. Portrait.Fred Pommier zappe sur la télévision britannique où, une nouvelle suscite nombre de commentaires : Charles III dit adieu au train royal, privilège des Windsor depuis 1977. Marjorie Adelson s'intéresse à un fait de société, celui des divorces gris, qui démontre que l'on n'hésite plus à divorcer passé les 50 ans.Enfin, ne manquez pas la question très intéressante de David Castello-Lopes : demain, y aura-t-il toujours des bananes ?28 minutes est le magazine d'actualité d'ARTE, présenté par Élisabeth Quin du lundi au jeudi à 20h05. Renaud Dély est aux commandes de l'émission le vendredi et le samedi. Ce podcast est coproduit par KM et ARTE Radio. Enregistrement 5 juillet 2025 Présentation Renaud Dély Production KM, ARTE Radio
My guest on this week's Book Club podcast is science writer Carl Zimmer, whose new book Air-Borne: The Hidden History of the Life We Breathe explores the invisible world of the aerobiome – the trillions of microbes and particles we inhale every day. He tells me how Louis Pasteur's glacier experiments kicked off a forgotten scientific journey; how Cold War fears turned airborne research into a bioweapons race; and why the COVID-19 pandemic exposed a century-long misunderstanding about how diseases spread through the air.
My guest on this week's Book Club podcast is science writer Carl Zimmer, whose new book Air-Borne: The Hidden History of the Life We Breathe explores the invisible world of the aerobiome – the trillions of microbes and particles we inhale every day. He tells me how Louis Pasteur's glacier experiments kicked off a forgotten scientific journey; how Cold War fears turned airborne research into a bioweapons race; and why the COVID-19 pandemic exposed a century-long misunderstanding about how diseases spread through the air.
Was hat Louis Pasteur mit Spiegelbakterien zu tun? Warum essen wir nicht alle Spiegelzucker? Und wo kommt da Alice im Wunderland ins Spiel? Diese und eine Reihe von Hörerfragen beantwortet das Team in dieser Bonusfolge. Sie werden dabei unter anderem unterstützt von den Chemikern Gerd Folkers, Sebastian Oehm und Jeanne Crassous.
Was hat Louis Pasteur mit Spiegelbakterien zu tun? Warum essen wir nicht alle Spiegelzucker? Und wo kommt da Alice im Wunderland ins Spiel? Diese und eine Reihe von Hörerfragen beantwortet das Team in dieser Bonusfolge. Sie werden dabei unter anderem unterstützt von den Chemikern Gerd Folkers, Sebastian Oehm und Jeanne Crassous.
In this episode Dr's J and Santhosh do a body good discussing the history of raw milk and how civilization vastly improved upon it. Along the way, they cover science for spite, Louis Pasteur and his famous revenge beer, nineteenth century infant mortality, Kochs postulates, petty science deathmatch fights, scientist franchise dreams, the definition of pasteurization, Dr Santhosh farmhand upbringing, history of the raw milk moo-vement, bovine tuberculosis, brucellosis, the parsifal study, refutations of raw milk arguments and more! so sit back and relax as this episode, unlike raw milk, does a body good!Further Readinghttps://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC7664790/#:~:text=CONCLUSION,in%20endemic%20regions%20for%20brucellosis.https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC5443421/#:~:text=Consumers%20of%20unpasteurized%20milk%20and,more%20likely%20to%20be%20hospitalized.https://www.fda.gov/food/buy-store-serve-safe-food/raw-milk-misconceptions-and-danger-raw-milk-consumption#:~:text=Raw%20milk%20is%20not%20an,state%20(CDC%2C%202007).Support Us spiritually, emotionally or financially here! or on ACAST+travelmedicinepodcast.comBlueSky/Mastodon/X: @doctorjcomedy @toshyfroTikotok: DrjtoksmedicineGmail: travelmedicinepodcast@gmail.comSpotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/28uQe3cYGrTLhP6X0zyEhTPatreon: https://www.patreon.com/travelmedicinepodcast Supporting us monthly has all sorts of perks! You get ad free episodes, bonus musical parody, behind the scenes conversations not available to regular folks and more!! Your support helps us to pay for more guest interviews, better equipment, and behind the scenes people who know what they are doing! https://plus.acast.com/s/travelmedicinepodcast. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
durée : 00:29:10 - L'Entretien archéologique - par : Antoine Beauchamp - Des fouilles préventives menées par l'INRAP près d'Auxerre ont révélé la présence d'une villa gallo-romaine très vaste habitée entre le Ier et le IVe siècles. On plonge dans ce chantier et ce passé où résonnent les eaux d'un bassin, d'une fontaine et de thermes. - réalisation : Olivier Bétard - invités : Alexandre Burgevin Archéologue, chargé d'opération et de recherche INRAP au sein de l'Unité mixte de recherche Chrono environnement de l'Université Marie et Louis Pasteur de Besançon
*** OUR INTRO AND OUTRO WERE MUTED - PODCAST STARTS AT 35 SECONDS*** In this episode of The Balanced Bodies Blueprint, Coach Vinny Russo and Dr. Eryn Russo take a deep dive into the controversial views of Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who is now serving as Secretary of Health and Human Services. We dissect RFK Jr.'s support for terrain theory — an outdated belief rooted in Antoine Béchamp's “host theory” that argues disease comes from within the body, not from external pathogens. We contrast this with Louis Pasteur's germ theory, which forms the backbone of modern medicine. From questioning vaccines and antibiotics to promoting natural immunity and detox culture, RFK's ideology has the potential to disrupt decades of public health progress. We also analyze the ripple effects of his policies at HHS, including massive staff layoffs, restructuring of CDC and NIH programs, and his polarizing vaccine messaging campaign. Is RFK Jr. a visionary... or a risk to public health? We'll break down the science, the pseudoscience, and why this debate is far more than academic — it's about the future of medicine and public trust. Whether you're a science-minded skeptic or a curious critic of mainstream medicine, this episode is your go-to resource for understanding the RFK Jr. controversy through a balanced, evidence-based lens. Coach Vinny Email: vinny@balancedbodies.io Instagram: vinnyrusso_balancedbodies Facebook: Vinny Russo Dr. Eryn Email: dr.eryn@balancedbodies.io Instagram: dr.eryn_balancedbodies Facebook: Eryn Stansfield LEGION 20% OFF CODE Go to https://legionathletics.com/ and use the code RUSSO for 20% off your order!
The discovery of vaccines shows that there's no discrepancy between science and Torah. Since the Torah is the Almighty's blueprint for creating the world, all the true scientific knowledge is in the Torah. Many of our sages, such as the Gaon of Vilna, the Shatzer Rov of London and the Chazon Ish were mathematical and scientific geniuses...
261. Edible Theology with Kendall Vanderslice Kendall's Website John 6:35 NIV "Then Jesus declared, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty." **Transcription Below** Kendall Vanderslice says "Yes, before you ask, that is my true name." Kendall is a baker and writer whose best thinking occurs as she works dough between her hands; scribbles down thoughts on pieces of parchment dusted in flour, until she can parse them out later before her keyboard. When she embarked on a career as a pastry chef, she found that her love of bread transformed the ways she read Scripture. Fascinated by God's use of food throughout the arc of the Gospel, she merged her work in the kitchen with academic study of food and theology. As a graduate of Wheaton College in Illinois (BA Anthropology), she began engaging questions of food and faith. Interested in commensality—or, the social dynamics of eating together—she studied food at Boston University (MLA Gastronomy). Her thesis on church meals sparked a range of theological questions, leading her to Duke University where she wrote a thesis on the theology of bread (MTS). In 2018 she was named a James Beard Foundation national scholar for her work on food and religion. She lives in Durham, North Carolina, with her beagle, Strudel, her sourdough starter Bread Astaire, and her brood of hens: Judith Jones and the Three Gourmands. Questions and Topics We Cover: You've studied so much about food and theology . . . are there any favorite lessons or resources that you still think about today? Is there any other science in the bread baking that is fascinating because it also has a richer, deeper spiritual meaning? What's one recipe in the book you're especially excited about? Other Episode Mentioned from The Savvy Sauce: 47 Relationships and Opportunities that Arise from Using Your Gifts with Founder of Neighbor's Table, Sarah Harmeyer Related Episodes on The Savvy Sauce: 15 The Supernatural Power Present While Gathering at the Table with Devi Titus Practical Tips to Eating Dinner Together as a Family with Blogger and Cookbook Co-Author, Rachel Tiemeyer Experiencing Joy, Connection, and Nourishment at the Table with Abby Turner Fresh Take on Hospitality with Jaime Farrell Thank You to Our Sponsor: Dream Seller Travel, Megan Rokey Connect with The Savvy Sauce on Facebook or Instagram or Our Website Please help us out by sharing this episode with a friend, leaving a 5-star rating and review on Apple Podcasts, and subscribing to this podcast! Gospel Scripture: (all NIV) Romans 3:23 “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,” Romans 3:24 “and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.” Romans 3:25 (a) “God presented him as a sacrifice of atonement, through faith in his blood.” Hebrews 9:22 (b) “without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness.” Romans 5:8 “But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” Romans 5:11 “Not only is this so, but we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.” John 3:16 “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” Romans 10:9 “That if you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.” Luke 15:10 says “In the same way, I tell you, there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.” Romans 8:1 “Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus” Ephesians 1:13–14 “And you also were included in Christ when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation. Having believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God's possession- to the praise of his glory.” Ephesians 1:15–23 “For this reason, ever since I heard about your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints, I have not stopped giving thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers. I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better. I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is like the working of his mighty strength, which he exerted in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every title that can be given, not only in the present age but also in the one to come. And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way.” Ephesians 2:8–10 “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith – and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God – not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God‘s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.“ Ephesians 2:13 “But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been brought near through the blood of Christ.“ Philippians 1:6 “being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.” **Transcription** Music: (0:00 – 0:09) Laura Dugger: (0:10 - 1:22) Welcome to The Savvy Sauce, where we have practical chats for intentional living. I'm your host, Laura Dugger, and I'm so glad you're here. Do you love to travel? If so, then let me introduce you to today's sponsor, Dream Seller Travel, a Christian-owned and operated travel agency. Check them out on Facebook or online at DreamSellerTravel.com. We were one of those families who joined in the COVID trend of baking our own bread. And so, I was fascinated even years later when I came across my guest for today, Kendall Vanderslice. She's an author and the founder of Edible Theology. And I've always appreciated different verses being brought to life, even things that we interact with every day, such as salt and yeast. But God has richer meanings for all of these. And so, I can't wait for Kendall to unpack these in our conversation today. Here's our chat. Welcome to The Savvy Sauce, Kendall. Kendall Vanderslice: (1:20 - 1:22) Thank you so much for having me. It's great to be here. Laura Dugger: (1:23 - 1:30) Would you mind just starting us off by sharing a bit about your background and what led you to the work that you get to do today? Kendall Vanderslice: (1:31 - 3:46) Sure. So, I have always loved baking. I always, you know, when I was a child, but especially once I was in middle school and high school, I had a lot of anxiety. And so, when I just ever, anytime I needed to work through any sort of scope of emotions, I would always turn to the kitchen. Working with my hands became this way to sort of ground me and help me find calm in the midst of sort of my mind just buzzing. I was also one of five kids. So, it was like after everyone had gone to bed and the kitchen was silent, was the only time there was quiet in my house. And so that was kind of always became the source of calm and grounding for me. And so, then when I graduated high school and was trying to figure out what I wanted to do with my life, once again, I turned to the kitchen as a way to try and process what I should do. And long story short, over time, I realized, oh, maybe actually this work of baking is the work that I am called to do. And so, I ended up taking a very circuitous path to get there. I took a gap year after high school. I went to undergrad and studied anthropology in college. And in that time, learned that I could, my love of food and my love of the kitchen, I could examine not just in the practice of cooking, but through an anthropological and historical lens, looking at how food shapes community and shapes culture and how culture shapes the foods that we eat. And so, from there, I went and worked in professional kitchens. But I had all these historical, cultural, theological questions kind of buzzing around at the same time. And, you know, I would go from my work at the bakery on Sunday morning. I would rush from work to church and I would receive communion each week with bread dough still stuck to my arms. And I started to question, what does this bread that I spend my whole morning baking have to do with this bread that I receive at the communion table? And so that just unlocked a whole new path of what I could do with bread and with my baking beyond just in the kitchen and larger understanding how it shapes our awareness of who God is and how God is at work in our lives and in our communities. Laura Dugger: (3:47 - 3:58) Wow, that is incredible. And even today, do you want to share a few of your offerings? Because edible theology was a new concept to me, and it's just fascinating what all you have going on. Kendall Vanderslice: (3:59 - 5:31) Yeah, absolutely. So, my primary program is that I teach a workshop called Bake and Pray. And so, this is a workshop where I teach people how to bake bread as a form of prayer. So, we look at the ways that bread is at play throughout the narrative of Scripture, kind of what it is that God is using, why it is that God is using bread as the storytelling device in the narrative of Scripture, and why Jesus would give us bread at the center of Christian worship. But then at the same time, we're learning how the actual practice of baking bread can be a way to connect with God, to find rest and to understand God's presence with us in a very tangible form. So, with that, I also have a handful of books. Most recently, I released a book called Bake and Pray. It's sort of this workshop in book form. It's a collection of recipes, but also a collection of liturgies, so that you have the tools you need to make your time in the kitchen a time of prayer. I call it a prayer book meets cookbook. But I also have a handful of other resources, a Bible study or a small group study called Worship at the Table, where it's actually helping people gather around the table and understand how God is at work through the table. And I have a podcast that it was a limited run. There are 30 episodes called Kitchen Meditations. They are short meditations to listen to while you cook, while you're in the kitchen. So, you can understand the food that you eat more fully and also understand how your time preparing it can be a time of worship. Laura Dugger: (5:31 - 5:50) I love that. And there's so much to unpack. But let's just start here with all the things that you've studied with food and theology and gone to school for years and put this into practice. Are there any favorite lessons that stand out and are maybe ones that you still think about today? Kendall Vanderslice: (5:51 - 6:57) Well, you know, one of my favorite books that helped shape my understanding of food is a book that was written in the 1960s by an Episcopal priest named Robert Carr-Capin. It's a book called The Supper of the Lamb. This book is just a delightful book to read. I think everybody should read it. Robert Carr-Capin was he was an Episcopal priest, but he was also a food writer and he also was a humor writer. He and his wife wrote a satirical column together. And so, The Supper of the Lamb is kind of the culmination of all three. It is this beautiful reflection on a theology of food in the table, but it is hilarious as well. And so, it is written as instructions to host a dinner party that is all built around preparing lamb for eight people in four different ways. And so, it's reflections on kind of, you know, this revelation, the imagery in the book of Revelation on the marriage supper of the lamb, But then taking that to be a very liberal dinner party that he hosts in his home. And it will forever change the way that you think about food and think about the table and think about how God cares about food. Laura Dugger: (6:58 - 7:13) Wow, that's interesting. And even a piece of that that you had highlighted before is community, that food draws us together in community. Are there any lessons or reflections you have on that topic as well? Kendall Vanderslice: (7:14 - 9:03) Yeah, I mean, so I spend my days traveling the country and visiting churches and eating meals with strangers all the time. This is such a central part of my work. So, my first book was a study of churches that eat together as their primary form of worship. And so, I had the opportunity to research 10 different churches across the country and look at how does this practice of eating together regularly shape their understanding of community, but also shape their understanding of church and shape their understanding of worship. And what I saw in that practice of traveling and eating with all of these churches was that communities that were built around the table, where their primary rhythm of gathering was this practice of eating together and talking together and dialoguing together. It created such resilience within these communities as they faced conflict and tension within them that their commitment to eating together, but then their understanding of these community meals as being intrinsically connected to the communion table, the meal of bread and the cup that they also shared, it shaped their ability to have conversations and wade into hard topics that communities might otherwise try to say, you know, kind of avoid, because what they believed was that, you know, the table that we gather at regularly is a place that can kind of manage and hold on to those tensions. And it's a place where these hard conversations can arise. But also at the end of each of these meals, we remember that we are going to share the bread and the cup together and that God has told us that we have been made one in the body and blood of Christ. And so, we have a responsibility to care for one another, even as we argue and disagree and have a really, you know, dig into these hard conversations. Laura Dugger: (9:04 - 9:58) That is beautiful. And I think of so many things when you say that. I'm in the book of Acts right now, my quiet time. And so, the early churches, they were breaking bread together daily. You see that as part of the impact, the outflow that came from that. And then just, I think, gratitude as you share, because I wasn't a follower of Jesus growing up. Our family went to church. And by the time I was in high school, all of my family were believers, including my siblings. I was the last one. But the church that we went to, we shared a meal together every Sunday. And those relationships are long lasting. Then you hear about what people are actually going through. It's such a natural way to dive deeper into that fellowship. And so, I love that you've traveled around and studied this. And I'm also curious if you've connected with one of my past guests, Sarah Harmeyer with the Neighbors Table. Kendall Vanderslice: (9:59 - 10:03) I am familiar with her work, but I have never actually connected with her. Laura Dugger: (10:04 - 10:09) OK, you two. I'll link her episode in the show notes, but I think you two would have a lot of fun together. Kendall Vanderslice: (10:09 - 10:14) Oh, great. Great, great. I know I've seen some of her tables on. She's the one who builds tables. Is that right? Laura Dugger: (10:14 - 10:15) Yes. Yes. Kendall Vanderslice: (10:15 - 10:19) Yes. OK. I have seen her tables on Instagram, and they look just absolutely beautiful. Laura Dugger: (10:19 - 10:37) I love it. Well, I'd also like to talk about your most recent book, because there's one part where you talk about the sacred language of bread. And I'd love for you just to walk us through some significant scriptures that highlight bread throughout the Bible. Kendall Vanderslice: (10:37 - 19:43) Yeah, absolutely. So, one of the reasons that I love to think of bread in terms of a language itself is because so often we think of our faith as being something that happens predominantly in our minds, that it is the things we believe about God and the words that we say to God. And it becomes this very sort of mental exercise of worshiping God in our heads. And we forget that the rest of our bodies and the rest of our lives are a part of how we know God as well, that we were created in these human bodies with all of these senses. And it's only through these senses that we get to know the world around us. And it's in getting to know this creation around us that we get to know our creator as well. And so when we think of our faith as happening something predominantly in our minds, then when we have these moments where we don't feel like God is present, or we feel like we don't hear from God, or we just don't have the energy to, you know, to read scripture every day, or we feel like we, you know, I'm just like praying and praying and praying, and I've just exhausted the words I have to say. Then it's easy for us to feel like we've been abandoned by God, that we're in this sort of spiritual dark place. But Jesus, he calls himself the word, but, you know, Jesus is the word that was present with God in the beginning. But Jesus also calls himself the bread of life. And Jesus identifies himself as something deeply tangible. And he offers his own body to us in the form of bread at the communion table. And so, Jesus is telling us that Jesus is present with us in this very tangible form, something that we can mix together with our hands, something that we can taste on our tongues, something that we can feel in our bellies as we digest it. That Jesus is telling us, like, I am with you in this deeply tangible way. And if you don't feel my presence, and if you don't, you know, hear what I am telling you, or you don't feel like I am listening to you, know that you can eat this bread and have this very tangible reminder that I have promised to remain present with you and to remain faithful to you. And so, the ways that we see this at work in Scripture, once we understand that, you know, bread is not just a metaphor, that bread is actually something very physical and tangible, a way that God speaks to us, I think it changes the way that we see bread show up in Scripture. That it's not just a handy metaphor that shows up every, all over the place in the Bible, but that Jesus is actually, that God is actually doing something through bread itself. So, the very first place that we see bread appear in Scripture is as early as Genesis 3:19, “It is by the sweat of your brow that you will eat your bread until you return to the ground, for from it you were taken, from dust you come, and to dust you will return.” So, prior to this point in Genesis, we have the creation accounts, we have, you know, that God has created the garden, placed humanity in the garden to tend to this creation, to care for it. And they are intended to, you know, they are nourished by the fruits of these trees, they delight in God by delighting in God's creation. And God gave them just one restriction, which was a restriction on what they could eat. And so, in Genesis 3:19, we know that they have failed to honor this restriction that God has given them. And we are now learning the ramifications of that fall. And one of those ramifications is that the soil is going to sprout forth thistles and thorns. That we will no longer just be nourished by the fruits of the trees, but that we will have to labor in this soil. We will have to labor against a creation that works against us in order to have our nutritional needs met. But at the same time, God offers us this gift, that it's by the sweat of your brow, you will eat your bread. Our bread, you know, doesn't just grow from a tree. The humanity was probably not eating bread in the garden. But in this offering of bread, that it's by the sweat of your brow, you will eat your bread. Humans are being told, yes, we will have to labor in the soil in order to nourish ourselves. But also, we are being invited to participate with God in the transformation of creation into something really delicious as well. So, bread is, at the same time, both this picture of the brokenness of creation and yet also the goodness of God. This blessing, this gift from God in the midst of a broken creation. The production of bread, historically, has required a lot of work. It requires months and months of laboring in the soil to grow wheat, harvest wheat, thresh it, and then grind it into flour. Turn that flour into dough, gather firewood to heat up an oven, and then turn that dough into bread before finally being able to eat it. So, humanity has long known that it is, you know, there is this deep, this incredible amount of labor required to make bread. And yet also, bread contains almost all of the nutrients that humans need in order to survive. We can live off of just bread and water alone for a very, very, very long time. And in fact, many humans throughout most of human history have lived off of just bread and water for a very, very, very long time. So then when we see bread show up in other places in scripture, we see it show up as this picture of God's miraculous provision for God's people. We see it show up as a sign of God's presence with God's people. And we see it as a sign of God's promises to God's people that God will continue this work of restoration until we have this imagery of this renewed creation in the book of Revelation. So, one picture of that is in this provision of manna for the Israelites in the desert. You know, I think oftentimes for us, we read this story and we think the miracle is like, well, I don't know about you, but I've never opened my front door and had bread strewn across my lawn that I could just go out and gather. But we can still picture just walking into a grocery store and having a whole aisle of bread to choose from, right? For us, the miracle seems like it just appears out of nowhere, but it doesn't seem all that crazy to just have a bunch of ready-made bread available to you. But for the Israelites, the work of making bread would have been nine months or more of labor between growing wheat, harvesting it, turning that wheat into flour, flour into dough, dough into bread. That's work that was not possible while they were wandering in the desert. And so, when God is providing this miracle of manna, all they have to do is go out every single morning and gather, and they have to trust day after day after day that God is going to continue to provide. So, then we see a mirror of this in the story of the feeding of the 5,000. Once again, I think the miracle to us oftentimes feels like, you know, well, I've never seen five loaves capable of feeding 5,000 plus people. But still, we can picture a Costco aisle of bread that probably has enough bread to feed 5,000 people. Just the presence of bread enough for that size crowd doesn't seem all that miraculous. But for the crowd who was gathered on the hillside with Jesus, they would have had a much closer awareness of just how much work was required to grow enough, in this case, barley. One of the accounts says that it was barley bread. So, to grow enough barley to make enough bread to feed this crowd. And at the very least, in Mark's account of the gospel, we see a very direct link to work and how much work would be required to feed this crowd. Because in the gospel of Mark, it says that it would take more than half a year's wages to buy enough bread to feed this crowd. So, this distinct connection between labor and hard work in order to feed, to provide the bread for these people. But Jesus circumvents that labor required to either make the bread or buy the bread and just miraculously provides these five loaves to feed 5,000 plus people. So then on the night before his death, Jesus takes, I think, this imagery one step further. It is not just the labor of making bread that Jesus circumvents in his provision of bread for his disciples. He offers bread to his disciples and says, “This is my body that is broken for you.” Jesus is circumventing the very work of defeating the curse of sin and death. He has taken the labor of defeating sin and death onto his own body. And he's offering that body back to his disciples and onto anyone who remembers Him in this meal of bread and the cup. But he's offering to us His body as in the form of bread, as this picture of the labor that Jesus has taken on, the curse that Jesus has taken on so that we can then live in freedom. And so, we're still currently living in this sort of in-between time where we know that Jesus, that Christ has died, that Christ is risen, and we are still awaiting the day when Christ will come again. We're still awaiting this imagery in the book of Revelation where creation is restored. And I believe our relationship to bread will purely be one of delight and joy and freedom. But right now, we do still experience that brokenness of creation in relationship to bread. But also, bread is still a way in which we can know God, in which we can trust God's promises to us in this very tangible form in which we can believe that God is with us, even when we don't feel it. Laura Dugger: (19:43 - 22:17) Let's take a quick break to hear a message from our sponsor. Do you have a bucket list of travel destinations? Or maybe you have a special event coming up like a big anniversary, a honeymoon, or even just that first trip to Europe? If so, you need to call Dream Seller Travel. Dream Seller Travel is located in Central Illinois, but works with clients all across the USA. 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Let them deal with the problems that arise while traveling so you can just enjoy the trip. Dream Seller Travel has been planning dream trips since 2005 to amazing destinations such as Alaska, Italy, Hawaii, Canada, the Caribbean, United Kingdom, Germany, Switzerland, France, South Africa, Iceland, and more. Where do you dream of going? You can reach out to Dream Seller Travel at 309-696-5890, or check them out online at DreamSellerTravel.com. Thanks for your sponsorship. In line with your brand of edible theology, I'd love to go further into the scripture. That was so fascinating. I feel like you're so succinct in the way that you put that all together. So, I kind of want to do a deeper dive into a couple of the key ingredients of bread and then have you share their significance both in contributing to food, but also their significance for our own lives. Absolutely. Let's just begin with salt. Will you share the scripture and insight into salt? Kendall Vanderslice: (22:18 - 23:20) Yeah. One of the things that I love about salt, I think oftentimes, especially here in America, we have a sort of distorted understanding of the role that salt plays in our food. Oftentimes, we treat table salt. We usually have table salt that you just add onto your food after cooking it. Maybe you add a little bit of salt while cooking, but for the most part, you just sprinkle on table salt after. And it almost is treated as this kind of added flavor. But salt actually should not be this added flavor at the end. Salt should be incorporated into the cooking process because salt opens up our taste receptors on our tongues, and it opens up the flavors in the dish. So, salt actually should not be the predominant flavor that we taste. Salt should be the thing that allows us to taste everything else. And I think when we understand salt in that form, it should reframe our understanding of what it means to be the salt of the earth or to be salt and light in the world. What does it mean that salt is not the thing that itself gets tasted, but salt is the thing that opens up the flavors of everything else around us? Laura Dugger: (23:20 - 23:30) Kendall, can you take that even a step further? What does that practically look like for believers really living as salt of the earth? Kendall Vanderslice: (23:34 - 24:26) I think one of the great joys of the ways that these metaphors at work in Scripture is that we get to continually explore and see what that means for us and where God might be calling us. But I do think that being aware that to be the salt of the earth is to help pull out the best in the communities around us, to pull out the best in the people around us, is just this really beautiful picture of how I think God asks us to work in community. But our job is not necessarily to be the strong presence. Our job is not necessarily to make sure everyone knows that we are present, but instead our job is to identify and build up and pull out the best parts of the people around us in the communities that we are in. Laura Dugger: (24:27 - 24:56) That's so good. I love how you shared that because for me, as you were unpacking it, I was just thinking that we as the salt, when you taste it, you don't want to think, oh, that's salt. You want, like you said, to open it up to others. And so that's our purpose is to reflect and glorify Jesus and to point to him. So, I'm sure there's countless meanings. Will you also do the same thing and share the significance of yeast? Kendall Vanderslice: (24:57 - 29:44) Yeah, sure. So, yeast is, you know, also a fascinating, fascinating thing. And we are only really just beginning to understand sort of the microbial world and the role that it plays in our lives, in our bodies, in our world. And so, it's opening up entirely new understandings of how yeast is at work in scripture. One thing that we have to bear in mind is that the writers of scripture did not actually know what yeast was. We were only able to identify the microbes that are yeast and bacteria in the last 150 years. And so, prior to Louis Pasteur, humans didn't know what yeast was. They only knew the reactions of yeast. You know, you saw if I mix together, you know, this, if I let this flour and water sit, it comes back to life and I can mix that into more flour and water and it can become bread. You know, I can mix it in with a lot of water and a little bit of yeast and some hops and it becomes beer. I can mix it in with grapes and it becomes wine. So, we see the reactions, but don't necessarily know what it is that is responsible for those reactions. So, it is fairly new that we have this, you know, in the scope of human history, it's fairly new that we have this understanding of what are the actual kind of little critters that are involved in this process. And so, I have a really dear friend who she studies theology of the microbiome. So, a lot of her research is all based around, you know, how does this emerging research on yeast and bacteria shape our understanding of what it means to be human? And so then how does that shape the ways we read in scripture, both passages about yeast and also about what it means to be human? And so it is, I think there's just, it's a field that is ripe for exploration and we are only beginning to scratch the surface of all the beautiful imagery that's at play here. But one of the things that I find most fascinating is that leaven or yeast, it is used as a metaphor for two different things in scripture. In one passage, it is used as a metaphor for the kingdom of heaven, the parable of leaven, the kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman mixed into three measures of flour until it leavened the whole batch. But apart from that, yeast is always used as an image of sin, the ways that sin works through community. We have the passage about the leaven of the Pharisees. I believe there are a few others as well. So oftentimes leaven is used as this picture of sin and the ways that sin sort of multiplies and works through communities. But at the same time, it's this picture of the kingdom of God, that it's this little bit of yeast that slowly multiplies and through its multiplication, it transforms the entire community. It seems like a strange sort of tension that why would we use the same thing as a picture of both the kingdom of heaven and a picture of sin? And I think it makes more sense when we understand a sourdough culture. So, a sourdough culture is a culture of bacteria and yeast that is used to leaven bread, to raise bread. So, we all have wild yeast and bacteria living in the air, on the surface of our skin, on the surface of everything around us. This wild yeast and bacteria is what makes the world go round. It's what makes our brains function. It's what allows our bellies to digest food. It is what sort of makes everything work. And there is always this presence of both pathogenic bacteria and also beneficial bacteria. That is true within our bodies. That's true sort of all around us. It's true in the sourdough culture that there is always the presence of pathogenic bacteria, but there is also the beneficial bacteria. And so, to maintain a healthy sourdough starter, you have to feed it regularly. And as long as you feed it regularly and maintain its health, that good bacteria is going to keep the pathogenic bacteria in check. It's when you start to starve that starter that the pathogenic bacteria gets stronger and it overtakes the good bacteria and your sourdough starter goes bad. And so, I think that's a really beautiful way to think about both how the kingdom of God works and also how sin works in our communities. We live in a broken creation. Sin will always be present. But when we are digging ourselves, like when we are staying grounded and rooted in scripture, when we're staying grounded and rooted in church community and worship and prayer, when we are maintaining these healthy communities that are rooted to God, then we're able to help keep that pathogenic bacteria, that sin in check. But it's when we do not that it can start to take over and it can spread through a community just as quickly and easily as the kingdom of God can also spread through a community. Laura Dugger: (29:45 - 29:58) You just have brilliant answers. Is there any other science in the bread baking that is also fascinating to you because it has a richer, deeper spiritual meaning? Kendall Vanderslice: (29:58 - 32:22) One of the things that I love, I oftentimes lead these bread baking workshops for groups of leaders, especially church leaders or faith leaders who are oftentimes having to manage just large groups of people where they're constantly facing internal conflict. I don't think anyone who leads a group of people has managed to bring together the people that never have any kind of disagreement. One of the things that I love about bread is that inherent to the structure of bread is tension. The backbone of bread is this protein called gluten that is made up of two different proteins called gluten and gliadin. Gluten and gliadin have two opposing qualities to them. One likes to stretch and stretch and stretch. It's what's called the elastic quality. One likes to hold its shape, what's called the plastic quality. When these protein strands unravel, they begin to form bonds with one another and they create this network, this protein network. That protein network is what captures the carbon dioxide that the yeast releases and that allows the dough to both grow while also holding its shape. The strength and the structure of our bread is fully reliant on tension between these two opposing qualities, these two opposing needs. In order to build that tension in a way that brings strength to the bread, it has to be constantly balanced with rest. The gluten will let you know when it's starting to get tired. If you don't give it time to rest, then it will just fall apart. It will start to break down on you. This is something that I think so many of our communities really can learn from right now. That tension is good, that our differences, that diversity in our communities is our source of strength. When these differences rub up against one another and they help expand our understanding of the people around us, our differing needs, our differing convictions, our differing desires, our differing hopes, that can be a source of strength in our communities. Also, we need to understand when it's time to step away and take time to rest before leaning into those differences even further. I love that bread then is itself this element that Jesus gives us as the sign of our unity in Christ, because it is this picture of our differences coming together and making us one even in our difference. Laura Dugger: (32:23 - 32:39) All of this from bread, it's just incredible. Then I even think you write about temperature and scoring the bread. Is there anything else? We won't get to cover all of it, but any other scientific findings that have been really exciting? Kendall Vanderslice: (32:40 - 33:33) I think there is so much in bread. I like to say that bread is incredibly simple and infinitely complex. It's made of four basic ingredients, but it can be mixed together in myriad ways. A baker can commit their entire lives to learning about bread, and they will still have more to learn. We'll never be able to cover it all. I think there's room for endless exploration as far as digging into all that bread has to teach us. My hope is that this book, Bake and Pray, helps to start to illuminate some of the ways that we see God teaching us through the many different steps in the bread-baking process. I also hope that others will start to get into this practice of baking, and through the practice of baking, they themselves will be able to start to see some of the beauty that God reveals through bread. Laura Dugger: (33:34 - 34:38) I just wanted to let you know there are now multiple ways to give when you visit thesavvysauce.com. We now have a donation button on our website, and you can find it under the Donate page, which is under the tab entitled Support. Our mailing address is also provided if you would prefer to save us the processing fee and send a check that is tax deductible. Either way, you'll be supporting the work of Savvy Sauce Charities and helping us continue to reach the nations with the good news of Jesus Christ. Make sure you visit thesavvysauce.com today. Thanks for your support. Well, and Kendall, you also have a unique take. You spent years as a ballet dancer, and even with your books, you're just writing about the connection beyond, like you said, just our intellect and our minds to the Lord, but using our whole bodies to glorify God. Can you share some more ways that we can use our bodies to bake and pray and glorify God? Kendall Vanderslice: (34:38 - 39:09) Yeah, so one of the things that I love when I'm first teaching people about this idea of praying with your body, it is ironic. The whole concept of praying with your body is to try and get us out of our minds and into our bodies. But the idea of praying with our body can feel like a very sort of cerebral or like, you know, the sort of thing that doesn't quite make sense. And so, the way that I like to help people first get started is through the practice of a breath prayer. So, a breath prayer is a practice of repeating a line of scripture or poetry with every inhale and every exhale. And so, one of the ones that I love to start with is my soul finds rest in God alone, drawn from the Psalms. And so, as you inhale, you repeat my soul finds rest. And as you exhale in God alone. And so, when I'm guiding others through this bake and pray practice, I have a start by just closing our eyes and I will lead us in this rhythm of breathing and of repeating this line again and again and again. And then from there, I encourage the group to start to mix up their dough while repeating this line with every inhale and exhale. And I think it helps us to see how our breath, our breath itself becomes, you know, these words of scripture so ingrain themselves in our breathing that we then understand our breathing itself as an offering of prayer to God. And then the movements of our bodies through this rhythm of breathing becomes an offering of prayer to God. And then we realize that the words themselves are not even necessary, that we can offer, you know, the movements of mixing bread dough, but also of gardening, of knitting, of cooking, of playing with our children, of raking leaves, that all of these things can be ways to offer our movements to God as prayer and to invite God into this practice with us and to pay attention to how God is present in these practices. So, I do hope that, you know, people will take bake and pray and actually bake with it and learn to bake as a form of prayer. But I also love when I hear from potters or I hear from gardeners or I hear from other people that work with their hands regularly who tell me, I read this and I don't think I'm going to start baking, but it has reshaped my understanding of my own, you know, craft and my own vocation. So, I am excited to hear from others who maybe will take this and say, like, this is how I see this work being a form of prayer. But I first started learning about embodied prayer and practicing it when I got to college. I was in a dance team at my college. I had grown up as a ballerina. I left the ballet world in high school, and it was a really, really hard. My experience was really wonderful in many ways and really hard in many ways. I was in the pre-professional ballet world, which is, you know, very, very rigorous, very mentally draining, very physically demanding. And when I realized that I wasn't going to be able to make it professionally, it was just absolutely devastating. It was like my whole world was wrapped around this. And so, then when I got to college, I was invited to be a part of this dance company. But the dance company was for women who had experienced sort of the ballet world in the way that I had, and who were looking for healing and to understand that our dance could be a form of worship and a form of prayer. And when I first started, I thought that the whole concept was really strange. You know, I was I did not understand. I was so grateful to have this very just affirming community that I was dancing with. It was really it was the first time that I had been, you know, affirmed in my body and affirmed as a dancer and not just, you know, told all the things that were wrong with me. But still, I was like, this is a really strange concept that as we're dancing, we're somehow praying. And it really was something that I had to practice again and again and again to understand and to really feel. And so, if someone is listening to this and thinking like this sounds like a really strange concept, I encourage you to just try it. And it might take a few tries. Maybe try using the liturgies that are in the book to help get you into that practice. And then I hope that as you practice, either praying through baking or through gardening or what have you, that you will just get to experience the ways that God's present with you. And then that will transform your understanding of your craft. Laura Dugger: (39:09 - 39:20) Thanks for sharing that. It's important for us to understand that we are embodied beings. And that points to that awesome truth that God with us, that Jesus was embodied. Kendall Vanderslice: (39:21 - 39:22) Absolutely. Laura Dugger: (39:22 - 39:31) But then, OK, so in your most recent book, Bake and Pray, what's one recipe that you're especially excited about? Kendall Vanderslice: (39:31 - 41:04) You know, we are just emerging from the season of Advent and Christmas, and those are some of my favorite recipes in the book. One that is so delicious, that is it is a Christmas recipe. It is the Moravian sugar cake, but Moravians do eat the sugar cake all year round. So, it is kind of a classical Christmas recipe. But here at the Moravian bakeries here in North Carolina, you can get them all year round. So Moravian baked goods are an early Protestant tradition. They actually were Protestants before the Protestant Reformation, they like to say. And they're a pretty small denomination here in the United States. But they're largely focused in here in North Carolina, where I am, and then a little bit in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. But the Moravian baked goods are known for all of their breads have potato in them. And so, some people, you know, there are other recipes that have like a potato, a potato bread or potato rolls. When you add mashed potato into baked goods, it makes it really, really moist and tender. It holds on to moisture in the baked good much longer than just flour alone. So, the Moravian baked goods all have mashed potato in them. But the Moravian sugar cake is one where it's this very rich potato bread. And then you put it into a pan, and you poke holes in it, sort of like if you were dimpling focaccia. And then you pour butter and cinnamon sugar on top and bake it. And it is like it is a mix between sort of coffee cake and bread. And it is so, so, so delicious. I love it. Laura Dugger: (41:04 - 41:09) And there is also just a cute little story in there with the history. Kendall Vanderslice: (41:09 - 41:28) Oh, yes, absolutely. It is, you know, there's this lore that apparently when men were looking for wives, they would look for women that had thick fingers. Because if they had thick fingers, it meant that they would have bigger dimples in their Moravian sugar cake that would hold bigger pockets of cinnamon and sugar. Laura Dugger: (41:28 - 41:42) I love that. I thought that was so funny. Well, Kendall, what are some of the most creative ways that you've been able to pair bread and generosity together to minister to others? Kendall Vanderslice: (41:43 - 43:24) Yeah, one of the things that I am doing right now is, you know, I'm on the road several weeks of the year leading bread baking workshops in churches all over the country. And I love, love, love that part of my work. But in the last year, I started to really crave a closer connection with my community here in Durham, North Carolina. But I am traveling the country and telling other people about how to connect to home and how to connect to their communities. And that work keeps me from being able to connect to my own home and community. And so, I decided that when I am home, I want to have a more intentional way of feeding the people immediately around me. And so, I have this practice on Fridays of bread for friends and neighbors. And so, I'll tell, I'll send out an email to friends and neighbors on Monday and tell them, you know, here's what I'm baking this week if I'm in town. And then they let me know what they want. And on Fridays, I have this shed in my driveway that I open up and it's got this whole like really fun armoire and that I that I've sort of decorated to be a bread pickup area. And so, on Fridays, my neighbors and my friends all walk over, and they come pick up their bread. And it's just been such a gift to be able to feed my immediate community through bread. But then also to see and hear them sort of connecting in the driveway as they all come pick up their bread at the same time. And folks who either didn't know one another are starting to connect and find and meet one another. But then also neighbors to realize like, oh, you can get kindle bread, I get kindle bread. And, you know, it's just so fun to have that very simple point of connection, because it can be feel very easy to feel disconnected from the neighbors that you maybe see all over the place. But just that that time of connection and picking up bread, I think, goes a long way beyond just that particular moment. Laura Dugger: (43:26 - 43:36) Generosity is always inspiring. And where can we all go to learn more about edible theology online or all of the other things that you have to offer? Kendall Vanderslice: (43:37 - 44:05) You can learn more at my website, kendallvanderslice.com. The website is currently sort of under construction. So, I've got a makeshift website up right now where you can find everything. And eventually I will have more links to all of the edible theology resources. But you can find everything you need at kendallvanderslice.com. You can learn about my workshops. You can learn about my books. You can learn about curriculum, about retreats that I lead. All of it is right there. Laura Dugger: (44:06 - 44:24) Wonderful. We will certainly add links in today's show notes so that it's easy to find. And Kendall, you may be familiar that we're called The Savvy Sauce because savvy is synonymous with practical knowledge. And so is my final question for you today. What is your savvy sauce? Kendall Vanderslice: (44:25 - 45:13) Well, I think for me it is allowing myself to use even the simplest moments in the kitchen as a time for prayer rather than trying to rush through the practice of just seeing food as something I have to eat three times a day and something I have to make for myself. To realize that even something as simple as heating up a pot of soup or slicing some bread and smearing it with butter is still an invitation to thank God for this gift of food and the ability to prepare it. And so, I think that small practice alone can transform the way we relate to food and our bodies, but also to try and slow down and have a moment in our day where we avoid just rushing through and take a little bit more intentionality to appreciate the gifts that God has given us. Laura Dugger: (45:14 - 45:31) Well, Kendall, I was so intrigued from the first time that I heard about edible theology. And I really appreciate how you shed light on God's profound spiritual truths that are around us and that we can interact with in everyday life. But you also have such a charming personality. Kendall Vanderslice: (45:32 - 45:38) So, thank you for being my guest. Thank you so much for having me. It's been such a delight to be here. Laura Dugger: (45:39 – 49:21) One more thing before you go. Have you heard the term gospel before? It simply means good news. And I want to share the best news with you. But it starts with the bad news. Every single one of us were born sinners, but Christ desires to rescue us from our sin, which is something we cannot do for ourselves. This means there is absolutely no chance we can make it to heaven on our own. So, for you and for me, it means we deserve death, and we can never pay back the sacrifice we owe to be saved. We need a savior. But God loved us so much, he made a way for his only son to willingly die in our place as the perfect substitute. This gives us hope of life forever in right relationship with him. That is good news. Jesus lived the perfect life we could never live and died in our place for our sin. This was God's plan to make a way to reconcile with us so that God can look at us and see Jesus. We can be covered and justified through the work Jesus finished if we choose to receive what He has done for us. Romans 10:9 says, “That if you confess with your mouth Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.” So, would you pray with me now? Heavenly Father, thank you for sending Jesus to take our place. I pray someone today right now is touched and chooses to turn their life over to you. Will you clearly guide them and help them take their next step in faith to declare you as Lord of their life? We trust you to work and change lives now for eternity. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen. If you prayed that prayer, you are declaring him for me, so me for him. You get the opportunity to live your life for him. And at this podcast, we're called The Savvy Sauce for a reason. We want to give you practical tools to implement the knowledge you have learned. So, you ready to get started? First, tell someone. Say it out loud. Get a Bible. The first day I made this decision, my parents took me to Barnes & Noble and let me choose my own Bible. I selected the Quest NIV Bible, and I love it. You can start by reading the book of John. Also, get connected locally, which just means tell someone who's a part of a church in your community that you made a decision to follow Christ. I'm assuming they will be thrilled to talk with you about further steps, such as going to church and getting connected to other believers to encourage you. We want to celebrate with you too, so feel free to leave a comment for us here if you did make a decision to follow Christ. We also have show notes included where you can read scripture that describes this process. And finally, be encouraged. Luke 15:10 says, “In the same way I tell you, there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.” The heavens are praising with you for your decision today. And if you've already received this good news, I pray you have someone to share it with. You are loved and I look forward to meeting you here next time.
Sean Carroll's Mindscape: Science, Society, Philosophy, Culture, Arts, and Ideas
The germ theory of disease is a crowning achievement of science, up there with modern physics, continental drift, and evolution via natural selection. (Even if there will always be cranky skeptics.) But the road to widespread acceptance isn't always an easy one. Why did it take so long between Anton van Leeuwenhoek seeing "animalcules" in a microscope (1670s) to Louis Pasteur's work on pasteurization and vaccination (1860's)? Thomas Levenson is the author of a new book exploring this fascinating history: So Very Small: How Humans Discovered the Microcosmos, Defeated Germs--and May Still Lose the War Against Infectious Disease.Blog post with transcript: https://www.preposterousuniverse.com/podcast/2025/04/21/episode-312-thomas-levenson-on-the-mutual-history-of-humans-and-germs/Support Mindscape on Patreon.Thomas Levenson received a B.A. in East Asian Studies from Harvard University. He is currently Professor of Science Writing and director of the graduate program in science writing at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He is the author of numerous books and has written and produced a number of science documentaries for television.Web siteMIT web pageWikipediaAmazon author pageBlueskySee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
On this episode of ID the Future out of the archive, biologist Ann Gauger walks listeners through the triumphs, flaws, and tragedies of Louis Pasteur, the French scientist whose scientific breakthroughs have saved millions of lives, and whose work on microbes sounded the death knell of the idea of spontaneous generation. Dr. Gauger also discusses his pioneering and life-saving work on vaccines, the Christian faith that saw him through the death of his three of his children, and more. Source
Original 420 flag, from the Waldo's official website. All five of the original 420 Waldos are in the studio today on Brew Ha Ha with Steve Jaxon and Herlinda Heras. Waldo Dave and Waldo Steve were on Brew Ha Ha once before, on this episode of April 18, 2019. This time, all five of them are here. Steve, Dave, Jeff, Larry and Mark are here, they are the original Waldos from San Rafael High School in the early 1970s. There is ample documentation of their invention of the expression 420 on their website. It is the first time all five of them have been together for a radio interview. They used to hang out on the wall, every day between classes and after school. “We were all about comedy and having fun.” They also listened to a lot of music, including the great bands from the Bay Area at the time. Lagunitas makes a special 420 Waldos beer and they have some of it in studio today. At the time, one of them had a brother who was in the Coast Guard who knew of a secret garden. One of them got the map. Visit our sponsor Pizzaleah in Windsor for the finest pizza menu and the most authentic flavors around!
In which we talk about how chirality, or handedness, has diffused through chemistry since its discovery in the 19th century, starting with Louis Pasteur. We look at work by Arnaldo Piutti and Emile Fischer. We discuss not only organic compounds, but amino acids, proteins, DNA, and inorganic chiral compounds. Ultimately we have to bring up the question of the biochemical handedness of life. Patreon supporters may download a supplemental sheet of some of the molecular structures mentioned in this episode.Support the show Support my podcast at https://www.patreon.com/thehistoryofchemistry Tell me how your life relates to chemistry! E-mail me at steve@historyofchem.com Get my book, O Mg! How Chemistry Came to Be, from World Scientific Publishing, https://www.worldscientific.com/worldscibooks/10.1142/12670#t=aboutBook
How does language about wine impact the way we experience and enjoy wine? How does reporting on alcohol science compare to other scientific topics? Why can yeast be described as a nano-technological machine? In this episode of the Unreserved Wine Talk podcast, I'm chatting with Adam Rogers, author of the New York Times bestseller Proof: The Science of Booze. You can find the wines we discussed at https://www.nataliemaclean.com/winepicks Giveaway One of you is going to win a copy of his terrific new book, Full Spectrum: How the Science of Color Made Us Modern. To qualify, all you have to do is email me at natalie@nataliemaclean.com and let me know that you've posted a review of the podcast. I'll choose one person randomly from those who contact me. Good luck! Highlights What was Adam's experience at a fancy restaurant in Chicago where food critic Jeffrey Steingarten was a fellow patron? How did a New York restaurant experience expose Adam to the wild science of winemaking? Why did Adam nearly have an existential moment while writing about the science of grapes? How does reporting on alcohol science compare to other scientific topics? Which moments did Adam want to capture in the book? What were the most surprising insights Adam uncovered while writing Proof and what was the most difficult part of writing it? Why does Adam describe yeast as a nano-technological machine? Which facts about yeast did Adam find fascinating? What have archaeologists discovered about the role of alcohol in early human civilization? Which cultural approach to alcohol consumption did Adam find most interesting? How do modern brewers and distillers safeguard their yeast? Key Takeaways Adam recounts the story of the couple sitting next to him ordering a dessert wine. The diner asked, “Is that a Vin du Glacier or a noble rot?” The two different ways to make a sweet wine. Just the fact that the diner was informed enough to know that there were these two methods would have a bearing on what he would be tasting. Here was this person operationalizing that interest to make his meal better. He wanted to have more fun. If you're reporting on science, you have the scientists trying to understand something new or reinterpret understanding and then there are people who that's going to affect. With winemaking, you have practitioners who are often not themselves, scientists. So they are craftspeople in a stakeholder role too. Louis Pasteur said I think there is an impossibly small, invisible, living creature that eats sugar and poops alcohol, and so the best chemists in the world at that time looked at that as a hypothesis and said, You're nuts. Nobody knew how inert chemicals could be alive. Nobody knew what the connection was. Those things are enzymes and understanding what enzymes do in a living body, that's what gave rise to biochemistry, and ultimately gave rise to biotechnology. That one insight. About Adam Rogers Adam Rogers is a senior correspondent at Business Insider, where he writes about technology, culture, and the ways they overlap. Prior to joining BI, Adam was a longtime editor and writer at WIRED, where his article “The Science of Why No One Agrees on the Color of This Dress” was the second-most-read thing on the entire internet in 2015. Adam's WIRED feature story on a mysterious fungus that grows on whisky warehouses won a AAAS/Kavli science journalism award — and led to his 2014 New York Times bestseller Proof: The Science of Booze. Adam is also the author of the 2021 book Full Spectrum: How the Science of Color Made Us Modern. He has also written for Alta, the Atlantic, National Geographic, the New York Times, Slate, and Smithsonian, and may be the only journalist to attend both San Diego Comic-Con and the White House Correspondents Dinner. To learn more, visit https://www.nataliemaclean.com/330.
Drama: Encore Theatre “The Life of Louis Pasteur” 6/11/46 CBS, Romance “Last Summer's Love” 7/9/55 CBS.
Take a breath. Just breathe. And then reserve your ticket for a special online-only talk with New York Times columnist Carl Zimmer, who will tell you all about what just went into your lungs. Zimmer will share the ideas that are in his new book Air-Borne, giving a fascinating, previously untold story of the air we breathe, the hidden life it contains, and invisible dangers that can turn the world upside down Every day we draw in two thousand gallons of air—and thousands of living things. From the ground to the stratosphere, the air teems with invisible life. This last great biological frontier remains so mysterious that it took more than two years for scientists to finally agree that the Covid pandemic was caused by an airborne virus. Zimmer will lead us on an odyssey through the living atmosphere and through the history of its discovery. From the tops of mountain glaciers, where Louis Pasteur caught germs from the air, to Amelia Earhart and Charles Lindbergh above the clouds, where they conducted groundbreaking experiments. Meet the long-forgotten pioneers of aerobiology, including William and Mildred Wells, who tried for decades to warn the world about airborne infections, only to die in obscurity. Zimmer also chronicles the dark side of aerobiology with gripping accounts of how the United States and the Soviet Union clandestinely built arsenals of airborne biological weapons designed to spread anthrax, smallpox and an array of other pathogens. Breathtaking, isn't it? In Association with Wonderfest. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
durée : 00:58:18 - Le Cours de l'histoire - par : Xavier Mauduit, Maïwenn Guiziou - Au 5ᵉ siècle avant notre ère, les sophistes enseignent l'art de la rhétorique pour instruire la jeunesse athénienne. Le discours devient une force pour tout citoyen qui souhaite briller à l'assemblée. De l'argumentation à la captation des émotions, l'art de la parole est un savoir qui se vend. - réalisation : Thomas Beau - invités : Arnaud Macé Professeur d'histoire de philosophie ancienne à l'Université Marie et Louis Pasteur; Marie-Pierre Noël Professeure de langue et littérature de la Grèce archaïque et classique à Sorbonne Université
In this episode, Dr. Jessica Steier and Dr. Sarah Scheinman are joined by Katharine Lotspeich and Valene Cauhorn from the Millennial Ag Podcast to explore the complex topic of raw milk. The scientists examine the historical context of milk and pasteurization, delving into the scientific principles behind milk safety, public health concerns, and nutritional misconceptions. They discuss the critical role of pasteurization in protecting public health, while also exploring personal experiences and perspectives on raw milk consumption, offering listeners a comprehensive overview of this controversial subject. All our sources from this episode are available at: https://www.unbiasedscipod.com/episodes/ (00:00) Intro Music (00:20) Introduction to Raw Milk and Its Controversies (03:23) Historical Context of Milk and Pasteurization (06:15) Personal Experiences with Raw Milk (09:14) The Science Behind Pasteurization (12:16) Public Health Perspectives on Milk Safety (15:18) Louis Pasteur and His Impact on Dairy (18:31) Practical Considerations of Pasteurization (24:54) The Truth About Pasteurization (27:18) Understanding the Costs of Food Processing (30:04) The Risks of Raw Milk Consumption (31:37) Navigating Raw Milk Regulations (34:40) Nutritional Myths Surrounding Milk (38:34) The Dangers of Raw Milk and Foodborne Illness (40:36) Avian Influenza and Its Impact on Dairy (45:38) Final Thoughts: The Importance of Pasteurization in Public Health Interested in advertising with us? Please reach out to advertising@airwavemedia.com, with “Unbiased Science” in the subject line. PLEASE NOTE: The discussion and information provided in this podcast are for general educational, scientific, and informational purposes only and are not intended as, and should not be treated as, medical or other professional advice for any particular individual or individuals. Every person and medical issue is different, and diagnosis and treatment requires consideration of specific facts often unique to the individual. As such, the information contained in this podcast should not be used as a substitute for consultation with and/or treatment by a doctor or other medical professional. If you are experiencing any medical issue or have any medical concern, you should consult with a doctor or other medical professional. Further, due to the inherent limitations of a podcast such as this as well as ongoing scientific developments, we do not guarantee the completeness or accuracy of the information or analysis provided in this podcast, although, of course we always endeavor to provide comprehensive information and analysis. In no event may Unbiased Science or any of the participants in this podcast be held liable to the listener or anyone else for any decision allegedly made or action allegedly taken or not taken allegedly in reliance on the discussion or information in this podcast or for any damages allegedly resulting from such reliance. The information provided herein do not represent the views of our employers. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices