Podcast appearances and mentions of susan freinkel

We have a favor to ask! We want to know more about what you like, what you don't, and who you are—it'll help us make better episodes of Science Diction. Please, take our brief survey. Thank you! At the turn  of the 20th century, the American chestnut towered over other trees in Eastern  forests. The trees would grow as much as 100 feet high, and 13 feet wide. According to legend, a squirrel could scamper from New England to Georgia on the canopies of American chestnuts, never touching the ground. And then, the trees began to disappear, succumbing to a mysterious fungus. The fungus first appeared in New York City in 1904—and  then it spread. By the 1950s, the fungus had wiped out billions of trees, and effectively finished off the American chestnut. Now, some people are trying to resurrect the American chestnut—and soon. But not everyone thinks that's a good idea. Guests:  Sara Fitzsimmons is Director of Restoration, North Central Regional Science Coordinator, and Regional Science Coordinator Supervisor at the American Chestnut Foundation.  Susan Freinkel is the author of American Chestnut: The Life, Death, and Rebirth of a Perfect Tree. ​​Neil Patterson Jr. works at the Center for Native Peoples and the Environment at SUNY, and is a member of the Tuscarora Nation.  Bart Chezar is a chestnut enthusiast, and volunteers with the Prospect Park Alliance. Footnotes & Further Reading:  Listen to oral histories from people who grew up with the American chestnut. Credits: This episode of Science Diction was produced by Shahla Farzan and Johanna Mayer. Elah Feder is our Editor and Senior Producer. Daniel Peterschmidt is our composer, and they sound designed this episode. Lauren J. Young contributed research, and Danya AbdelHameid fact checked the episode. Our Chief Content Officer is Nadja Oertelt.  

When, and more importantly how, did the plastic bottle become so ubiquitous? On this episode of The Futures Archive designer Lee Moreau and this episode's guest host, Jamer Hunt discuss the design and production of the plastic bottle. With additional insights this week from Susan Freinkel, Joseph Malherek, and Pierre Passlier. 

There was a time when the American Chestnut was a plentiful resource for the wood that built our homes. In the early 1900s it was found in house framing, windows, trim furniture, and more. At 100 feet tall and up to 10 feet wide, it towered over the eastern forests. But then it disappeared. And now there's a movement to bring it back. Host Kevin O'Connor gets the story from author Susan Freinkel, who shares the historic importance of the Redwood of the East. We learn about the cutting-edge technology that scientist Bill Powell is using to bring it back from extinction. We also talk to Rex Mann, who grew up in Appalachia with the American Chestnut and researcher Sara Fitzsimmons who is overseeing an orchard of new growth trees. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Plastics are colorful, shiny, and flexible. They can also be sturdy, monochrome, and opaque. They come in different shapes and sizes, too. In fact, we’ve become so good at creating and molding plastics into whatever we want them to be that author Susan Freinkel says: it’s hard to imagine a world without them. In her book, Plastics: A Toxic Love Story, Freinkel chronicles the history of plastics and explores how, for better or worse, the material shapes our lives.

Whether you like it or not, our life is made of plastic. It’s a material we use for almost everything, from toothbrushes to spacecrafts. But its convenience and low costs might not outweigh the effects it has on our health and environment. Science journalist Susan Freinkel walks us through the history of how we fell in love with plastics and considers the risks they pose. In the past, you might have seen your grandfather sending checks to a big charity every year, but charitable priorities are changing. Stacy Palmer, editor of the Chronicle of Philanthropy, explains how social, technological, and cultural changes have impacted who is giving and who is receiving... and just how much. You’ve probably seen a “Made in China” label on your T-shirt, your electronics, and in children’s toys. But did you know that when you get your medicine from a local drug store, it may well have traveled all the way from China? Rosemary Gibson, author of “China Rx: Exposing the Risks of America’s Dependence on China for Medicine,” talks about how China became the world’s pharmacy, the risks posed by America losing control of its medicine supply, and the case for bringing some drug manufacturing back to the U.S.

Plastics are colorful, shiny, and flexible. They can also be sturdy, monochrome, and opaque. They come in different shapes and sizes, too. In fact, we’ve become so good at creating and molding plastics into whatever we want them to be that author Susan Freinkel says: it’s hard to imagine a world without them. In her book, Plastics: A Toxic Love Story, Freinkel chronicles the history of plastics and explores how, for better or worse, the material shapes our lives.

The birth of modern plastic began in 1907 with the invention of Bakelite, one of the first plastics to be made from entirely synthetic components. But plastic in a particular form was being used many thousands of years ago by the Olmec, the earliest known civilisation in Mexico, who played with balls made of a natural polymer - rubber. Over the years the plastics industry has grown from the work of a handful of inventors to a global player whose products reach into almost every corner of our lives. Plastic has been at the heart of one of the most important changes in virtually all societies since the second world war: the consumer revolution. But while it is a force for good in many areas and a highly versatile material that appears in the most surprising places, plastic today is a major environmental preoccupation. Can we modify our use towards this wonder material, or can scientists rise to the challenge of creating a plastic that will break down completely when it has reached the end of its useful life? Rajan Datar is joined by nanoscientist Professor Ajay Mishra, chemist Professor Andrea Sella and journalist Susan Freinkel to explore the story of plastic. Photo: Plastic bottles on a production line (Getty Images)

Some 8 million tons of plastic end up in the oceans every year, where it can be lethal to marine life. Governments and businesses have vowed to take action to curb it. But Just how serious is the problem of plastic waste, and what can be done to tackle it? David Aaronovitch is joined by:Susan Freinkel, author of 'Plastic: A Toxic Love Story'Jan Piotrowski, environment correspondent for the EconomistRob Opsomer, researcher, Ellen Macarthur FoundationChris Cheeseman, Professor of Materials Resource Engineering, Imperial College, London Sabine Pahl, Associate Professor of Psychology, University of Plymouth.

This episode is all about a world without plastic. What would that look like? Is it even possible?     Today, plastic is seen as one of our great environmental enemies. But it actually wasn’t always that way. Bradford Harris, a historian of science and the host of a podcast called How It Began: A History of the Modern World, and Susan Freinkel, a journalist and the author of Plastic: A Toxic Love Story, walk us through how plastic started out as a solution to unsustainable practices. Then we talk to Sherry Lippiatt, California Regional Coordinator for the NOAA Marine Debris Program, about what exactly is going on with garbage in the ocean. And finally I visit Danielle Trofe at her studio in Brooklyn, where she grows sustainable materials using mushrooms.     Further reading:    Debbie Chachra on peak plastics  "On a scale beyond all previous conceptions" [electronic resource] : plastics and the preservation of modernity  Bradford Harris: Plastics and Sustainability  Our 'Toxic' Love-Hate Relationship With Plastics  99 Percent Invisible: The Post-Billiards Age  Plastic waste inputs from land into the ocean  There Is No Island of Trash in the Pacific  Global Plastic Production Rises, Recycling Lags  Different Types of Plastics and their Classification  Health risks posed by use of Di-2-ethylhexyl phthalate (DEHP) in PVC medical devices: A critical review  How Stuff Works: bioplastics  Taxation and Regulation of Plastic Shopping Bags in Botswana and South Africa   GROW: A Lamp YOU Grow from Mushroom Mycelium    Flash Forward is produced by me, Rose Eveleth. The intro music is by Asura and the outtro music is by Hussalonia. The voices from the future this episode were provided by Lisa Pollak, Arielle Duhaime-Ross, Brent Rose, Victor Dorff and Mary Beth Griggs. The episode art is by Matt Lubchansky.    If you want to suggest a future we should take on, send us a note on Twitter, Facebook or by email at info@flashforwardpod.com. We love hearing your ideas! And if you think you’ve spotted one of the little references I’ve hidden in the episode, email us there too. If you’re right, I’ll send you something cool.     And if you want to support the show, there are a few ways you can do that too! Head to www.flashforwardpod.com/support for more about how to give. But if that’s not in the cards for you, you can head to iTunes and leave us a nice review or just tell your friends about us. Those things really do help.     That’s all for this future, come back next time and we’ll travel to a new one. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

After learning about the devastating effects of plastic pollution on the environment and human health, Oakland accountant Beth began an experiment to see if she could live without buying any new plastic. Since then, she has reduced her plastic waste to less than 2% of the national average. That experiment turned into the popular blog MyPlasticFreeLife.com and new book Plastic-Free: How I Kicked the Plastic Habit and How You Can Too. Her work and life have been profiled in the award-winning film Bag It, as well as Susan Freinkel's book, Plastic: A Toxic Love Story and Captain Charles Moore's Plastic Ocean. Listen in and learn: What motivated her to make such a drastic change in her life How long she has been able to maintain her life without plastic How her career as an accountant helped her in this path Some tips on how to adjust to a life without plastic Taking it step by step Storing items in the fridge and freezer Buying cheese without the plastic wraps How she removed all plastic packaging from her garden activities. Other tips we can use to “de-plastic” our gardens How she converted her blog into a guidebook for others to learn from What she included in her book, including why recycling is important but not the solution to the plastic problem and lots of shopping tips What we need in the world to help with the plastic problem Some important facts about the laws in effect on toxic chemicals in the U.S. Where to find a plastic audit worksheet As well as: Her TWO biggest successes – You won't believe the first one, and the second one is her proudest accomplishment What drives her And her one piece of advice for all the podcast listeners

This show was extra fun because we had GD Lynn Hasselberger in the studio! Lots of great segments, including two new ones -- Travelin' Green Divas and Green Divas at Home. Don't miss our excellent interview with Susan Freinkel, author and journalist about her recent article on pesticides and their impact on our children.

Authors, of Moby Duck & Plastic respectively

Beth Terry is the author of Plastic-Free: How I Kicked the Plastic Habit and How You Can Too. She also writes the popular blog, My Plastic-Free Life, and is a founding member of the Plastic Pollution Coalition. Beth gives presentations on living plastic-free and why our personal changes do make a difference.  She spearheaded the successful Take Back the Filter Brita recycling campaign in 2008, and her life and work have been profiled in Susan Freinkel's book, Plastic: A Toxic Love Story, Captain Charles Moore's book, Plastic Ocean, and the award-winning film, Bag It. When she's not out fighting plastic pollution, she spends her time with her husband, and two rascally kitties in Oakland, CA. Listen and subscribe to the Big Vision Podcast on iTunes. Connect with me: Website: brittbravo.com Speaking & workshop calendar: brittbravo.com/speaking Blog: havefundogood.blogspot.com Facebook: facebook.com/britt.bravo Twitter: @Bbravo Music: "Mango Delight," by Kenya Masala.  Connect with Kenya through CD Baby and Source Consulting Group.

Plastic now pervades civilization---how many of the things you see from where you are right now are plastic? It is an ingenious material whose miraculous qualities we take too much for granted, but it also sometimes has nightmarish downstream effects. The giant polymer molecules (polyethylene, polypropylene, polystyrene, etc.) that are so marvelously cheap to mold, extrude, shape, and weave are also extremely durable. Their cheapness makes them the basic material of a throw-away culture (one third of all plastic goes into disposable packaging.) Their durability means that any toxic effects persist indefinitely in the environment. Plastic presents a problem in temporal management of the very long-term and the very short-term. How do we get the benefits of plastic's amazing durability while reducing the harm from its convenient disposability? The matter requires close and respectful coordination between short-term experts (businesses) and long-term experts (governments and nonprofits). Managing plastic well is a microcosm of managing civilization well. Susan Freinkel is the author of Plastic: A Toxic Love Story and American Chestnut: The Life, Death, and Rebirth of a Perfect Tree.

Guest Susan Freinkel speaks with Diane Horn about her book "Plastic: A Toxic Love Story".

We talked a lot about plastic - from a great repurposing segment from GD Lisa on how to get the most and re-use lots of plastic items to our wonderful conversation with Susan Freinkel, author of Plastic: a Toxic Love Story. Some great ideas and resources!