Recent Episodes
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The Brain Cleanup Crew
As older Americans become a larger part of our population, we'll see more people with Alzheimer's dementia. In the next 30 years, the cases will double unless we find a cure. Studies tell us AD is linked to the dysfunction of a brain protein called tau that gathers inside neurons. Another protein called beta-amyloid damages neurons by covering them, like plaque on your teeth. Scientists are now studying whether the cause of AD is that these proteins are piling up in the brain and cerebral spinal fluid because too few are being removed.
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US Attitude Toward Science
In the past year, many of our core beliefs about science and health have been publicly challenged. We've been told to disregard pollution and that vaccines are unneeded. Dave and I worry this is creating doubts about the value of American research programs. But a recent non-partisan survey by Research America shows people do care.
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The Ultimate in Home Brewing
To stay healthy, we need 38 trillion or so microbes that live in our gut. If that microbiome becomes unstable, we get sick, sometimes with conditions such as diabetes or depression. One illness that's rare and at times disbelieved by family and even doctors is ABS which stands for auto-brewery syndrome.
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Can Drink Coffee Lower Your Dementia Risk?
Sometimes in our fractured society of polarizing politics and algorithm driven social media feeds, we struggle to find something we all share. But Dave and I are here to the rescue. Yep, we present – America's most popular drink - coffee! Two-thirds of us drink coffee, up to three cups a day on average.
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Bacteria on the Rocks
As microbiologists, we're especially interested in microbial discoveries and a new one was found in an extreme environment, from deep within the oldest ice formation in the world. Scientists found the bacterium in Romania's Scarisoara ice cave which dates back 13,000 years. The new microbe, Psycrobacter SC-65-A.3, thrives in the cold and is resistant to salt. Scientists found it inside an 82-foot ice core. The deeper they drilled, the further back in time they went, going back 5,000 years.
