It’s Valentine’s Day this weekend, and love is in the air. We won’t even bother trying to understand the laws of human attraction. Instead let’s learn how atoms find each other with an examination of chemical bonds. We chat with Alan Rocke, Henry Eldridge Bourne Professor of History at Case Western Reserve University. Rocke enlightens us on past scientific theories on the ways that materials joined in molecular union. And we examine ozone. Until recently, humans did not fully understand our own powers of destruction when it came to this important molecule made up of three oxygen atoms. Chemical Agent: Free Radicals.

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Show Clock

00:00 Opening Credits
00:32 Introduction
01:05 Chemical Agent: Free Radicals
02:56 A conversation with Alan Rocke
08:19 Mystery Solved: The Ozone Hole
11:19 Closing Credits

Resources and References

Visit NASA’s website for information on its Total Ozone Mapping Spectrometer.

Learn more about free radicals and how they affect your health here.

For a detailed examination of the political and scientific controversy on the ozone hole, read Stephen C. Zehr’s article, “Accounting for the Ozone Hole: Scientific Representations of an Anomaly and Prior Incorrect Claims in a Public Setting,” in the Sociological Quarterly, August 7, 2008

Credits

This show was written and researched by Hilary Domush and Eleanor Goldberg.

Our theme music is composed by Dave Kaufman. Additional music from the PodSafe Music Network. Additional music is: ”snowfall,” by rada, and  ”Sense of Snow,” by Andrew Gaskins.

This week’s image is from istock.com, provided by Nicole Cioe.

What do you resolve to do in 2009? Get in shape? Improve your eating habits? Stop smoking? We cover them all on this week’s show. Producer Lara Ratzlaff takes us along for a jog—and then shares what she finds out about what’s causing her sore muscles. (Hint: it’s not necessarily lactic acid.) Our Mystery Solved! segment investigates why fruits and vegetables high in antioxidants, like the pomegranates pictured here, are being credited with all sorts of health-saving powers.

Finally, with this episode, we bid farewell to the Element of the Week. After a year’s worth of shows, we were running out of elements. As much as our editorial team will miss the challenge of finding compelling stories to tell about obscure substances like gadolinium and astatine, it was time to move on. Our new segment, The Chemical Agent, will feature molecules, reactions, and, yes, sometimes elements. And starting next week, it will even have theme music. This week’s Chemical Agent? Nicotine.

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Show Clock

00:00 Opening Credits
00:32 Introduction
01:06 Chemical Agent: Nicotine
03:52 Mystery Solved! Antioxidants
07:00 Feature: Aching Muscles
11:22 Closing Credits

Resources and References

For information on nicotine, we turned to the trusty Merck Manual.
In October 2001, PBS broadcast “The Search for a Safe Cigarette” as part of the NOVA series. The companion Web site has extensive information on cigarettes, smoking, and nicotine.
For antioxidants, see this helpful site from the National Library of Medicine.

Credits

Special thanks go to Jennifer Dionisio and Eleanor Goldberg for researching and writing the show.

Our theme music is composed by Dave Kaufman. Additional music from the PodSafe Music Network. Additional music is “I Quit Smoking,” by Feed the Kitty, “Founding of Youth,” by Latch Key Kid, “Running from the Law,” by Mean Gene Kelton and the Die Hards, and “Running in Place,” by Sunspot.

The illustration is “Pom Wonderful,” uploaded to Flickr.com by aluvendale.

Blogs, YouTube, Facebook, and wikis are just a few of so-called Web 2.0 technologies that are transforming the look and feel of science on the Web. Last week a group of leading science educators met at CHF during the annual Leadership in Science Education Conference to discuss how these new media technologies are affecting science education. To find out more about how students are using the internet, we spoke with John Horrigan, an expert on broadband and associate director for research at the Pew Internet and American Life Project. We also take a look at popular internet science videos, like the oscillating reaction shown above. Finally, Abigail Paske, a science teacher in Oakland, California, shares her experiences dealing with No Child Left Behind. Element of the Week: Iodine.

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Show Clock

00:00 Opening Credits
00:32 Introduction
01:04 Conversation with John Horrigan
05:00 Element of the Week
08:01 Science Education in the Era of No Child Left Behind
10:58 Quote: Mary Shelley
11:16 Closing Credits

Resources and References

On the Riggs Brauscher reaction: Instructions and an explanation from the University of Leeds Chemistry Department.
For surveys of internet users, analysis of current Web trends, and more: The Pew Internet and American Life Project.
White papers summarizing LISE 5 and LISE 4 are available online.

Credits

Special thanks to Audra Wolfe for researching the show.

Our theme music is composed by Dave Kaufman. Additional music was provided by the Podsafe Music Network. The music at the end of the interview is “Upbeat for Cable TV,” by Andrew Chalfen. In the Element of the Week, you’re hearing “Stopped Time,” by 37Hz. The music at the end of the show is “The Land of Candy,” by Chris Resu.