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.

Happy holidays to all our listeners!

Thanks to J. J. Thomson’s plum pudding model of the atom, chemistry will be forever associated with 19th-century British Christmas traditions. His model was soon discarded, but it remains a staple of high school chemistry textbooks. On today’s episode, we introduce a new segment, “Tools of the Trade,” that looks at the  models, instruments, and artifacts—whether still in use or long discarded—that help scientists do their jobs. We also visit with Emilio Mignucci, one of the owners of Philadelphia’s famous DiBruno Brothers gourmet foods shop, to find out the story behind ham, that favorite holiday food. Element of the Week: Tin.

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Show Clock

00:00 Opening Credits
00:32 Introduction
01:10 Element of the Week: Tin
02:47 Tools of the Trade: Plum Pudding
05:41 Feature: Ham
10:47 Closing Credits

Resources and References

Learn more about J. J. Thomson and other atomic theorists at the Chemical Heritage Foundation’s Chemical Achievers site.
Explore historic recipes, like this one for plum pudding, at Michigan State University’s Feeding America online cookbook project.
We found about the history of toys from this charming site from the Hampshire County Council.
The ever-useful Web Elements site has basic information on all the elements, including tin.

Credits

Special thanks go to Hilary Domush, Anke Timmermann, and Eleanor Goldberg for researching the show.

Our theme music is composed by Dave Kaufman. Additional music from the PodSafe Music Network. Additional music is “Little Drummer Dude,” by Charlie Crowe, “Carol of the Bells,” by Doug Astrop, and  ”Joy-Kinda Holiday-ish,” by Charlie Crowe.

The illustration is a stylized model of J. J. Thomson’s plum pudding model. John Woodcock© Dorling Kindersley. (Please note this image will be removed in 30 days.)

Americans are still relatively new to consuming wine—but they do so with gusto during the holiday season. On today’s show we take a look at the chemistry of this intoxicating substance: its aroma, its flavor, and its sometimes unwanted side effects. We start off with a look at why it’s never a good idea to leave an open bottle of wine uncorked. Next, we turn to the controversial topic of sulfites. Do they help preserve wine’s flavor, or are they the leading cause of hangovers? Finally, producer Eric Mack takes us to New Mexico for a visit with David Rigsby, a vintner who’s experimenting with organic techniques. Element of the Week: Oxygen.

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Show Clock

00:00 Opening Credits
00:31 Introduction
00:52 Element of the Week: Oxygen
02:54 Mystery Solved! Sulfites and Hangovers
05:35 Feature: Organic Wines
10:11 Closing Credits

Resources and References

The Department of Viticulture and Enology at UC Davis is a terrific gateway to learn more about wine and winemaking.
You can find out more about the flavor of wine in Amy Coombs, “Scientia Vitis: Decanting the Chemistry of Wine Flavor,” Chemical Heritage 26 (Winter 2008/9): 18–23.
This admittedly opinionated piece, also from UC Davis, debunks sulfite myths.
You can find a helpful list of all the wineries in the United States here.

Credits

Special thanks go to Hilary Domush for researching the show.

Our theme music is composed by Dave Kaufman. Additional music from the PodSafe Music Network. Additional music is “Toms Lullaby,” by Lee Maddeford, “Bottle It Up and Go,” by Steve Gardner, “Hangover (German Beat),” by Bosom Divine, and “New Mexico,” by The Ukulele Hipster Kings.

The illustration is a detail of white wine grapes from Jean Antoine-Claude Chaptal’s Traité théorique et pratique sur la culture de la vigne (Paris, 1801). Courtsey of the Roy G. Neville Historical Chemical Library, Chemical Heritage Foundation/Douglas A. Lockard.