Tag: medicine

Transcript-TWIS.ORG Feb 24, 2009

Synopsis: How To Say Kiki, Decade of Data, This Week in The End of The World, Fighting The Good Fight, Lots of Health, Saving Humanity, and a Competition For God

Justin: Disclaimer! Disclaimer! Disclaimer!

The following hour of our programming much like the human genome is full of endless possibilities, yet comprised of a few relatively simple base arrangements in a specific manner.

From these endless possibilities, it is virtually guaranteed that the host will be led on tangent spinning the show out of control. As their ideas and inquiries twirl about an endless spiral. It is comparable only to the coiling double-helical form of Deoxyribonucleic acid more commonly known as the abbreviated form DNA.

And while these twirling ideas and spinning inquiries do not necessarily represent the views or opinions of the University of California at Davis, KDVS or its sponsors, it is these such ponderings that have allowed scientist to methodically discover the countless breakthroughs and advancements which led ultimately to the creation of This Week in Science, coming up next.
Continue reading “Transcript-TWIS.ORG Feb 24, 2009”

Transcript-TWIS.ORG March 24, 2009


Synopsis: Brains, brains, brains! Cold Fusion, Bad For Baby, Kiki needs to drink less, and lots more

Justin: Disclaimer! Disclaimer! Disclaimer! The Earth is facing an immediate global threat of self-annihilation. And while the vast majority of Earth’s inhabitants do nothing to fight the threat of global warming, this is likely because most of its habitants are non-sentient life forms.

Yet even among these sentient thinking reasoning informational adaptive earthlings, there seems to be a little initiative taken. Either from a lack of knowledge, absence or of awareness or worse, a sense that the trouble ahead is too terrible.

The challenge is too great and so they ignore the issue resolving the Earth to a coward’s fate. And though terribly troubled earthlings much like the following hour of our programming do not necessarily represent the views or opinions of University of California at DAVIS, KDVS or its sponsors.

The fate of the world is NOT so predetermined. There are some human principles that do not back down from the challenge. Science ever thinking, never blinking, innovating answers instead of hesitating the question, inventing the tools needed to face the future instead of pretending that tomorrow will never come.

With science, a new energy portfolio is being designed. Roof tiles integrated with solar cells, algae and hydrogen fuel sources, emission-free vehicles backed up by better battery technology, rooftop, wind turbines and water turbines and ocean currents, geothermal power plants tap in deep into the Earth below and pursuit of perhaps the greatest of potential prices. Even fusion is on the table still.

Nothing is impossible. No challenge too great, no question too tricky for the brave-minded modern scientist. And speaking of brave minds, hello! Welcome to another episode of This Week in Science, coming up next.

Continue reading “Transcript-TWIS.ORG March 24, 2009”

Transcript-TWIS.ORG May 5, 2009

Synopsis: Remote Control Brains, Making Blood Crawl, Birdsong Basics, This Week in Science History, Drink To Your Sanity, and an Interview with Dr. Leonard Mlodinow re: The Drunkard’s Walk.

Justin: Disclaimer! Disclaimer! Disclaimer!

In the wake of the H1N1 worry, the world has a new wave of statistical woe on the way. As the number of confirmed deaths continued to drop, from hundreds, to dozens down to only ten within a single week.

The latest statistical projections of the un-die-ing situation now suggest that we are trending towards a potential population explosion!

If people continue to un-die at this rate, we may soon be looking at a human transmittable in fallopian pregno-demic that could grow exponentially over the next nine months.

And while this exponential growth oddly mirrors the rate of natural human reproduction it, much like the following hour of programming, does not necessarily represent the views or opinions of the University of California at Davis, KDVS or its Sponsors.

Listeners should be wary, as face masks will not be enough to protect you from the probability of procreation. Staying indoors with loved ones might actually contribute to the further spread of parental syndromes.

While the CDC sits idly by and does nothing to slow the rapid rate of confirmed un-deadenings, you can be comforted to know that we will be dedicating the next hour to keeping you reasonably safe by offering you something else to do, here on This Week In Science coming up next.
Continue reading “Transcript-TWIS.ORG May 5, 2009”

Transcript: TWIS.ORG June 9, 2009

Justin: Disclaimer! Disclaimer! Disclaimer!

What you’re about to encounter over the next hour is an elimination of information. You will hear tales of current discoveries in science. These implications will then be pondered aloud in what may appear to be an effort to add endless amounts of information to your brain.

But do not be fooled, dear Minions, science is a reductive art. Boiling off extreme news info, laser focusing beams of investigative interest spinning the center fuse of potential inferences until only the applicable data points remain — reducing reality to its most basic definitions so that it can be transmuted into useful knowledge, devoid of uninformed observation and human illusions.

And while boiling laser focused alchemist, much like the following hour of our programming, does not necessarily represent the views or opinions of the University of California at Davis, KDVS or its sponsors when all information not worth knowing can be eliminated, what is left can be called fact, can be construed to scientific truth, can be viewed in context to the role of plays within the unfiltered, uninformed extreme misinformation world of human illusions. Only then can it be discussed here on This Week in Science, coming up next.
Continue reading “Transcript: TWIS.ORG June 9, 2009”

Transcript:TWIS.ORG Sept 16, 2008


Justin: Heading through the Large Hadron Collider, the Physics world buzzes with excitement about the many potential discoveries, confirmations and unexpected revelations, the media and the general public are scrambling to learn the basics of the Physics at play.

Why – what is a Hadron? What is a Higgs? How did they accelerate one? Is it safe to do so? Are Proton beans colliding going to cause a big bang? What is a Big Bang anyway? And I heard they want to make a big black hole and it’s going to swallow the whole Earth. Is that true? Have they gone mad? Should we stop them? And where, oh where on earth is the country of CERN I keep hearing about anyway?

While the location of CERN much like the following hour of our programming, does not represent the views or opinions of the University of California, Davis KDVS or its sponsors. The real benefit of the LHC may lay as much in the minds and imaginations of the curious public as it does in the 17 miles of buried tunnel.

As fears of impending doom circulate, like rumors in a mill, the incredible need for the man on the street to know his Higgs from a Hadron Collider in the ground becomes clear. And so, too the solution to such dire need also becomes clear. For where else can the public turn to for on the fly science learning but This Week in Science, coming up next.
Continue reading “Transcript:TWIS.ORG Sept 16, 2008”

Transcript:TWIS.ORG April 7, 2009


Justin: Disclaimer! Disclaimer! Disclaimer!

The future is rapidly approaching. This has always been the case, of course throughout the whole of human history. Tomorrow always seems to be on a hurry to reach the present. What may separate our presently encroaching future from future’s past?

The seemingly limitless landmarks that beacon this new age, from nano-engineering to synthetic-genetic manipulations; stem cell progenitors to microbial biofuels; from the nature of neural networks to a universe made of strings; the science that we are living in golden age of discoveries only clouded by the sheer volume of discoveries and the speed at which they are being made. Making the amazing a common place occurrence.

As human knowledge expands well beyond the familiar seemingly intuitive world we were born into, rerun the risk of falling behind in our time of being primitive thinkers in the modern world.

In all primitive thinking much like the hour of our programming does not necessarily represent the views or opinions of University of California at Davis, KDVS or its sponsors.

The speed that which the secrets of the universe are being revealed to us is increasing at such a rate that if we turn our attention away too long, if will allow ourselves to be mired in daily destruction, we may miss our chance to glimpse the world made naked by knowledge.

The universe as revealed by This Week in Science coming up next.
Continue reading “Transcript:TWIS.ORG April 7, 2009”

Transcript: TWIS.ORG April 14, 2009


Justin: Disclaimer! Disclaimer! Disclaimer!

I think I can. I think I can. I think I can. The mortal words of the anthropomorphic little engine that did while face the seemingly undoable task of scaling a steep mountain grade. Much like the little engine, bound to travel the rails laid before it, science too has little choice but to take head on the obstacles and its path.

There are less treacherous tasks to tackle in life than those of astrophysics quantum unification and autoimmune disease. There are much smaller mountains to master than those of global climate, cancer or the multitude of mental afflictions that assault the human line.

And just like the moralistic little engine tail, it is the belief that anything can be accomplished through persistent thinking and doing that science ultimately makes a grade.

And while making the moralistic mental grade, much like the following hour of our programming, does not necessarily represent the views or opinions of the University of California at Davis, KDVS or its sponsors, the plain old fashion pluckiness of science continues to push us to new heights chugging away with pistons of persistent PhDs patiently plodding out data proofs like pops of smoke from the stack of a story book steam engine.

“I think I can” unify all forces under one theory. I think I can cure cancer. I think I can put a man on Mars. And while the plucky mountain climb continues, other trains are just now returning to the station here on This Week in Science, coming up next.
Continue reading “Transcript: TWIS.ORG April 14, 2009”

Transcript:TWIS.ORG April 21, 2009

Kirsten: Hey there minions, this is Kirsten. Before we start the show I just want to let people know that this week’s show occurred during our home radio station’s fundraising drive.

KDVS is fabulous example of how great freeform community non-commercial radio can be. But it does have to pay bills just like any business and fundraising has become a major part of the station’s income.

KDVS has been home to TWIS for ten years. And both TWIS and KDVS have matured quite a bit in that time. I hope that you will consider donating to the place that has supported and continues to support a unique brand of science reporting.

And even if you don’t care for supporting a radio station you barely know, consider supporting the show. Regardless, thank you for being a part of our exploration of science and journey of discovery. With that note, on with the show!
Continue reading “Transcript:TWIS.ORG April 21, 2009”

Transcript: TWIS.ORG April 28, 2009

Justin: Disclaimer! Disclaimer! Disclaimer!

It is said that a little knowledge can be dangerous. By this logic, having no knowledge at all may make you safe. Well, the following hour of our program is potentially lethal. More accurate perhaps is to say that too little knowledge can be an annoying thing — like finding a subtype strain of human-swine-avian flu that had not been previously documented and freaking out based on zero information, assuming that it can persist to a pandemic proportion.

While fear of such scenarios may be warranted, action out of that fear is not. And we attribute to the unknown the properties that lurk within our worst case scenarios our worst fears and then act on that fear without any true information, we spread the fear, incubate misinformation, making the potential or false fear and ignorant actions become a global pandemic freak out.

Enough with the surgical masks already! With patient to patient observations, we will learn that this flu is likely just a flu and therefore defeat-able. Fear served no purpose in solving such things. And then our best solution is soap and water, covering mouths while coughing, not leaking fixtures in public places and to avoid kissing pigs.

While licking fearful farm animals in public, much like the following hour of our programming, does not necessarily represent the views or opinions of the University of California at Davis, KDVS or its sponsors.

We live in a world with the mysteries of disease are few. A world with a source and transmission of most illness is generally well known, identifiable and preventable, a world in which science has concurred many mortally challenging ailments and will continue to do so into the future. We will do so by seeking a lot of dangerous knowledge by gathering a lot of dangerous information and by acting out of reason, not fear.

While science is busy making us safer, it’s time to make you more dangerous here on This Week in Science, coming up next.
Continue reading “Transcript: TWIS.ORG April 28, 2009”

TWIS.org March 3, 2009

Justin: Disclaimer! Disclaimer! Disclaimer!

While the following hour of our programming is not intended to be offensive, if you feel yourself in any way provoked, you should be provoked into thinking not to anger.

The content is for mature audiences. Though, by mature audiences, we mean to include five-year olds with the love and interest in science. The show itself well about science and employing scientific means to get science-y news to your ears, does not necessarily represent the views or opinions of the University of California at Davis, KDVS or its sponsors.

And though the world is strange enough as it is, each week here we seem to discover that it can stranger still. “What can be stranger than ants raised by butterflies or see-through frogs?” One might ask. The answers await us in This Week in Science, coming up next.

Good morning, Kirsten!

Kirsten: Oh, great morning.

Justin: Yeah.

Kirsten: Do you know what today is?

Justin: Tuesday, right?

Kirsten: Besides that, what’s the date today?

Justin: No idea.

Kirsten: Today is the third month – the third day of the third month of the ninth year of 2000, whatever.

Justin: What? You’re – now what?

Kirsten: And I’m rambling. No I’m not. Today is Square Root Day.

Justin: Oh yeah, 03-03-09, yeah.

Continue reading “TWIS.org March 3, 2009”