Distillations Podcast

Distillations is taking a look at the presidential side of chemistry. First we learn about stem cells and the controversy surrounding their research. Next we find out why 21-gun salutes are safe and not so smoky in Mystery Solved!

Let’s go to the library! This week we take a field trip to that venerable institution where great reading abounds and shushing up is de rigueur.

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.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.

We are marking the one year anniversary of Distillations this week! To celebrate we’re looking back at the year 2008 and its noteworthy occasions: first, boron, whose 200th birthday was this year, then, the Nobel Prize.

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.

The truth behind the fake—this week Distillations explores the science of forgery. Some forgery is known and expected, such as fake meat products for vegetarians, while other fakes are meant to deceive…think imitated artists.

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.

Monday, December 1, is the 20th anniversary of World AIDS Day. In honor of this campaign, Distillations is considering global health.

Nothing is more important to parents than the health of their children, and advances in chemistry and pharmaceuticals have made it possible for children to receive the best care that science has to offer. However, chemical hazards in everyday life still pose hidden risks to children.

Eating is one of life’s simple pleasures, but the chemical process behind it is actually quite complex.  Balancing the right minerals with good taste is no easy matter.