Your daily 90-second dose of real science for real people, with Sandra Tsing Loh!
Hey, tired new parents! Got an infant who wheezes her way through the night? This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science, saying: Get a dog! Saying, at least that’s according to a study by the University of Cincinnati’s Paloma Campo. Campo tested air quality in the
Travelling on an airplane this flu season? This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. AH-CHOO! Scootch scootch! Between the close quarters and recycled air, there’s a good chance you’ll catch something. You can try to protect yourself by wearing a mask or popping vitamin C. But
A spoonful of sugar… makes your car lighter? This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. Carbon-fiber. It’s a defining feature of elite planes, racing cars and even sports equipment. This ultra-light material means cars need less fuel and you can swing that racket faster. But carbon-fiber’s
Are hugs the new chicken soup? This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. Think of your gut as a soup of friendly bacteria. Everybody’s recipe is custom made to work with our bodies properly. These good bacteria help digest food and fight disease. Scientists know that
Mountain men, rejoice! This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science, and some surprising news about beards. British scientists wanted to know if beards were spreading bacteria in hospitals. Why? Because hospital-acquired infections cause thousands of preventable deaths each year. So they swabbed the faces of around
Education helps keep kids off drugs. But what about BACTERIA? This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. When humans take drugs, our bodies don’t use the whole dose. The leftovers are just peed out. This might not seem like a big deal. But wastewater treatment facilities
Can we make food out of thin air? This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. Soil is full of microbes. These tiny organisms eat and break down other organisms. They also recycle nutrients. But in desolate places on earth, or even in space, what is there
Oh hey, deadly superbug. You want some. . . candy? This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. You’ve probably heard about SUPER BUGS. The bacteria that become resistant to antibiotics. But RESISTANCE isn’t the only problem. Some bacteria are drug TOLERANT. What’s the difference? Antibiotic RESISTANCE
Pee in the pool? NOT cool! This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. Community pools – hallmarks of summertime fun for kids and grown-ups. And ingrained in our memories of these neighborhood oases is the pungent odor of chlorine. Could you be soaking in more than
This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. Who doesn’t love a spelling bee? Cute middle-schoolers lisping out words like Xanthosis and Logorrhea! But spelling is vital inside living organisms too! Why? See, cells need proteins to work properly. And these proteins are coded by molecules in