Bob Barrett

Every year on The Health Show we hear about new conditions and treatments that shape the world of health care and point it new directions.  But with everything that’s new one thing remains constant: heart disease is going to kill a whole lot of us.

On today’s Health Show, we’ll rerun a conversation we had last February with a pair of heart specialists who published a complete guide to heart health in 2012.

We’ll also welcome back our friend Judah Leblang who found out about his own heart history this year.

The search for energy continues to be one of the driving forces of our economy and policy.  Now, the University of Massachusetts is offering a doctoral program in wind power to speed the development of this source of renewable power. Today on The Best Of Our Knowledge, we’ll talk to a pair of professors at U-MASS about the program.

When they were first introduced, and it wasn’t all that long ago, antibiotics were hailed as miracle drugs.  They still are.  But strains of antibiotic resistant bacteria have been fighting back against these particular miracles for some time now...and the problem is worse in certain areas.  On today’s Health Show, we’ll find out how bacteria learns to fight antibiotics...and where the most resistant bugs are hanging out.

How free is free speech on America’s college campuses?  There are some schools that seriously restrict speech and expression and there are some that feel it’s leading to a less tolerant society.  Today on The Best Of Our Knowledge, we’ll hear from a first amendment lawyer about the state of free speech on campus.

We’ll also hear how the number of women graduating with science degrees is leading to rise in the number of women in the lab.

And we’ll spend an Academic Minute finding out what they’re looking at in those labs.

Finding out a loved one has lung cancer is the beginning of a story that almost never ends well.  But once that story’s over, the people left behind often start a new one that tries to capture the spirit of the person they lost.  On today’s Health Show, we’ll hear from a father who lost a daughter and celebrated her life and writings in a book.

We’ll also listen in on a discussion about the disease with a doctor, a survivor and a sister who was left behind.

During the presidential election season there was a lot of talk about illegal aliens.  Well, get ready...we’re about to talk about aliens again...but the other kind, the ones from outer space. Today on The Best Of Our Knowledge, our astro-biology series returns with a look at the search for extraterrestrial life, and what finding it might mean for our society.

Then we’ll spend an Academic Minute taking a look at a very different kind of aliens species...one that is already having consequences here on Earth.

We’re going to start today’s show with one of those obvious statements you love so much: A stroke is a medical emergency.  The faster you recognize that you or someone you are with is having a stroke, the better the chance of survival.  Not everyone does.  Stroke is the forth biggest killer in the US and the number one cause of long term disability.  On today’s Health Show we’ll hear about the latest methods of turning stroke victims into stroke survivors.

Nobody who has ever read Moby Dick is going to walk away thinking Captain Ahab was a well adjusted specimen.  And Ahab may have fewer issues than some of Melville’s other characters.  Now, English Lit students are trying to diagnose just what the heck was going on with those classic characters. Today on The Best Of Our Knowledge, diagnosing literature.

Then we’ll hear about a number of NIH grants to study autism, find out how Sallie Mae can help you get the most bang for your college buck...and spend an Academic Minute getting out the youth vote.

Nobody who has ever read Moby Dick is going to walk away thinking Captain Ahab was a well adjusted specimen.  And Ahab may have fewer issues than some of Melville’s other characters.  Now, English Lit students are trying to diagnose just what the heck was going on with those classic characters. Today on The Best Of Our Knowledge, diagnosing literature.

Then we’ll hear about a number of NIH grants to study autism, find out how Sallie Mae can help you get the most bang for your college buck...and spend an Academic Minute getting out the youth vote.

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