Benchtime Stories

Ray and Nikki talk about Operation Sea-Spray, a 1950's navy experiment that set out to probe the potential spread of a bacterial agent of bioterrorism - all using the strange pink slime you find in your tub.

In the second episode, Ray Futia, Francis Aguisanda, and Paul bump talk about the development of Gleevec: a successful, effective cancer drug born out of decades of basic scientific research and global collaboration.

Michelle Pang and Nikki Teran take a look at the world of optogenetics, where light is used to activate and manipulate neurons. We talk about how this works, what it has to do with a tiny green algae, and the crazy things people can do with it. You can read the source material here for more on optogenetics: https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-neuro-061010-113817 https://doi.org/10.3410/B3-11 https://doi.org/10.1038/nn.4091 -- Music by Ryan Little, Nctrnm, and Podington Bear.