Life Slices

Most living creatures sleep. It’s natures way of saying it’s time to chill. But perhaps no other species beyond humans think about it so much. And study it. Ok, maybe not all. Most of us take it for granted. Until that night we’re tossing and turning and our minds won’t shut off. That’s when we turn to experts like Dr. Michael Grandner as Lifeslices did in part one of our conversation. We had so many questions that we couldn’t fit them all in one episode. Dr. Grandner returns to answer host Steve Fisher's questions about sleep, naps and dreams.

Technology. Love it or hate it, it’s here to stay. And evolve. Each year, creators, sellers and buyers gather in Las Vegas to share what’s new, what’s better and what’s different at the Consumer Electronics Show or CES. Return guest Marc Saltzman covers the tech industry and chats with host Steve Fisher about What's in Store for 2024.

Sleep. As humans, we know we need it and we know that when we don’t get enough, it can affect us all day long, if not longer. But what do we really know about it? What happens to our bodies and brains when we sleep, perchance to dream. Thankfully, there are scientists around the world studying all the things about it the rest of us don’t even think about. Dr. Michael Grandner of the University of Arizona, Director of the Sleep and Health Research Program, and Director of the Behavioral Sleep Medicine Clinic, joins host Steve Fisher to talk about what happens when we sleep.

One of mankind’s goals for the 21st century is to boldly go where no one has gone before. More specifically, our sister planet Mars. But to prepare our brave new class of astronauts for what they might encounter in that challenging environment and how to look for signs of life, historically or presently, scientists are studying previously unexplored regions of earth. One of them is Dr. Brian Hynek of the University of Colorado at Boulder. He joins host Steve Fisher to share his experiences.

Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, and Happy Kwanzaa from all of us at Lifeslices!

Climate change is ubiquitous. Our planet has always been subject to it. But since the 1800s, most of it has been fueled by human activity, primarily the burning of fossil fuels like coal, oil and gas. Temperatures are rising threatening our ability to grow food, melting our arctic regions to raise sea levels and leading to weather changes that are creating more deadly events such as hurricanes and tornados. Scientists have been warning us for decades that if we don’t act now, it will prove to be an existential threat to life as we know it. Some believe we are already there. Anna Lilgedahl is a scientist who is studying climate change. She's using AI to help sift through decades of data to find solutions and joins host Steve Fisher to talk about it.

Our planet holds many places that exude mystery and capture our fascination. Egypt has the pyramids and the Sphinx. Nevada has Area 51. The Atlantic Ocean has the Bermuda Triangle. But perhaps nowhere on Earth has the lure of Loch Ness in Scotland. It’s main attraction is the possible existence of a Loch Ness monster, affectionately called Nessie. Alan McKenna leads regular explorations of the lake, welcoming people to join in. He joins host Steve Fisher to talk about what the loch has to offer.

Throughout time, and across cultures, mysterious creatures have been sighted by everyday humans. Big Foot, Nessie, Mothman. These beings have yet to be substantiated by science, or debunked. So a field of study, cryptozoology, was born. A long time practitioner of the pseudoscience is Andy McGrath, who was drawn to it as a child.  He’s been at it in print, podcast and TV for 30 years. And he joins host Steve Fisher to talk about the Beasts of the World. 

There’s no telling how many other intelligent civilizations exist in the universe. Whether they or we can ever master the ability to travel light years, once we connect, how will we communicate? Behavioral ecologist Dr. Arik Kershenbaum and professor of linguistics Dr. Ian Roberts, both of the University of Cambridge, join host Steve Fisher to talk about Communicating with Aliens.

In 1938, a character was born that would endure to this very day, appearing in comic books, movies, TV and radio shows, video games, and one Broadway musical. That musical was “It’s a Bird, It’s a Plane, It’s Superman.” And while 11 actors have played the role in TV, radio and film, only one wore the cape and tights on Broadway. That actor was Bob Holiday. Although Bob may not have been a household name, and the show had a short-lived run, to those of us who were lucky enough to see him in the role, he was our Superman. Toni Collins saw the show when she was 11 and had the chance to meet Bob backstage.  Many years later, she ended up building and managing his website. She talks with host Steve Fisher about Befriending Superman.

More than 300 million people worldwide suffer from anxiety, a condition that can impair a person’s family, social, and school or working life. For years, mental health professionals have treated it with therapy and medications. But they don’t cure it. Daniel Packard, a mechanical engineer by training, claims he has developed a system that can do just that. He joins host Steve Fisher to explain how he's Solving Anxiety.

The Ojibwe people were mainly located in the Great Lakes region of Western New York, Wisconsin, Michigan, Minnesota, and southern Quebec and Ontario. Like other indigenous peoples, they found themselves amidst the British and French settlers of the Americas. Over the decades and centuries since that time, they took to speaking the new pervasive languages and their language found itself becoming less and less common. Now, younger Ojibwe, like so many other indigenous people, are trying to reclaim their heritage. One of those is John-Paul Chalykoff. He talks to host Steve Fisher about Speaking Indigenously.

One thing that unites humanity is everyone’s need for love. To find a partner in life. The advent of the Internet opened a whole bunch of ways to meet people. One aspect of Internet dating that has taken off in recent years is eastern women looking for western men. Monica Liu is a sociologist at the University of St. Thomas in Minnesota. Born in China, she moved to the US at the age of eight. She recently had the opportunity to study why so many mature Chinese women were on the hunt for love across many borders. Monica quote joins host Steve Fisher to talk about The West for Love.

Humans are threatening the animal kingdom by taking over habitats, polluting our skies and waterways and fueling global warming, creating an extinction event not seen in more than 10 million years. There are more than 1 million species on the brink of disappearing right now. Thankfully, there are organizations working to save those species, and to collect the biological materials necessary to bring them back when the technology is ready to do so. Among those organizations is the San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance. Barbara Durrant,  Director of Reproductive Sciences and Marlys Houck, curator of the Frozen Zoo share the important work they are doing with host Steve Fisher.

Western democracies are having a moment. And it’s not necessarily a good moment. People are questioning their leadership, their institutions, their systems of government. It’s at times like these where we need sane, rational and wise leaders. But they seem to be in short supply. History has shown us examples of the kinds of leaders we need and it takes someone who has observed, and worked with, them to allay our fears. Canadian Arthur Milnes has studied it all from both the outside as a journalist and from the inside as a speechwriter for Canadian Prime Ministers. He joins host Steve Fisher to share his stories from being a Witness to History, on Lifeslices.

Many people regard cats as mysteries. Part of that is cats attached themselves to humans later in our evolutionary history than dogs, so we’re still trying to figure them out. One thing we do know is that they evolved from wild creatures to pets to our beloved fur babies. Dr. Jonathan Losos is an evolutionary biologist, herpetologist and professor at Washington University in St. Louis and joins host Steve Fisher to talk about Tracing Cats.

Torbjorn Pedersen endeavored to visit every country in the world, spending at least 24 hours in each. And to make it more challenging, he decided to do it without flying. He left his native Denmark in October of 2013 and returned home in July of 2023, nearly a decade later. To say there were challenges would be putting it mildly.  

It’s known as the long goodbye. Alzheimer’s disease and other dementias rob a person of their humanity long before they shed their mortal coil. There’s no cure yet but recent medical advances give hope. The Alzheimer’s Association declares the “first survivor of Alzheimer’s is out there, giving optimism to those of us living with the sword of dementia hanging over our heads. But, in the meantime, there are those working on ways to ease the anxiety of the disease. One of those is Mike Fisher. He talks to host Steve Fisher about mind mending.

What happened to the galaxy? It’s there. But if you live within 30 miles of a heavily populated area, chances are your view is hindered by light pollution. Vahé Peroomian is a USC professor and has been teaching physics and astronomy for over 25 years. He's also an avid photographer. He joins host Steve Fisher to talk about astro-tourism and photographing the night sky.  

Between books, the Internet and cable news, we’re overwhelmed by more information than ever before. But is that information reliable? How much is misinformation? Or worse, disinformation? Regardless of our philosophical or political leanings, any of us can be duped at any moment. Dr. Rakoen Maertens, a researcher at England’s Cambridge University, joins host Steve Fisher to talk about who's susceptible and what we can do about it.