World Events, Too Many Men, Hysterial Women, Power of Poo

Kashmir Violence, Ethiopia Unrest, New UN Secretary General Guest: Quinn Mecham, PhD, BYU Professor of Political Science Quinn Mecham joins us monthly with a look at three international events worth closer consideration.  Too Many Men Can Be a Good Thing Guest: Ryan Schacht, PhD, Post-Doctoral Fellow at the University of Utah A decade ago, researchers made a startling claim that the surplus of men in Asia, due to the selective abortion and infanticide of female babies, was a threat to international security. Too many men would lead to violence and political instability, according to the argument, which became widely accepted.  But University of Utah anthropologist Ryan Schacht’s latest research suggests the opposite may actually be true. In societies with more men than women, the men are not more violent and, in fact, family relationships are more stable.   Hyperbaric Chambers and Withdrawal  Guest: Raymond Quock, PhD, Pharmacologist and Professor of Psychology at Washington State University Opioid addiction and overdose deaths are now at epidemic levels in the US: the number of opioid deaths has nearly quadrupled in the last 15 years. Prescription pain medicine and heroin are the primary culprits. Federal health officials also say communities don’t have enough treatment options to help people overcome the addiction. Withdrawal from opioids is so painful that most therapies involve giving people opiate medications that provide some relief from the symptoms, but also carry the risk of further addiction or relapse.  Galaxy's Top 20 Habitable Planets Guest: Nader Haghighipour, PhD, Full Astronomer at the Institute for Astronomy at the University of Hawaii Humans have long wondered about the existence of life beyond Earth. Part of our fixation on Mars is its potential to harbor some sort of life – even if it’s just a particularly hearty algae or bacteria. There are some who even consider Mars a possible escape hatch for the human race once we’ve ruined Earth. Mars is not nearly as hospitable, but it is in what’s called the Goldilocks Zone – meaning not too close or too far from the sun – which is important for supporting life. Since 2009, the real hunt for other “earths” has been focused beyond our Solar System thanks to a high-powered telescope NASA launched into space that year. It’s called the Kepler telescope and with it, astronomers have discovered more than 4,000 planets orbiting other stars in our galaxy besides the sun.  Researchers at the University of Hawaii-Manoa’s Institute for Astronomy have narrowed that list down to 20 most likely to be like Earth.  Hillary Clinton and the Hysterical Woman Guest: Laura Briggs, PhD, Professor and Chair of Women, Gender, Sexuality Studies at UMass Amherst There was a head-scratcher moment at the end of the Presidential debate on Sunday when Donald Trump was asked to name something he admired about Hillary Clinton. He replied, “She does fight hard. She doesn’t give up and she doesn’t quit. I consider that to be a very good trait.” What’s confusing is that during Clinton’s bout with pneumonia, Trump was spreading rumors about her health and even said, “She doesn’t have the stamina. And to be president of this country you need tremendous stamina,” at the last debate.  So is she a fighter who doesn’t quit or does she lack stamina? If this presidential race were happening 100 years ago, Donald Trump would probably have been calling Hillary Clinton “hysterical” – which was a catchall medical diagnosis to communicate just how unfit women are for positions of power.  The Secret Power of Poo Guest: Michael Sadowsky, PhD, Director of the University of Minnesota's BioTechnology Institute  We turn now to the lifesaving power of poop. Fecal transplants aren’t widely used yet, but they’re proving promising enough that before long they could be standard medical procedure. If we can get past the ick factor, that is.