China Economics, Charter Schools, Giving Birth, Driving Drowsy

China Economics Rap (1:03) Guest: Andrew Dougherty, China Economist and Asia Research Director for Capital Strategy Research  After decades of mindboggling growth compared to the rest of the world, China has hit a speedbump that’s got economists worried and investors skittish. We’re told much of what China is experiencing is tied to global factors. So, why is China only now heading toward recession when the US and Europe hit the skids eight years ago?  Charter Schools (15:00) Guest: David Miller, PhD, Director of the Collaborative Assessment and Program Evaluation Services at the University of Florida’s College of Education  Over the last decade, new charter schools have sprung up at a fast clip while every nearly every state in the country passed laws allowing them to receive public education funds. Charter schools are often popular for the special programs they’re able to offer as a result of the flexibility that comes with not being a formal public school. But the data so far on just how well charter schools do at improving student performance is mixed. Researchers at the University of Florida found that charter schools in that state lose about 10 percent of their teachers each year – more than double the turnover rate at public schools. The results are similar to what a number of other states have found.  Giving Birth In Vs. Out of Hospitals (31:43) Guests: Dr. Jonathan Snowden, PhD, Graduate faculty member in the Department of Obstetrics & Gynecology and Department of Public Health & Preventive Medicine at Oregon Health and Science University; Dr. Ellen Tilden, PhD, Expert in well-woman exams and gynecology at Oregon Health and Science University  The vast majority of babies born in the United States are born in a hospital. That’s been true since the late 1960s. But during the last decade, the rate of women choosing to give birth someplace other than a hospital has been rising. Today about 1½ percent of all babies are born at home or in a birthing center.  This increase has come with considerable controversy about the relative safety of giving birth outside of a hospital.  A study of all babies born in Oregon during 2012 and 2013 yields some important insight comparing the risks of in-hospital and out-of-hospital birth. Yes, both venues pose risks of their own. The research was in the prestigious New England Journal of Medicine.  Driving Drowsy (50:56) Guest: Hans Van Dongen, PhD, Director of the Sleep and Performance Research Center at Washington State University  Drowsy driving causes about 100,000 of accidents annually in the US – 1,500 of them fatal. The risks are even higher for commercial drivers who can be on the clock for 60 or 70 hours at a time.  Imagine if our cars could sense when we’re about to nod off and jolt us awake somehow? Researchers at the Sleep and Performance Research Center at Washington State University have recently patented a device that would do that. They’re also looking in-depth in to the short and long-term effects of sleep deprivation.  Parent Previews (1:08:46) Guest: Rob and Donna Gustafson, Film Reviewers at ParentPreviews.com  We discuss the films “Hail Caesar” and “Pride and Prejudice and Zombies.”  Tech Transfer: Infant Ventilator (1:20:44) Guests: Jim Trent, Assistant Dean in the BYU College of Engineering; Mike Alder, Director of BYU’s Technology Transfer; Sheryl Flannery, Nurse  About 1 million babies die each year because they’re unable to establish breathing on their own. The World Health Organization neonatal asphyxia, as it’s called, is one of the primary causes of newborn mortality-- primarily in third-world countries where access to expensive ventilators is rare.   A team of BYU engineering students came up with a portable ventilator that costs $500 to make – a fraction of the $40,000 price tag on ventilators you’d typically find in American newborn intensive care units. Now, BYU management students are hatching a plan to get the device manufactured and into the hands of doctors and parents around the world.