Boston African American Historic Site, Criminals and DNA, Brown Dwarves, Music in COVID, Mini Book Club, Best Cars for Teens

Boston African American Historic Site (0:00:00) Today we have the privilege of highlighting a very special national site for our Adventure Club. The Boston African American National Historic Site commemorates a group that led the nation into the fight against slavery and injustice. This site holds a great deal of history and importance to our nation, especially today. We wanted to learn more about it, so we invited Merrill Kohlhofer, a ranger at Boston African American National Historic Site, to join us on the show today. We’re excited to have him teach us more about this incredible place. Criminals and DNA Tests (0:18:52) DNA collection has changed the game in criminal investigation since the mid-80s. But, if police don’t have the suspect’s DNA in the system, they can never match it to DNA found at the crime scene. Until now. Recently, law enforcement realized they can use family member DNA to catch criminals. DNA testing company databases are essential in these types of cases. Here to help us understand this, we’ve invited Dr. Barbara Rae-Venter, a world renowned Investigative Genetic Genealogist. She was instrumental in helping identifying the Golden State Killer and murderer of the Allenstown Four. Brown Dwarves (0:35:34) When we learn about the solar system growing up, we typically learn about stars, planets and different types of suns. But have you ever heard of a brown dwarf? These strange space bodies lie somewhere in between a star and a planet and were only first discovered a few decades ago. So why are these planets-that-aren’t-planets so important to scientists and researchers? Joining us today is Dr. Denise Stephens, a professor of astronomy at Brigham Young University and recognized expert of brown dwarfs, here with us to talk about these unique planetary bodies and how they can teach us about our universe. Writing Music During COVID-19 (0:52:50) Creating is never easy, whether you’re a musician, writer, artist, or you’re just trying to figure out a creative new way of connecting with people.