EPA Research

Science Bite Podcasts

Science Bite is a podcast series that describes the role EPA plays in advancing scientific research. These podcasts highlight the ways that EPA uses science to inform regulatory policy and protect human health and the environment.EPA Science Bite Podcasts

  • Doing it for the Kids: Engaging Students on Energy and Climate Change

    April 18, 2016

    EPA scientist Dr. Rebecca Dodder describes her research on climate change and why engaging students on energy issues is important to her. Listen to the podcast: 

    (3 min, 12 sec, 4 MB, MP3)

    Podcast transcript:

    Nathan: EPA scientist Dr. Rebecca Dodder is one of only 105 people across the country to receive a PECASE award in 2015, a Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers.

    The PECASE Award is the nation’s highest honor given to federal researchers at the beginning of their research careers. Recipients are selected for their leadership potential, dedication to community service, and their innovative research efforts in the fields of science and technology.

    Dr. Dodder received the award for her leadership in research and science education. She is connecting the dots between climate change and water resources by showing how the energy we use to heat and cool our homes and power our appliances could be affected by our limited water supply.

    Dr. Dodder has been able to share this and other complicated energy concepts with students K through 12 in creative ways such as a board game called Generate!  

    We sat down with Dr. Dodder to congratulate her on this tremendous honor and to find out what drives this PECASE scientist to tackle the more difficult questions, like imagining a future in the face of climate change. 

    Congratulations on your award Dr. Dodder!

    Rebecca Dodder: Thank you so much Nathan!

    Nathan: So, what inspires you to conduct research about climate change?

    Rebecca Dodder: Well, my research looks out to 2050 and beyond, so what really inspires me the most are my children. I am looking at the scenarios of the world that they will be living in when they are in their 40s. We have to understand the possibilities for how our energy system might transform, and really think about the tradeoffs, the surprises, the challenges and opportunities. Moving toward a lower carbon energy system is really a critical step towards taking action on climate and protecting the environment. But I’m optimistic that the pathway to that future will be one of innovation and resilience. I see my kids and other kids their age ask questions and think in ways that are sometimes quite astounding. I wish we could harness just a fraction of their creativity. They are the ones that really inspire me.

    Nathan: What is so important about connecting with the younger generation?

    Rebecca Dodder: Well, it wasn’t by accident that I started volunteering to do STEM, or Science, Technology, Engineering and Math outreach, in classrooms pretty soon after I had twin boys in 2008.  There is really no reason or excuse to not connect to the younger generations. I’ve worked with groups ranging from kindergartners to university and community college students. I’ve also worked with teachers and educators to help them however I can to provide tools and material for improving the energy literacy in their own classrooms.  Kids can understand different aspects of energy use and its impacts, at their own level, their own pace, and from their own unique perspective. But, we have to engage them, and we can’t leave them out of this dialogue, because this is really more their future than it is ours. 

    Nathan: Thank you so much for sharing your experience with us Dr. Dodder.

    Rebecca Dodder: It was my pleasure!

    You can learn more about Dr. Dodder’s research in a previous podcast from April 8, 2015: Connecting Climate Change, Electricity, and Water Resources (with MARKAL)

    For more information on the latest EPA Research, be sure to keep listening to the EPA Science Bite!

  • The Future of Breathing: Connecting Air Quality and Climate Change

    February 10, 2016

    EPA’s Air, Climate, and Energy Research program investigates the interactions between air quality and climate change and how it will affect the lives of Americans. Listen to the podcast: 

    (2 min, 36 sec, 3 MB, MP3)

    Podcast transcript:

    What will it feel like to breathe in the year 2030? If you’ve got asthma, it may mean more frequent attacks. If you’re an athlete, it could mean that you fall short of breath quicker and if you’re in a city, you might find yourself struggling to take a deep, satisfying breath.

    One difference between breathing today and breathing in the future is climate change. Ozone–-one of the first air pollutants discovered to be dangerous to health—forms when air pollution reacts in the presence of sunlight. Though we’ve made great progress in reducing ground-level ozone, climate change could make ozone worse, especially in cities.

    Dan Costa: When you inhale ozone, it’s as though your airways are getting a low-grade sunburn. As a result, your lungs and the rest of your body are put under stress because they need to respond and regulate to that minor physical trauma. If you have asthma, that sunburn makes your airways “twitchy,” which can make it harder to breathe.

    That was Dr. Dan Costa, director of EPA’s Air, Climate, and Energy Research program that investigates the interactions between air quality and climate change and how it will affect the lives of Americans. One approach is to use computer models to predict what air quality may look like in 14 years. EPA risk assessor Neal Fann, who has used results from these models to forecast climate’s impact on future air quality, explains:

    Neal Fann: By modeling the climate, we were able to forecast what temperature and air quality would look like in 2030 for the U.S. We expect an increase in the number of warmer days and stagnant days, which make it easier for ozone to form. With that information, we could estimate the impact of a changing climate on human health, and found that if no further measures were taken to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, the consequences could be hundreds of premature deaths, thousands of visits to the hospital and hundreds of thousands of school days missed. The economic value of these impacts is up to 13.6 billion dollars. This research is important because it allows us to put a dollar value on how climate change could affect the lives of the American people and what actions we might take to reduce the impacts of climate change.

    To read more about climate change and air quality, visit: bit.ly/climatehealthimpacts, and be sure to keep listening to EPA’s Science Bite!

  • You be the Scientist! Hands-on Environmental Education

    November 5, 2015

    EPA researchers and educational outreach staff have produced a series of classroom activities so students can learn about the state of the environment. Listen to the podcast: 

    (2 min, 22 sec, 3 MB, MP3)

    Podcast transcript:

    It’s that time of year again! Students are back in school and EPA is breaking out its collection of hands-on activities designed to teach students about protecting human health and the environment.

    EPA researchers and educational outreach staff have produced a series of classroom activities so students can learn about the state of the environment while getting interested in studying science, technology, engineering and math, four topics collectively called STEM.

    Two popular activities are Generate! – a board game that teaches its players the costs and benefits of the energy choices we make now and in the future, and a DIY air sensor that allows students to engineer their own portable monitor that detects air pollution particles. Some of these particles are microscopic and can cause serious health problems. Breathing them into your lungs can cause damage or make asthma worse.

    Alexandra Ross, a STEM outreach coordinator working at EPA, visited a classroom in Durham Nc. to build the particle pollution sensor with elementary school students.

    Student: I remember anytime I would be in my car and my little brother would like bang the back of my mom’s seat and we could see them, they would like float up into the air.

    Alexandra Ross: So lots of particles you can see, but lots of particles you can’t see.

    Student: Like dust, and tiny hairs, and dog fur.

    Alexandra Ross: Exactly! Dust and little tiny hairs and dog fur, those can get up into our lungs. So today, we’re going to build our own particle sensors.

    We asked one of the students what her favorite part about building the sensors was:

    Student: My favorite part was when like, we built it, it made feel like a scientist or something, like an engineer.

    For more information about EPA’s hands-on educational activities, visit bit.ly/KidsAirScienceActivities and be sure to keep listening to EPA’s Science Bite!

  • Following the Smoke: Wildfires and Health

    September 1, 2015

    Learn about EPA's wildfire research and how studying smoke enhances our understanding of health effects. Listen to the podcast:

    (2 min, 30 sec, 3 MB, MP3)

    Podcast transcript:

    Wildfires, especially in the West, are becoming more frequent and more severe as a result of rising temperatures and drought conditions brought on by climate change. EPA researchers are studying the smoke from wildfires to improve our understanding of their health effects. Research results can be used by public health officials and others to help reduce and prevent health problems related to breathing in wildfire smoke.

    A study on the 2008 North Carolina peat wildfire provided valuable first clues as to what happens to residents living near a wildfire. Researchers found an increased incidence of hospital visits for heart problems as well as breathing problems related to lung diseases. They also found that more people went to the hospital for treatment in counties with lower socio-economic status.

    The impacts of wildfire smoke on heart and lung health are being investigated by Dr. Ian Gilmour and colleagues. They found that there was something unique about the smoke during the wildfire.

    Ian Gilmour: We found that the air pollution particles during the wildfire event were more toxic than particles collected after the fire was controlled. This type of research allows us to compare the health risks of smoke versus other air pollution sources which ultimately can guide public health messaging during wildfire episodes.”

    EPA researchers were able to simulate how a warning advisory might impact the health and economic repercussions of wildfires. They found that if people respond to advisories it can protect their health and significantly reduce the economic cost of wildfires that result from hospital visits, productivity losses and mortality. The team is currently working to adapt this model to other wildfire outbreaks.

    With new grants from the Department of Interior, EPA scientists are also exploring whether different types of wood and burning conditions create different toxic effects. For example – they are looking at whether smoke from fast burning chaparral brush fires in Southern California is more toxic than smoldering smoke from conifers in the Pacific Northwest.

    For more information on the work EPA is doing to protect human health and the environment from wildfires, visit bit.ly/epa-wildfires, and be sure to keep listening to EPA Science Bite!

  • Clean Cookstove Research

    July 6, 2015

    Learn about EPA's cookstove research, which helps address the public health and environmental impacts of cooking with solid fuels like wood. Listen to the podcast: (2 min, 28 sec, 2 MB, MP3)

    Podcast transcript:

    The use of open fires and traditional cookstoves to prepare meals is common in less economically developed areas of the world. These cookstoves are fueled by wood, charcoal, dung, coal, and other organic materials that produce harmful air pollutants when burned.

    Jim Jetter: About 2.8 billion people, including some Native Tribes in the U.S., are still cooking with either open fires or rudimentary stoves. The World Health Organization estimates that 4.3 million people die prematurely every year due to household air pollution – mainly from cookstove smoke. To put that into perspective, that's more premature deaths than HIV/AIDS, malaria, and tuberculosis combined.

    That’s Jim Jetter, a researcher at EPA who tests different types of cookstoves by measuring their emissions and energy efficiency. The impact of cookstoves expands beyond health. Use of wood as a cooking fuel can contribute to deforestation in some regions, while the black carbon emitted from these fires contributes to the warming of the climate.

    At the EPA laboratory in Research Triangle Park, N.C., cookstoves and solar cookers undergo rigorous testing to support the advancement of cleaner technologies and the development of international standards for cookstove performance.

    EPA is also funding research at universities to evaluate how clean cookstove technologies can improve health and the environment as well as to investigate the best strategies for encouraging adoption of cleaner cookstoves and fuel. Bryan Bloomer coordinates this research to make sure the pieces fit together.

    Bryan Bloomer: This effort unites scientific experts from EPA and universities around the world to create solutions that better protect cookstove users, their families and the environment.

    EPA collaborates with the Global Alliance for Clean Cookstoves, governments, industry, and other organizations globally to help change the way people cook worldwide. The goal: to save lives, protect fragile ecosystems and take action on climate change. To learn more about EPA’s cookstove research, visit bit.ly/EPAcookstoves. And be sure to keep listening to the EPA Science Bite.

  • Measuring Air Quality with a Village Green Park Bench

    May 12, 2015

    Learn about EPA's Village Green Project, a new initiative to help communities learn more about their local air quality. Listen to the podcast: (2 min, 20 sec, 2 MB, MP3)

    Podcast transcript:

    How can a park bench measure air quality? Well if it’s part of EPA’s Village Green Project, the bench houses next generation air quality monitoring technology that’s tiny in size, but large in capability. Hidden inside the bench are air quality and weather instruments, a miniature computer processor, and wireless communications equipment, while on the bench’s roof, a solar panel and wind turbine provide the power that makes it all work. The end result: a unique bench that does some pretty extraordinary things.

    The Village Green Project is an EPA initiative to put science in the hands of citizens by making local air quality information readily available.  The Village Green stations measure two common air pollutants -- ozone and fine particle pollution. The bench also measures weather conditions. The data is posted every minute to a public web page, allowing people who visit the stations to access the data online using their smartphones.  

    The first Village Green bench has been operating since 2013 outside of a public library in Durham, North Carolina, and has produced a steady stream of data for use by teachers, citizen scientists, researchers and others. Additional Village Green benches are being introduced into more communities this year with the support of state and local partners to further test this unique air monitoring system under different environmental conditions and provide more opportunities for communities to learn about local air quality.

    Dr. Gayle Hagler is one of the engineers that helped design and build the Village Green bench.

    Gayle Hagler: We see these stations as allowing for new data to be collected in places where it would be hard to put in power systems. We see this as an enormous step from what tools we’ve had in our toolbox for air monitoring historically. We’re envisioning that students could be able to use the data in science projects, community members would have more information on local air pollution issues and this small park bench would be a place where scientists and community members could come together."

    Find out more about the Village Green Project and these pollution-sensing park benches on the web at: epa.gov/villagegreen and be sure to keep listening to EPA’s Science Bite.

  • Connecting Climate Change, Electricity and Water Resources (with MARKAL)

    April 8, 2015

    Listen to learn how scientists at EPA are exploring the connection between climate change and two things we rely on to power our everyday lives: water and electricity. Listen to the podcast:  

    (2 min, 13 sec, 2 MB, MP3)

    Podcast transcript:

    Today we are going to talk about how scientists at EPA are exploring the connections between electricity production, climate change, and water resources.

    One thing that most people probably don’t realize is that electric power plants use a lot of water to produce energy. In fact, electricity generation accounts for about 45% of withdrawals from rivers, lakes, and streams in the U.S.  That makes generation of electricity the largest demand on the nation’s fresh water supply. Now here’s the connection: as climate change affects weather patterns, especially in areas subject to drought like the Southwest, changes in water resources could become a challenge for energy production in the future.

    EPA scientists use a computer model called MARKAL to study how energy and water are connected.  The model allows them to peer 30-40 years into the future to study possible ways that we might produce and use energy if technologies and policies change. Dr. Rebecca Dodder, an EPA scientist working on the project explains why this is so important:

    Rebecca Dodder: The model helps us explore future water and climate challenges related to electricity production.  We can look at different mixes of fuels and technologies for generating electricity, then test cost-effective strategies that can both reduce carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions and also reduce the amount of water needed by the electric sector.  A good example would be renewables like wind power, which use no water for their day-to-day operations.

    Because water and electricity are both essential to our everyday lives, it is important to consider how the use of one can impact the other.  As the climate changes, this connection could influence the future of energy production in the United States.

    Continue to explore research related to Air, Climate and Energy by visiting www2.epa.gov/research and be sure to keep listening to EPA’s Science Bite!

  • DIY Air Quality Monitoring

    January 13, 2015

    Learn about how EPA supports citizen scientists and those using low-cost, next generation air sensor technology. Listen to the podcast:  

      (2 min, 14 sec, 1.5 MB, MP3)

    Podcast transcript:

    Welcome to the Environmental Protection Agency's Science Bite. Today we'll be talking about DIY Air Quality Monitoring.

    One of EPA's primary responsibilities is to protect the air we breathe and the environment from poor air quality conditions.
    With the average adult breathing over 3,000 gallons of air a day, it's important to know what's in that air and what may threaten its quality.

    Communities and citizen scientists want to know more about their local air quality, where they live, work and play. New air sensor technology, both low in cost and now available for the individual consumer to purchase, is becoming a popular way to learn more about air quality.  EPA has developed the Air Sensor Citizen Science Toolbox - a set of resources and tools to help you collect accurate information about the air quality around you. Dr. Ron Williams is one of the lead scientists that worked on developing the toolbox.

    Ron Williams: The Toolbox provides technical resources as well as information about the scientific basis for next generation air monitoring and key tools that are freely available to all.

    The Air Sensors Citizen Science Toolbox along with its full suite of resources can be found online by visiting bit.ly/airsensorstoolbox Exit. To learn more about the latest EPA science tools and tips, keep listening to the EPA Science Bite!

  • Bio-Response Operational Testing and Evaluation (BOTE)

    January 13, 2015

    Learn about EPA’s BOTE research project, which is designed to support efforts to respond effectively to public health disasters. Listen to the podcast:  (1 min, 16 sec, 1.1 MB, MP3)

    Podcast transcript:

    Welcome to the Environmental Protection Agency’s Science Minute. When a public health disaster strikes, it may be too late to figure out who knows what and what authorities should do.

    That’s why an EPA-led exercise called the Bio-Response Operational and Testing Evaluation, or BOTE, was so important. The project brought together six federal agencies to contain a mock anthrax outbreak in an office building. The two-phase exercise included a forensic investigation, a public health assessment, and clean-up.

    Shawn Ryan of the EPA’s National Homeland Security Research Center says BOTE forced people to work together.

    Shawn Ryan: The biggest thing about the BOTE project is that it was a shining example of the benefit of putting together multidisciplinary teams to develop solutions for complex environmental challenges. …it really broke the mold or the stove pipe model of researchers working on research in the lab and trying to transition those products to practitioners or operational assets in the field.

    The Agency also tested new de-contamination methods, and developed a new software tool to help future teams make better decisions when a real-world outbreak happens.

    Bio-Response Operational Testing and Evaluation (BOTE) Project (PDF) (37 pp, 15 MB, About PDF)

  • Stormwater Calculator
    Discover what EPA’s new online Stormwater Calculator tool can teach you about green infrastructure, reducing stormwater pollution and saving money. Listen to the podcast:

     (1 min, 11 sec, 1.1 MB, MP3)

    Podcast transcript:

    Welcome to the Environmental Protection Agency’s Science Minute. Architects or builders who want to know how much stormwater will run off their site can either guess, or pay a consultant. But a new EPA tool is providing an easier and cheaper solution with a few online clicks.

    The EPA stormwater calculator allows users to see how adding different kinds of “green” infrastructure can cut stormwater pollution. That’s according to Michael Tryby of the Agency’s Urban Watershed Management Branch.

    Michael Tryby: It's designed to allow you to do a comparison; of a do-nothing scenario just leaving your site the way that it is, or installing about half a dozen different low-impact stormwater controls.

    Tryby says the calculator also projects runoff under future climate conditions. The next step is to add a financial cost estimator, and integrate the calculator with existing builder software programs. The new calculator is already saving builders money, while showing the benefits of reducing stormwater pollution.

  • Coral Reef Health

    January 13, 2015

    Find out how EPA’s science-based process merges environmental, social and economic concerns to address the health of a coral reef at Guánica Bay in Puerto Rico. Listen to the podcast:

     (1 min, 31 sec, 1.4 MB, MP3)

    Podcast transcript:

    Welcome to the Environmental Protection Agency’s Science Minute. A new science-based process is helping protect a vital coral reef, while giving local residents more power to save jobs and livelihoods at the same time.

    The reef at Guanica Bay in southwest Puerto Rico is threatened by soil erosion from nearby farms that smothers the coral, promotes harmful algae growth and destroys marine life. A dying reef also affects the local tourism and fishing industries. But solutions aren’t easy. That’s why EPA researchers used a structured decision-making process to merge environmental, social and economic concerns.

    Susan Yee, ecologist at the Gulf Breeze Ecosystem Center, says the idea was to look at the big picture.

    Susan Yee: So when we came in, we really wanted to go and talk with the stakeholders - the people in the community and get a better understanding of what are some of the potential consequences of this management plan on coral reefs, on the economy, on the community and try to start to understand some of the potential tradeoffs.

    As a result of the dialogue, decision makers also agreed to restore a local waterway, improve coffee farming practices, and upgrade sewage disposal – all benefits for people who live in the area. Yee says the EPA will expand the process to additional reefs in Puerto Rico.

  • Heart Disease and Air Pollution

    January 13, 2015

    Learn what EPA research reveals about the connection between Omega-3 rich food, such as fish or olive oil, and protecting your body against the effects of air pollution. Listen to the podcast:

    (1 min, 22 sec, 1 MB, MP3)

    Podcast transcript:

    Welcome to EPA’s Science Minute. We know that olive oil and fish are good for you, but did you know that they also may protect against air pollution?

    Researchers have known that particulate matter can cause problems with the inner lining of blood vessels, or the endothelium. That’s a risk factor for clogged arteries and heart attacks. At the same time, olive oil and fish oil have beneficial effects on these same blood vessels. Two separate EPA studies exposed volunteers to particulates while giving them small daily doses of either fish oil, olive oil or nothing. Scientist James Samet says the two compounds had different effects; both were healthful.

    James Samet: So if you put the two studies together, it seems that olive oil protects the vasculature, fish oil can protect the heart against the adverse health outcomes of particulate matter.

    The results suggests that a small amount of olive oil and fish oil can be a safe, low cost and effective way of counteracting the effects of some forms of air pollution. The next step is to replicate the studies, and to see if the oils also protect against ozone.