Did you know that a 6 digit passcode takes less than 1 day to crack, while a 10 digit passcode can take several years? Just do not use a phone number, as this can be guessed easily. Nick Egbert joins us from the  Purdue University  Department of Mathematics. Nick is a  PhD candidate who is specializing in cryptography and number theory. He explains how simple and extremely complex codes work. Nick teaches us that  everything from depositing a check using your phone, logins to any website,  to reusing passwords, all use cryptography.

Superheroes of Science

Cryptography and Number Theory: From Password Encryption to Secret Codes

Professor Tim Donohue from the University of Wisconsin Madison joins us to discuss Bioenergy. He explains why we would want to think about bioenergy-based research solutions. We discuss that biofuels are not something new, what all comes from a barrel of oil, and making fuels and chemicals from dedicated non-food energy crops.

Bioenergy, Biomass, and What is in a Barrel of Petroleum?

Most all diseases include some kind of environmental component according to Dr. Sarah Evans, Assistant Professor of Environmental Medicine and Public Health at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York City. If environmental factors are responsible for rapid disease rates, then we can work toward solutions that will be helpful in slowing these rates. Dr. Evans suggests actionable items we can do to reduce unnecessary exposure to dangerous chemicals including using our dollars to choose products that are phthalate-free, BPA-free, and fragrance-free, using more whole and fresh foods, and reducing household dust.

What is Environmental Health? Looking at endocrine disrupting chemicals, health disparities, and environmental racism

Deep learning was such an unpopular field of research in 2012 that there were only 3 labs in the world doing any research. Only in the last decade have we seen enormous progress in the fields of deep learning, machine learning (ML), and ultimately artificial intelligence (AI). Slater Victoroff, CTO and Founder of Indico Data, explains that AI is the automation of any process, with a computer, that would traditionally be completed by humans. Imagine the early elevators operated by humans. The first automated elevators would have been considered AI! Victoroff discusses all things AI and gives insight into why this field is progressing so quickly. The more progress we make towards AI, the more appreciation we gain for how incredible human cognition really is!      Link from the episode: DALL-E https://openai.com/blog/dall-e/  

The Fourth Industrial Revolution: The Artificial Intelligence (AI) Effect

When a crime takes place, it seems natural that collecting DNA evidence would be a necessary part of the investigation. But what happens if there isn’t any DNA to collect, or DNA evidence is available but there isn’t a reference to use with the evidence? Melanie Beasley, Assistant Professor of Anthropology at Purdue University, explains how the use of stable isotopes provides strong evidence to help members of law enforcement answer the question, “Who was this person?” Additionally, Beasley explains the field of biological anthropology which studies how humans interact with their environment.

How Anthropologists Know What You Ate and Where You Came From!

Dr. Ryan Ickert, senior research scientist with the Department of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences at Purdue University, describes how radioactive isotopes are used to determine the age of rocks and minerals in a field of study known as geochronology. When scientists knowing the rates of decay of elements such as uranium, thorium, and potassium, they can use this information as a type of clock to determine the age of materials as far back as the beginning of our Solar System!   

How Scientists Measure Radioactive Isotopes

Dr. David A. Padgett is an Associate Professor of Geography and Director of the Geographic Information Sciences Laboratory at Tennessee State University. Dr. Padgett discusses Sea Level Rise in North American Coastal Regions: Impacts upon Coastal Aquatic Ecosystems. Discussions included evidence of sea level rise, climate change, impacts on aquatic ecosystems, and the loss of critical wetlands ecosystems habitat.   Dr. Padgett’s shared presentation (Google Slides): https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1j7mGUK3ykJatOL5RbxPadg5aqARM-Uph/edit?usp=sharing&ouid=116014254223471186009&rtpof=true&sd=true 

Sea Level Rise in North American Coastal Regions: Impacts upon Coastal Aquatic Ecosystems

Dr. Ronnie Schumann, Associate professor in the Department of Emergency Management and Disaster Science at the University of North Texas, tells us that there is “No such thing as a natural disaster”. In this interview we learn about disaster science, recovery from disasters and how to become fire-adapted.  

Wildfire Recovery: How to Become Fire-adapted

The story of the Asian giant hornet, or murder hornet, starts with an email: “I found a bug...what is it”? Dr. Gwen Pearson runs the Human Insect Interaction Lab for Purdue Entomology and candidly discusses many common myths associated with the hornets. Dr. Pearson also explains a convincing argument for describing the insects as Halloween hornets instead of Murder hornets.

The Real Story Behind Asian giant hornets known as Murder Hornets or Halloween Hornets

What do the guts of a volcano look like? According to Jonathan Delph, Assistant Professor in the Department of Earth, Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences at Purdue University, it depends on the geoscientist you ask. Delph walks us through several illustrations showing the ways different geoscientific disciplines might view magmatic structure: Geochemistry (process-focused), Petrology (field-focused), and Seismology-focused. Additionally, Delph reveals a recent paradigm shift in scientific thinking about the underground composition of volcanoes.

Mapping the Guts of Volcanoes: A Collaborative Effort

Advancements in technology are creating infinite opportunities for improvements to cybersecurity. Jin Wei-Kocsis, Assistant Professor of Computer and Information Technology with Purdue Polytechnic Institute and Director of the Cyber-Physical-Social Systems Design Lab, explains both Deep Learning and Blockchain technologies and how these technologies intersect with cooperative and secure computing.

Using Deep Learning and Blockchain Technologies to Improve Cybersecurity

Data is all around us! What can we do to make this data meaningful and understandable without making it complicated and overwhelming? Vetria Byrd, Assistant Professor of Computer Graphics Technology with Purdue Polytechnic Institute and Director of the Byrd Data Visualization Lab joins us to discuss data visualization, building data visualization capacity, and the 4 V’s of big data.  Additional resources: Choosing the right chart type: https://img.ctrlq.org/di/data-chart-type.png   Data Visualization Catalog: https://datavizcatalogue.com/  Power BI: https://powerbi.microsoft.com/en-us/  Google Charts: https://developers.google.com/chart  Tableau: https://www.tableau.com/  This website provides a list of different visualization tools along with their pros and cons. https://www.toptal.com/designers/data-visualization/data-visualization-tools   

The process of visualizing data: why we need it and how it provides insight to big data

Tillmann Kubis, the Katherine Ngai Pesic & Silvaco Research Assistant Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering at Purdue University, explains how Quantum mechanics is “simply” wave mechanics. Kubis explains and provides examples of the presence of particle physics all around us. He also advises that considering the wave-particle duality, and being open to the hybrid nature of waves and particles, can help us better navigate events in everyday life.

Quantum Mechanics Explained: Wave Mechanics are all Around You

Explore the science that goes into firework displays with Paul Smith, Director of Lecture Demonstrations for the Department of Chemistry at Purdue University. Smith describes the anatomy of firework shells, explains the chemicals used in making fireworks, and covers the requirements needed for getting licensed to build fireworks. Smith also gives a great explanation of the role that science has played in enhancing firework safety!

How Fireworks are Made

Do you know all the ways you can be hacked? Dr. Ida Ngambeki, Assistant Professor in the Department of Computer and Information Technology and Executive Director of Purdue Cyber Education Network Training Resources (CENTR) at Purdue Polytechnic Institute, explains many different types of social engineering including vishing, shoulder surfing, and watering holes. Dr. N presents strategies we can use to protect ourselves, and provides examples of dialogue to help us navigate awkward social interactions with politeness while avoiding any compromises to our cyber hygiene.     https://haveibeenpwned.com/  https://protonmail.com/ 

How to Help Prevent Hackers from Stealing Your Information

If you want to learn about current science and be informed about the latest trends in science education, Superheroes of Science is for you! Purdue University College of Science Outreach Coordinators, Steven and Sarah, interview scientists to discover what they are currently researching and how they first got involved in science. Current topics for today's K-12 science classroom will also be discussed.

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Superheroes of Science

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