Reduce, reuse, recycle! This episode focuses on waste that has become a product of its own. Enter Jell-O and Vaseline. Chemical Agent: Carbon Black.

Love it or hate it, plastic is all around, whether made from corn, as packaging, or to keep meat looking fresh. Chemical Agent: Polylactic Acid.

The nose and its powers. This week learn about how your body's scent can act like a fingerprint and how an iPhone app combines scent and song.

Today's show follows three men's scientific journeys: one seeking alien life, another investigating the spiritual world, and the last sailing towards an unknown supercontinent.

Getting sick, not getting, and living with sickness. Chemical Agent: Meningitis Vaccine.

A look at the year's top science news from across the globe: from the impact of climate change on water supplies in Asia to the use of the world's largest scientific instrument.

Learn about de-icing the roads, catching snowflakes, and X-ray crystallography. Chemical Agent: Sodium Chloride.

What do Isaac Newton, yeast, and Harold Urey have in common? Chemical Agent: Yeast.

Food is the fuel that allows our bodies to function, so it’s important to choose what we ingest and how we ingest it wisely. Unfortunately the answers to those questions change all the time. In today’s episode of Distillations we clarify common misconceptions about food, such as how closely Splenda resembles real sugar, what the Master Cleanse does for your body, and [...]

Let there be light! Whether it comes from the sky or a bulb, we’d be lost without it. In this episode of Distillations, we first examine new developments in solar power. Next, we explore how light can be used to treat those with Seasonal Affective Disorder. And finally, producer Jim Burress takes us through a guided [...]

Autumn is a time of beauty and bounty. Leaves turn rich browns, reds, and yellows; fruit ripens on the trees and grains on the stalk.  In this episode of Distillations, we take a look at the chemical processes behind leaf changes. Then we look at some time-honored practices in the growing of beans, squash, and corn, traditionally known [...]

Everything falls into one of three phases of matter: solid, liquid, or gas. Or does it? Sometimes it’s a bit more ambiguous. In this episode of Distillations, first we take a look at dry ice, which skips a phase. Next, we examine the atomic structure of glass, which surprisingly looks more like a super-cooled liquid [...]

We learn about ways scientists have attempted to educate the masses, via a 1960s radio show, 17th-century public demonstrations, and contemporary science cafes. Chemical Agent: Glenn Seaborg.

Every year the Chemical Heritage Foundation holds Innovation Day—an event for people to get together to discuss and learn about science’s exciting new technologies. On this week’s episode we take a look at innovations—the natural kind and the man-made kind. First we talk about thermoregulation—the body’s way of keeping itself at just the right temperature. Next we learn how GoreTex [...]

We find out more about the iconic golden brown fabric worn by astronauts and firemen in the 1960s, the dye workers whose high incidence of cancer helped establish the field of occupational health, and the chemistry of welding you can't learn from watching Flashdance. Chemical Agent: Polybenzimidazole.

Distillations is sharing more of our favorite episodes this week. First we look back at our Valentine’s Day show, as Daria Panichas explains free radicals in the Chemical Agent. Then we visit the Boston Fine Art Museum with producer Rebecca Sheir and find out how its Scientific Research Laboratory detects forgery. Finally Bob Kenworthy tells us about snoring in [...]

It’s almost the end of the summer, so the Distillations crew is taking a look back at some of our favorite episodes this week. First we return to our show about space science, as Jen Dionisio explains panspermia in the Chemical Agent. Next we explore taste with the Mystery Solved! segment from our episode on eating and [...]

Birth, once nature’s miracle, is increasingly manipulated by humans and regulated by society. In this week’s episode, we look at a range of reproductive technologies and the implications of their use. First we look at the herbal fertility treatments women used hundreds of years ago. Then, our host Meir Rinde speaks with University of Pennsylvania doctoral [...]

We’re very pleased to announce that Distillations has received two awards from New York Festivals for Radio Programming & Promotion. For 52 years the New York Festivals Radio Programming and Promotions Awards has recognized the world’s best work in radio broadcasting. In a competition against entries submitted by radio stations, networks, and producers from over 30 countries, [...]

Location, location, location! In this week’s episode we talk about why and how certain spaces are chosen and used. First we go back in time to the late 1800s and find out why Herbert Dow chose Midland, Michigan, as the site of his company. Next, learn about brownfields and how they are being remediated to become habitable [...]

You’ve likely heard a million times that breakfast is the most important meal of the day. Luckily, it’s also arguably the most delicious! On today’s show, we take a look at the ingredient responsible for perfectly spreadable fruit preserves. Next we debate the merits of baking with butter vs. oil. And finally, producer Rebecca Sheir [...]

Americans take dental hygiene very seriously. From dentist visits twice a year to orthodontics, we tend to obsess over the straightness and whiteness of our teeth. First we take a look at baking soda and how it keeps teeth clean. Next we find out about some do-it-yourself dentistry, like giving yourself a temporary filling. And finally, producer Ari [...]

Laboratory science can be a risky business, as many of the chemicals used by researchers can be hazardous to their health. While some of these substances’ dangers are easily mitigated by following proper safety procedures, others have risks that increase with extended exposure—a lesson unfortunately learned by many chemists in previous centuries, which we explore [...]

This year is the 50th anniversary of the integrated circuit! The IC is an important part of many electronic technologies we use today, from your iPod to your cell phone and even to your GPS. Learn about the light-sensitive chemically amplified photoresist, which allowed production of smaller and smaller pieces. Next we discover how the incredibly thin [...]

After several long, cold, months baseball season has finally begun! From Philadelphia, the home of 2008 World Series Champions, we bring you a show straight from the ballpark. We’ll take a look at the preservatives that make a classic hot dog last and last, and we’ll explore the chemistry behind performance-enhancing drugs. Producer Ari Daniel Shapiro wraps up the [...]