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Science
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> 1999
> July
> July 9, 1999:
Hour Two: Fabulous Fungi
You may like mushrooms on your pizza. You may have mildew in your bathroom. But just how much do you know about the world of fungi, mushrooms, and molds?
| They decay organic matter, returning nutrients to the soil. They are sources of food for people and animals. They can manufacture drugs - even compounds like LSD - and some can kill. They include organisms responsible for Dutch elm disease, penicillin, athlete's foot, and the alcoholic kick of wine and beer. A woodland in northern Michigan was found to contain one of the oldest, largest organisms known on Earth - a 1500 year old patch of fungus responsible for Armillaria bulbosa mushrooms found all over the 35 acre patch of forest. They are many, many, many things - but most people don't know much about them.
On this hour of Science Friday, we'll explore the fabulous world of fungi - and try to answer your pressing fungi questions. | 
They're more than just mold.
(USDA ARS image) |
Guests:
Elio Schaechter
Professor Emeritus, Molecular Biology; Microbiology
Tufts University School of Medicine
Author, "In the Company of Mushrooms" (Harvard University Press)
San Diego, California
George Hudler
Author, "Magical Mushrooms, Mischievous Molds" (Princeton University Press)
Professor, Plant Pathology
Cornell University
Ithaca, New York
Books/Articles Discussed:
Related Links:
Mycology Resources: Directories
The Mushroom Council
North American Lichen Project
International
Society for Mushroom Science (ISMS)
This segment produced by:
Annette Heist
Web producer:
Charles Bergquist
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