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Science Friday > Archives > 2002 > November > November 22, 2002:
Hour Two: Cervical Cancer Vaccine / The Science of Cooking

Thanksgiving is less than a week away. What makes a truly fabulous turkey dinner? You might say it's Grandma's special recipe for cornbread stuffing. But here at Science Friday, the answer lies in the magic of chemistry and physics. Many of the culinary methods to develop flavor, texture, and aroma in our foods are similiar to laboratory techniques. Also, science can debunk many kitchen myths. For example, did you know that the time it takes to cook a turkey does not depend on its weight? Instead, the time is proportional to the square of the turkey's radius divided by the turkey's thermal diffusivity.

In this hour of Science Friday, we'll talk to two gastrophysicists, Harold McGee and Peter Barham, on how science can help you cook the perfect bird with all its trimmings!

Plus, this week, the New England Journal of Medicine reported that a new vaccine against Human Papillomavirus Type 16 may reduce the incidence of cervical cancer. We'll talk to one of the study's authors, Dr. Kevin Ault about this study.

Call in with your comments and questions at 1-800-989-8255, and share your opinions online in our Listeners' Lounge (registration required).

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Guests:
Harold McGee
Author, "On Food and Cooking" (Scribner, 1984)
Author, "The Curious Cook" (North Point Press, 1990)
Palo Alto, California

Peter Barham
Author, "The Science of Cooking" (Springer, 2001)
Reader in Physics
University of Bristol
Bristol, England

Kevin Ault, M.D.
Assistant Professor, Obstetrics and Gynecology
University of Iowa
Iowa City, Iowa

Books/Articles Discussed:

"On Food and Cooking - The Science and Lore of the Kitchen," by Harold McGee. Scribner, 1984.

"The Curious Cook" by Harold McGee. North Point Press, 1990.

"The Science of Cooking" by Peter Barham. Springer, 2001.

McGee et al. "The Virtual Cook." Physics Today. Nov 99

Koutsky et al. "A Controlled Trial of Human Papillonavirus Type 16 Vaccine." NEJM. Vol 347:1645-1651

(find more SciFri books here)

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Related Links:
Food Facts
The Curious Cook
Science Gets Fruitcake off the Shelf

The Science of Cooking

Human Papillomaviruses and Cancer
Vaccine Appears to Prevent Cervical Cancer
Vaccine against HPV-16, a virus linked to cervical cancer, appears effective
UI testing vaccine for cervical cancer
UI physician available to comment on low awareness of HPV
Researchers Offer Hope for a Genital Herpes Vaccine for Women
Major Herpes Vaccine Trial Launched in Women
Treating Cancer with Vaccine Therapy
Merck Research Laboratories

Glaxo Smith Kline

This segment produced by Karin Vergoth and Dorothy Lam

 


 

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