What does it take to create and maintain one of the largest repositories of botanical information in the world? For starters, it can mean helicopter-ing into remote nooks of the Amazon, hiking through rough terrain, looking for strange fruits and flowers, and climbing trees to pluck specimens from the branches. Then there’s all the science required to identify, classify, and codify those species.
Botanists Lúcia Lohmann and Charlotte Taylor join Host Flora Lichtman to discuss their work discovering new plant species and maintaining the storied Missouri Botanical Garden.
And, what does it mean to be a superfood? What is the science of micronutrient-dense foods like millet, which get less hype than foods like açaí, goji berries, and quinoa? Flora talks with biological engineer Kiruba Krishnaswamy, who puts food under a microscope—literally—and studies the nutrients that help make our bodies function, in hopes of harnessing them to fight hunger worldwide.
Further Reading
- Read about why micronutrients matter via the CDC.
- Learn more about the Missouri Botanical Garden.
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Segment Guests
Charlotte Taylor
Dr. Charlotte Taylor, is a botanist and Senior Curator at the Missouri Botanical Garden.
Lúcia Lohmann
Dr. Lúcia Lohmann is a professor at Washington University in St. Louis, and president and director of the Missouri Botanical Garden.
Kiruba Krishnaswamy
Dr. Kiruba Krishnaswamy is an assistant professor in the Colleges of Engineering and Agriculture at the University of Missouri.
Segment Transcript
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Meet the Producers and Host
About Shoshannah Buxbaum
Shoshannah Buxbaum is a producer for Science Friday. She’s particularly drawn to stories about health, psychology, and the environment. She’s a proud New Jersey native and will happily share her opinions on why the state is deserving of a little more love.
About Charles Bergquist
As Science Friday’s director and senior producer, Charles Bergquist channels the chaos of a live production studio into something sounding like a radio program. Favorite topics include planetary sciences, chemistry, materials, and shiny things with blinking lights.
About Flora Lichtman
Flora Lichtman is a host of Science Friday. In a previous life, she lived on a research ship where apertivi were served on the top deck, hoisted there via pulley by the ship’s chef.