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Brendan M. Lynch
"Research Matters" looks at the most important and fascinating inquiries underway at KU across a range of disciplines, including science, engineering, humanities, social sciences and life sciences.
Each week, the KU Office of University Relations produces a new two-minute "Research Matters" spot. Hear the program on Monday at 2:57 p.m. and on Sunday at 1:04 p.m. on Kansas Public Radio (91.5 FM in Lawrence; 91.3 FM in Manhattan; 89.7 FM in Emporia).
Online, "Research Matters" is available for on-demand listening, complete with photography, relevant links, an archive of past shows and additional information about show topics.
Brendan M. Lynch is producer and host of "Research Matters."
Latest Episodes
Water Woes
As sediment fills in the reservoirs of Kansas, researchers at KU assess the outlook for the state’s supply of drinking water.
(Originally aired November 4, 2007)
Transcript
Silt buildup in public reservoirs has created a little-known crisis.
From the University of Kansas, this is Research Matters. I'm Brendan Lynch.
Throughout the midwest, communities face problems with drinking water -- like "musty" or "fishy" taste -- traceable in part to siltation. At the University of Kansas, researchers with Applied Science and Technology for Reservoir Assessment -- or ASTRA -- measure the extent of the problem. Mark Jackubauskas is ASTRA's team leader.
Mark Jackubauskas: "We build reservoirs where there aren’t any natural lakes, and Mother Nature tries to fill them right back in again. Soil washes off the land and flows into the reservoir and gradually fills it in. The reservoirs lose water storage capacity. What’s more a problem is nutrients flowing into the reservoirs – nitrogen and phosphorus – and those tend to spur algae outbreaks that produce taste and odor problems in our drinking water."
In Kansas, siltation has plagued reservoirs serving Wichita and Lawrence. And the communities of Marion and Hillsboro were forced to truck in water in 2003. Siltation also threatens flood control, irrigation, and recreation.
Mark Jackubauskas: "Siltation in Kansas reservoirs has been off the radar of many officials. In the last few years, the Kansas Water Office has come to the realization that this is a major issue that affects Kansas’ citizens economically and physically. Because without water we’re in a lot of trouble."
Now ASTRA is mapping eight Kansas reservoirs. Along with satellite imaging and a sediment-coring pontoon boat, the KU team employs state-of-the-art sonar to create 3-D reservoir maps.
Mark Jackubauskas: "We have a boat that’s equipped with a high-tech sonar system. We go back and fourth across a lake taking thousands and thousands of depth readings. In the past, people would have to go out with a weighted line or a pole to measure the depth. And it wasn’t very accurate. They might get two, three, four hundred measurements in a single day. With our sonar unit, we can get anywhere from 100,000 and 500,000 measurements of depth for that reservoir in a single day."
For more on reservoir siltation, log on to Research Matters DOT K-U DOT E-D-U. From the University of Kansas, I'm Brendan Lynch.
Governor, officials and researchers to tackle reservoir sediment at KU-hosted summit
LAWRENCE — A decades-long buildup of sediment across Kansas’ public reservoirs has created a little-known crisis in the state.
Land Cover and Climate Change
Production of greenhouse gasses is only one way humans are changing the environment. A KU researcher is examining how land cover — agricultural fields, urban concrete, and suburban development — alters local climate.
Aired June 2, 2008
Transcript
Research shows that changes in land cover influence the Earth’s climate. From the University of Kansas, this is Research Matters. I’m Brendan Lynch.
Humankind’s manufacture of greenhouse gasses is the main engine of climate change. But Johannes Feddema, KU professor of Geography, says we also impact our climate by covering land with crops, urban concrete and suburban sprawl.
Johannes Feddema: "As humans change a landscape, chop down a forest and replace it with bare ground or cotton or something else, it will change the reflectivity of the surface and that changes the amount of energy that is absorbed, and then ultimately energy that’s available to evaporate water, to conduct into the ground, to be used for photosynthesis. It changes the path of energy through the environment. And ultimately the temperature of an object is just the reflection of its energy content."
Feddema says that while we think of climate change as a process affecting all parts of the Earth equally, altering land cover actually brings on local climate changes.
Feddema: "The same human impact — deforestation — can lead to warming in one area of the earth and cooling in another. We talk about global warming. Carbon dioxide and greenhouse gasses are fairly evenly spread around the planet, and we sort of see this response that’s similar everywhere, whereas the response to land cover tends to be what we call offsetting — we might cool bit here and warm things there — so its not nearly as easy to get that nice sound bite where you say, 'Look, this is the effect,' because it varies from region to region."
Although cities cover just two percent of Earth’s surface, Feddema says cities are where many people experience climate, in what he calls urban heat islands.
Feddema: "Fifty percent of our population lives in urban centers. If we were to ask, 'What’s the influence of climate on that urban population?' Well, there’s the global climate that we might talk about , but the reality is that they’re living in an urban environment that has a completely different climate. You have small sort of 'hot spots.' You could create plumes over urban areas. Not only do you get an urban heat island, but there is some impact on precipitation downwind."
For more on land cover and climate change, log onto Research Matters dot K-U dot E-D-U. For the University of Kansas, I’m Brendan Lynch.
Professor Johannes Feddema
My primary research focuses on the study of natural and human induced climate change, and the impacts of these changes on human and environmental systems. I developed this interest early in life, growing up on three continents and seeing the impacts of climate and environmental degradation first hand in vastly different communities.
Read more about Professor Johannes Feddema and his research.
Man Versus Microbe
A University Distinguished Professor at KU warns that drug companies must develop "triple threat" antibiotics if humankind is to keep the upper hand in the contest with microorganisms.
Aired April 28, 2008
Transcript
Humankind someday may lose the upper hand in its war with bacteria. From the University of Kansas, this is Research Matters. I’m Brendan Lynch.
It’s not an ideal topic for polite conversation, but the average adult plays host for trillions of microorganisms. Many of these bacteria are becoming resistant to antibiotics. Lester Mitscher, University Distinguished Professor of Medicinal Chemistry at KU, says new, potent antibiotics are badly needed.
Lester Mitscher: Antibiotics are essentially selective poisons that kill bacteria and that do not kill us. Bacteria that survive the initial onslaught of antibiotics then are increasingly resistant to them. The sensitive proportion of the bacterial population dies, but then the survivors multiply quickly — and they are less sensitive to antibiotics.
While penicillin and its cousins were hailed as miracle drugs, Mitscher says we have been too casual in their use, leading to highly resistant “super bugs.”
Lester Mitscher: Half of all the antibiotics produced in the world are used in animal husbandry. The difficulty is that use of antibiotics in that setting is an invitation towards resistance. Unfortunately, humans get infected with resistant strains that were generated in animals in this manner.
Mitscher says drug firms must create antibiotics that kill microbes, inhibit their ability to mutate and also enlist the body’s own immune system. BUT such “triple treat” drugs might be a long time coming.
Lester Mitscher: The pace of antibiotic discovery has fallen off in recent years, partly because the intensive research on these things has lead to increasingly diminishing returns. Pharmaceutical firms have, for a variety of commercial reasons, de-emphasized antibiotic research – as a consequence, the pace of discovery has fallen down.
For more on microbial resistance, log onto Research Matters dot KU dot EDU. For the University of Kansas, I’m Brendan Lynch.
KU distinguished professor urges drug firms to create new generation of antibiotics
LAWRENCE — It may not be an ideal topic for polite conversation, but human beings are swarming with bacteria: Even the average healthy adult plays host to about 100 trillion microscopic organisms. Infection takes place when the bacteria get out of hand.
Now, a University of Kansas researcher has penned a history of the struggle between man and bacteria — and warns that humankind someday may lose its advantage.
Talking, Texting and Driving
An undergraduate at KU has studied the habits and motives of people who simultaneously drive and use cell phones. Most drivers see their own conversations and text messages as important enough to take risks on the road.
Aired April 21, 2008
Transcript
Research conducted by an undergraduate student sheds light on drivers’ risky cell phone habits. From the University of Kansas, this is Research Matters. I’m Brendan Lynch.
KU cognitive psychology major and graduating senior Erik Nelson researchED why — despite the risks — people talk on cell phones while driving. Every single participant in Nelson’s study owning both a mobile telephone and a motor vehicle – all 276 of them – admitted to talking on their phones behind the wheel.
Erik Nelson: "These were pretty alarming numbers to us. You have people who that know that driving is dangerous to do while talking on a cellular phone, however they do it anyway. And we just wanted to figure out why is this is happening."
What lessons did you get out of it and what do you hope people take away from reading about your research?
Erik Nelson: "Many people understand that talking while driving is a risky behavior. However they still do it. People tend to believe that their conversations are a little more important than they are. Some of the conversation types that we looked at – like talking to fend off boredom or something like that while driving — people surprisingly thought that that was pretty important to them. So, obvious, importance to people is highly skewed sometimes."
What’s worse, Nelson found 72 percent of those owning a car and a cell phone admitted to text messaging while driving, an activity the participants themselves perceived as even more dangerous than chatting.
Erik Nelson: "You’re trying to do two visual tasks at the same time — and that doesn’t work out for most people. You see them swerving to the left, swerving to the right. You drive by them kind of fast, to get by quick, and you realize this person has been texting the whole time. So it’s kind of a national epidemic."
For more about driving while talking and texting with a cell phone, log onto Research Matters dot K-U dot E-D-U. For the University of Kansas, I’m Brendan Lynch.
KU announces 15 winners of Undergraduate Research Awards
LAWRENCE — Fifteen University of Kansas students have received $1,200 Undergraduate Research Awards to be used from January to June 2007.
Undergraduate Research Awards support original, independent research by Lawrence campus undergraduates. The University Honors Program administers the awards with funds from the offices of the provost and the vice provost for research and the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences.
