Women in Science
Historic Rail Line Opens in Santa Cruz
This week we are in Santa Cruz aboard Iowa Pacific for a ride on the newly re-opened 32-mile Branch Rail Line in Santa Cruz County. This is the most recent train to rumble through the central coast but certainly not the first. Today we’re going to learn a bit about local railroad history, from Sandy […]
Local Doctor’s “Solar Suitcase” Saves Lives Daily
In 2008, Dr. Laura Stachel went to Nigeria to find out why so many women were dying there during childbirth. She was flabbergasted to discover that in many areas, women were giving birth without electricity – sometimes in near total darkness. Doctors and midwives often helped delivered babies with only a cell phone or lantern […]
Bear ‘n Bull Fights Were Once Common in San Jose
This week This is Us explores the rich history of San Jose with former president of the California Pioneers of Santa Clara County, Jim Zetterquist. San Jose was founded in 1777 and was once the state capitol. This city is the oldest civil settlement in the Golden State and it’s chock-full of surprising stories. It’s […]
Profile: Dr. Masako Miura
Profile on Dr. Masako Miura an internee and physician at Manzanar Relocation Camp in 1942. Born and raised in California, Dr. Miura graduated from USC Medical School shortly before the attack on Pearl Harbor. Her entire family was interned at Manzanar, and she was one of the few physicians that could offer medical help to […]
Profile: Gavin Emmons and Alacia Welsh
Profile on biologists, Gavin Emmons and Alacia Welsh. Emmons and Welsh work for the National Park Service and their office is often the cliffs and rock face at the Pinnacles National Monument. Their duties include feeding, watching and monitoring the California Condors and Prairie and Paragon Falcons along with tracking the birds. The Condor program […]
Profile: Jill Tarter, Astronomer, SETI
Dr. Jill Cornell Tarter is an American astronomer and the current director of the Center for SETI Research. The mission of the SETI Institute (Search for Extra-terrestrial Intelligence) is to explore, understand and explain the origin, nature and prevalence of life in the universe. Tarter’s astronomical work is illustrated in Carl Sagan’s novel Contact.
Profile: Natalie Batalha, Planet Hunter
Natalie Batalha is a planet hunter. Batalha is a co-investigator for NASA’s Kepler mission, whose objective is to find earth-sized planets orbiting other stars in our galaxy.
Profile: Dr. Sandra Faber
Dr Sandra Faber diagnosed the problems with the Hubble Telescope and along with her team, developed a solution to fix the failure. Dr Faber is the Chair of Astronomy and Astrophysics at UC Santa Cruz. She has received numerous awards, including the 2009 Bower Award for Achievement in Science.
