February 10, 2011
'This Week in Virology' recorded in Seattle
“This Week in Virology” website
Small Things Considered — the microbe blog
Microbe World online community
The hosts of This Week in Virology (TWiV) Vincent Racaniello and Dick Despommier.
The show will appear the week of Feb. 21 as a netcast on the show’s website, http://twiv.tv.
The creators of TWiV are self-proclaimed viral hosts Dr. Vincent Racaniello, professor of microbiology and immunology, and Dr. Dickenson Despommier, professor emeritus of public health in environmental health sciences, both at Columbia University in New York. They also produce “This Week in Parasitology.” Racaniello co-created BioCrowd, a social network of scientists of all types.
The two enjoyed teaching so much that they decided to use new media to bring the worlds of viruses and parasites to people outside their fields. Their show combines informal, witty conversations with informative discussions, and features a variety of guests. A recent segment on the state of science journalism was illustrated with a Wall Street crash graph. Other segments have covered: The Panic Virus; Be a Virus, See the World; Much Achoo About Nothing; Mice Lie, Monkeys Exaggerate; Hacking Aphid Behavior; Where Do Viruses Vacation? and Outbreaks Near You, as well as serious topics. The shows web site includes videos, images, articles and commentary from viewers.
Mondays guests were Dr. Michael Katze, UW professor of microbiology and a pioneer in using systems biology to study virus/host interactions; Dr. Michael Gale, Jr., professor of immunology and an expert on how the body fights viruses; Dr. Deborah Fuller, associate professor of microbiology noted for her work on AIDS-related diseases; and Dr. Shawn Iadonato, co-founder of Kineta Corporation, a Seattle biotech firm. Racaniello hosted the show.
Racanciello explained that the show has a viewership of people from all ages and all types of occupations,not just students or scientists. On the show taped in Seattle, the guests explained the journeys their lives took and why they decided to become virologists.
The panelists gave their opinions on the future of “big science” efforts with expected translational outcomes, such as the War on Cancer, compared to smaller scientific pursuits to advance knowledge whose applications are not yet foreseen.
The panelists then went on to describe exciting new directions in such areas as systems biology to understand virus and host interactions, the study of innate immunity to look for ways to assist the body in defending against a wide variety of viruses, and research and development at Kineta, a local biotech firm.
Each of the panelists then gave their “Pick of the Week,”a recommended reading or museum or other activity related to science that might be of interest to listeners.
Listen to the netcast after Feb. 21 to hear their responses. The show will be archived.
