In the Moment: Innovation

Innovation... July 7, 2017 Hour 1  

Neutrino Day with SDPB's Cara Hetland begins at the 4850 Level in Davis Cavern. She kicks things off with Michael Landry, the event's keynote speaker and Observatory Head for LIGO (Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory) Hanford in Washington. In the first half of the conversation, he describes where gravitational waves come from and how the LIGO project was built to detect them.

Bryan is a father of two children who have recently been diagnosed with Batten Disease. This is a fatal, inherited disorder of the nervous system. Bryan's two children are in a clinical trial in Ohio. We'll also talk with Sanford Health's Dr. Jill Weimer whose lab developed the experimental gene-therapy to treat the disease.

The USD Discovery District is South Dakota’s first live-work-play innovation community, an 80-acre contemporary corporate and academic research park under development in northwest Sioux Falls. Its goal is to spur innovation-driven business through specialized facilities and an environment that fosters interaction between businesses, students, researchers and entrepreneurs. Rich Naser, President of the District and Executive Director of the Zeal Center for Entrepreneurship, gives Cara more details on the development.

SDSU hosts the biennial ChemEd Conference July 23-27. It brings together chemistry educators from across North America. Organizer Matt Miller says high School and introductory chemistry educators are immersed in an environment where collaboration, support, exchanging ideas and inspiration are expected. Matt Miller is an associate professor of chemistry at South Dakota State University.

Peter Vitiello, Ph.D., an associate scientist in the Children’s Health Research Center at Sanford Research has developed a new model which could have lasting implications for some of the world’s most dangerous diseases like cancer, diabetes, and heart disease. Dr. Vitiello is a member of the Society for Redox Biology and Medicine. It's an international organization of 1,200 scientists, investigators and clinicians who conduct research in the area of redox biology as well as oxidants and antioxidants.

Dr. Ranjit Koodali and Dr. Brian Burrell joined Innovation. They recently received a nearly $3 million grant to train STEM students. Dr. Koodali and Dr. Burrell are professors at The University of South Dakota.  

Mel Ustad joined Innovation to discuss the programs in place to help science and technology companies grow in South Dakota. Ustad is the Director of Commercialization at the Governor's Office of Economic Development.

Dr. James Rice joined Innovation to discuss how South Dakota's research infrastructure allows for federal funding. He also talked about the state Science and Technology plan. Dr. Rice is the Executive Director of EPSCoR.

Dakota State University professors Michael Gaylor and Patrick Videau talk about the chemistry and biology research that comes from a jar of preserves - a jar of pumpkin preserves that was sealed in 1920! Students Hope Juntunen and Vaille Swenson also join Innovation as they share what they hope to find - and what NOT to find.

Click here for more information and photos.

Ten middle school teams were recently paired with different manufacturing companies to learn about different advanced manufacturing careers. The teams of six students spent a half day at their assigned company filming and interviewing various employees to find out what they liked about their jobs. By the end of January, the teams will submit their videos for a contest, explaining what they think is cool about manufacturing. The winners will enjoy an awards ceremony.

Anne Lewis from the South Dakota Discovery Center and Jessica Taylor with NASA's Langley Research Center discuss a new citizen science app that allows people to contribute their observations to an international database utilized by both NASA scientists and students around the world. You simply take pictures of clouds which are geo-located. The app offers information on satellite flyovers to allow for synchronization of flyover and ground observations.

Dr. Ranjit Koodali, USD Chemistry Professor and now Dean of the USD Graduate School joins us to discuss the latest in research around the country. Dr. K is the Public Relations Chair of the Sioux Valley Section of the American Chemical Society. He provides regular collection of science articles and is going to join Innovation once a month to talk about what’s happening around the country.

Today we discuss how Engineered Microbes make silver nanoparticles.

Cara Hetland hosted a panel discussion about innovation in South Dakota. On the panel: 

Rich Naser, President of the University of South Dakota Discover District and Executive Director of the Zeal Center for Entrepreneurship;  

Joni Johnson, Executive Director of South Dakota Biotech. She oversees advocacy, communication, education and membership services representing more than 50 members in industries spanning from food and agriculture to human health and renewable energy;

South Dakota School of Mines & Technology Associate Professor Phil Ahrenkiel has been awarded a $179,000 grant through the U.S. Department of Energy SunShot Initiative to research next-generation solar cells. Dr. Ahrenkiel will develop a novel approach to using earth-abundant metal aluminum to improve commercializable photovoltaic solar cells for low-cost renewable energy.

Sanford oncologist and cancer researcher Dr. Steven Powell was among a team of researchers who discovered that the drug olanzaphine significantly improved nausea prevention in patients who were receiving chemotherapy for cancer treatment. The findings were recently published in the New England Journal of Medicine.

Dr. Ranjit Koodali is a monthly contributor to SDPB Radio's Innovation. Koodali is a chemistry professor at the University of South Dakota and Dean of the USD Graduate School. "Dr. K" is also the public relations chair of the Sioux Valley Section of the American Chemical Society. He joins today's program to talk about efficient and selective degradation of polyethylenes into liquid fuels and waxes under mild conditions - or, in simple terms, turning plastic bottles into fuel.

Dr. John Lee, a physician scientist in the Cancer Biology Research Center, is expanding his research by joining the founder of the Cancer MoonShot 2020 program to accelerate the research into cancer treatment. Lee's focus is on head and neck cancers caused by human papilloma virus (HPV).

SDPB's Cara Hetland hosts Innovation from the 4850 level of the Sanford Underground Research Facility in Lead. 

The five-year walleye tagging project, which is in its final year, focuses on the Missouri River from the Oahe Dam near Pierre, South Dakota, north to the Garrison Dame near Riverdale, North Dakota. Researchers have tagged 26,132 fish in the last three years. Researchers hope to understand the basic science of angler harvest and how food sources and flooding impact the walleye population. We talk with researcher Brian Graeb and his doctoral student Eli Felts.

Eddie Sullivan is the President, CEO and Co-Founder of SAB Biotherapeutics, Inc. based in Sioux Falls. The biopharmaceutical company leads the science and manufacturing of polyclonal antibody therapies. Eddie Sullivan has been named chair of the food and agriculture section governing board for the Biotechnology Innovation Organization or Bio. It’s the industry’s largest international trade association.

Dr. Ranjit Koodali, USD Chemistry Professor and now Dean of the USD Graduate School joins us to discuss the latest in research around the country. Dr. K is the Public Relations Chair of the Sioux Valley Section of the American Chemical Society. He provides regular collection of science articles and is going to join Innovation once a month to talk about what’s happening around the country. Today Dr. K. teaches us about using biosynthesized ZnO nanoparticles and soil fungi.

SDSU Plant Pathologist Febina Mathew discusses how South Dakota farmers are dealing with two emerging fungal diseases— sudden death syndrome in soybean and Phomopsis stem canker in sunflowers.

Fungicides are largely ineffective, so farmers must rely on changes in management practices and selection of resistance varieties to reduce their losses.

South Dakota has positioned itself to catalyze biotech research and development through an innovative virtual center with more than 30 affiliated researchers. Called BioSystems Networks & Translational Research, or BioSNTR, it was formed nearly two years ago and now is launching its capabilities on a larger scale. BioSNTR Director Adam Hoppe discusses the statewide collaborative endeavor, which includes participants from South Dakota’s public universities, private colleges and the public and private sectors.

June has been named as Cancer Immunotherapy Awareness Month as part of the ongoing effort to bring awareness to how it's revolutionizing cancer treatment. Dr. Steven Powell discusses the latest research in Immunotherapy.

Cancer Immunotherapy uses the body's own immune system to target and attack cancer cells throughout the body. Scientists are working on improving these therapies by combining them with other types of cancer treatments to make them as effective as possible.

Dr. Ranjit Koodali, USD Chemistry Professor and now Dean of the USD Graduate School joins us to discuss the latest in research around the country. Dr. K is the Public Relations Chair of the Sioux Valley Section of the American Chemical Society. He provides regular collection of science articles and is going to join Innovation once a month to talk about what’s happening around the country.

We talk about the Light sparks conversion of dinitrogen (commonly called nitrogen) to ammonia.

A group of local investors has just launched the Falls Angel Fund targeting early-stage companies with high-growth potential.  Matthew Paulson, Falls Angel Fund Chairman and lead investor; and Rich Naser, Zeal join the program to discuss this new funding opportunity for Sioux Falls area startups.

Dr. Gareth Davies, Scientific Director with the Avera Institute for Human Genetics, is a Human Molecular Geneticist with expertise in complex diseases and gene expression. He discusses the recent findings in why women are more likely to give birth to twins and the association with two genes and twinning.