Fruit flies. You may have seen one or two dancing above your fruit bowl. But what about under a microscope?
Believe it or not these seemingly insignificant insects have had a long and (dare we say) fruitful history in advancing scientific research.
This hour, First in Fly author Dr. Stephanie Mohr joins us to explain why.
Later, we also take a deeper look into the realm of so-called “true flies” with London-based "fly girl" Dr. Erica McAlister.
Join the conversation on Facebook and Twitter.
Event info:
Dr. Stephanie Mohr will be at Wesleyan R.J. Julia Bookstore in Middletown, Connecticut on Tuesday, June 12, 2018. More here.
GUESTS:
- Dr. Stephanie Mohr - Lecturer on Genetics at Harvard Medical School and author of First in Fly: Drosophila Research and Biological Discovery (@smohrfly)
- Dr. Barbara Mellone - Associate Professor of Molecular and Cell Biology and head of the Genetics and Genomics Program at UConn (@centromellone)
- Dr. Erica McAlister - Senior curator of flies at the Natural History Museum in London and author of The Secret Life of Flies (@flygirlNHM)
?READING LIST:
Harvard University Press Blog: Build A Better Flytrap - "After First in Fly, readers will have a new appreciation for the beauty of the fruit fly, and the common genetic threads that connect us to other creatures. And yet, for many of us, that recognition won’t likely dislodge the lived experience of the fruit fly as a miraculously multiplying kitchen nuisance."
Natural History Museum: Flies Are Saving Your Chocolate Cravings - "Unbeknown to the midges, a huge responsibility has been put on them. But an increase in demand for cocoa products appears to only be making life tougher for the small pollinators able to keep chocoholics happy."
Chion Wolf contributed to this show.
