Suzi Montgomery

Today on Science Questions, we begin a two-part series titled, "In the state of Mental Breakdown" discussing the overhaul of the Valley Mental Health system.

Valley mental health has been the major, and almost only mental health provider across the Wasatch Front for the past two decades, and is now under a revamp. Sheri Quinn and Suzi Montgomery talk to doctors and patients to find out how this affects the care given to those who need it.

Science Questions profiles the oil and gas industry, particularly the technique called horizontal hydraulic fracturing. It's like a modern-day gold rush and it is breaking new ground in pockets all over the nation bringing jobs and money to the towns near you.

Saturday is World Astronomy Day and we're celebrating by spending the whole hour hanging out with astronomers.

First up is Tyler Nordgren, astronomer and Assistant Professor of Physics at University of the Redlands in California. He visited 12 national parks in one year, photographing the stars in order to create the book Skies Above, Earth Below: A Guide to Astronomy in the National Parks.

SQ Radio introduces us to the brand new Molecular Biotechnology Lab on the University of Utah campus, where interdisciplinary research teams will collaborate to advance big areas in science like nanotechnology, renewable energy, early disease detection, and geochemistry.

Then they profile a USTAR - USU Energy Dynamics Lab project called Intuitive Building, where engineers are developing software and devices that essentially decode an office room scene in order to light it based on the occupants' daily patterns and preferences. The wave of the future!

Science questions reveals new research on the effects of environmental toxins and autism and the legal and ethical implications of human diseases caused by environmental exposures. 

Science Questions takes a comprehensive look at what's called the "Paleo Diet", a way of eating that mimics diets of our hunter-gatherer ancestors: lean meats, seafood, vegetables, fruits, and nuts.

Though the field of Epigenetics was conceived in the era of platforms and poly-leisure suits, it has received sparse media attention. And now, scientists are realizing it has the potential to explain A LOT about human disease and evolution particularly, the grey areas where genetics seems to fall short.

90% of the world's large fish are gone due to over-consumption of seafood and by 2048 all ocean fish could be extinct if the world continues to consume at this rate. On Access Utah today, Sheri Quinn talks to Michael Sutton, Vice President of the Monterrey Bay Aquarium, about this global problem.

Part 3 of Science Questions' series on epigenetics is in the second half.

Science Questions presents Part II of the series we started last week about Epigenetics: The New Frontier in Science and Medicine. Today's episode explores current research on the origins of mental illness through the lens of epigenetic science.

Science Questions profiles the largest international gem fair in the world in Tuscon, Arizona -- a bustling marketplace where meteorites, trilobites, and rare gems are showcased.