In Episode 53, Quinn & Brian ask: How the hell do we pull clean drinking water out of thin air?

Our guest is Dr. Shing-Chung “Josh” Wong, a professor of mechanical engineering at the University of Akron In addition to pursuing bio-inspired materials research, he has worked on mechanical behavior and functional properties of polymers, electrospinning, processing-structure-property relationships, coatings, bio- and nano-materials, and composites. Dr. Wong has authored and co-authored over 70 archived articles in book, journal, and patent literatures, and in 2007, he was selected as a recipient for the prestigious National Science Foundation CAREER Award.

There are a lot of words you may not understand in that bio – don’t worry, you’re not alone – but the reason Josh is awesome and we wanted him on the show comes down to one simple fact: he has invented some very cool shit that benefits anyone who enjoys being alive on Earth. He comes from a place of such moral integrity, constantly striving to use his capacity for innovation and discovery to help other people... a trait that is almost staggeringly uncommon these days, to our detriment.

Trump’s Book Club:

Biography of a Chairman Mao Badge: The Creation and Mass Consumption of a Personality Cult by Professor Melissa Schrift

Links:

Contribute to the University of Akron Foundation (with a note that it’s a gift to support water harvesting research by Professor Josh Wong): https://www.uakron.edu/treasurer/uaf.dot

Check out Josh’s water harvester: https://www.uakron.edu/engineering/me/me-news-detail.dot?newsId=c1f0c8d5-a992-468b-bb91-7ba9e3ea4597&pageTitle=Recent%20Headlines&crumbTitle=Engineering%20professor%20to%20present%20freshwater%20research%20at%20ACS%20national%20meeting

Brad Meltzer’s incredible books for kids: http://bradmeltzer.com/TV-Kids-and-More/Kids-Books

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Ep. 64: Journey of the Tangerinos