Wildfire smoke leaves harmful gases in floors and walls − air purifiers aren’t enough, new study shows, but you can clean it up

Wildfire smoke, even from fires far away, carries potentially harmful gases that, once inside, tend to stick around. An air quality specialist offers an easy, cheap, effective way to deal with it.

Delphine Farmer, Professor of Chemistry, Colorado State University • conversation
Oct. 13, 2023 ~8 min

The dirty truth about your phone – and why you need to stop scrolling in the bathroom

Your mobile phone is 10 times dirtier than a toilet seat. Here’s what to do about it.

Primrose Freestone, Senior Lecturer in Clinical Microbiology, University of Leicester • conversation
April 24, 2023 ~7 min


From the bed sheets to the TV remote, a microbiologist reveals the shocking truth about dirt and germs in hotel rooms

The filthy secrets of hotel rooms and why you might want to pack disinfectant on your next trip.

Primrose Freestone, Senior Lecturer in Clinical Microbiology, University of Leicester • conversation
March 21, 2023 ~7 min

Type of ultraviolet light most effective at killing coronavirus is also the safest to use around people

UV lights come in a variety of different wavelengths, but not all are equally effective at disinfection. Researchers tested a number of commercially available lights to find the best.

Karl Linden, Professor of Environmental Engineering and the Mortenson Professor in Sustainable Development, University of Colorado Boulder • conversation
Oct. 26, 2021 ~8 min

Are we all OCD now, with obsessive hand-washing and technology addiction?

Behaviors that would have been seen as pathological a few months ago are now applauded as adaptive and resourceful. Where do doctors draw the line?

David Rosenberg, Professor of Psychiatry and Neuroscience, Wayne State University • conversation
June 15, 2020 ~8 min

Buildings have their own microbiomes – we're striving to make them healthy places

We spend 90% of our lives indoors, and every building has its own indoor microbiome. Can we learn to manage them in ways that support helpful microbes and suppress harmful ones?

Mark Fretz, Research Assistant Professor of Architecture, University of Oregon • conversation
April 17, 2020 ~10 min

Coronavirus: household cleaning products can kill the virus – an expert on which ones to use

Here are the most effective cleaning solutions to keep your home free of coronavirus.

Lena Ciric, Associate Professor in Environmental Engineering, UCL • conversation
March 25, 2020 ~5 min

Viruses live on doorknobs and phones and can get you sick – smart cleaning and good habits can help protect you

The coronavirus, like many infectious diseases, can live and spread on inanimate objects in the world around us. An epidemiologist explains how and gives some advice on how to minimize the risk.

Joseph Eisenberg, Professor and Chair of Epidemiology, University of Michigan • conversation
March 17, 2020 ~7 min


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