WEBVTT - How Has 'A Wrinkle in Time' Inspired Real Scientists?

0:00:02.040 --> 0:00:04.560
<v Speaker 1>Welcome to brain Stuff, a production of I Heart Radio,

0:00:07.440 --> 0:00:11.799
<v Speaker 1>Hey brain Stuff Lauren Bogle bam here. Education and careers

0:00:11.880 --> 0:00:16.400
<v Speaker 1>in science, technology, engineering, and math, sometimes called STEM, were

0:00:16.440 --> 0:00:19.560
<v Speaker 1>once denied to women due to biased beliefs about what

0:00:19.640 --> 0:00:24.560
<v Speaker 1>women are or should be capable of, Even as only

0:00:25.400 --> 0:00:29.320
<v Speaker 1>of Americans employed in STEM occupations were women, It's been

0:00:29.440 --> 0:00:32.879
<v Speaker 1>relatively difficult for young women, and especially young women of color,

0:00:32.960 --> 0:00:36.080
<v Speaker 1>to find science heroes who look like them in reality

0:00:36.200 --> 0:00:40.880
<v Speaker 1>or in fiction. And that's why author Madeline lingle two book,

0:00:40.880 --> 0:00:44.280
<v Speaker 1>A Wrinkling Time and It's smart, science loving young hero

0:00:44.479 --> 0:00:47.559
<v Speaker 1>Mac Murray struck a chord with many scientists to be

0:00:48.400 --> 0:00:53.240
<v Speaker 1>representation is important. We spoke with three modern day Meg's,

0:00:53.520 --> 0:00:55.920
<v Speaker 1>all grown up to find out how they were inspired

0:00:55.960 --> 0:00:59.360
<v Speaker 1>by the character's bravery, ambition, and intelligence to pursue real

0:00:59.440 --> 0:01:03.560
<v Speaker 1>life science fake success. First up, Dr Amy Saren, a

0:01:03.600 --> 0:01:07.360
<v Speaker 1>successful neuropsychologist, reading A Wrinkle in Time as a girl

0:01:07.480 --> 0:01:10.360
<v Speaker 1>had a huge effect on her future accomplishments, and she

0:01:10.400 --> 0:01:14.440
<v Speaker 1>said via email, it and almost unheard of to have

0:01:14.480 --> 0:01:17.080
<v Speaker 1>a female heroine who I could identify within a book.

0:01:17.640 --> 0:01:19.520
<v Speaker 1>I loved the book so much I actually wrote to

0:01:19.560 --> 0:01:22.480
<v Speaker 1>Madeline Langal and to my surprise, she wrote back. We

0:01:22.560 --> 0:01:24.440
<v Speaker 1>became pen pals for a short time when I was

0:01:24.440 --> 0:01:27.119
<v Speaker 1>in third or fourth grade. She encouraged me to follow

0:01:27.120 --> 0:01:30.880
<v Speaker 1>my dreams, and her responses really helped encourage me. Meg

0:01:31.120 --> 0:01:33.399
<v Speaker 1>was far more than a fictional character to Dr Saren,

0:01:33.959 --> 0:01:36.840
<v Speaker 1>She said, reading the book helped me to identify that

0:01:36.880 --> 0:01:40.840
<v Speaker 1>I should follow my passion and curiosity. Today. Dr Saren

0:01:40.920 --> 0:01:43.480
<v Speaker 1>devotes her professional life to helping people who struggle with

0:01:43.600 --> 0:01:49.320
<v Speaker 1>debilitating neurological disorders like anxiety, PTSD, and depression. We also

0:01:49.320 --> 0:01:53.200
<v Speaker 1>spoke via email with Dr Amy Baxter, a doctor turned inventor.

0:01:54.280 --> 0:01:55.960
<v Speaker 1>Much of the story of A Wrinkle in Time is

0:01:56.000 --> 0:01:59.280
<v Speaker 1>about Meg's quest to find her father throughout time and space,

0:01:59.840 --> 0:02:04.080
<v Speaker 1>but Dr Baxter's zeroed in immediately on Meg's mother, Mrs Murray,

0:02:04.080 --> 0:02:08.359
<v Speaker 1>who was a microbiologist. Baxter said via email, of course

0:02:08.400 --> 0:02:10.919
<v Speaker 1>I was inspired by Mrs Murray. Why wasn't she doctor

0:02:11.040 --> 0:02:14.040
<v Speaker 1>out on the garage with her lab equipment. Mrs Murray

0:02:14.120 --> 0:02:17.919
<v Speaker 1>was the ultimate balanced scientist. Mom. The nurturing skills to

0:02:18.040 --> 0:02:20.440
<v Speaker 1>make hot cocoa when the kids needed it, the presence

0:02:20.440 --> 0:02:22.360
<v Speaker 1>in power to let the kids take care of what

0:02:22.400 --> 0:02:25.200
<v Speaker 1>they should be able to, the will to plug forward

0:02:25.240 --> 0:02:28.440
<v Speaker 1>even when her husband was gone, the courage to ignore haters,

0:02:28.600 --> 0:02:30.880
<v Speaker 1>and the trust in her kids to accept the misses

0:02:31.440 --> 0:02:34.920
<v Speaker 1>who were three characters in the book when introduced, and

0:02:34.960 --> 0:02:37.679
<v Speaker 1>sometimes she didn't leave the lab and that was okay.

0:02:37.800 --> 0:02:41.720
<v Speaker 1>She was a role model for science balance. Like many,

0:02:41.880 --> 0:02:45.680
<v Speaker 1>Dr Baxter also felt a powerful connection to Meg. She said,

0:02:45.960 --> 0:02:48.000
<v Speaker 1>it was the first time I was introduced to a

0:02:48.000 --> 0:02:51.560
<v Speaker 1>female protagonist who felt ostracized for being smart and was

0:02:51.639 --> 0:02:55.320
<v Speaker 1>loved anyway, and whose love for others saved the day.

0:02:55.560 --> 0:02:58.160
<v Speaker 1>Powerful stuff when you're a chubby loner reading books in

0:02:58.200 --> 0:03:01.600
<v Speaker 1>class all day long. The led to Dr Baxtair's eventual

0:03:01.600 --> 0:03:05.200
<v Speaker 1>success as a twenty year emergency room physician turned inventor.

0:03:06.080 --> 0:03:08.640
<v Speaker 1>She said that as a kid quote, I loved the

0:03:08.680 --> 0:03:11.520
<v Speaker 1>idea of solving problems in your garage. I made a

0:03:11.560 --> 0:03:14.079
<v Speaker 1>chemistry lab in my basement at home, but discovered the

0:03:14.080 --> 0:03:16.440
<v Speaker 1>stuff they give you in kids home chemistry kits can

0:03:16.440 --> 0:03:20.440
<v Speaker 1>only turn things pink and blue, not cure cancer. Her

0:03:20.480 --> 0:03:24.320
<v Speaker 1>patients paid off, however, She said, even though I practiced medicine,

0:03:24.440 --> 0:03:26.760
<v Speaker 1>my career ended up pivoting on something I made in

0:03:26.800 --> 0:03:30.320
<v Speaker 1>my basement. That's something is a device. She invented to

0:03:30.440 --> 0:03:33.240
<v Speaker 1>block needle pain, which gained traction as a way to

0:03:33.280 --> 0:03:38.280
<v Speaker 1>avoid using opioids post surgery. We also spoke via email

0:03:38.280 --> 0:03:41.840
<v Speaker 1>with mathematician dr Abby Herzig, who is currently a professor

0:03:41.880 --> 0:03:44.160
<v Speaker 1>in the Department of Educational Theory and Practice at the

0:03:44.200 --> 0:03:48.200
<v Speaker 1>University of Albany. The concept of time travel itself played

0:03:48.240 --> 0:03:51.600
<v Speaker 1>a huge part in her career path. She said, I've

0:03:51.640 --> 0:03:54.720
<v Speaker 1>always been fascinated by the concept of time. What is time?

0:03:54.920 --> 0:03:58.760
<v Speaker 1>Is time travel possible? There are intriguing paradoxes and puzzles

0:03:58.800 --> 0:04:01.120
<v Speaker 1>associated with time travel, all in the nature of the

0:04:01.160 --> 0:04:04.120
<v Speaker 1>passage of time. A Wrinkle in Time was one of

0:04:04.120 --> 0:04:06.000
<v Speaker 1>the first books I read as a child that dealt

0:04:06.040 --> 0:04:09.360
<v Speaker 1>with these ideas and turned me into a lifelong time geek.

0:04:10.400 --> 0:04:13.080
<v Speaker 1>The book's gentle push has since led her to explore

0:04:13.120 --> 0:04:16.400
<v Speaker 1>many areas of science, time, and yes, even time travel.

0:04:17.160 --> 0:04:20.599
<v Speaker 1>She said, my academic focus has always been mathematics, and

0:04:20.640 --> 0:04:23.960
<v Speaker 1>my mathematical skills, coupled with my time obsession, have led

0:04:24.000 --> 0:04:26.719
<v Speaker 1>me to take physics courses and read a lot about science.

0:04:26.880 --> 0:04:31.279
<v Speaker 1>Physics in particular, but not exclusively. She enjoys researching and

0:04:31.320 --> 0:04:34.680
<v Speaker 1>collecting different types of clocks, and also loves investigating the

0:04:34.760 --> 0:04:39.520
<v Speaker 1>various calendars created throughout history. She said, the mathematics behind

0:04:39.560 --> 0:04:42.799
<v Speaker 1>some of these measurement concepts is a real addiction of mine,

0:04:43.279 --> 0:04:46.719
<v Speaker 1>and we think Meg would approve. The Disney Live action

0:04:46.760 --> 0:04:48.960
<v Speaker 1>film adaptation of A Wrinkle in Time that came out

0:04:48.960 --> 0:04:52.560
<v Speaker 1>in cast a young black actor in the role of Meg.

0:04:53.400 --> 0:04:56.200
<v Speaker 1>Here's hoping that kids of all genders and skin colors

0:04:56.240 --> 0:04:59.520
<v Speaker 1>can continue finding inspiration in Meg and other science Here

0:04:59.640 --> 0:05:08.320
<v Speaker 1>is real and fictional m Today's episode was written by A.

0:05:08.360 --> 0:05:10.800
<v Speaker 1>Leah Hoyt and produced by Tyler Clang. For more on

0:05:10.880 --> 0:05:13.400
<v Speaker 1>this amounts of other curious topics, visit how stuff works

0:05:13.440 --> 0:05:16.080
<v Speaker 1>dot com. Brain Stuff is production of I Heart Radio.

0:05:16.279 --> 0:05:18.559
<v Speaker 1>For more podcasts in my heart Radio, visit the iHeart

0:05:18.640 --> 0:05:21.320
<v Speaker 1>Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to your

0:05:21.360 --> 0:05:22.040
<v Speaker 1>favorite shows.