Learning science can be fun — with the right teachers. As a former math major, I'm excited to bring some Ms. Frizzle-classroom-wonder-energy into your inbox today. This week's sources are scientists who explain complicated concepts to the public through science curricula, podcasts and video.

Desiré Whitmore, aka LASERchick, is a senior physics educator at Exploratorium, a public hands-on learning laboratory in San Francisco where she leads curriculum development workshops for middle and high school teachers. She is also a science trainer at Amplify Science, where she crafted a digital science curriculum for grades K through 8.

Whitmore has more than a decade of research experience as a laser spectroscopist. Her Ph.D. research focused on the development of very fast laser systems to study the vibrations of single molecules, electrons traveling across the surface of metals, and the fluorescence of semiconducting quantum dots. She did postdoctoral research at the University of California, Berkeley, where she designed attosecond lasers, the fastest lasers that emit X-ray light.

Titi Shodiya is an engineer, content creator and scientific auditor. She co-hosts the podcast Dope Labs and is the deputy quality manager at the National Institute of Standards and Technology. Shodiya mentors women and underrepresented minorities interested or working in STEM fields and uses storytelling to break down scientific concepts for the public. 

Shodiya’s research interests include nano-materials, green electric power generation, electronic and photonic materials, materials characterization, thin films, and electrochemistry. In her position at NIST, Shodiya inspects research laboratories globally to ensure their compliance with international standards.

Other sources of interest this week.

The third person to be cured of HIV is a woman of mixed-race background. Researchers and medical scientists are hopeful that this will lead to further effective HIV treatments for patients from racially diverse backgrounds.
 
Tonia Poteat is an associate professor of social medicine, core faculty in the Center for Health Equity Research and a clinical provider certified in HIV medicine and gender-affirming medical care at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill.
 
Poteat has more than 20 years of experience providing medical care for transgender adults and people living with HIV, and she has conducted research in LGBTQ communities for more than a decade.

Sources of the Week on the news

Read:

• Oliver Wang wrote about Betty Davis’ impact in NPR Music.
• In The New York Times, Tressie McMillan Cottom wrote about the complexities of loving The Bill Cosby Show.
• Mark Hugo Lopez spoke to The Tampa Bay Times about the debate over the word “Latinx”.
• CBS 12 interviewed Anibel Ferus-Comelo about the rise in union organizing led by young people.
• Shaun Harper wrote in Rolling Stone about diversity and the lack of Black ownership in the NFL.

Watch:

• Eddie Glaude spoke to MSNBC about the importance of Black history month and confronting America’s history with race.
  
• Angela Rye was interviewed on the Breakfast Club about her new position at ESPN and more.  

Listen:

• Margaret Russell talked to Georgia Public Radio about the limits of representation on the Supreme Court
  On Utah Public Radio’s Undisciplined, Nalini Nadkarni led a conversation on the surprising interspecies-partnerships that are helping tidal species survive climate change.
• Paul Butler spoke to Morning Edition about the trial of the three Minneapolis police officers charged with depriving George Floyd of his civil rights.