Think Out Loud

Over the pandemic, the sale of puzzles skyrocketed. And while people of all ages enjoy piecing together jigsaw puzzles as a more leisurely activity, others take it at a much more serious and at a competitive level. Speed puzzling is a competition where everyone is given the exact same puzzle and individuals, duos or teams work together to complete it the fastest. Last month, USA Jigsaw Nationals brought together puzzle lovers across the country to Atlanta to compete. Portlander Rob Shields was one of the attendees. He is a speed puzzling enthusiast as well as the host of "Piece Talks," a speed puzzling podcast. He joins us to share more on what he saw at the nationals and what makes speed puzzling so appealing.

When it comes to growing apples, no state dominates like Washington. It accounts for roughly 6 in 10 of all the apples grown in the U.S. One of the major threats facing this top crop is fire blight. The bacterial disease attacks apple and pear trees and can ruin an entire harvest, costing roughly $100 million annually in losses for the U.S. apple industry. The fire blight bacteria can also develop resistance to the antibiotic orchardists have typically used to protect their fruit trees.

But that resistance may have met its match in a compound that Washington State University microbiologist and associate professor Cynthia Haseltine calls “the universal assassin” for its ability to kill not only fire blight bacteria but also other harmful pathogens. Haseltine has spent nearly a decade developing this compound that is derived from a microbe found in extreme environments like volcanic vents and hot springs. 

The compound is now being field tested for the first time in central Washington. It’s also shown promise in the lab at killing listeria bacteria which can grow on equipment in fruit packing plants. 

Haseltine joins us to share details of the grant she was recently awarded to expand production and real-world testing of this novel approach to protecting Washington apples.

According to scientists at the Cascadia Research Collective, gray whale populations off the Washington coast are experiencing a higher level of early-season mortality than they’ve ever recorded. Just this year, three gray whales have been found off the Oregon Coast, and 14 have been found off the coast of Washington.

The whales that have been found stranded in Washington and Oregon appear to have been extremely malnourished. Scientists think that melting sea ice due to climate change in the arctic is reducing the whales’ food supply, leading to the uptick in whale deaths recorded along the entire West Coast.

John Calambokidis is a senior research biologist and a co-founder of the Cascadia Research Collective who has been studying gray whales for over 50 years. He’s one of the first to dispatch when a gray whale washes up on the coast of Washington. Calambokidis joins us to discuss these trends and what it means for gray whale populations in our region.

With ballots for Oregon’s primary elections scheduled to go out next week, civic organizations are working to get out the vote. Imagine Black, based in Portland, aims to engage voters through community events, rather than mailers or door-to-door canvassing. The nonprofit is holding a basketball benefit next month with community leaders and elected officials ahead of primary Election Day, May 19.

Joy Alise Davis is the executive director of Imagine Black. She joins us to talk about voter burnout in Portland’s Black communities and how her organization hopes to make voting exciting again.

Luiz Bertassoni is the director of the institute’s Precision Biofabrication Hub, which he helped launch in 2023, and a professor of oncology at OHSU. Since last year, he and his team have received more than $9 million in funding from the National Institutes of Health to advance the potential of these so-called organ-on-a-chip devices in the fight against cancer. The latest grants target an aggressive form of prostate cancer that spreads to bones and a cancer of the bone that spreads to lungs. Bertassoni joins us to talk about this new technology and the promise he thinks it holds for the roughly 40% of adults in the U.S. who will likely develop cancer at some point in their lives. 

As of last week, Oregon had reported 20 measles cases since the start of 2026. Measles was declared eradicated in the U.S. in 2000, but falling vaccination rates have driven outbreaks in more than half of U.S. states so far this year. Health officials warn that community transmission in Oregon is beginning to grow and have asked for the public’s help in curbing the spread.

Dean Sidelinger is a health officer and state epidemiologist for the Oregon Health Authority. He joins us with more details about where the outbreak stands and how people can stay safe.

Paul Bikis, the director of the film, noticed the threads through all of their stories, and created a feature-length film showcasing the Hancock, Doellning and Soens’ unique journeys through their respective outdoor feats. “Adapted” premieres in Bend on April 23rd, and in Portland on April 30th. “Think Out Loud” spoke with Anna Soens ahead of her Paralympic debut in Milan-Cortina earlier this year. We’re joined by director Paul Bikis, and athletes Josh Hancock and Danielle Doelling to talk about the new film.

From the Emerald Ash Borer to Zebra Mussels, Oregon is no stranger to invasive species. The state has a management plan in place that aims to detect invasive species early on, educate the public and prevent their entry into Oregon to begin with. But there are other tools that government agencies and researchers use around the world: dogs. Conservation dogs are trained canines that help locate invasive and endangered species, as well as playing a role in data collection for research. Jennifer Hartman and Heath Smith are co-founders of Rogue Detection Dogs. They both join us to share more on what makes a good conservation dog and how they got into this work to begin with.

Portland’s Bureau of Emergency Communications has drastically improved its 9-1-1 call times and medical response. Just a few years ago, the agency was short staffed and response times were far below national standards. But the efforts the Bureau has made have yielded dramatic results: it recently earned accreditation by the International Academy of Emergency Dispatch, which put it in the top 10 percent of dispatch agencies in the world. We talk with Steve Mawdsley, the interim director of the Bureau of Emergency Communications, and call dispatcher Hannah Kimbell to hear about the improvements they've made, and what it’s like to be the first call in an emergency.

 Charitable donation bins, the large steel and metal boxes often found in parking lots, began appearing in the U.S. in the 1950s. By 1960, Portland had more than 70 goodwill bins, collecting tens of thousands of bags of donated goods a year. But there is a cost that comes with charitable giving. New reporting from The Believer found more than 30 documented cases where people have died while trying to access donated goods. Many of the deceased were people experiencing homelessness, and the documented number of deaths is believed to be an undercount.

Paul Collins, an English professor at Portland State University, wrote about this issue for the publication. He joins us to share more about the people who have died because of these bins and why they are so deadly.

For more than four years, business teacher Marcia Latta has been helping youth improve their financial literacy at McKay High School in Salem. In recognition of her efforts, Latta was recently named the Oregon Financial Empowerment Educator of the Year by Oregon Treasurer Elizabeth Steiner. The Salem Statesman Journal first reported news of Latta’s award, which includes a $1,500 cash prize for Latta, $500 for her school and $500 total in college savings plan gift certificates for her students.  

Starting next year, all Oregon high school students will be required to earn a half credit in personal finance education in order to graduate. Latta teaches two classes at McKay, including one that’s a requirement on personal finance that helps high school juniors understand bank loans for car or home purchases, how to save for retirement and other financial concepts. For three years now, Latta has also used a grant from the Oregon Department of Human Services to organize free tax preparation clinics for students, many of whom she says get refunds on their filed returns. 

Latta joins us to share her work educating youth about their personal finances.

 In 2023, the FDA approved the first gene therapies to help treat people with sickle cell disease. The treatment is for patients 12 years and older, but what if you could use this technology before someone is born? That’s what some researchers, and others, believe is the hope for the future. The idea is to use CRISPR, a technology used to edit the genes of living beings, during in vitro fertilization. It is much easier said than done, but could be possible in theory. Ashley Smart is the associate director of the Knight Science Journalism Program at MIT. He is also a senior editor at Undark and reported on embryonic gene editing for the publication. He joins us to share how these treatments and technologies might work, as well as the current challenges and limitations.

An explosion on April 26, 1986 at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant in Ukraine, which was then a part of the Soviet Union, resulted in the worst nuclear disaster in history. Massive amounts of radioactive material spewed into the atmosphere. At least 30 people were killed. A Chernobyl Exclusion Zone was established and today remains largely uninhabited with lingering radioactive contamination. 

To mark the 40th anniversary of the disaster, a free concert is being held tomorrow night at Portland State University. The concert is being organized by Inna Kovtun, a Ukrainian singer, folklorist and ethnomusicologist who settled in Portland four years ago with her daughter after the Russian invasion of Ukraine. “Chornobyl: A Song Never Silenced” showcases the folklore and music traditions of Polissia, the region in northern Ukraine which is home to Chernobyl, or Chornobyl, as it’s known in Ukraine. 

The concert features performances by Kovtun and her friends, Nadia Tarnowsky, a Ukrainian American Fulbright researcher in Ukrainian folk songs who lives in Cleveland; and Hanna Tishchenko, a Ukrainian folk singer who lives in Chicago. Kovtun and Tarnowsky join us for a discussion and a studio performance with Tishchenko.

Researchers in Washington state have found that about a third of the local coyotes studied have a species of tapeworm. These can be passed to dogs, and in rare instances humans. These parasites are also present in foxes and other canid urban wildlife. Domestic dogs can also contract them, and it can be years before the symptoms of the severe disease they cause are detected, making diagnosis and treatment difficult. In rare instances, dogs can spread the tapeworms to humans. We talk with Yasmine Hentati, the study’s lead author who recently got her doctorate in environmental and forest science from the University of Washington. She shares more about these parasites and the relative risks for people and dogs.

Vast expanses of the American West, including parts of Central and Eastern Oregon, share a unique ecosystem characterized by sagebrush, wildflowers and a wide array of perennial grasses. This “sagebrush sea” is one of the largest contiguous ecotypes in the U.S., but it faces increasing threats from wildfire, invasive species and development.

A new tool aims to help land managers quickly assess the health of these vast regions. Conservation groups, state and federal agencies and local leaders partnered to create digital maps that provide a broad view of where sagebrush ecosystems are thriving and where they hang in the balance.

Anya Tyson is the Oregon Sagebrush Sea Program Director for The Nature Conservancy, which helped create the maps. She joins us to share more

Mike Richman is the host of the “Locked on Blazers” podcast. He joins us to preview tonight's game and recap the major developments of the Blazers’ season.

 In Jennifer Lincoln’s work as an obstetrics hospitalist, she met many new parents who were fearful and felt uninformed about the labor and delivery process, even when arriving at the hospital for their own births. She’s quick to note, however, that this gap in understanding isn’t due to patients being lazy, or their lack of interest in learning, but due to brief prenatal visits and the often overburdened system of maternal healthcare in the U.S.

A 2024 report by March of Dimes, a nonprofit focused on maternal and infant health, found that over 35% of counties in the U.S. are considered maternity care deserts, and labor and delivery units are being stretched thin, especially in rural areas.

Lincoln was finding that patients weren’t given enough time with their healthcare providers to dive into all questions about the complexities of the labor and delivery process, and often turned to resources like TikTok and Instagram to hear from other mothers and get their questions answered. 

Her work as an obstetrician and ability to distill complex topics on reproductive and maternal care led Lincoln to write “The Birth Book: An OB-GYN’s Guide to Demystifying Labor and Delivery.” She joins us to discuss the book which covers the labor and delivery experience from prenatal visits to postpartum care.

This inspired Subedi to organize the recent Refugee and Immigrant Girls’ World Cup Soccer Tournament, inviting the young athletes to compete in a safe environment, as fear and anticipation of federal immigration enforcement activity has burdened youth sports across the U.S.

Subedi joins us to share more about the tournament, and his efforts to remove cultural, linguistic and financial barriers for immigrant and refugee youth and create a safe and welcoming environment for them.

 Over the last year, prediction markets have grown into a multibillion-dollar industry. Prediction markets, such as sites like Polymarket, Kalshi and Robinhood, allow bettors to put down money on the likelihood of an event happening — including for political races in Oregon. Market sites show users are placing their bets on who the Republican candidate will be for Oregon’s governor. OPB politics reporter Dirk Vanderhart covered this story. He joins us to share more.