July 9, 2021
Bartók's Concerto for Orchestra
Béla Bartók's Concerto for Orchestra is one of that composer's most popular works. Composed at a time when Bartók was (unbeknownst to him) terminally ill with leukemia, the Concerto is nonetheless full of energy and humor. Unusually, Bartók employed extensive classical elements in crafting the work. The seemingly contradictory title reflects his use of the orchestra’s sections as virtuosic soloists rather than accompanists. This development culminates in the fifth movement in a spectacularly complex fugue and rabble-rousing conclusion. In the composer's words this music is intended to be "a life-assertion," and it served as a brilliant artist’s final statement.Watch Bartók's Concerto for Orchestra
What Do We Know About Long COVID?
At the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic the general assumption was that once people get better, it’s over and done with. But based on their experience with other viral infections, health care professionals know there is almost always a subset of people who experience longer-term consequences – and such is the case with COVID-19. Scientists are still learning about the many ways the virus impacts the body, both during initial infection and as symptoms persist. UCSF Pulmonologist Dr. Lekshmi explains that a multidisciplinary approach is the key to understanding and treating the body’s complex immunological responses to “long COVID.”Watch What Do We Know About Long COVID?
Cascading Disasters in a Changing Climate
As global climate change intensifies the discipline of climate science is increasingly, for all of us, anything but academic. California must learn to adapt to a range of climate-related challenges, including record temperatures, drought, habitat disruption, proliferating wildfires, rising seas, and more extreme storms. Recent climate-related events such the post-wildfire debris flow that devastated Montecito in January 2018 demonstrate how these individual phenomena can work in concert to trigger catastrophic events on an ever-larger scale. Scripps meteorologist Nina Oakley explains how research is helping us understand, anticipate, and prepare for these cascading disasters as the state’s climate continues to evolve.Watch Cascading Disasters in a Changing Climate
