Risky or Not?

A short podcast about everyday risks from germs

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DALLยทE - 13 year old boy scout at campfire cooking burgers in the style of Norman Rockwell

461. Foods Cooked in the Outdoors by 12 to 14 Year Old Scouts

May 22, 2023 by Don Schaffner

Dr. Don and Professor Ben talk about the risks from eating food cooked in the outdoors by 12 to 14 year old Scouts.

Dr. Don - not risky ๐Ÿ‘๐Ÿผ
Professor Ben - not risky ๐Ÿ‘๐Ÿผ

  • Wood Badge - Wikipedia
  • Cooking Merit Badge | Boy Scouts of America
  • Keeping Your Food Safe | Boy Scouts of America
  • What Merit Badges are required for the Eagle Scout rank? | Boy Scouts of America
May 22, 2023 /Don Schaffner
Camping, Scouts

DALLยทE - Looking down into a bag of potato chips with one green potato chip on top

460. That One Green Potato Chip

May 19, 2023 by Don Schaffner

Dr. Don and Professor Ben talk about the risks from eating that one green potato chip in the bag.

Dr. Don - not risky ๐Ÿ‘๐Ÿผ
Professor Ben - not risky ๐Ÿ‘๐Ÿผ

  • Toxic Glycoalkaloids in Potatoes
  • Nugget of Knowledge: Green potato chips | WYTV
  • This is how poisonous green crisps are - and why you still find them in your packet - Mirror Online
  • Horrific Tales of Potatoes That Caused Mass Sickness and Even Death | Arts & Culture| Smithsonian Magazine
  • Potential Food Safety Problems Related to New Uses of Biotechnology - Biotechnology and the Food Supply - NCBI Bookshelf
  • The Contents of Potato Glycoalkaloid in Potato Chips and the Effects on the Taste | Semantic Scholar
May 19, 2023 /Don Schaffner
Potato chip, Glycoalkaloids

DALLยทE. A picture of a robot writing a cookbook in the style of Jean Giraud Moebius

459. AI-Generated Recipes

May 17, 2023 by Don Schaffner

Dr. Don and Professor Ben talk about the risks of eating foods from AI-generated recipes.

Dr. Don - risky โ˜ฃ๏ธ
Professor Ben - not risky ๐Ÿ‘๐Ÿผ

  • The What, Why, and How of AI-Generated Recipes Using ChatGPT - Deepgram Blog โšก๏ธ
  • Evaluating food safety risk messages in popular cookbooks | Emerald Insight
  • โ€ŽSafe Recipe Styleguide
  • Google Translate for Eet smakelijk
May 17, 2023 /Don Schaffner
Chat GPT, Artificial intelligence, Recipes

458. Pasta in the Woods in New Jersey

May 15, 2023 by Don Schaffner

Dr. Don and Professor Ben talk about the risks of eating pasta found in the woods in New Jersey.

Dr. Don - risky โ˜ฃ๏ธ
Professor Ben - risky โ˜ฃ๏ธ

  • A New Jersey Mystery: Who Dumped Hundreds of Pounds of Pasta, and Why? - The New York Times
  • New Jersey neighbors find source of mystery pasta piles - YouTube
  • Pine Barrens | VisitNJ.org
  • NJโ€™s Pasta-Gate Solved? - New Jersey Digest
  • Pine Barrens (The Sopranos) - Wikipedia)
  • Steve Buscemi - Wikipedia
  • Why Pine Barrens Is the Best Sopranos Episode
  • Fatal Family Outbreak of Bacillus cereus-Associated Food Poisoning - PMC
  • Sudden Death of a Young Adult Associated with Bacillus cereus Food Poisoning - PMC
May 15, 2023 /Don Schaffner
Pasta, Staphylococcus aureus, Bacillus cereus

457. Cooking With Molten Glass or Metal

May 12, 2023 by Don Schaffner

Dr. Don and Professor Ben talk about the risks from cooking food using molten glass or metal.

Dr. Don - not risky ๐Ÿ‘๐Ÿผ
Professor Ben - not risky ๐Ÿ‘๐Ÿผ

  • Mr Forge (@mrforge_) | TikTok
  • Is It Safe To Heat Canned Food In The Can?
  • 254. Do It Yourself Pizza Oven โ€” Risky or Not?
  • 155. Lava Pizza โ€” Risky or Not?
  • (5) Mike Batz on Twitter: "My first thought was that lava smoke must have some nasty crap in it, but I'm gonna need the experts to chime in... Hey @benjaminchapman @bugcounter is cooking on lava #riskyornot" / Twitter
  • Blacksmithing At Herbert Hoover National Historic Site (U.S. National Park Service)
  • Cooking Over Molten Glass โ€ข Coastal Lifestyle Magazine
May 12, 2023 /Don Schaffner
Molten metal, Molten glass

456. Pepper Shakers at a Restaurant

May 10, 2023 by Don Schaffner

Dr. Don and Professor Ben talk about the risks of using a pepper shaker at a restaurant.

Dr. Don - not risky ๐Ÿ‘๐Ÿผ
Professor Ben - not risky ๐Ÿ‘๐Ÿผ

  • 449. Pepper Mill Over a Pot โ€” Risky or Not?
  • Why You Shouldn't Use the Pepper Shakers at a Restaurant | The Healthy
  • Dirty Restaurant Secrets the Kitchen Crew Won't Tell You
  • Restaurant Safety Boosted With New Sani Shaker No-Contact Salt & Pepper Shakers
  • Here's the Dirtiest Thing on Restaurant Tables | Reader's Digest
May 10, 2023 /Don Schaffner
Pepper, Cross-contamination, Restaurant, SAlt

DALLยทE 2023 - Swedish Chef from the muppets with drops of water all over his face and flying off into the air around him

455. Super Sweaty Celebrity Chefs

May 08, 2023 by Don Schaffner

Dr. Don and Professor Ben talk about the risks from eating food made by a super sweaty celebrity chef.

Dr. Don - not risky ๐Ÿ‘๐Ÿผ
Professor Ben - not risky ๐Ÿ‘๐Ÿผ

  • The Microbiology of the Human Axilla and Its Relationship to Axillary Odor - ScienceDirect
  • Sweat and Sebum Preferences of the Human Skin Microbiota | Microbiology Spectrum
  • Outbreaks Where Food Workers Have Been Implicated in the Spread of Foodborne Disease. Part 5. Sources of Contamination and Pathogen Excretion from Infected Persons - ScienceDirect
May 08, 2023 /Don Schaffner
Sweat, Staphylococcus

DALLยทE - a giant meatball next to a mammoth in the style of Bill Watterson

454. Mammoth Meatballs

May 05, 2023 by Don Schaffner

Dr. Don and Professor Ben talk about the risks of eating meatballs made using mammoth (and elephant) DNA.

Dr. Don - not risky ๐Ÿ‘๐Ÿผ
Professor Ben - not risky ๐Ÿ‘๐Ÿผ

  • Company Serves World's First 'Mammoth' Meatball, But Nobody Is Allowed to Eat It : ScienceAlert
  • Why Are Some Proteins Allergens? | Toxicological Sciences | Oxford Academic
  • Current Understanding of Food Allergens - LEHRER - 2002 - Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences - Wiley Online Library
  • FDA says tara flour was likely behind illnesses tied to Daily Harvest crumbles | Food Safety News
  • Ethnozoology of bushmeat
  • Botswana has 'significant elephant-poaching problem,' conservation group says
May 05, 2023 /Don Schaffner
Allergy, Mammoth, Elephant

DALLยทE yeast cells with eyes and sharp teeth that look really wild in the graffiti style of banksy

453. Wild Yeast Water

May 03, 2023 by Don Schaffner

Dr. Don and Professor Ben talk about the risks of baking using wild yeast.

Dr. Don - not risky ๐Ÿ‘๐Ÿผ
Professor Ben - not risky ๐Ÿ‘๐Ÿผ

  • Baking bread with a yeast water starter | King Arthur Baking
  • 2 easy ways to make yeast water with fruits - The Flavor Bells
  • Creating Fruit Yeast Water Starter - Make It Dough
  • Pruno: A Recipe for Botulism | Botulism | CDC
  • What Are Wild Ales? The Beer Style Explained | Chatelaine
May 03, 2023 /Don Schaffner
Yeast, Baking

452. Reusing Bamboo Chopsticks for Raw Sushi

May 01, 2023 by Don Schaffner

Dr. Don and Professor Ben talk about the risks of Reusing Bamboo Chopsticks hand washed with soap and water for raw sushi.

Dr. Don - not risky ๐Ÿ‘๐Ÿผ
Professor Ben - not risky ๐Ÿ‘๐Ÿผ

  • Chopsticks!! (Piano Song) - YouTube
  • Urban Dictionary: open the kimono
  • Welcome | 12th International Conference on Predictive Modelling in Food
  • Amazon.com: Bamber 10 Pairs Reusable Bamboo Chopsticks Set, 10 Inches Long Chopstick, Japanese Style : Home & Kitchen
  • Microbial Safety of Wood in Contact with Food: A Review - Aviat - 2016 - Comprehensive Reviews in Food Science and Food Safety - Wiley Online Library
  • Efficacy of electrolysed oxidizing water in inactivating Vibrio parahaemolyticus on kitchen cutting boards and food contact surfaces | Letters in Applied Microbiology | Oxford Academic
  • The 6 Best Chopstick Sets of 2023 | Reviews by Wirecutter
May 01, 2023 /Don Schaffner
Sushi, Soap, Chopsticks

DALLยทE - Children bobbing for apples in the style of Norman Rockwell

451. Bobbing for Apples

April 28, 2023 by Don Schaffner

Dr. Don and Professor Ben talk about the risks of bobbing for apples.

Dr. Don - not risky ๐Ÿ‘๐Ÿผ
Professor Ben - not risky ๐Ÿ‘๐Ÿผ

  • 316. Using Cups to Scoop Water Out of a Shared Bowl โ€” Risky or Not?
  • bobbing for apples - Google Scholar
  • Bobbing For Apples Could Be Bad For Your Health | LittleThings.com
  • Halloween Food Safety Tips for Parents | FDA
  • Is Bobbing For Apples Safe? Dangers Lurk In This Fall Tradition
  • Bobbing for apples, the silent danger this Halloween ยท TheJournal.ie
April 28, 2023 /Don Schaffner
Apples, Halloween, Cross-contamination, Water

DALLยทE - Boiling pasta in the shape of little skulls and crossbones in water

450. Salting Pasta Water With Iodized Salt

April 26, 2023 by Don Schaffner

Dr. Don and Professor Ben talk about the risks of salting pasta water with iodized salt.

Dr. Don - not risky ๐Ÿ‘๐Ÿผ
Professor Ben - not risky ๐Ÿ‘๐Ÿผ

  • Four ways to reduce unwanted iodized table salt reactions when boiling pasta - American Chemical Society
  • Overlooked Iodo-Disinfection Byproduct Formation When Cooking Pasta with Iodized Table Salt | Environmental Science & Technology
  • Overlooked Iodo-Disinfection Byproduct Formation When Cooking Pasta with Iodized Table Salt | Environmental Science & Technology PDF
April 26, 2023 /Don Schaffner
Salt, Iodized salt, Pasta

DALLยทE - pepper mill with moldy pepper flakes coming out of the bottom on a white background

449. Pepper Mill Over a Pot

April 24, 2023 by Don Schaffner

Dr. Don and Professor Ben talk about the risks of repeatedly using a pepper mill over a pot of water.

Dr. Don - not risky ๐Ÿ‘๐Ÿผ
Professor Ben - not risky ๐Ÿ‘๐Ÿผ

  • Peugeot pepper and salt mill Checkmate 30cm | mydealz
  • Aspergillus growth and aflatoxin production on black pepper | SpringerLink
  • Pepper Potts | Marvel Cinematic Universe Wiki | Fandom
April 24, 2023 /Don Schaffner
Pepper, Aflatoxin

DALLยทE: a wet slice of pepperoni pizza floating in a pool

448. Pool Pizza

April 21, 2023 by Don Schaffner

Dr. Don and Professor Ben talk about the risks of eating a slice of pizza dipped momentarily in a pool.

Dr. Don - not risky ๐Ÿ‘๐Ÿผ
Professor Ben - not risky ๐Ÿ‘๐Ÿผ

Mystery Guest 1 - not risky ๐Ÿ‘๐Ÿผ
Mystery Guest 2 - not risky ๐Ÿ‘๐Ÿผ

  • pizza - Risky or Not?
  • CDC Online Newsroom | Press Release | CDC study finds fecal contamination in pools
April 21, 2023 /Don Schaffner
Pizza, Water, Cross-contamination

DALLยทE 2: glass jar half full of steaming, bubbling and boiling hot fudge on a white background

447. Repeated Hot Fudge Temperature Cycling

April 19, 2023 by Don Schaffner

Dr. Don and Professor Ben talk about the risks of repeatedly reheating hot fudge in a microwave.

Dr. Don - not risky ๐Ÿ‘๐Ÿผ
Professor Ben - not risky ๐Ÿ‘๐Ÿผ

  • Robbie Williams โ€“ Hot Fudge Lyrics | Genius Lyrics
  • Hot Chocolate (band) - Wikipedia)
  • Hot Fudge | Smucker'sยฎ
  • Microbiological safety of chocolate confectionery products - New Food Magazine
  • Hot Fudge - song and lyrics by Johnny & The Hurricanes | Spotify
  • Vanilla Fudge
  • Hot Hot Heat
  • MC5 - Wikipedia
  • The Dave Clark Five - Wikipedia
April 19, 2023 /Don Schaffner
Hot fudge, Water activity

A bowl of slightly melted ice cream in the style of Salvador Dali

446. Ice Cream From a Malfunctioning Freezer

April 17, 2023 by Don Schaffner

Dr. Don and Professor Ben talk about the risks of eating soft ice cream from a malfunctioning freezer.

Dr. Don - not risky ๐Ÿ‘๐Ÿผ
Professor Ben - not risky ๐Ÿ‘๐Ÿผ

  • Welcome - Rutgers AAUP-AFT
  • Quantitative Assessment of Relative Risk to Public Health from Foodborne Listeria monocytogenes Among Selected Categories of Ready-to-Eat Foods | FDA
  • National Outbreak Reporting System (NORS) | CDC
  • Listeria Outbreak Linked to Ice Cream | CDC
  • Frontiers | Listeria monocytogenes Growth Kinetics in Milkshakes Made from Naturally and Artificially Contaminated Ice Cream
  • Mark Knopfler - Boom, Like That Lyrics | AZLyrics.com
  • Grinding It Out: The Making of McDonald's: Kroc, Ray: 8601300195858: Amazon.com: Books
  • Kelis - Milkshake (Official HD Video) - YouTube

PS, the strike was suspended at 12:41 AM on April 15, 2023.


April 17, 2023 /Don Schaffner
Ice cream, Listeria monocytogenes

DALLยทE 2 Stick of Pepperoni With White Beard and Mustache

445. Old Meat Sticks

April 14, 2023 by Don Schaffner

Dr. Don and Professor Ben talk about the risks from old meat sticks.

Dr. Don - not risky ๐Ÿ‘๐Ÿผ
Professor Ben - not risky ๐Ÿ‘๐Ÿผ

  • Don Schaffner ๐Ÿฆ  on Twitter: "@CrucialTK #NotRisky!" / Twitter
  • Emma Hartnett ยป Risk Sciences International
  • What is Landjaeger? - Hempler's Foods
  • Landjaeger Snack Sticks โ€“ Wisconsin Cheese Mart
  • Meat Bars: A Survey To Assess Consumer Familiarity and Preparation Parameters and a Challenge Study To Quantify Viability of Shiga Toxin-Producing Escherichia coli Cells during Processing and Storage - PubMed
  • Food Safety and Defense ยป Risk Sciences International
  • Risk Assessment of Lethality Standards for RTE Meat and Poultry Products - Executive Summary
  • Risk Assessment of Lethality Standards for RTE Meat and Poultry Products
April 14, 2023 /Don Schaffner
Meat sticks, Pepperoni

DALLยทE Marrying the Ketchup

444. Marrying the Ketchup

April 12, 2023 by Don Schaffner

Dr. Don and Professor Ben talk about the risks from marrying the ketchup.

Dr. Don - not risky ๐Ÿ‘๐Ÿผ
Professor Ben - not risky ๐Ÿ‘๐Ÿผ

  • Marrying the Ketchups - How To - Author Jennifer Close - YouTube
  • Television review: '2 Broke Girls' - Los Angeles Times
  • Gross Things Restaurants Do to Save Money | Reader's Digest
  • Why You Shouldn't Use the Pepper Shakers at a Restaurant | The Healthy
  • Ghostbusters: "Print is Dead" - YouTube
  • Survival of Escherichia coli O157:H7 and Salmonella spp. in Acidic Condiments - PubMed
  • Flying Spaghetti Monster - Wikipedia


April 12, 2023 /Don Schaffner
Ketchup, Restaurants

443. College Students Selling Foods to the Community

April 10, 2023 by Don Schaffner

Dr. Don and Professor Ben talk about the risks from college students selling foods to the community.

Dr. Don - not risky ๐Ÿ‘๐Ÿผ
Professor Ben - not risky ๐Ÿ‘๐Ÿผ

  • How It Works | Bites | Eat With Your Tribe
  • AB626: Microenterprise Home Kitchen Operations - Consumer Protection Division - County of Santa Clara
  • Freewill Lyrics | Rush.com
  • California Food Handlers Card | eFoodcard
  • 90210 (TV series) - Wikipedia)
  • About Me Chef Matt Collins
April 10, 2023 /Don Schaffner
Entrepreneurs, Cottage foods, Personal Chef

442. Restaurant Misting Fans

April 07, 2023 by Don Schaffner

Dr. Don and Professor Ben talk about food safety and other risks from restaurant misting fans.

Dr. Don - not risky ๐Ÿ‘๐Ÿผ
Professor Ben - not risky ๐Ÿ‘๐Ÿผ

  • Restaurant Misting Systems - Koolfog
  • A Shopperโ€™s Eye View of Food Safety at Retail Stores: Lessons from Photographs Taken while Grocery Shopping
  • Produce Misting Literall Prevents Shrink | Produce Business Magazine
  • Remembering Jim Prevor by Harris S. Cutler, Race-West Company - Produce Business
  • N.C. Officials Trace 124 Legionnaires' Disease Cases To Hot Tub At A Fair : NPR
  • Legionnairesโ€™ disease outbreak associated with the North Carolina Mountain State Fair, 2019
April 07, 2023 /Don Schaffner
Legionellosis, Misting
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