Talk of the Nation

Transcript

IRA FLATOW, HOST:

This is SCIENCE FRIDAY. I'm Ira Flatow. You know that nice feeling you get when you listen to your favorite tune? What about music that can actually be medical therapy? It does exist. It's prescribed for illnesses from speech disorders to autism, Alzheimer's, even cancer.

Take the case of Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords. After she was shot in the head earlier this year, one way she learned to talk again was by singing her favorite songs, like this Cyndi Lauper tune.

(SOUNDBITE OF ABC BROADCAST )

Transcript

IRA FLATOW, HOST:

It's time for our monthly episode of Science Diction, where we explore the origins of scientific words with my guest Howard Markel, professor of history of medicine at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, also director of the Center for the History of Medicine there. He joins us WUOM. Welcome back, Howard.

HOWARD MARKEL: Good afternoon, Ira.

FLATOW: We have a very interesting word, or actually lab equipment today.

MARKEL: That we do. It's my favorite plate. It's the Petri dish.

When Mark Kelly and Gabrielle Giffords were dating, Gabby did most of the talking. Kelly describes her as "the most positive person I'd ever met." But since the Congresswoman was shot, speaking is a challenge. In their book, Gabby, they share their low points and the amazing progress she has made.

The Supreme Court faces a momentous term in 2012. The justices recently added two high-profile cases to its docket, agreeing to weigh-in on Arizona's immigration law and a Texas case on redistricting. They previously agreed to hear a challenge to the Obama administration's health care law.

Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta visited Baghdad Thursday to mark the end of the nearly nine-year-long U.S. mission in Iraq. He told troops, "You will leave with great pride.... Secure in knowing that your sacrifice has helped the Iraqi people to begin a new chapter in history."