Faculty Experts

Lucia Leone’s interest in nutrition began in childhood, as she watched her mother—without a car and on a limited income—still manage to put healthy meals on the table. Now an associate professor of community health and health behavior at UB, Leone studies how to make nutritious eating achievable for families facing similar barriers. In this episode, she joins host David Hill to explain why simply expanding access to food is not enough to ensure nutrition security. She discusses community-based interventions like mobile produce vans and food prescription programs, and what her research reveals about why some efforts succeed while others fall short. She also challenges misconceptions about SNAP and the people it serves, and examines what it will take at the societal level to close the food gap for good.

Frank Scannapieco went to college only because his dad told him to. Now he’s a world-renowned oral biologist helping to reshape how we think about health. In this episode, he explains how poor oral health is linked to diseases like diabetes, pneumonia and Alzheimer’s—and why a few simple habits can make a difference.

Sleep is a basic biological function, so why do so many people struggle with it? In this episode, renowned sleep expert Carleara Weiss unpacks the mysteries of why we sleep and what happens when we don’t; discusses her research on the link between sleep and Alzheimer's; and shares her top tips for getting a better night’s rest.

An AI pioneer who combines scientific expertise with a love for language, Rohini Srihari is the ideal person to reimagine chatbots. In this episode, she talks about building conversational AI tools that create positive change, from tackling the nation’s mental health crisis to helping people with motor neuron diseases find their voice.