|
By day, Carl Winter is director of the FoodSafe program and extension food
toxicologist in the Department of Food Science and Technology at the
University of California at Davis. The rest of the time, he's a singer of
science.
Perhaps the disparity of titlesone long and ponderous, the other short and
sweet-helps explain why Winter and his song collection, "Stayin' Alive," are
such a hit on the food-safety circuit.
"We tend to be pretty boring in the science world," Winter acknowledges.
"We need to lighten up."
"Stayin' Alive" matches Winter's satiric lyrics with old rock songs; his
subjects cover a variety of food-science issues. The title song, made famous
by the BeeGees, becomes an anthem to battling E. coli:
"Well, you can tell by the way I choose my food,
I'm a worried guy, in a cautious mood.
Food safety scares, they're everywhere
And they're telling me I should be beware.
There's pesticides, mad Cow disease
Sure don't put my mind at ease
biotech, and MSG
Messin' with my sanity . . ."
In his youth, Winter played keyboard with bands; he didn't sing. When you
hear the songs, he says with a laugh, that "will probably be clear to you." He
adds that the songs, and their success, demonstrate the need for
non-traditional ways of teaching food safety issues. To hear and/or read
Winter's songs, or get information on purchasing a CD, visit
http://foodsafe.ucdavis.edu/music.html.
|
