Embryonic Stem Cell Research and Reagan's Death

By Joe Palca,

Madeleine Brand

Published June 15, 2004 at 11:00 PM CDT

The death of former President Ronald Reagan, who suffered from Alzheimer's disease for a decade before his death, has revived stem cell research as a political issue. NPR's Madeleine Brand speaks with NPR's Joe Palca about a new poll measuring public support for embryonic stem cell research.

Joe Palca

Joe Palca is a science correspondent for NPR. Since joining NPR in 1992, Palca has covered a range of science topics — everything from biomedical research to astronomy. He is currently focused on the eponymous series, "Joe's Big Idea." Stories in the series explore the minds and motivations of scientists and inventors. Palca is also the founder of NPR Scicommers – A science communication collective.

See stories by Joe Palca

Madeleine Brand

Madeleine Brand is the host of NPRs newest and fastest-growing daily show, Day to Day. She conducts interviews with newsmakers (Iraqi politicians, US senators), entertainment figures (Bernardo Bertolluci, Phillip Seymour Hoffman, Ricky Gervais), and the everyday people affected by the news (an autoworker laid off at GM, a mother whose son was killed in Iraq).