MRIs are loud. They’re huge. They’re magnetic. But what are they actually doing? This week, we bring Claire back to help us connect the dots between NMR (yes, organic chem flashbacks) and MRI. How does a technique built on tiny hydrogen protons turn into a 3D image of your brain? How can it tell the difference between tissue and fluid? Why can’t you bring metal anywhere near the machine?

We ask:
• What are your protons doing inside an MRI?
• How does “magnetic resonance” become an image?
• Why does oxygenated blood matter?
• And how did anyone figure this out in the first place?

If you’ve ever had an MRI, or just wondered how we can see inside the body without radiation or surgery, this episode pulls back the curtain.

Listen in and rethink what’s happening inside that giant magnet.

00:00 MRI Episode Kickoff
01:11 Meet Claire Again
02:27 PhD Candidate Explained
03:44 NMR Basics Begin
04:33 Protons And Magnets
06:46 RF Pulse And Signal
11:16 Hydrogen Everywhere
13:35 Reading NMR Peaks
16:02 Matrix And Practice
18:31 Jam Summarizes NMR
20:44 Why MRI Not NMR
22:45 Spin And Isotopes
29:02 MRI Uses Body Water
30:37 Tissue Contrast And T1
33:38 Resolution Limits
34:25 MRI Resolution Limits
35:34 From NMR to Images
36:50 K Space and Gradients
41:30 Voxels and 3D Views
44:05 Contrast and Clinical Uses
49:47 Research Possibilities
51:11 Functional MRI Explained
56:14 MRI Safety and Magnet Strength
58:00 Helium and Heavy Machines
01:02:43 Science Boundaries and Wrap Up

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How do MRIs see inside our bodies, in 3D? (with Claire Caballero)

Chemistry For Your Life