Big Picture Science

The Internet is not the only globally-uniting phenomenon. Viruses and bacteria can circle the globe as fast as we can, and the effects can be devastating. Discover what it takes for an animal disease to become a human pandemic. Also, was hurricane Sandy a man-made disaster? The future of severe storms and climate change. Plus, the view of our science from abroad: why Brits have no trouble accepting the theory of evolution but Americans do. And what about a new annex for Silicon Valley – 12 miles out to sea? Guests: •  Jerry Meehl – Senior scientist, National Center for Atmospheric Research, Boulder, CO •  Alok Jha – Science correspondent, The Guardian •  David Quammen – Science journalist and author, most recently of Spillover: Animal Infections and the Next Human Pandemic •  Max Marty – Co-founder and CEO of Blueseed Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Indiana Jones meets Star Trek in the field of space archaeology. Satellites scan ancient ruins so that scientists can map them without disturbing one grain of sand. Discover how some archaeologists forsake their spades and brushes in favor of examining historic sites from hundreds of miles high. Also, if you were to hunt for alien artifacts – what would you look for? Why ET might choose to send snail mail rather than a radio signal. Plus, the culture of the hardware we send into space, and roaming the Earth, the moon, and Mars the Google way. Guests: •  Alice Gorman – Archaeologist at Flinders University, Adelaide, Australia •  Christopher Rose – Professor of Computer and Intellectual Engineering, Rutgers University, New Jersey •  Robin Hanson – Economist at George Mason University, Virginia •  Tiffany Montague – Engineer, and Intergalactic Federation King Almighty, Commander of the Universe, at Google, Inc. •  Compton Tucker – Scientist at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center Learn more about your ad choices.

If you’re itching it get away from it all, really get away from it all, have we got some exotic destinations for you. Mars … Jupiter’s moon Europa … asteroids . Tour some enticing worlds that are worlds away, but ripe for exploration. Also, why private spaceships may be just the ticket for getting yourself into space, unless you want to wait for a space elevator. And, why one science journalist boasts of an infectious, unabashed, and unbridled enthusiasm for space travel. Guests: •  Cynthia Phillips – Planetary geologist, SETI Institute •  Britney Schmidt – Research scientist, University of Texas, Austin •  Paul Abell – Planetary geologist, NASA’s Johnson Space Center •  Richard Hollingham – Science journalist, producer of Space Boffins podcast, living in the U.K. •  Barry Matsumori – Senior vice president for commercial sales and business development, SpaceX Corporation •  Peter Swan – Space System Engineer and Vice President, International Space Elevator Consortium Learn more about your ad choices. Visit me

By thinking different, scientists can make extraordinary breakthroughs. Learn about the creative cogitation that led to the discovery of dark matter and the invention of a.c. power grids, disinfectant, and the Greek “death ray.” Also, whether one person’s man of genius is another’s mad scientist. And, the scientist who claims pi is wrong and biopunks who tinker with DNA – in their kitchens and on the cheap. Plus, from string theory to the greenhouse effect – how metaphor sheds light on science. Discover why your brain is like a rain forest (that’s a simile!). Guests: •  Anil Ananthaswamy – Corresponding editor for New Scientist magazine in London and author of The Edge of Physics: A Journey to Earth’s Extremes to Unlock the Secrets of the Universe •  Marcus Wohlsen – Reporter for the Associated Press, and author of Biopunk: DIY Scientists Hack the Software of Life •  John Monahan – Author of They Called Me Mad: Genius, Madness, and the Scientists Who Pushed the Outer Limits of Knowledge •  Michael Hartl – Phy

Stuttering speech and facial tics are among the strange symptoms that swept through a New York high school. Discover what’s behind the odd outbreak, and why one sociologist sees parallels to Salem, Massachusetts 300 years ago. Also, an update on the cellphone cancer debate, and why one congressman wants warning labels on all new phones. Plus, the ultimate cleanse: giving up on food to survive on light and air. We investigate the claims of Breatharians. It’s Skeptic Check … but don’t take our word for it! Guests: •  Dennis Kucinich – U.S. Representative, Ohio’s 10th congressional district •  Joshua Muscat – Epidemiologist, professor of public health sciences, Penn State at Hershey College of Medicine •  Michael Wyde – Toxicologist, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences •  Robert Bartholomew – Sociologist, Botany College, Auckland, New Zealand, author of Outbreak! The Encyclopedia of Extraordinary Social Behavior •  Gordy Slack – Science writer •  Benjamin Radford – Deputy editor, Skeptical Inquir

It’s all in the numbers. The trick is, finding what you’re looking for. But that’s the name of the game with big data. We have a giga-gigabyte of information, and combing through it will lead to new cures for disease, new discoveries about the cosmos, or clues to our social and economic behavior. But is big data Big Brother? You leave a little bit of yourself behind with each mouse click. Discover how surveillance and privacy issues bubble out of the mix, as the terabytes keep flowing in. Plus one man’s quest to know himself through the numbers as he records everything – and we do mean everything – about his body. Guests: •  Atul Butte – Associate professor, division chief, systems medicine, Stanford University •  Larry Smarr – Professor of computer science, University of California, San Diego, director of the California Institute for Telecommunications and Information Technology, (Calit2) •  Karen Nelson – Microbiologist, director of the Rockville Campus of the J. Craig Venter Institute •  Gerry Harp – Physi

"I feel your vibe!” Well, that describes a number of fabled locales that claim to pulse with mysterious energy – perhaps prompting books to fly across the room or airplanes to vanish into thin air. But what’s the science behind it? We examine spots marked with an X, for “extraordinary” – from a haunted house to the Bermuda Triangle – to sort out natural from supernatural phenomena. Plus, what causes the aurora borealis… a haywire Russian space probe… and just what the heck is an “energy vortex,” anyway? Guests: • Phil Plait – Skeptic and keeper of Discover Magazine’s blog: badastronomy • Mike Borg – Group Sales Coordinator, Winchester Mystery House • Jim Underdown – Executive Director, Center for Inquiry, Los Angeles • Peter Williams – Hydrodynamicist at Agilent Technologies • Guy P. Harrison – Writer and business owner in Southern California, author of 50 Popular Beliefs That People Think Are True • Rob Lillis – Space and Planetary Physicist, Space Sciences Laboratory, University of California, Berkeley Lear

Before you chase it with a broom, consider this – without the rat, we might miss critical insights into the nature of stress, cancer … and even love. These furry, red-eyed rodents have a unique role in medical research – and a ubiquitous companion to our urban lives. Discover the origins of the albino laboratory rat … what rat laughter sounds like, and why these four-legged fur balls don’t fall victim to the pressure of the rat race … but we do. Guests: •  Kelly Lambert – Behavioral Neuroscientist, Randolph-Macon College, Ashland, Virginia, author of The Lab Rat Chronicles: A Neuroscientist Reveals Life Lessons from the Planet’s Most Successful Mammals •  Michael Gould – Professor of Oncology and Medical Physics, University of Wisconsin, Madison •  Jaak Pankseep – Neuroscientist, Veterinary College, Washington State University, author of The Archaeology of Mind: Neuroevolutionary Origins of Human Emotions (Norton Series on Interpersonal Neurobiology) •  Pico Iyer – Writer, author of The Man Within My Head and

To need air is human. Our lungs thank us for each breath we take. But air is more than a transporter of O2. It shapes our weather, keeps birds aloft and moves spores from here to there. A cubic foot of air is anything but “empty” (hot dog grease particles, anyone?). The same goes for space (minus the hot dog grease). It’s a happening place. Discover why interstellar space is more than a whole lot o’ nothing; and what happens when the Voyager spacecraft leaves our solar system. Plus, catch a skydiver in action! Guests: •  Mako Igarashi – Skydiving instructor, Skydive Hollister, Hollister, CA •  Rhett Allain – Physicist at Southeastern Louisiana University, blogger for Wired.com •  William Bryant Logan – Author of Air: The Restless Shaper of the World •  Robert Wagoner – Emeritus professor of physics, Stanford University •  Alex Filippenko – Astronomer, University of California, Berkeley •  Ed Stone – Physicist at CalTech, former Director of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, project scientist for the Voyager missi

If Bigfoot walks through a forest and no one sees him, does he exist? It’s the job of paranormal investigator Joe Nickell to find out! Discover whether eyewitness accounts are reliable when it comes to tracking down the hirsute big guy and other monsters. Also, on the subject of “seeing is believing”: how magic fools the brain. Plus, in our potpourri show: can music boost brain power? A new study says listening to music makes brains happy. Does this support the dubious “Mozart Effect,” that claims listening to Wolfie’s compositions boosts IQ? And, skeptic Phil Plait on why the so-called “super moon theory” doesn’t predict devastating earthquakes. It’s Skeptic Check… but don’t take our word for it. Guests: •  Joe Nickell – Paranormal investigator and author of Tracking the Man-beasts: Sasquatch, Vampires, Zombies, and More •  Stephen Macknik – Director of the Laboratory of Behavioral Neurophysiology at the Barrow Neurological Institute in Phoenix, Arizona •  Susana Martinez-Conde – Director of the Laboratory o

When the IBM computer, Watson, snatched the “Jeopardy” title from its human competition, that raised the question of just how smart are machines? Could artificial intelligence ever beat humans at their own game… of being human? Hear why an A.I. expert says it’s time to make peace with your P.C.; the machines are coming. Also, why technology is already self-evolving, and presenting its own demands. Find out what technology wants. And, a man who went head-to-chip with a computer and says machines will never beat the human mind. Plus, we take a voyage into “2012: An Emotional Odyssey.” Guests: •  Kevin Kelly – Editor-at-large at Wired and author of What Technology Wants •  Henry Lieberman – Research scientist at the M.I.T. Media Laboratory •  Brian Christian – Science writer, poet and author of The Most Human Human: What Talking with Computers Teaches Us About What It Means to Be Alive •  Horst Simon – Deputy Director, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory •  Shankar Sastry – Dean of Engineering, University of C

We dig the Red Planet! And so does Curiosity. After a successful landing, and a round of high-fives at NASA, the latest rover to land on Mars is on the move, shovel in mechanical hand. Discover how the Mars Science Laboratory will hunt for the building blocks of life, and just what the heck a lipid is. Plus, how to distinguish Martians from Earthlings, and the tricks Mars has played on us in the past (canals, anyone?). Also, want to visit Mars firsthand? We can point you to the sign-up sheet for a manned mission. The catch: the ticket is one-way. Guests: •  John Grotzinger – Geologist, California Institute of Technology, and project scientist, NASA Mars Science Laboratory mission •  Jennifer Heldmann – Research scientist at NASA Ames Research Center •  David Blake – Principal Investigator of CheMin, a mineralogical instrument that is included in the analytical laboratory of the Mars Science Laboratory mission •  Rachel Harris – Astrobiology student at the NASA Astrobiology Institute •  Stuart Schlisserman –

You know the joke about the car and the snail. Look at that escargot? Well, snails may be the only thing not powering the automobiles of the future. Trees, grass, algae, even the garbage you toss on the sidewalk has potential for conversion into biofuel. What is America’s next top model fuel? Join us on a tour of the contenders. Meet a man who’s mad about miscanthus … an astrobiologist’s attraction to algae… and the blueprint for building your own biofuel bugs. Also, discover whether any of these next-generation fuel sources could take us to the stars. Put that in your rocket and burn it! Guests: •  Madhu Khanna – Professor of Agriculture and Environmental Economics at the University of Illinois and at the Energy Biosciences Institute •  Stephen Long – Professor of Crop Sciences and Plant Biology at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign •  Michelle Chang – Assistant Professor of Chemistry at the University of California at Berkeley •  Bret Stroegn – Graduate student researcher, Energy Bioscience Inst

Let the games begin! The mad dash to the phone … the sudden spring out of bed … the frantic juggling of car keys, grocery bags and a cell phone! Olympic athletes may have remarkable speed and strength, but it’s easy praise the extraordinary. Here’s to the extreme averageness of the rest of us. From beer bellies to aching backs, we’re all winners in the Darwinian Olympics just by virtue of being here. Identify the one physical trait that you share with all Olympians – your head - and why it’s a remarkable human evolutionary achievement. Plus, the role of genes in putting on the pounds … and what event Spiderman would enter to win the gold. Guests: Daniel Lieberman - Professor of human evolutionary biology, Harvard University, author of The Evolution of the Human Head Callum Ross - Professor of organismal biology and anatomy, University of Chicago Kelly Brownell - Psychologist, director of the Rudd Center for Food Policy and Obesity at Yale University Robert Peaslee - Assistant professor, College of M

Mooooove over, make way for the cows, the chickens … and other animals! Humans can learn a lot from our hairy, feathered, four-legged friends. We may wear suits and play Sudoku, but Homo sapiens are primates just the same. We’ve met the animal, and it is us. Discover the surprising similarity between our diseases and those that afflict other animals, including pigs that develop eating disorders. Plus, what the octopus can teach us about national security … how monkeying around evolved into human speech … and the origins of moral behavior in humans. Guests: Rafe Sagarin - Marine ecologist, Institute of the Environment, University of Arizona, author of Learning From the Octopus: How Secrets from Nature Can Help Us Fight Terrorist Attacks, Natural Disasters, and Disease Barbara Natterson-Horowitz - Professor of cardiology, David Geffen School of Medicine, UCLA, and co-author of Zoobiquity: What Animals Can Teach Us About Health and the Science of Healing Kathryn Bowers - Writer, co-author of Zoobiquity:

Think small to solve big problems. That, in a nutshell, is the promise of nanotechnology. In this barely visible world, batteries charge 100 times faster and drugs go straight to their targets in the body. Discover some of these nano breakthroughs and how what you can’t see can help you… …or hurt you? What if tiny machines turn out to be nothing but trouble? We’ll look at the health and safety risks of nanotech. Plus, scaling up in science fiction: why a Godzilla-sized insect is fun, but just doesn’t fly. Guests: Bill Flounders - executive director of the Marvell Nanofabrication Laboratory at the University of California at Berkeley Joseph DeSimone - professor of chemistry at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and chemical engineering at North Carolina State University David Guston - political scientist at Arizona State University where he directs The Center for Nanotechnology in Society Stan Williams - Senior Fellow and founding director of the Information and Quantum Systems Lab at Hewl

Expect the unexpected when we go digging in Seth’s storm shelter – who knows what we’ll find! In this cramped never-never land, tucked between piles of dehydrated food packets and old civil defense helmets, we stumble (but don’t step) upon marauding ants … a mission to Pluto…. “evidence” of a spaceship crash … the Apollo astronaut who shot the “Earth Rise” photograph … and Jonah Lehrer meditating on creativity. Tune in, find out and, help move this box of canned soup, will you? Guests: Mark Moffett - Entomologist, research associate at the Smithsonian Institution, author of Adventures among Ants: A Global Safari with a Cast of Trillions John Spencer - Planetary scientist at the Southwest Research Institute in Boulder, Colorado, and member of the New Horizons science team Joe Nickell - Paranormal investigator, Senior Research Fellow, Skeptical Inquirer Magazine William Anders - Astronaut on Apollo 8, and photographer of “Earth Rise” Jonah Lehrer - Author of Imagine: How Creativity Works Learn mor

You are what you eat. But what does that mean if your food is genetically engineered? And the chances are good that it has been engineered if you munch down on corn or soybean. The prospect of eating GM food makes some folks afraid, but is their fear warranted? Discover what experts say about the safety of genetically engineered foods … whether the technology delivers on the promised increase in yield … and the argument for and against labeling. Also, why some say the issue is not food safety, but the unethical business practices of multinationals. A filmmaker reports from the fields of India. Plus, GM crops off this planet: the role of synthetic biology in terraforming Mars. It’s Skeptic Check … but don’t take our word for it. Guests: Pamela Ronald - Professor in the department of Plant Pathology and the Genome Center at the University of California, Davis, co-author of Tomorrow's Table: Organic Farming, Genetics, and the Future of Food Ronald Lindsay - President and Chief Executive Officer and Senior R

You can get your point across in many ways: email, texts, or even face-to-face conversation (does anyone do that anymore?). But ants use chemical messages when organizing their ant buddies for an attack on your kitchen. Meanwhile, your human brain sends messages to other brains without you uttering a word. Hear these communication stories … how language evolved in the first place… why our brains love a good tale …and how Facebook is keeping native languages from going extinct. Guests: Mark Moffett - Entomologist, research associate at the Smithsonian Institution, author of Adventures among Ants: A Global Safari with a Cast of Trillions V.S. Ramachandran - Neuroscientist, director of the Center for Brain and Cognition at the University of California, San Diego Clare Murphy - Performance storyteller, Ireland Mark Pagel - Evolutionary biologist, University of Reading, U.K., and author of Wired for Culture: Origins of the Human Social Mind Margaret Noori - Poet and linguist at the University of Mich

It’s the perennial dream: build a better mousetrap, and the world will beat a path to your door. We go to San Jose’s famed Tech Museum to learn what it takes to turn a good idea into a grand success. Remember the Super Soaker squirt gun? Hear how its inventor is now changing the rules for solar energy. Where do good ideas come from? A Eureka moment in the bathtub? We’ll find out that it doesn’t happen so quickly – or easily. And finally, the life cycle of society-changing technologies, from the birth of radio to the future of the Internet. Inventions, inventors and innovation: all part of the mix on “Better Mousetrap.” Guests: Steven Johnson - Author of Where Good Ideas Come From: The Natural History of Innovation Lonnie Johnson - Inventor and former NASA engineer; CEO of Johnson Research and Development Company Tim Wu - Professor of Communication Law at Columbia University and author of The Master Switch: The Rise and Fall of Information Empires (Borzoi Books) Alana Connor - Vice President Content