Synopsis
Big Picture Science weaves together a universe of big ideas from robots to memory to antimatter to dinosaurs. Tune in and make contact with science. We broadcast and podcast every week. bigpicturescience.org
Episodes
-
Off to the Traces
25/10/2010 Duration: 52minIf a tree fell on another planet, would we be able to detect it? Not quite yet – but we might be able to tell if the planet was habitable. A living-planet is the promise of newly-discovered Gliese 581g. But does the planet exist at all? Discover how we learn a planet’s geology and chemistry from afar. Also, what we learn about a civilization from what it discards, beginning with our own sloppy habits. Plus, the hunt for derelict alien spaceships… and a man who sketches alien creatures for a living - based on real science. Guests: Lisa Kaltenegger - Astronomer, Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics Brad Bebout - Biologist, NASA Ames Research Center Robin Nagle - Anthropologist, New York University Robin Hanson - Economist, George Mason University Joel Hagen - Computer graphics instructor, Modesto Junior College Descripción en español Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
-
Earth: A Millennium Hence
11/10/2010 Duration: 52minHumans have not gone unnoticed on this planet. We’ve left our mark with technology, agriculture, architecture, and a growing carbon footprint. But where is this trajectory headed? In the second of a two-part series: what we’ll lose and what will last in 1000 years or more. Discover what the planet might look like to geologists of the far-off-future… the stubborn longevity of plastic and radioactive waste... human civilization in space… and postcards from the galactic edge; crafting interstellar messages to E.T. Guests: Charles Moore - Sea Captain and founder of Algalita Marine Research Foundation Jan Zalasiewicz - Geologist, University of Leicester and author of The Earth After Us: What Legacy Will Humans Leave in the Rocks? Matthew Wald - Reporter for the New York Times and author of the article “Is There a Place for Nuclear Waste?” in the August 2009 issue of Scientific American Doug Vakoch - Director of Interstellar Message Composition at the SETI Institute David Korsmeyer - Chief of the Intelli
-
Earth: A Century Hence
04/10/2010 Duration: 52minHumans have not gone unnoticed on this planet. We’ve left our mark with technology, agriculture, architecture, and a growing carbon footprint. But where is this trajectory headed? In the first of a two-part series: what will be lost and what will still be around 100 years from now? James Lovelock says a hotter planet will prompt mass migrations. And Cary Fowler urges us to save our seeds – the health of future farms may depend on it. Plus, from antibiotics to sewage systems: why human ingenuity ultimately saves the day. And, sure, humans will be around in a century, but – with bionic limbs and silicon neurons – would we recognize them? Guests: James Lovelock - Independent scientist and author of The Vanishing Face of Gaia Cary Fowler - Executive Director of the Global Crop Diversity Trust Russell Blackford - Philosopher, writer, and editor-in-chief of the “Journal of Evolution and Technology.” Descripción en español Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
-
Skeptic Check: Sheer Lunacy
26/09/2010 Duration: 52minWatch out, the moon is full… of intrigue. Our lovely satellite is blamed for all sorts of Earth-bound mischief – from robberies to shape-shifting to general nutty behavior. It’s also the setting for more than one loony tale. In this hour, as NASA spacecraft return to the moon, a look at the mythology it inspires. Discover the true correlation between crime and a full moon… the 1835 reports of unicorns and man-bats living on moon… and, our favorite hair-raising howler: the werewolf! Also, why some still insist the Apollo moon landing is a hoax. Plus, space travel – boxed and bundled. Guests: Phil Plait - Keeper of the skeptical website badastronomy.com and author of Death from the Skies!: These Are the Ways the World Will End . . . Matthew Goodman - Author of The Sun and the Moon: The Remarkable True Account of Hoaxers, Showmen, Dueling Journalists, and Lunar Man-Bats in Nineteenth-Century New York Jim Underdown - Executive Director for the Center for Inquiry West, Los Angeles and keeper of the blog Ho
-
What Makes Us Human Part II: Adaptability
20/09/2010 Duration: 54minAre humans unique or do we just do some things a little better than other species? In the second of our two-part series – how our ability to adapt has shaped our evolution. Find out how throwing a burger on the grill has transformed our species… the 1% genetic difference that separate us from chimps… why we’re poorly adapted and stressed out … and why human evolution is not only on the move, but picking up the pace. Richard Wrangham - Biological anthropologist at Harvard University and author of Catching Fire: How Cooking Made Us Human Katherine Pollard - Biostatistician at the Gladstone Institutes at the University of California, San Francisco Robert Sapolsky - Biological scientist at Stanford University and neurologist at Stanford’s School of Medicine. Author of Why Zebras Don't Get Ulcers, Third Edition and, more recently, Monkeyluv: And Other Essays on Our Lives as Animals Gregory Cochran - Anthropologist at the University of Utah and co-author of The 10,000 Year Explosion: How Civilization Acce
-
What Makes Us Human Part I: Others
13/09/2010 Duration: 53minAre humans unique or do we just do some things a little better than other species? In the first of our two-part series on the nature of humanity: how the influence of others has shaped our evolution. Find out how baby talk gave root to human language and why social isolation can make us sick. Plus, the joke’s on us – new research says we’re not the only laughing species: meet your giggling gorilla cousins. And, what a writer’s visit to a chimp retirement center revealed about human discomfort with our animal ancestry. Dean Falk - Anthropologist at Florida State University and author of Finding Our Tongues: Mothers, Infants, and the Origins of Language John Cacioppo - Director of the Center for Cognitive and Social Neuroscience at the University of Chicago and co-author of Loneliness: Human Nature and the Need for Social Connection Lori Marino - Biologist at Emory University Kathryn Denning - Anthropologist at York University Charles Siebert - Author of The Wauchula Woods Accord: Toward a New Under
-
Say What?
30/08/2010 Duration: 53minThere’s no escape from the chattering classes – they talk, squawk, squeal and sing all around us. Every animal communicates in some form – it’s essential for survival. They’ve evolved to understand each other … but do we understand them? Find out what’s coded in humpback whale song and whether human-cetacean dialogue is possible… how information theory reveals communication patterns within the animal kingdom… how plants call out to animals to protect them… and why only humans evolved language. Guests: Douglas Carlton Abrams - Author of Eye of the Whale: A Novel Laurance Doyle - Scientist at the SETI Institute Douglas Vakoch - Director of Interstellar Message Composition at the SETI Institute David DeGusta - Anthropologist at Stanford University Descripción en español Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
-
Rxs Get Personal
09/08/2010 Duration: 52minMedicine’s back.. and this time it’s personal. Get ready to have your genome read… your brain scanned… and undergo a chemical analysis so detailed, it’ll reveal the Twinkie you had for lunch. Everyone’s different, and reading those differences at the level of the gene may provide a more accurate profile of health and how to treat disease. But are you ready to know what’s wrong with you? Discover the future of personalized medicine with biologist Craig Venter, as well as a man who turned his body over to the new science. Learn what his tests revealed. Plus, why stem cell research really is a horse race. And, why getting sick is sometimes the best thing. Guests: Craig Venter - Genome scientist Frank McCormick - Director of the Helen Diller Comprehensive Cancer Center at the University of California, San Francisco David Ewing Duncan - Journalist and author of Experimental Man: What One Man's Body Reveals about His Future, Your Health, and Our Toxic World Sharon Moalem - Neurogeneticist and Evolutionary
-
What's Your Poison?
26/07/2010 Duration: 53min“Aspirin and Old Lace?” Okay, it would take a bottle full of pills in a glass of elderberry wine to really harm you, but aspirin can be deadly. So can too much of anything, including water. Dose is key in toxicology, after all, but there are some poisons that can do deadly work in tiny amounts. Hear about the chemistry of poisons … why Botox may freeze your emotions as well as your face… which animal is most lethal to humans… and how 19th-century poisoners got away with murder – until the birth of forensic science. Guests: Deborah Blum – Pulitzer Prize-winning science writer, author of The Poisoner’s Handbook: Murder and the Birth of Forensic Medicine in Jazz Age New York Martyn Smith – Toxicologist, University of California, Berkeley Joshua Ian Davis – Psychologist, Barnard College, New York Jamie Seymour – Venom biologist, director of The Tropical Australian Stinger Research Unit, School of Marine Tropical Biology, James Cook University, Cairns, Australia Big Picture Science is part of the Airwav
-
Grave Matters
19/07/2010 Duration: 53minWe could choose not to pay income tax and suffer the consequences. But we can’t avoid death. The biological functions of all organisms eventually cease. But why should this be? Find out why animals die and meet one creature that is biologically immortal. Plus, a trip to the Body Farm where decaying bodies help science…how we might cheat the Big Sleep with drugs… why Mexican cemeteries look like villages… and a doctor’s fight against one of the world’s deadliest diseases. Guests: Bill Bass - Forensic Anthropologist, founder of the University of Tennessee Forensic Research Facility. Author of Beyond the Body Farm: A Legendary Bone Detective Explores Murders, Mysteries, and the Revolution in Forensic Science and fiction, written under the pen name, Jefferson Bass. The latest: Bones of Betrayal: A Body Farm Novel. Stanley Brandes - Cultural Anthropologist, University of California, Berkeley, author of Skulls to the Living, Bread to the Dead: The Day of the Dead in Mexico and Beyond Matt Kaeberlein - Pathol
-
Skeptic Check: Playing Doctor
12/07/2010 Duration: 53minA new herbal supplements is on the shelf, and it claims to improve memory. Should you take it? It’s not easy to sort through the firehose of health and nutrition advice that comes at us daily. Find out how to get healthy about health advice, plus hear the story of Bernarr Macfadden, the eccentric who kicked off America’s fitness craze; he believed that eating less was good for you, but he didn’t believe germ theory. Plus, our Hollywood skeptic spills his guts and other entrails for a phony class for nurses and Phil Plait gives us the latest lapse in critically-thinking brains. It’s Skeptic Check… but don’t take our word for it. Guests: Phil Plait - Author, badastronomy.com and Death from the Skies!: These Are the Ways the World Will End . . . Mark Adams - writer and editor, and author of Mr. America: How Muscular Millionaire Bernarr Macfadden Transformed the Nation Through Sex, Salad, and the Ultimate Starvation Diet Jim Underdown - Executive Director, Center for Inquiry, West - Los Angeles Steven N
-
Seth's Garage
07/06/2010 Duration: 53minIt’s always a surprise to go digging in Seth’s garage – who knows what we’ll find! In this impressive heap of paraphernalia, tucked between boxes of old radio tubes and hydraulic jacks, we stumble upon the secrets to our galaxy’s central black hole… witness the dance of the PhD theses… uncover the genome of milk (while moo-ving boxes) and … hey? Who’s that crunching numbers in the corner? It’s astrophysicist Mario Livio addressing the mathematical mysteries of universe. Guests: Andrea Ghez - Astronomer at University of California, Los Angeles Kathryn Denning - Professor of Anthropology at York University Mario Livio - Senior Astronomer at the Hubble Space Telescope Science Institute and author of Is God a Mathematician? John Bohannon - Gonzo Scientist and Contributing Correspondent for Science Katrien Kolenberg - Astrophysicist, University of Vienna Danielle Lemay - Nutrition Scientist at the University of California, Davis Descripción en español Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphon
-
Life of Brain
24/05/2010 Duration: 52minWe should award frequent travel miles to your brain. After all, it’s evolved a long way from the days of guiding brachiation from tree-to-tree to become the three pounds of web-surfing, Sudoku-playing powerhouse it is today. But a suite of technologies may expand human brains further still. From smart pills to nano-wires: discover the potential – and peril – of neuro-engineering to repair and enhance our cognitive function. Also, how our brains got so big in the first place: a defense of the modern diet. Guests Bill Leonard - department chairman and professor of Anthropology at Northwestern University Michael Gazzaniga - neuroscientist and director of the University of California – Santa Barbara’s SAGE Center for the Study of the Mind. Author of Human: The Science Behind What Makes Us Unique Ian Pearson - futurologist at Futurizon Steven Rose - biologist and director of the Brain and Behavior Research Group at the Open University in London. Author of The Future of the Brain: The Promise and Perils of
-
Skeptic Check: Fraudcast News
17/05/2010 Duration: 53minThere are a lot of scientific claims out there – how do you separate the good from the bad and the outright fraudulent? Experts failed to do so for years in the case of a physicist whose published papers claimed the invention of a new bio-based transistor. Plus, other stories of deceit – such as the scientist who stooped to coloring mouse fur with markers. Also, why climate science is solid, but its scientists need to be more open with the public. And, from the undersea “bloop” to the Denver airport conspiracy theory. Why urban myths are so popular. Plus, Phil Plait describes someone’s plans to meditate away the Gulf of Mexico oil spill. It’s Skeptic Check… but don’t take our word for it! Guests: Phil Plait - Astronomer, keeper of badastronomy.com, and author of Death from the Skies!: These Are the Ways the World Will End . . . Eugenie Samuel Reich - News reporter and author of Plastic Fantastic Michael Shermer - Publisher of Skeptic Magazine and columnist for Scientific American Sheila Jasanoff - P
-
Robots Call the Shots
03/05/2010 Duration: 53minDr. Robot, I presume? Your appendix may be removed by motor-driven, scalpel-wielding mechanical hands one day. Robots are debuting in the medical field… as well as on battlefields. And they’re increasingly making important decisions – on their own. But can we teach robots right from wrong? Find out why the onslaught of silicon intelligence has prompted a new field of robo-ethics. Plus, robo-geologists: NASA’s vision for autonomous robots in space. Guests: P.W. Singer - Director of the 21st Century Defense Initiative at the Brookings Institution, and the author of Wired for War: The Robotics Revolution and Conflict in the 21st Century Wendell Wallach - Chair of a technology and ethics working group for Yale University’s Interdisciplinary Center for Bioethics, and the co-author of Moral Machines: Teaching Robots Right from Wrong Pablo Garcia - – Principal engineer working on medical robotics at SRI International, Menlo Park, California Robert Anderson - Planetary geologist, NASA’s Jet Propulsion Labor
-
Seas the Moment
26/04/2010 Duration: 53minWith more water than land on this planet, Earth is more aptly-named “Ocean” or “Water.” The oceans have been here for billions of years, and make all life possible. Yet, it’s taken less than a century for humans to deal some serious blows to the watery cradle of our existence. Discover how our oceans are changing and the worrisome increase in their acidity from the maker of the documentary film, A Sea Change Also, hear how hope is bubbling up for ocean recovery from famed oceanographer Sylvia Earle. Learn about her record-breaking voyages underwater and how her reprimand to a Silicon Valley entrepreneur gave birth to Google Ocean. Plus, farming the seas for new antibiotics. Guests: Sylvia Earle - Oceanographer, National Geographic Explorer-in-Residence, founder of DeepSearch Foundation, and author of Ocean: An Illustrated Atlas (National Geographic Atlas) Sven Huseby - Co-producer of the documentary A Sea Change Peter Moeller - Toxin and Natural Products Chemist at NOAA Pacific Ocean - Largest ocean
-
Habitats Not For Humanity
19/04/2010 Duration: 52minWe place sharks in aquariums and elephants in zoos – to observe and conserve. But what if aliens have done the same to us? We’ll hear from Stephen King on a doomed result of a domed experiment - hatched by off-Earth beings, and why captivity may actually save some species on this planet. Plus, you’re entering the Habitable Zone: which is the best bet for life elsewhere in the Solar System - Europa, Enceladus or Mars? Guests: Stephen King - Novelist, author of Under the Dome: A Novel Jim Kasting - Geoscientist, Penn State University and author of How to Find a Habitable Planet (Science Essentials) Oliver Morton - Journalist, author of Eating the Sun: How Plants Power the Planet John Fraser - Director for the Institute for Learning Innovations and Adjunct Assistant Professor at Hunter College CUNY Amanda Hendrix - Planetary Scientist, NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory Bob Pappalardo - Planetary Scientist, NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory Descripción en español Learn more about your ad choices. Visit
-
Seth's Crawl Space
12/04/2010 Duration: 52minIt’s always a surprise to go digging in Seth’s crawl space – who knows what we’ll find! In this cramped never-never land, tucked between piles of spilled cat litter and old clarinet reeds, we stumble upon the language of whales … the future of technology … the secret to plant power … and the answer to whether photographic memory exists. Tune in, find out and, grab a broom, will you? Guests: Larry Squire - Professor at the University of California San Diego School of Medicine and a scientist at the V.A. Medical Center in San Diego Nathan Myhrvold - CEO of Intellectual Ventures Oliver Morton - Journalist and author of Eating the Sun: How Plants Power the Planet Fred Sharpe - Executive Director and Principal Investigator at the Alaska Whale Foundation Descripción en español Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
-
Skeptic Check: Conspiracy!
05/04/2010 Duration: 52minThe Apollo moon landing is a hoax! 9-11 was an inside job! Our government keeps alien bodies racked and stacked in an underground bunker! And as for the evidence … well … put on your tin hats, folks, we’re going deep, deep, deep into conspiracy with journalist David Aaronovitch. Also – the truth is out there, but it’s ignored. Jonah Lehrer on why scientists can overlook evidence. Plus, money for meters and your spooks for free: ghost detectors hit the market. And Hollywood Reality Check and Phil Plait on bogus bomb detectors. It’s Skeptic Check… but don’t take our word for it! Guests: Phil Plait - Astronomer, keeper of badastronomy.com, and author of Death from the Skies!: These Are the Ways the World Will End . . . David Aaronovitch- Columnist with the Times newspaper of London and author of Voodoo Histories: The Role of the Conspiracy Theory in Shaping Modern History Jonah Lehrer - Contributing editor at Wired magazine and author of How We Decide Matt Lowry - High school physics teacher and keepe
-
SETI: Now What?
29/03/2010 Duration: 53minHello! Is anyone out there? As the scientific search for extraterrestrial intelligence marks its 50th anniversary, there’s been no contact as yet with alien beings. But SETI researchers maintain that we are not alone. Find out why in a SETI retrospective that looks at the past and future of the search. We remember the first scientific SETI search… Carl Sagan... how the SETI Institute began… the WOW signal…and the 1993 NASA budget cuts. We’ll also hear from critics of the search… scientists involved in optical SETI and SETI@home. Plus, international collaborations… and where the search is headed. Guests: Frank Drake - Director of the Carl Sagan Center for the Study of Life in the Universe, SETI Institute Jill Tarter - Director of the Center for SETI Research, SETI Institute Tom Pierson - CEO, SETI Institute Paul Horowitz - Physicist, electrical engineer, Harvard University Dan Werthimer - Chief Scientist, SETI@home, University of California, Berkeley Ben Zuckerman - Physicist, Astronomer, UCLA Des