Hr2: SciFri in St. Louis, the Midcontinent Rift, Science Club
Did you know that St Louis was almost oceanfront property? We look at how geologists decipher the subsurface scars of the midcontinent rift. Plus, the Science Club is back! Your mission? Break it down.
50m Oct 28, 2016
50m
Hr1: News Roundup, Internet of Things, Play Anything
Would grocery shopping be more fun if it were turned into a game? How about mowing the lawn? One game developer tells us how he turns ordinary life into play. Plus, more on the internet hack last week. Could your internet devices threaten your security?
49m Oct 28, 2016
49m
Hr2: Return of the Screwworm, Hidden Figures, Political Polls
A flesh-eating parasite, previously eradicated on U.S. soil, has decimated endangered Key deer. Can the screwworm be re-eradicated in time to save them? Plus, we remember the African American women mathematicians and engineers whose calculations got us into space.
49m Oct 21, 2016
49m
Hr1: News Roundup, Cyber War, Science Education
With rumblings about possible U.S. retaliation for alleged Russian-backed hacks, we ask about the rules and norms that govern international cyber conflicts. Plus, meet the educators who have turned Science Friday media into innovative classroom resources.
49m Oct 21, 2016
49m
Hr1: News Roundup, Carbon and Reservoirs, Science Subpoenas
How Congress, lawsuits, and other challenges are shaping scientific debate over climate science, fetal tissue research, and more. Plus, reservoirs are both sources of renewable energy and one of the worlds biggest producers of greenhouse gases.
48m Oct 14, 2016
48m
Hr2: DTC Blood Tests, Hornless Cow, Digital Assistants
As tech companies battle to develop the best digital assistant, we ask how they measure up, and why we so often fail to connect. Plus, researchers used gene editing to develop a dairy cow that has no horns. And what happens when direct-to-consumer lab tests take physicians out of the equation?
48m Oct 14, 2016
48m
Hr2: Future Commuting, Astronaut Mike Massimino, Humans To Mars
As rideshare companies like Uber strike deals with cities to supplement or replace traditional transit options and parking lots, we ask: What is the future of commuting? Plus astronaut Mike Massimino talks about his journey from the suburbs of Long Island to the crew of two shuttle missions to repair the Hubble Space Telescope. And are we ready to go to Mars?
47m Oct 07, 2016
47m
Hr1: News Roundup, Nobel Prize, Golden Record 2.0, Pop Up Books
We review the sounds, images, and videos our listeners chose to represent our world. Plus, pop-up designer Matthew Reinhart engineers paper cut-outs that move and extend, sometimes reaching nearly two feet tall.
47m Oct 07, 2016
47m
Hr1: News Roundup, Snap Spectacles, Connected Cars, Way Things Work
Connected cars tap into vehicle sensors to read road signs, determine traffic patterns, and find open parking spaces. Plus, artist David Macaulay on the art of explaining science in pictures.
47m Sep 30, 2016
47m
Hr2: Oysters and Oceans, Trees and Drought, Tardigrades
Oyster farmers have been hit hard by acidifying seas. Can they adapt? And how curiosity about tardigrades in the 1970s led to a major breakthrough in medical science.
48m Sep 30, 2016
48m
Hr1: News Roundup, Endangered Tourism, Fitness Goals, Fashion In Physics
Health experts tout the benefits of standing desks, and walking five miles a day. Science says otherwise. Plus theoretical physicist Roger Penrose argues against some prominent theories about the universe, calling them fashion, faith, and fantasy.
49m Sep 23, 2016
49m
Hr2: Fog and Redwoods, Amphibian vs Fungus, AI
As artificial intelligence advances, it could transform our world. How do we ensure it does so in the best possible way? Plus, what the fight of one frog against the deadly chytrid fungus could mean for the survival of imperiled amphibians around the globe.
49m Sep 23, 2016
49m
Hr1: News Roundup, Telepresence, Golden Record History
Two of the creators of the Voyager Golden Record remember how they crafted a message for alien civilizations. Plus, can a robotic avatar let you remotely experience a trip to the zoo? And Pluto may be the source of the wispy red cap on the north pole of its moon Charon.
50m Sep 16, 2016
50m
Hr2: Antibiotic Resistance, Silicon Coyboys, Gamification and Fitness
Activity trackers like the Fitbit and the Apple Watch aim to make fitness more fun by incorporating elements of gameplay. But does it work? Plus, how the Silicon Cowboys of Compaqs early days took on the behemoth IBM with a 28-pound portable computer.
50m Sep 16, 2016
50m
Hr2: Abstract Art and the Brain, Dear Data
Neuropsychiatrist Eric Kandel explores the relationship between neuroscience and abstract art. Plus, what small, everyday data can reveal about our thoughts and emotions.
49m Sep 09, 2016
49m
Hr1: News Roundup, Seaweed Farms, Audiology, Wine Perception
An audiologist describes overcoming her hearing loss. Plus, how new research could expand the aural world for patients with hearing loss. And the sensory cues that help to enhance your enjoyment of a glass of wine.
49m Sep 09, 2016
49m
Hr1: News Roundup, Plastic Clothing, Canine Communication, Lucy
How anthropologists peer inside scarce, ancient fossil bones to find clues about our evolutionary history. Plus, how dogs pick up on our tones, gestures, and moods.
49m Sep 02, 2016
49m
Bonus Episode: A Conversation With Margaret Atwood (SciFri Book Club)
Margaret Atwood, author of 'Oryx and Crake,' discusses the book with Ira Flatow in a live book club discussion at the Housing Works Bookstore Cafe in New York. Recorded August 23 2016.
56m Aug 26, 2016
56m
Hr1: News Roundup, Marijuana Research, Twitter Bots, Chili Peppers
A visit with the Twitter bots that are brightening our social media experience. Plus, what gives the hot habanero and mild jalapeno their heat profile?
51m Aug 19, 2016
51m
Hr1: News Roundup, Clickbait, Particle Physics, Remembering HM
What could sterile neutrinos, gravitons, and axions tell us about the Standard Model? Plus, the most famous patient in neuroscience is the subject of a new book by the grandson of the man who changed his brain forever.
50m Aug 12, 2016
50m
Hr2:Replication Game, World According to Microbes, Bulldogs
Ed Yong examines the connections between species and ecosystems €”from a microbial point of view. Plus, bulldog genetics, and the reproducibility of important scientific papers.
51m Aug 05, 2016
51m
Hr2:Human Enhancement Technology, Deadly Snails, Clone Health, Moth Week
A new survey finds many Americans are dubious about using certain new technologies for human enhancement. Plus, the health of sister clones of Dolly the sheep, and a celebration of the life around your porch light.
47m Jul 29, 2016
47m
Hr1: News Roundup, New Zealand Predators, Digital Language, Staying Healthy In Space
Weightlessness and radiation both take a toll on the body, in ways we still do not fully understand. Plus, the difference between this, THIS, and #this, and why a plan to save native avian species means targeting non-native predators.
48m Jul 29, 2016
48m
Hr2:Tracking Online Terrorist Networks With Math Models, Pokemon Go and Augmented Reality, Science in Ghostbusters
Repurposing mathematical models to track extremist networks on social media. Plus, finding nuggets of science in the new Ghostbusters.
49m Jul 15, 2016
49m
Hr2: Lessons From the History of The Gene, How GPS Found Its Way, Robobees
The history of genetics is fraught with ethical conundrums. Plus, the early struggles of modern navigation, and what we can learn from the quest to build a better tiny, flying robot.
47m May 20, 2016
47m
Hr2: Ocular Stem Cell Therapy, Ask an Ophthalmologist, Quantum Computing, Pi
Ophthalmologists Lisa Park and Anne Sumers address queries about eyes and vision. Plus, Researchers used stem cells to grow eye tissues. And a look at the potential of quantum computers.
49m Mar 11, 2016
49m
Hr2: Van Goghs True Colors, Cheese Science, Cable Box Wars
Are the walls of Van Goghs Bedroom blue, or violet? A chemist shares the results of a scientific investigation into Van Goghs palette. Then, a look at the science of cheese. And will an FCC proposal expand how consumers access pay-TV services?
50m Mar 04, 2016
50m
Hr2: Hacked Hospitals, Silicon Valley Diversity, Printing Living Cells
More tech companies are pledging to increase diversity in their workforce, but their employee numbers remain the same. Plus, how scientists used living cells to 3-D-print ear, bone, and muscle structures.
49m Feb 19, 2016
49m
Hr2: Zero-G Music Video, Book Club, Bouba-Kiki Effect
After three weeks of reading, the SciFri Book Club is back to discuss the autobiography On the Move, by Oliver Sacks. Plus, how the band OK Go choreographed their latest video in zero-G, and a video about pointy-ness and linguistics.
47m Feb 12, 2016
47m
Hr2: Zika, Planet Vulcan, Antarctic Meteorite Hunter
Meteorite hunter Nina Lanza reports back from six weeks scouring the Antarctic ice for space rocks. Plus, an update on the Zika virus, and the cautionary tale of planet Vulcan.
49m Jan 29, 2016
49m
Hr2: Food Sound, Ancient Violence, Apple Design, Subway Bacteria
A look at how sound affects the taste of your food, evidence for a 10,000-year-old massacre, and how an artist creates unconventional portraits of NYC commuters with bacteria.
50m Jan 22, 2016
50m
Hr2: California Gas Leak, Con Psychology, Better Light Bulb
An update on the methane gas leak in California, how how human psychology predisposes us to take the grifter's bait, and using photonic devices to build a better light bulb.
49m Jan 15, 2016
49m
Hr2: Western Drought Update, Always Hungry, Winter Gardens
An update on the drought situation in the western US, how certain diets might cause fat cells to suck up too much fuel, and tips for guarding your garden against the winter chill.
50m Jan 08, 2016
50m
Hr1: Year in Review, 2015
A panel of science and technology journalists joins Ira Flatow to discuss the biggest news in these fields during the last year.
49m Dec 25, 2015
49m
Hr2: Immunotherapy, Pluto Photos, End of Year Books
A look at immunotherapy treatments for cancer, revealing photos from Pluto, and the best science books of 2015.
50m Dec 11, 2015
50m
Hr2:Somewhat Silly Science Earns Ig Nobel Prizes
The Ig Nobel Prizes honor scientific research that first makes you laugh, and then, makes you think.
51m Nov 27, 2015
51m
Hr2: News Roundup, Concussions, Science Club
A roundup of the week in science, the whole story on whole milk, football and Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy, and a Science Club project that asks you to build your own communications device.
50m Nov 06, 2015
50m
Hr2: The Brains Ghoulish Glitches, Spider Stories, Diary of A Snakebite Death
Science writer Sam Kean discusses some ghoulish brain glitches, a look at strange spider behaviors, and a Macroscope video about a dying herpetologist.
49m Oct 30, 2015
49m
Hr2: Forecasting Flu, DIY Halloween, Mobile Audio Woes
Researchers seek to track the flu using nasal swabs and search engine queries. Plus, a few ways to geek out this Halloween with do-it-yourself projects, and why mobile audio quality still lags the rest of smartphone technology.
49m Oct 15, 2015
49m
Hr1: News Roundup, Streetscape Psychology, Dark Matter Hunt
A look at this week in science, cognitive neuroscientist Colin Ellard studies how our streetscapes shape our bodies, brains, and behavior, and scientists hunt for dark matter deep below the Earth's surface.
49m Oct 15, 2015
49m
Hr2: Gene Therapy, Reclaiming Conversation, Postnatural History
An experimental gene therapy for treating congenital blindness, Sherry Turkle discusses the power of face-to-face conversation in a time of always on technological connection, and a museum where modified organisms are the star attraction.
49m Oct 08, 2015
49m
Hr1: News Roundup, Nobel Prizes, Math Anxiety and Apps
A look at this week in science, a look at the 2015 Nobel Prizes in science, and how an iPad app helps first graders improve how well they do in math.
12m Oct 08, 2015
12m
Hr2: Mars Water, Science Goes to the Movies, Plants In Space
The evidence for present-day liquid water on Mars, an astronaut and a NASA engineer weigh in on The Martian, and why plant biologists sent a lowly weed to the International Space Station.
50m Oct 01, 2015
50m
r1: News Roundup, Cosntructing Dothraki, Latinos and Climate Change
A look at this week in science, how language creator David J. Peterson constructed Dothraki and the Valyrian languages, and the effects of climate change on Latino communities in Florida.
49m Oct 01, 2015
49m
Hr2: Drug Pricing, New Car Technology, Trash Talk
Two experts on the drug industry talk about pricing, a hydrogen fuel cell car takes to the road this fall, and why American landfills may be crowded with twice as much waste as previously thought.
48m Sep 24, 2015
48m
Hr1: News Roundup, Sneaker Innovation, A is for Arsenic
A look at this week in science, the ever-changing world of sneaker innovation, and the poisons of Agatha Christie.
48m Sep 24, 2015
48m
Hr2: Neutrino Hotspots, Parkinsons, Deep Sea Exploration
Looking at a global neutrino map, science journalist Jon Palfreman shares his journey with Parkinsons disease, and how humans fit into the future of deep sea exploration.
48m Sep 17, 2015
48m
Hr1: News Roundup, von Humboldt, Moon
A look at this week in science, the book The Invention of Nature by historian Andrea Wulf, and moon-viewing tips and a dose of lunar lore.
49m Sep 17, 2015
49m
Hr2: Homo Naledi Fossil Find, Rush Holt on Science Policy
A paleoanthropological find in a Suth African cave, and a conversation with Rush Holt, former congressman and plasma physicist, now AAAS head.
49m Sep 10, 2015
49m
Hr1: News Roundup, Science of Story Time, Air Pollution and Urban Biking
A look at this week in science, the impact of reading on child development, and how a new study is mapping how much air pollution city bikers encounter on their daily routes.
49m Sep 10, 2015
49m