What is it like to fly a plane while attempting to make a podcast from 2,000 feet in the air? And can we pull this off? In this episode of The Show About Science, Nate chats with Carley Walker , the Director of Development at STEM Flights, and then takes to the skies with STEM Flights volunteer, Dragan Lazić , a passionate pilot and aviation safety expert. Nate's thrilling flight experience at Waukegan National Airport highlights the importance of STEM education and programs like STEM Flights, w...
Sep 14, 2024•16 min•Ep 110•Transcript available on Metacast It's the hottest day of the year, and deep underground, a mysterious countdown has finally hit zero. After years of silence, millions of cicadas are emerging from the earth, ready to take the stage in a once-in-a-lifetime event. But how do these creatures synchronize their grand entrance? In this episode of The Show About Science, Nate explores the fascinating world of cicadas emerging en masse after years of living underground. Joined by Jorin Graham , a physics PhD student from Northwestern Un...
Jul 27, 2024•17 min•Ep 109•Transcript available on Metacast In this episode of The Show About Science, Nate unearths the surprising history of the Kentucky Coffee Trees growing in his backyard and quickly becomes obsessed with germinating their seeds. This obsession leads him to a lab at the University of Illinois at Chicago where he meets up with plant ecologist, David Zaya , to uncover the evolutionary tale of these trees and the role humans now play in preserving them.
May 27, 2024•23 min•Ep 108•Transcript available on Metacast Bacteriophages, also known as ‘phages,’ are the most common lifeform on the planet. They are constantly hunting for bacteria to infect and kill. What if we could harness these tiny microbes to help us in our fight against harmful, disease-causing bacteria? On this episode of The Show About Science, Ben Chan , from Yale University, joins Nate to explore the potential of phages in treating human infections amid the declining effectiveness of broad-spectrum antibiotics. If you’re interested in coll...
Mar 24, 2024•15 min•Ep 107•Transcript available on Metacast In this episode of The Show About Science, Nate heads to the banks of the Chicago River to meet up with Melissa Pierce, PhD, the Technical Program Director at Current, a nonprofit water innovation hub. Together, they explore the complex world of urban water chemistry, focusing on the river's historical pollution problems and the measures taken to improve the water quality, in particular, an in-depth look at Current's H2Now program. In the second part of the episode, Nate travels to Washington, D...
Jan 27, 2024•26 min•Ep 106•Transcript available on Metacast What it would really entail to conquer the relentless Martian elements, engineer a thriving, self-reliant biosphere, and craft life-preserving abodes within the alien realms of lava tubes? Zach Weinersmith is the cartoonist behind the popular webcomic, Saturday Morning Breakfast Cereal. He, along with his partner in science, Kelly Weinersmith, have just published a new book entitled, 'A City on Mars', which explores the science behind settling the Red Planet. In this episode of The Show About Sc...
Dec 01, 2023•27 min•Ep 105•Transcript available on Metacast What happens when 21 kids sue the U.S. government for a dream of a world without climate change? On this episode of The Show About Science , Nate interviews Elizabeth Rusch about the kids who are working to make that dream a reality. Elizabeth is the author of the new book, "The Twenty-One, The True Story of the Youth Who Sue the U.S. Government Over Climate Change," which tells the story of 21 young climate activists supported by environmental lawyer, Julia Olson, who sue the government for act...
Oct 16, 2023•17 min•Ep 104•Transcript available on Metacast The platypus is a fascinating animal that has perplexed generations of scientists. Now researchers are studying the platypus on the molecular level, and it's just as surprising. Frank Grützner is a professor of genetics at the University of Adelaide. Frank studies the monotremes, a different lineage of mammals that includes the iconic egg-laying duck-billed platypus and short-beaked echidna. On this episode of The Show About Science , we talk about the genetic mysteries of the platypus and their...
Sep 23, 2023•18 min•Ep 103•Transcript available on Metacast Dr. Kimberly Arcand is a Visualization and Emerging Technology Scientist at NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory at the Center for Astrophysics, Harvard, and Smithsonian. In this episode of The Show About Science, Nate and Dr. Arcand dive into the mysteries of the universe illuminated by Chandra's use of X-ray light. From uncovering the intricacies of black hole cosmic recycling processes to exploring the aftermath of exploded stars and the mesmerizing pulsars emitting high-energy particles like cos...
Aug 08, 2023•22 min•Ep 102•Transcript available on Metacast Can sound help us understand the complex patterns in our universe? This question leads Nate to Symbolic Sound in Champaign, Illinois, where composer Carla Scaletti guides him on a journey where sound, music, and data intertwine in captivating and thought-provoking ways. Along the way, we'll meet Kimberly Arcand, who unveils the hidden melodies of space through her celestial soundscapes, delve into the fascinating world of protein folding with Martin Gruebele, and listen to the delicate dance of ...
Jun 03, 2023•21 min•Ep 101•Transcript available on Metacast Brian Selznick is an illustrator and author best known for his books The Invention of Hugo Cabret, Wonderstruck, and The Marvels and Kaleidoscope. Brian joins Nate on this episode of The Show About Science to talk about the science behind his latest book, Big Tree. The book follows two small sycamore seeds, Merwin and Louise, who are looking for a safe place to grow while trying to save the entire world. Brian's research into fossil species, climate change, fungal hyphae and paleobotany form the...
Apr 18, 2023•18 min•Ep 100•Transcript available on Metacast The CZ Biohub’s inspiring story began when Priscilla Chan asked Stephen Quake a seemingly impossible question: “Is it possible to cure, prevent, and manage disease in our children’s lifetime?”. In 2016, the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, founded by Priscilla and Mark Zuckerberg, set out to answer that question with a bold new mission. On the final installment of our CZ Biohub series, Priscilla and Stephen join Nate to talk about the work being done at Biohub, and how understanding human biology is ...
Mar 05, 2023•17 min•Ep 99•Transcript available on Metacast On the third installment of our CZ Biohub series, we visit a lab nicknamed "Le Petit Hotel de Poisson" (The Tiny Fish Hotel) where scientists are using zebrafish as a model organism to study human development. Along the way, we'll meet Loïc A. Royer, who leads a team at Biohub including Merlin Lange and Shruthi VijayKumar who are using something called a light-sheet microscope to document the incredible complexity of individual cells as they develop into fully functioning organisms. Ma...
Feb 19, 2023•16 min•Ep 98•Transcript available on Metacast This is the second episode of our four part series focused on the CZ Biohub in San Francisco where scientists are working to cure, prevent, or manage disease by the end of the century. In this episode, we meet Quantitative Cell Science group leader Manu Leonetti. Manu and his team are using "genetic glowsticks" to map all 20,000 proteins in a single human cell. Their flagship project – OpenCell – is a library of fluorescently engineered cell lines to define the locations and interactio...
Jan 31, 2023•12 min•Ep 97•Transcript available on Metacast Over the next 4 episodes, we're going to take you on a tour of the CZ Biohub in San Francisco where scientists are working to cure, prevent, or manage disease by the end of the century. Every year, 400,000 people die of malaria - usually children in impoverished areas. In the first episode of our Biohub series, you'll meet Paul Lebel, a member of the CZ Biohub Bioengineering team, who is helping to create a device that uses machine learning to accelerate and improve the process for identifying m...
Jan 12, 2023•13 min•Ep 96•Transcript available on Metacast We're revisiting one of our favorite episodes of The Show About Science from 2015. Back when Nate was 5 years old, he interviewed Santa Claus about the science behind his workshop and what happens when kids send drawings of new toys for Santa to produce in his present factory. Santa than suggested that Nate talk to Roger, his Head of Research and Development. Roger is also the author of The Physics of Christmas: From the Aerodynamics of Reindeer to the Thermodynamics of Turkey (amzn.to/1NwaZr4) ...
Dec 22, 2022•16 min•Transcript available on Metacast Alan Gratz is the New York Times bestselling author of 18 novels for young readers, including Ground Zero, Refugee, Allies, Grenade, Prisoner B-3087, Projekt 1065, and Ban This Book. His latest novel, Two Degrees, puts climate change front and center as four different kids navigate the threats of global warming. He joins Nate on this episode to talk about the science behind the book. No spoilers episode: https://on.soundcloud.com/oYW8g Learn more: https://www.alangratz.com/writing/two-degrees/ M...
Nov 06, 2022•17 min•Ep 95•Transcript available on Metacast DALL-E 2 is a new AI system that can create realistic images and art from written text descriptions. Mark Chen is a research scientist at OpenAI, the company the created DALL-E 2. He joins Nate on this episode to explain how AI is putting the art in artificial intelligence. Sign up to make your own images with DALL-E 2: https://labs.openai.com/auth/signup See what my friend, Olivia, and I made with DALL-E 2: https://bit.ly/3MfG7BC Music on this episode comes from Sounds Like An Earful and Epidem...
Oct 06, 2022•17 min•Ep 94•Transcript available on Metacast Alan Nathan has been a Professor in the Department of Physics at the University of Illinois since 1977, but for the past 10 years, he has expanded his research interests to focus on the physics of baseball. His work looks at the dynamics of the collision between the ball and bat and the aerodynamics of a baseball in flight. On this episode of The Show About Science, he joins Nate to talk about what every baseball player should understand about physics and how that knowledge could improve their g...
Aug 03, 2022•21 min•Ep 93•Transcript available on Metacast The History Channel show, “Kings of Pain,” follows wildlife biologist Adam Thorn and professional animal handler Rob “Caveman” Alleva as they get bitten and stung by some of the most dangerous animals and vicious stinging insects in the world. On this episode of The Show About Science, Nate goes behind the scenes to learn how they're working to create a complete and comprehensive pain index that will ultimately help save lives. "Kings of Pain" returns with a new season on Thursday, May...
May 25, 2022•14 min•Ep 92•Transcript available on Metacast Proteins are one of the main drivers of human diseases. Scientists are now mapping all of the proteins in the human body in a similar way to how the Human Genome Project mapped genes. On this episode of The Show About Science, Neil Kelleher, PhD invites Nate to his lab on the campus of Northwestern University to explain how it all works. Learn more about Neil's work here: http://proteomics.northwestern.edu/
May 04, 2022•24 min•Ep 91•Transcript available on Metacast Why don't I have a tail? That's the question that Bo Xia asked himself when he was a little kid. Bo is now a PhD candidate at NYU Grossman School of Medicine. Bo's latest research attempts to answer his childhood question by identifying the mutation that resulted in ancestral humans losing their tails. On this episode of The Show About Science, Nate and Bo talk about his work and why this mutation may have happened. Read more about Bo's work: www.nytimes.com/2021/09/21/scienc…-their-tails.html...
Feb 08, 2022•14 min•Ep 90•Transcript available on Metacast Hidden ten miles south of Hastings, Michigan and only accessible via an old gravel road is the Pierce Cedar Creek Institute, a nature center and biological field station. On this episode of The Show About Science, we meet Ellen Holste, PhD. Ellen is the Community Program Manager at the Pierce Cedar Creek Institute and our tour guide into the amazing world of fungi. Be prepared to learn and have some fun as we scour the prairie for all sorts of fungus. Learn more about the Pierce Cedar Creek Inst...
Sep 21, 2021•19 min•Ep 89•Transcript available on Metacast Paul Davies is a theoretical physicist at Arizona State University where he leads the Beyond Center for Fundamental Concepts in Science. His research focuses mainly on quantum gravity, the theory of quantum black holes and the nature of time. On this episode of The Show About Science, he joins Nate to talk about the science of time travel. Learn more about Paul Davies and the Beyond Center: http://beyond.asu.edu/ Listen to more episodes of The Show About Science: https://theshowaboutscience.com/...
Aug 11, 2021•16 min•Ep 88•Transcript available on Metacast Wael Farah is a research scientist at the SETI Institute, where he searches the stars for alien life. The Allen Telescope Array (ATA), where Wael conducts his research, is located at the Hat Creek Observatory in Northern California. The ATA is a collection of 42 relatively small dishes (antennas) that are designed to work together for SETI searches. In this episode of The Show About Science, Nate talks to Wael about how the Allen Telescope Array works, fast radio bursts, SETI, and what might lur...
Jun 24, 2021•16 min•Ep 87•Transcript available on Metacast What do our dogs think about all day? Do dogs experience emotions like people do? Gregory Berns is a bestselling author and a professor at Emory University where he studies animal neuroscience. On this episode of The Show Show About Science, he joins Nate to talk about how he trained dogs to go into an MRI scanner—completely awake—so he could figure out what they think and feel. Learn more about Gregory's work here: http://gregoryberns.com/
Apr 03, 2021•16 min•Ep 86•Transcript available on Metacast In some parts of the world they're known as fireflies. In other parts, they're called lightning bugs. On this episode of The Show About Science, Sara M. Lewis from the Department of Biology at Tufts University joins Nate to talk about these fascinating and mysterious creatures. Learn more about Sara's work: https://ase.tufts.edu/biology/labs/lewis/ Listen to more episodes of The Show About Science: http://theshowaboutscience.com/ Please leave a review wherever you listen to podcasts! Thanks!!...
Feb 06, 2021•15 min•Ep 85•Transcript available on Metacast A scientist from Budapest who immigrated to the US in the 1930s. A beloved and common pet store fish. And a researcher looking at genes that suppress the growth of cancerous tumors. On this episode of The Show About Science, these three worlds serendipitously collide to lead to a discovery that would help us understand one of the most important things in human history. Joining Nate on the show are Keith Cheng, the Principal Investigator of the Cheng Lab at the Penn State College of Medicine, and...
Dec 11, 2020•19 min•Ep 84•Transcript available on Metacast Sarafina Nance is an American astrophysicist and science communicator who is a PhD student in the Department of Astronomy at the University of California, Berkeley. She joins Nate on this episode of The Show About Science to talk about supernovas. Learn more about Sarafina at: https://starafina.com/ Get more episodes of The Show About Science at: https://theshowaboutscience.com/
Sep 09, 2020•11 min•Ep 83•Transcript available on Metacast Want to be on the show? Call our hotline: (202)681-9144. You can also email your voice recordings to showaboutscience@gmail.com. I love hearing what people are doing, thinking and feeling as we continue to navigate COVID-19 together (at a distance). We want to share your transmissions on this new miniseries from Nate and The Show About Science!
Sep 09, 2020•7 min•Transcript available on Metacast 
