#bigpicturescience — Public Fediverse posts
Live and recent posts from across the Fediverse tagged #bigpicturescience, aggregated by home.social.
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Big Picture Science for May. 25, Skeptic Check: Cryptids
REPEAT
Bigfoot could get official status if proposed legislation passes making it the state cryptid of California. If nothing else, the effort shows that fascination with cryptids has an outsized footprint on our culture. We look at why mythical creatures continue to capture imaginations - as well as passions - of die-hard believers, despite no evidence for their existence. An author uncovers the origin of a beloved hoax in the American West and its unexpected ties to a real animal and historical medical breakthrough. But are we looking for creature delights in all the wrong places? A tally of Earth’s species reveals that far more remain unidentified than are currently known. Newly discovered critters such as the Yeti crab and an organism dubbed the Flying Spaghetti Monster are so strange, it challenges us to separate fauna fact from folktale.Guests:
* Chris Rogers – Assemblymember, California’s 2nd Assembly District
* Benjamin Radford – Deputy Editor of Skeptical Inquirer Science Magazine, author, and co-host of Squaring the Strange podcast
* Michael Branch – Writer, humorist, and author of On the Trail of the Jackalope: How a Legend Captured the World’s Imagination and Helped Us Cure Cancer
* Boris Worm – Marine ecologist, Professor of Biology at Dalhousie University in Halifax, Nova ScotiaOriginally aired April 14, 2025
Download podcast at - https://bigpicturescience.org/episodes/skeptic-check-cryptids
You can listen to this and other episodes at http://bigpicturescience.org/
Get early access to ad-free versions of every episode by joining us on Patreon. Thanks for your support!
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Big Picture Science for May. 18, Allergy Reason
REPEAT
Runny nose. Itchy, watery eyes. Sneezing. If you don’t have allergies, you probably know someone who does. The number of people with allergies, including food allergies and eczema, is increasing. What is going on?A medical anthropologist describes how our hygiene habits, our diets, and our polluted environment are irritating our bodies. Also, the case for skipping your shower. Is skin healthier when we stop lathering?
Guests:
* James Hamblin – Preventive medicine physician and a lecturer in public health at Yale and author of Clean: the New Science of Skin
* Theresa MacPhail – medical anthropologist, professor of science and technology studies at Stevens Institute of Technology and author of Allergic: Our Irritated Bodies in a Changing World.Originally aired July 3, 2023
Download podcast at - https://bigpicturescience.org/episodes/allergy-reason
You can listen to this and other episodes at http://bigpicturescience.org/
Get early access to ad-free versions of every episode by joining us on Patreon. Thanks for your support!
#Allergy #Allergies #BigPictureScience #SETI #News #Podcast #Science
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Big Picture Science for May. 18, Allergy Reason
REPEAT
Runny nose. Itchy, watery eyes. Sneezing. If you don’t have allergies, you probably know someone who does. The number of people with allergies, including food allergies and eczema, is increasing. What is going on?A medical anthropologist describes how our hygiene habits, our diets, and our polluted environment are irritating our bodies. Also, the case for skipping your shower. Is skin healthier when we stop lathering?
Guests:
* James Hamblin – Preventive medicine physician and a lecturer in public health at Yale and author of Clean: the New Science of Skin
* Theresa MacPhail – medical anthropologist, professor of science and technology studies at Stevens Institute of Technology and author of Allergic: Our Irritated Bodies in a Changing World.Originally aired July 3, 2023
Download podcast at - https://bigpicturescience.org/episodes/allergy-reason
You can listen to this and other episodes at http://bigpicturescience.org/
Get early access to ad-free versions of every episode by joining us on Patreon. Thanks for your support!
#Allergy #Allergies #BigPictureScience #SETI #News #Podcast #Science
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Big Picture Science for May. 18, Allergy Reason
REPEAT
Runny nose. Itchy, watery eyes. Sneezing. If you don’t have allergies, you probably know someone who does. The number of people with allergies, including food allergies and eczema, is increasing. What is going on?A medical anthropologist describes how our hygiene habits, our diets, and our polluted environment are irritating our bodies. Also, the case for skipping your shower. Is skin healthier when we stop lathering?
Guests:
* James Hamblin – Preventive medicine physician and a lecturer in public health at Yale and author of Clean: the New Science of Skin
* Theresa MacPhail – medical anthropologist, professor of science and technology studies at Stevens Institute of Technology and author of Allergic: Our Irritated Bodies in a Changing World.Originally aired July 3, 2023
Download podcast at - https://bigpicturescience.org/episodes/allergy-reason
You can listen to this and other episodes at http://bigpicturescience.org/
Get early access to ad-free versions of every episode by joining us on Patreon. Thanks for your support!
#Allergy #Allergies #BigPictureScience #SETI #News #Podcast #Science
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Big Picture Science for May. 18, Allergy Reason
REPEAT
Runny nose. Itchy, watery eyes. Sneezing. If you don’t have allergies, you probably know someone who does. The number of people with allergies, including food allergies and eczema, is increasing. What is going on?A medical anthropologist describes how our hygiene habits, our diets, and our polluted environment are irritating our bodies. Also, the case for skipping your shower. Is skin healthier when we stop lathering?
Guests:
* James Hamblin – Preventive medicine physician and a lecturer in public health at Yale and author of Clean: the New Science of Skin
* Theresa MacPhail – medical anthropologist, professor of science and technology studies at Stevens Institute of Technology and author of Allergic: Our Irritated Bodies in a Changing World.Originally aired July 3, 2023
Download podcast at - https://bigpicturescience.org/episodes/allergy-reason
You can listen to this and other episodes at http://bigpicturescience.org/
Get early access to ad-free versions of every episode by joining us on Patreon. Thanks for your support!
#Allergy #Allergies #BigPictureScience #SETI #News #Podcast #Science
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Big Picture Science for May. 18, Allergy Reason
REPEAT
Runny nose. Itchy, watery eyes. Sneezing. If you don’t have allergies, you probably know someone who does. The number of people with allergies, including food allergies and eczema, is increasing. What is going on?A medical anthropologist describes how our hygiene habits, our diets, and our polluted environment are irritating our bodies. Also, the case for skipping your shower. Is skin healthier when we stop lathering?
Guests:
* James Hamblin – Preventive medicine physician and a lecturer in public health at Yale and author of Clean: the New Science of Skin
* Theresa MacPhail – medical anthropologist, professor of science and technology studies at Stevens Institute of Technology and author of Allergic: Our Irritated Bodies in a Changing World.Originally aired July 3, 2023
Download podcast at - https://bigpicturescience.org/episodes/allergy-reason
You can listen to this and other episodes at http://bigpicturescience.org/
Get early access to ad-free versions of every episode by joining us on Patreon. Thanks for your support!
#Allergy #Allergies #BigPictureScience #SETI #News #Podcast #Science
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Big Picture Science for May. 11, Preventing Future Pandemics
We may not want to think about another pandemic, but, as epidemiologists say, it is once again a “when,” not “if,” scenario. For his latest book, journalist Jon Cohen, who has written extensively about infectious disease for the magazine Science, interviewed top epidemiologists around the world and followed virus hunters into damp and daunting bat caves to assess our pandemic preparedness readiness. Jon and Molly sit down before an audience in Los Angeles to talk about worrisome cuts to science funding and our ability (or inability) to be vigilant and respond quickly to emerging disease. There is good news: we know how to stop outbreaks. The question is, will we put our tools and vast knowledge to use?
Guest:
* Jon Cohen – senior correspondent with Science Magazine, author of “Planning Miracles: How to Prevent Future Pandemics”
Reading: The Trump Administration is Dismantling Efforts to Fight the Next Pandemic
Download podcast at - https://bigpicturescience.org/episodes/preventing-future-pandemics
You can listen to this and other episodes at http://bigpicturescience.org/
Get early access to ad-free versions of every episode by joining us on Patreon. Thanks for your support!
#PandemicPreparedness #GlobalHealth #Epidemiology #PublicHealth #InfectiousDisease #VirusHunters #ScienceFunding #PathogenResearch #BigPictureScience #SETI #News #Podcast #Science
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Big Picture Science for May. 11, Preventing Future Pandemics
We may not want to think about another pandemic, but, as epidemiologists say, it is once again a “when,” not “if,” scenario. For his latest book, journalist Jon Cohen, who has written extensively about infectious disease for the magazine Science, interviewed top epidemiologists around the world and followed virus hunters into damp and daunting bat caves to assess our pandemic preparedness readiness. Jon and Molly sit down before an audience in Los Angeles to talk about worrisome cuts to science funding and our ability (or inability) to be vigilant and respond quickly to emerging disease. There is good news: we know how to stop outbreaks. The question is, will we put our tools and vast knowledge to use?
Guest:
* Jon Cohen – senior correspondent with Science Magazine, author of “Planning Miracles: How to Prevent Future Pandemics”
Reading: The Trump Administration is Dismantling Efforts to Fight the Next Pandemic
Download podcast at - https://bigpicturescience.org/episodes/preventing-future-pandemics
You can listen to this and other episodes at http://bigpicturescience.org/
Get early access to ad-free versions of every episode by joining us on Patreon. Thanks for your support!
#PandemicPreparedness #GlobalHealth #Epidemiology #PublicHealth #InfectiousDisease #VirusHunters #ScienceFunding #PathogenResearch #BigPictureScience #SETI #News #Podcast #Science
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Big Picture Science for May. 11, Preventing Future Pandemics
We may not want to think about another pandemic, but, as epidemiologists say, it is once again a “when,” not “if,” scenario. For his latest book, journalist Jon Cohen, who has written extensively about infectious disease for the magazine Science, interviewed top epidemiologists around the world and followed virus hunters into damp and daunting bat caves to assess our pandemic preparedness readiness. Jon and Molly sit down before an audience in Los Angeles to talk about worrisome cuts to science funding and our ability (or inability) to be vigilant and respond quickly to emerging disease. There is good news: we know how to stop outbreaks. The question is, will we put our tools and vast knowledge to use?
Guest:
* Jon Cohen – senior correspondent with Science Magazine, author of “Planning Miracles: How to Prevent Future Pandemics”
Reading: The Trump Administration is Dismantling Efforts to Fight the Next Pandemic
Download podcast at - https://bigpicturescience.org/episodes/preventing-future-pandemics
You can listen to this and other episodes at http://bigpicturescience.org/
Get early access to ad-free versions of every episode by joining us on Patreon. Thanks for your support!
#PandemicPreparedness #GlobalHealth #Epidemiology #PublicHealth #InfectiousDisease #VirusHunters #ScienceFunding #PathogenResearch #BigPictureScience #SETI #News #Podcast #Science
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Big Picture Science for May. 11, Preventing Future Pandemics
We may not want to think about another pandemic, but, as epidemiologists say, it is once again a “when,” not “if,” scenario. For his latest book, journalist Jon Cohen, who has written extensively about infectious disease for the magazine Science, interviewed top epidemiologists around the world and followed virus hunters into damp and daunting bat caves to assess our pandemic preparedness readiness. Jon and Molly sit down before an audience in Los Angeles to talk about worrisome cuts to science funding and our ability (or inability) to be vigilant and respond quickly to emerging disease. There is good news: we know how to stop outbreaks. The question is, will we put our tools and vast knowledge to use?
Guest:
* Jon Cohen – senior correspondent with Science Magazine, author of “Planning Miracles: How to Prevent Future Pandemics”
Reading: The Trump Administration is Dismantling Efforts to Fight the Next Pandemic
Download podcast at - https://bigpicturescience.org/episodes/preventing-future-pandemics
You can listen to this and other episodes at http://bigpicturescience.org/
Get early access to ad-free versions of every episode by joining us on Patreon. Thanks for your support!
#PandemicPreparedness #GlobalHealth #Epidemiology #PublicHealth #InfectiousDisease #VirusHunters #ScienceFunding #PathogenResearch #BigPictureScience #SETI #News #Podcast #Science
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Big Picture Science for May. 11, Preventing Future Pandemics
We may not want to think about another pandemic, but, as epidemiologists say, it is once again a “when,” not “if,” scenario. For his latest book, journalist Jon Cohen, who has written extensively about infectious disease for the magazine Science, interviewed top epidemiologists around the world and followed virus hunters into damp and daunting bat caves to assess our pandemic preparedness readiness. Jon and Molly sit down before an audience in Los Angeles to talk about worrisome cuts to science funding and our ability (or inability) to be vigilant and respond quickly to emerging disease. There is good news: we know how to stop outbreaks. The question is, will we put our tools and vast knowledge to use?
Guest:
* Jon Cohen – senior correspondent with Science Magazine, author of “Planning Miracles: How to Prevent Future Pandemics”
Reading: The Trump Administration is Dismantling Efforts to Fight the Next Pandemic
Download podcast at - https://bigpicturescience.org/episodes/preventing-future-pandemics
You can listen to this and other episodes at http://bigpicturescience.org/
Get early access to ad-free versions of every episode by joining us on Patreon. Thanks for your support!
#PandemicPreparedness #GlobalHealth #Epidemiology #PublicHealth #InfectiousDisease #VirusHunters #ScienceFunding #PathogenResearch #BigPictureScience #SETI #News #Podcast #Science
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Big Picture Science for May. 04, Shadow of Chernobyl
Forty years later, the exclusion zone surrounding the infamous Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant remains uninhabited by humans. But among the radioactive remnants, wildlife is flourishing, including endangered species. In the second of our two-part series, we look at the state of the disaster site today, consider what lessons we’ve learned during clean up efforts, hear about a strange story about radioactive shellfish, and consider whether small modular reactors could reinvigorate dreams of a nuclear-powered future and bring nuclear energy out of Chernobyl’s shadow.
Guests:
* Steven Biegalski – Chair of Nuclear and Radiological Engineering and Medical Physics program at Georgia Institute of Technology
* Tom Scott – Professor of Nuclear Materials and Devices at the University of Bristol
* Jacopo Buongiorno – Professor of Nuclear Science and Engineering at MIT, Director of the Center for Advanced Nuclear Energy Systems (CANES), and Director of Science and Technology of the MIT Nuclear Reactor LaboratoryDownload podcast at - https://bigpicturescience.org/episodes/shadow-of-chernobyl
You can listen to this and other episodes at http://bigpicturescience.org/
Get early access to ad-free versions of every episode by joining us on Patreon. Thanks for your support!
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Big Picture Science for April. 27, 2026: 40 Years After Chernobyl
On April 26th, 1986, an explosion at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant in the Soviet Union blasted a plume of radioactive debris a half mile into the sky, blanketing Europe. Witnesses described a laser of blue light eerily shooting up from the reactor core. Built to represent the bright future of nuclear power, Chernobyl instead became the biggest nuclear disaster in history. In the first of a two-part series, we retell the story of the accident, the role that design flaws and human error played, and the futile attempts at radiation containment. We also consider the long shadow the catastrophe cast over nuclear power, and the significant political fallout of the Soviet coverup; the Ukrainian vote for independence and the fall of the U.S.S.R.
Guest:
* Adam Higginbotham – Journalist and author of “Midnight in Chernobyl: The Untold Story of the World’s Greatest Nuclear Disaster”
Download podcast at - https://bigpicturescience.org/episodes/40-years-after-chernobyl
You can listen to this and other episodes at http://bigpicturescience.org/
Get early access to ad-free versions of every episode by joining us on Patreon. Thanks for your support!
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Big Picture Science for April. 20, 2026: Skeptic Check: Feeling Risky
REPEAT
It’s not just facts that inform our decisions. They’re also guided by how those facts feel. From deciding whether to buckle our seat belts to addressing climate change, how we regard risk is subjective. In this extended conversation with an expert on the psychology of risk, find out about our exaggerated fears, as well as risks we don’t take seriously enough. Meanwhile, while experts warn society about the dangers of self-aware AI – are those warnings being heeded?Guest:
* David Ropeik – Professor emeritus Harvard University, and expert on the psychology of risk
Originally aired April 10, 2023
Download podcast at - https://bigpicturescience.org/episodes/skeptic-check-feeling-risky
You can listen to this and other episodes at http://bigpicturescience.org/
Get early access to ad-free versions of every episode by joining us on Patreon. Thanks for your support!
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Big Picture Science for April. 13, 2026: Old School
Antarctic scientists have long known the region’s ice sheet holds clues to the planet’s ancient past. Yet even the field’s foremost experts were shocked when they extracted a six-million-year-old ice core — twice as old as expected and the oldest recorded so far. Researchers say it will provide one of our best looks ever into Earth's climatological record. In a relatively more recent past, the discovery of 40,000-year-old notches and lines carved into artifacts and cave walls in Germany, examples of protowriting, suggest humans began documenting ideas thousands of years earlier than thought. Those timescales pale however, when compared to the age of the Earth’s most ancient rocks, which have a story to tell too. Find out how the planet’s most venerable rocks, formed billions of years ago, reveal the geological conditions that allowed life to get a foothold.
Guests:
* Huw Groucutt – Archeologist, Department of Classics and Archeology, University of Malta
* Ed Brook – Paleoclimatologist and professor of Earth, Ocean and Atmospheric Sciences at Oregon State University
* Simon Lamb – Earth scientist and professor of geography in the School of Geography, Environment and Earth Sciences at Victoria University at Wellington, New Zealand. Author of “The Oldest Rocks on Earth: A Search for the Origins of Our World.”Download podcast at - https://bigpicturescience.org/episodes/old-school
You can listen to this and other episodes at http://bigpicturescience.org/
Get early access to ad-free versions of every episode by joining us on Patreon. Thanks for your support!
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Big Picture Science for April. 06, 2026: Amazing Arctic
REPEAT
What’s it like to live on a block of ice, especially when it thaws? An environment writer shares his forty-year experience in the Arctic, including the time a paddling polar bear tracked him on a river. He describes the stunning beauty of America’s last truly wild place and the dramatic changes to the landscape he recently witnessed. Recent research has backed up his eyewitness accounts, as an arctic scientist presents the latest data collected from a part of world warming four times faster than the rest of the planet.Guests:
* Jon Waterman – Author of Into the Thaw: Witnessing Wonder Amid the Arctic Climate Crisis
* Twila Moon – Deputy Lead Scientist and Science Communication Liaison at the National Snow and Ice Data CenterOriginally aired March 17, 2025
Download podcast at - https://bigpicturescience.org/episodes/amazing-arctic
You can listen to this and other episodes at http://bigpicturescience.org/
Get early access to ad-free versions of every episode by joining us on Patreon. Thanks for your support!
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Big Picture Science for Mar. 30, 2026: Flower Power
REPEAT
Before everything could come up roses, there had to be a primordial flower – the mother, and father, of all flowers. Now scientists are on the hunt for it. The eFlower project aims to explain the sudden appearance of flowering plants in the fossil record, what Darwin called an “abominable mystery.”Meanwhile, ancient flowers encased in amber or preserved in tar are providing clues about how ecosystems might respond to changing climates. And, although it was honed by evolution for billions of years, can we make photosynthesis more efficient and help forestall a global food crisis?
Guests:
* Eva-Maria Sadowski - Post doctoral paleobotanist at the Museum für Naturkunde, Berlin
* Regan Dunn - Paleobotanist and assistant Curator at the La Brea Tar Pits and Museum
* Royal Krieger - Rosarian and volunteer at the Morcom Rose Garden, Oakland, California
* Ruby Stephens - Plant ecology PhD candidate at Macquarie University in Australia, and member of the eFlower Project
* Stephen Long - Professor of Plant Science, University of IllinoisOriginally aired March 13, 2023
Download podcast at - https://bigpicturescience.org/episodes/flower-power
You can listen to this and other episodes at http://bigpicturescience.org/
Get early access to ad-free versions of every episode by joining us on Patreon. Thanks for your support!
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Big Picture Science for Mar. 23, 2026: Fantastic-er Voyage
REPEAT
Thinking small can sometimes achieve big things. A new generation of diminutive robots can enter our bodies and deal with medical problems such as intestinal blockages. But do we really want them swimming inside us, even if they’re promising to help? You might change your mind when you hear what else is cruising through our bloodstream: microplastics!We take a trip into the human body, beginning with the story of those who first dared to open it up for medical purposes. But were the first surgeons really cavemen?
Guests:
* Ira Rutkow – Surgeon and writer, and author of “Empire of the Scalpel: The History of Surgery”
* Dick Vethaak – Emeritus professor of ecotoxicology, water quality and health at the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam (Free University, Amsterdam) in The Netherlands
* Li Zhang – Professor in the Department of Mechanical and Automation Engineering, The Chinese University of Hong Kong
* Michael LaBarbera – Professor in organismal biology, anatomy and geophysical sciences, University of ChicagoOriginally aired June 20, 2022
Download podcast at - https://bigpicturescience.org/episodes/fantastic-er-voyage
You can listen to this and other episodes at http://bigpicturescience.org/
Get early access to ad-free versions of every episode by joining us on Patreon. Thanks for your support!
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Big Picture Science for Mar. 16, 2026: Skeptic Check: Project Hail Mary
As protagonist Ryland Grace fights to save Earth - and possibly the universe - in Project Hail Mary, author Andy Weir discusses the science behind his sci-fi story and what it’s like to see it adapted for the big screen. From a diversity of aliens thriving in extreme environments, to our sun’s shortening lifespan, to the conundrum of keeping astronauts alive during intergalactic missions, we consider the possibility of science fiction becoming future reality. A NASA astrobiologist who consulted on the book weighs in on how Earthly creatures have inspired some of our favorite science fiction aliens. Plus, science fiction author Becky Chambers discusses how she balances science fact with fiction in her work.
Guests:
* Andy Weir – science fiction writer, author of Project Hail Mary, The Martian, and Artemis
* Andy Fraknoi – professor of astronomy at the Fromm Institute at the University of San Francisco
* Becky Chambers – science fiction writer, author of To Be Taught if Fortunate, the Wayfinders series, and the Monk and Robot novellas
* Shawn Domagal-Goldman – NASA acting director, astrophysics divisionDownload podcast at - https://bigpicturescience.org/episodes/skeptic-check-project-hail-mary
You can listen to this and other episodes at http://bigpicturescience.org/
Get early access to ad-free versions of every episode by joining us on Patreon. Thanks for your support!
#ProjectHailMary #ScienceFiction #BigPictureScience #SETI #News #Podcast #Science
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Big Picture Science for Mar. 09, 2026: Skeptic Check: Moon Conspiracy
As NASA’s Artemis program promises to take us back to the moon for the first time in fifty years, we consider what it means that as many as 10% of Americans don’t believe we went there in the first place. Why, despite all the evidence, has the faked moon landing conspiracy persisted? We explore why this falsehood has such staying power and what it reveals about our relationship with science and its findings.
Meanwhile, lunar science continues unabated. Scientists open a lunar soil sample that’s been vacuumed sealed for a half-century and receive a blast of four and a half billion-year-old solar wind.
Guests:
* Peter Knight – professor of American Studies, English and American Studies and conspiracy expert at the University of Manchester, U.K.
* Ryan Zeigler – planetary scientist and NASA’s Lunar Sample Curator at Johnson Space CenterDownload podcast at - https://bigpicturescience.org/episodes/skeptic-check-moon-conspiracy
You can listen to this and other episodes at http://bigpicturescience.org/
Get early access to ad-free versions of every episode by joining us on Patreon. Thanks for your support!
#Moon #Conspiracy #BigPictureScience #SETI #News #Podcast #Science
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Big Picture Science for Mar. 02, 2026: Chasing an Asteroid
REPEAT
Everyone knows that a big rock wiped out the dinosaurs. But the danger from an asteroid hitting Earth is not limited to ancient history. To deal with this threat, scientists recently ran an experiment to deflect a potential “city killer.” We’ll hear the results of that experiment, and about a visit to another asteroid. In the dusty material NASA brought back from the asteroid Bennu, scientists found the chemical building blocks of life, including many of the amino acids that are found in our cells. Could an asteroid have brought the ingredients for life to ancient Earth? In this episode, we look at our paradoxical relationship with the space rocks that taketh way – and may help giveth - life.Guests:
* Scott Sandford - Astrophysicist and Research Scientist at NASA’s Ames Research Center
* Robin George Andrews - Science journalist, volcanologist, and author of "How to Kill an Asteroid: The Real Science of Planetary Defense"Originally aired February 10, 2025
Download podcast at - https://bigpicturescience.org/episodes/chasing-an-asteroid
You can listen to this and other episodes at http://bigpicturescience.org/
Get early access to ad-free versions of every episode by joining us on Patreon. Thanks for your support!
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Big Picture Science for Feb. 23, 2026: Birds of a Feather
With only a microscope and a collection of birds, taxidermist Roxie Laybourne became the world’s first forensic ornithologist. The “feather detective” was on the case, examining pieces of plumage to solve mysteries. From bird strikes that caused plane accidents to homicide investigations, no case was too big. In the process, Roxie changed the world of aviation safety and crime investigation forever. Even now, feathers are unraveling a new type of mystery, as scientists from the Bird Genoscape Project use them to map the migratory routes of birds.
Guests:
* Chris Sweeney – Journalist and author of “The Feather Detective: Mystery, Mayhem, and the Magnificent Life of Roxie Laybourne”
* Kristen Ruegg – Co-Director of the Bird Genoscape Project and Associate Professor of Biology at Colorado State UniversityDownload podcast at - https://bigpicturescience.org/episodes/birds-of-a-feather
You can listen to this and other episodes at http://bigpicturescience.org/
Get early access to ad-free versions of every episode by joining us on Patreon. Thanks for your support!
#Birds #Feathers #BigPictureScience #SETI #News #Podcast #Science
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Big Picture Science for Feb. 16, 2026: Celestial Shake-Up
We’re going back to the Moon. The planned March 2026 launch of Artemis II is the first crewed mission to the moon since 1972. Historic as it is, it isn’t the only lunar event creating a stir at NASA. Two seismometers are to be delivered to Schrödinger’s Crater in a mission called The Farside Seismic Suite, in which the instruments will measure moonquakes and record the possible impact of asteroid 2024 YR4 on lunar surface. Meanwhile, studies of the sun are heating up. The so-called PUNCH mission, a four-satellite constellation that will create an image of the sun’s corona and solar winds, may help us better understand what drives solar storms and how we can protect Earth from their energetic blasts.
Guests:
* Eugene Cernan – Apollo 17 astronaut
* Harrison "Jack" Schmitt – Geologist and Apollo 17 astronaut
* Andrew Rivkin – Planetary astronomer at the Applied Physics Laboratory at Johns Hopkins University
* Ceri Nunn – Lunar seismologist and planetary scientist, NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory
* Ryan French – solar physicist, at the Laboratory for Atmospheric & Space Physics, Boulder, Colorado, and author of “Space Hazards: Asteroids, Solar Flares and Cosmic Threats”
* Craig DeForest – Heliophysicist, Southwest Research Institute, principal investigator on NASA’s PUNCH missionDownload podcast at - https://bigpicturescience.org/episodes/celestial-shake-up
You can listen to this and other episodes at http://bigpicturescience.org/
Get early access to ad-free versions of every episode by joining us on Patreon. Thanks for your support!
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Big Picture Science for Feb. 09, 2026: Hot to Cold
There are benefits to chilling out. When we cool superconductors to 460℉ degrees below zero, they acquire extraordinary properties that help run quantum computers. Can artificially cooling human bodies also provide profound benefit? Some cryonics startup companies say yes, promising “life after death” through cryogenic freezing. While it’s one thing to freeze all the cells in a body, it is another to revive them. What happens, for instance, to memories when brains thaw? While we gauge how low human body temperatures can go, new research suggests another form of life could find home in the cooler temperatures of Jupiter’s moon Europa. Find out how NASA’s Europa Clipper mission will investigate whether that moon could support alien microbes.
Guests:
* Steve Austad – Distinguished Professor at the University of Alabama at Birmingham and Scientific Director of the American Federation for Aging Research
* Olivia Lanes – Global Lead for Quantum Content and Education at IBM Quantum
* Austin Green – Planetary Scientist, NASA’s Jet Propulsion LaboratoryDownload podcast at - https://bigpicturescience.org/episodes/hot-to-cold
You can listen to this and other episodes at http://bigpicturescience.org/
Get early access to ad-free versions of every episode by joining us on Patreon. Thanks for your support!
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Big Picture Science for Feb. 02, 2026: Like Lightning
REPEAT
Every second, lightning strikes 50 to 100 times somewhere. It can wreak havoc by starting wildfires and sometimes killing people. But lightning also produces a form of nitrogen that’s essential to vegetation. In this episode, we talk about the nature of these dramatic sparks. Ben Franklin established their electric origin, so what do we still not know? Also, why the frequency of lightning strikes is increasing in some parts of the world. And, what to do if you find someone hit by lightning.Guests:
* Thomas Yeadaker – Resident of Oakland, California
* Chris Davis – Medical doctor and Assistant Professor of Emergency Medicine at Wake Forest University and Medical Director for the National Center for Outdoor Adventure Education
* Jonathan Martin – Professor of Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences, University of Wisconsin, Madison
* Steve Ackerman – Professor of Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences, University of Wisconsin, Madison
* Peter Bieniek – Professor of Atmospheric and Space Science, University of Alaska, FairbanksOriginally aired September 12, 2022
Download podcast at - https://bigpicturescience.org/episodes/like-lightning
You can listen to this and other episodes at http://bigpicturescience.org/
Get early access to ad-free versions of every episode by joining us on Patreon. Thanks for your support!
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Big Picture Science for Jan. 26, 2026: Cold to Hot
The icy-white crust of Arctic permafrost is melting, and increased plant growth is turning the glacial north green. Metals like iron, once locked inside the ice, are leaching into hundreds of Arctic rivers, giving them an orange hue. Vivid changes may catch our eye, yet invisible shifts are also afoot. Microbes locked in the frozen ground since the age of the mammoths can now be revived when they thaw. We’re exploring the consequences of changes in permafrost, how AI may help us better understand Greenland ice loss, and get reactions from scientists about the Trump administration’s attempt to dismantle the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR), one of the premier climate and weather researcher centers in the world.
Guests:
* Tristan Caro – Postdoctoral Fellow, Geological and Planetary Sciences Division, California Institute of Technology
* Twila Moon – Glaciologist and deputy lead scientist at the National Snow and Ice Data Center, within the cooperative Institute for Research and Environmental Sciences at the University of Colorado Boulder
* Abagael Pruitt – Biochemist and ecosystem ecologist, postdoctoral researcher at the University of California Davis
* Karina Zikan – Glaciologist and snow hydrologist, PhD candidate at Boise State University
* Roland Pease – Science writer and broadcaster often heard on the BBC World Service, and former presenter and host of its program Science in Action
* Alan Sealls – Retired broadcast meteorologist, adjust professor at the University of South Alabama and president of the American Meteorological SocietyDownload podcast at - https://bigpicturescience.org/episodes/cold-to-hot
You can listen to this and other episodes at http://bigpicturescience.org/
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#Arctic #Permafrost #BigPictureScience #SETI #News #Podcast #Science
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Big Picture Science for Jan. 19, 2026: Where the Wind Blows
It’s omnipresent on Earth and absent on the Moon. When it’s blowing sand in our eyes or frigid air down our necks, we may curse the wind, but living on a planet without it would be stultifying. Join us as we sail through a discussion with journalist and author Simon Winchester about the many practical and playful uses of wind – from boats to turbines to kites – and how it has shaped history, including the growth of civilization itself.
Guest:
Simon Winchester – Journalist and author of “The Breath Of The Gods: The History and Future of the Wind”Download podcast at - https://bigpicturescience.org/episodes/where-the-wind-blows
You can listen to this and other episodes at http://bigpicturescience.org/
Get early access to ad-free versions of every episode by joining us on Patreon. Thanks for your support!
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ig Picture Science for Jan. 12, 2026: Life in the Solar System
REPEAT
Spewing lava and belching noxious fumes, volcanoes seem hostile to biology. But the search for life off-Earth includes the hunt for these hotheads on other moons and planets, and we tour some of the most imposing volcanoes in the Solar System.Plus, a look at how tectonic forces reshape bodies from the moon to Venus to Earth. And a journey to the center of our planet reveals a surprising layer of material at the core-mantle boundary. Find out where this layer was at the time of the dinosaurs and what powerful forces drove it deep below.
Guests:
* Samantha Hansen – Geologist at the University of Alabama
* Paul Byrne – Associate professor of Earth and Planetary Sciences at Washington University in St. Louis
* Robin George Andrews – Science journalist and author of “Super Volcanoes: What They Reveal about Earth and the Worlds Beyond”
Originally aired May 29, 2023Download podcast at - https://bigpicturescience.org/episodes/life-in-the-solar-system
You can listen to this and other episodes at http://bigpicturescience.org/
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Big Picture Science for Jan. 05, 2026: Skeptic Check: Hypnosis
REPEAT
You are getting sleeeepy and open to suggestion. But is that how hypnotism works? And does it really open up a portal to the unconscious mind? Hypnotism can be an effective therapeutic tool, and some scientists suggest replacing opioids with hypnosis for pain relief. And yet, the performance aspect of hypnotism often seems at odds with the idea of it being an effective treatment.In our regular look at critical thinking, Skeptic Check, we ask what part of hypnotism is real and what is an illusion. Plus, we discuss how the swinging watch became hypnotism’s irksome trademark.
Guests:
* David Spiegel – Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at the Stanford University School of Medicine
* Devin Terhune – Reader in the Department of Psychology, Goldsmiths University of LondonOriginally aired June 27, 2022
Download podcast at - https://bigpicturescience.org/episodes/skeptic-check-hypnosis
You can listen to this and other episodes at http://bigpicturescience.org/
Get early access to ad-free versions of every episode by joining us on Patreon. Thanks for your support!
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Big Picture Science for Dec. 29, 2025: Beyond the Periodic Table
REPEAT
You interact with about two-thirds of the elements of the periodic table every day. Some, like carbon, oxygen, and nitrogen, make up our bodies and the air we breathe. Yet there is also a class of elements so unstable they can only be made in a lab. These superheavy elements are the purview of a small group stretching the boundaries of chemistry. Can they extend the periodic table beyond the 118 in it now? Find out scientists are using particle accelerators to create element 120 and why they’ve skipped over element 119. Plus, if an element exists for only a fraction of a second in the lab, can we still say that counts as existing?Guests:
* Mark Miodownik – professor of materials and society at the University of College London and the author of “It’s a Gas: The Sublime and Elusive Elements That Expand Our World.”
* Kit Chapman – Science historian at Falmouth University, author of “Superheavy; Making and Breaking the Periodic Table.”
* Jennifer Pore – Research Scientist of Heavy Elements at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory.Originally aired November 18, 2024
Download podcast at - https://bigpicturescience.org/episodes/beyond-the-periodic-table
You can listen to this and other episodes at http://bigpicturescience.org/
Get early access to ad-free versions of every episode by joining us on Patreon. Thanks for your support!
#PeriodicTable #Elements #BigPictureScience #SETI #News #Podcast #Science
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Big Picture Science for Dec. 22, 2025: Movie Mayhem
Science fiction movies force us to face a multitude of end-of-the-world scenarios. Whether the final curtain is dropped by rampaging aliens, killer rocks from space, or virus-infected zombies, these big screen glimpses of a dystopian future are as tantalizing as they are frightening. But one American city seems to be a favorite backdrop for stories of mass destruction. We speak with a cultural critic about why New York City is often the chosen setting for disaster films, and what dystopian fiction reveals about our shifting anxieties about humanity’s future no matter where we live.
Movies discussed include Deep Impact, Escape from New York, Planet of the Apes, King Kong, Cloverfield, Deluge, Failsafe, The Day After Tomorrow, AI: Artificial Intelligence, Contagion, I Am Legend, and Seth’s very own short film: The Turkey that Ate St. Louis
Guest:
* Dan Saltzstein – Deputy Editor for Projects and Collaborations, New York Times
Download podcast at - https://bigpicturescience.org/episodes/movie-mayhem
You can listen to this and other episodes at http://bigpicturescience.org/
Get early access to ad-free versions of every episode by joining us on
Patreon. Thanks for your support!#ScienceFiction #Movie #NewYork #BigPictureScience #SETI #News #Podcast #Science
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Big Picture Science for Dec. 15, 2025: The Best Things in Life are Tree(s)
REPEAT
While humans were leaving the Stone Age and entering the Bronze, some Bristlecone pine trees grew from seeds to sprouts. They’ve been growing ever since. These 5,000-year-old pines are among the oldest organisms on Earth. Superlatives are also appropriate for the towering redwoods.Trees are amazing in many ways. They provide us with timber and cool us with shade, they sequester carbon and release oxygen, and are home to countless species. But they are also marvels of evolutionary adaptation. We consider the beauty and diversity of trees, and learn why their future is intertwined with ours.
Guests:
* Kevin Dixon - Naturalist at The East Bay Regional Park District, Oakland, California
* Daniel Lewis - Environmental historian and senior curator for the History of Science and Technology at the Huntington Library, art museum and botanical gardens in Pasadena, California, professor of the natural sciences and the environment at Caltech, and author of “Twelve Trees: The Deep Roots of our Future”Originally aired January 20, 2025
Download podcast at - https://bigpicturescience.org/episodes/best-things-life-are-trees
You can listen to this and other episodes at http://bigpicturescience.org/
Get early access to ad-free versions of every episode by joining us on Patreon. Thanks for your support!
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Big Picture Science for Dec. 8, 2025: A Real Gas
REPEAT
Just because something is invisible doesn’t mean it isn’t there. We can’t see gases in our atmosphere, such as carbon dioxide, oxygen, and nitrogen, but we benefit from their presence with every breath we take. From the bubbles that effervesce in soda to the vapors that turn engines, gases are part of our lives. They fill our lungs, give birth to stars, and… well, how would we spot a good diner without glowing neon? In this episode, a materials scientist shares the history of some gaseous substances that we don’t usually see, but that make up our world.Guest:
* Mark Miodownik – Professor of materials and society at the University College London and the author of “It’s a Gas: The Sublime and Elusive Elements That Expand Our World.”
Download podcast at - https://bigpicturescience.org/episodes/a-real-gas
You can listen to this and other episodes at http://bigpicturescience.org/
Get early access to ad-free versions of every episode by joining us on Patreon. Thanks for your support!
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Big Picture Science for Dec. 01, 2025: Amazing Amazonia
REPEAT
The Amazon is often described as an ecosystem under dire threat due to climate change and deliberate deforestation. Yet there is still considerable hope that these threats can be mitigated. In the face of these threats, indigenous conservationists are attempting to strike a balance between tradition and preserving Amazonia. Meanwhile, two river journeys more than 100 years apart – one by a contemporary National Geographic reporter and another by “The Lewis and Clark of Brazil”— draw attention to the beauty and diversity of one of the world’s most important ecosystems.Guests:
* Cynthia Gorney – Contributing writer at the National Geographic Society, former bureau chief for South America at The Washington Post
* Larry Rohter – Reporter and correspondent in Rio de Janeiro for fourteen years for Newsweek and as The New York Times bureau chief. Author of Into the Amazon: The Life of Cândido Rondon, Trailblazing Explorer, Scientist, Statesman, and Conservationist
* João Campos-Silva – Brazilian researcher and conservationist, and cofounder of Instituto Jura, a conservation organization. His work, along with that of other conservationists, is featured in the National Geographic issue devoted to the Amazon.Originally aired November 11, 2024
Download podcast at - https://bigpicturescience.org/episodes/amazing-amazonia
You can listen to this and other episodes at http://bigpicturescience.org/
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#Amazon #Amazonia #BigPictureScience #SETI #News #Podcast #Science
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Big Picture Science for Nov. 24, 2025: Flu the Coop
The worry about whether H5N1 will trigger a human pandemic has concealed a startling reality. Avian influenza has already taken an enormous toll on the lives of other animals. Since 2005, the number of wild and domesticated birds killed is greater than the combined human populations of the United States and Russia. Bird flu is burning through wild flocks, poultry farms, and mammal populations, including those of sea mammals. We look at the places where the virus can recombine and mutate, and why this version is not simply dying out as it has in years past. At a squawking live poultry market in Brooklyn, and on a Long Island duck farm, we hear about the difficult experience of euthanizing 100,000 birds and whether a farm can recover from such a devastating loss. And finally, we ask, why poultry vaccines that could curb the spread of H5N1 aren’t being used. But we begin our episode with descriptions of the soaring global migrations of birds whose feats of endurance help us understand why H5N1 is widespread in birds worldwide.
Guests:
* Scott Weidensaul – Ornithologist, bird migration researcher, and author of "A World on the Wing: The Global Odyssey of Migratory Birds"
* David Swayne – Bird flu veterinarian
* Doug Corwin – Farmer and owner of Crescent Duck Farm, Aquebogue, New York
* Jon Cohen – Senior correspondent with Science Magazine, where you can find his recent article, “The Pandemic Next Time,” and author of "Planning Miracles: How to Prevent Future Pandemics"Download podcast at - https://bigpicturescience.org/episodes/flu-the-coop
You can listen to this and other episodes at http://bigpicturescience.org/
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#H5N1 #BirdFlu #BigPictureScience #SETI #News #Podcast #Science
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Big Picture Science for Nov. 17, 2025: Skeptic Check: String Theory
REPEAT
The idea that the universe is made of tiny vibrating strings was once the science theory du jour. String theory promised to unite the disparate theories describing particles and gravity, and many people, not just scientists, were optimistic that a theory of everything might be within our grasp. But here we are, many years later, and string theory doesn’t seem to have delivered on its initial promise. What happened? We consider the science around string theory in this episode of Skeptic CheckGuest:
* Brian Greene – Physicist and mathematician at Columbia University, and author of The Elegant Universe: Superstrings, Hidden Dimensions, and the Quest for the Ultimate Theory.
Originally aired October 14, 2024
Download podcast at - https://bigpicturescience.org/episodes/skeptic-check-string-theory
You can listen to this and other episodes at http://bigpicturescience.org/
Get early access to ad-free versions of every episode by joining us on Patreon. Thanks for your support!
#StringTheory #BigPictureScience #SETI #News #Podcast #Science
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Big Picture Science for Nov. 10, 2025: Solar Good
In Brazil, leaders from across the globe are gathering for COP30, the premier climate summit in the world. For the first time, the U.S. is sitting it out, after exiting the Paris Agreement. There is, however, a ray of hope in the global efforts to reduce fossil fuel emissions. Bill McKibben, an environmentalist and journalist who describes himself as a “professional bummer-out-of-people,” has good news about the solar energy industry, after years of his repeated, and alarming, reports about our failure to address climate change. For the first time ever, solar energy production is outpacing the fossil fuel industry. Momentum is gathering in surprising places. The state with the fastest growing clean energy sector is the oil and gas country, Texas. And, when energy analysts investigated Pakistan’s sudden drop in energy demand, they saw “solar panels spreading across rooftops like mushrooms after a rainstorm.”
Guests:
* Bill McKibben – environmentalist, journalist and author of “Here Comes the Sun: A Last Chance for the Climate and a Fresh Chance for Civilization”
* Jon Gertner – journalist, editor, and author of “The Idea Factory: Bell Labs and the Great Age of American Innovation”Download podcast at - https://bigpicturescience.org/episodes/solar-good
You can listen to this and other episodes at http://bigpicturescience.org/
Get early access to ad-free versions of every episode by joining us on Patreon. Thanks for your support
#BigPictureScience #SETI #News #Podcast #Science #SolarEnergy
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Big Picture Science for Nov. 03, 2025: Katrina and the River
REPEAT
“The Mississippi River will always have its own way; no engineering skill can persuade it to do otherwise,” said Mark Twain. In this, our final episode marking the 20th anniversary of Hurricane Katrina, we consider how efforts to control the Mighty Mississippi – a river engineered from its Minnesota headwaters to its Gulf Coast outlet – have responded to the devastating storm, and how New Orleans’ relationship to the river has changed. Can the city keep up with the pressure that climate change is putting on this engineered system, or is retreat the only viable response?Plus, a wetland recovery project that aims to bolster protection from hurricanes and flooding in the Lower Ninth Ward.
Guests:
* Boyce Upholt – Journalist and author of “The Great River: The Making and Unmaking of the Mississippi River”
* Nathaniel Rich – Author of “Second Nature: Scenes From a World Remade” and the New York Times Op-Ed, “New Orleans’ Striking Advantage in the Age of Climate Change”
* Harriet Swift – New Orleans resident
* Andrew Horowitz – Historian, University of Connecticut, author of "Katrina: A History, 1915-2015"
* Rashida Ferdinand – Founder and Executive Director of Sankofa Community Development Corporation, overseeing the Sankofa Wetland Park and Nature Trail in New Orleans
* Jason Day – Biologist, wetland Scientist, Comite Resources in LouisianaOriginally aired August 18, 2025
Download podcast at - https://bigpicturescience.org/episodes/katrina-and-the-river
You can listen to this and other episodes at http://bigpicturescience.org/
Get early access to ad-free versions of every episode by joining us on Patreon. Thanks for your support!
#BigPictureScience #SETI #News #Podcast #Science #MississippiRiver #HurricaneKatrina
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Big Picture Science for Oct. 27, 2025: The Decomposers
What happens to us after we die is as much a question for anthropology and ecology as it is for theology. Death and decay are not comfortable subjects, but some scientists study them unflinchingly, knowing that doing so yields valuable scientific insights about decomposition. We hear about The Body Farm at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville where forensic anthropologists dissect how variables, such as weather and insects, affect the rate of decomposition, and why a cadaver island has its own ecology. Plus, how a mystery about Neanderthal diets was solved by studying maggots, and why a chemical element discovered by alchemists, and recycled at death in your garden, is essential for life.
Guests:
* Giovanna Vidoli – Forensic anthropologist and director of the Forensic Anthropology Center at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville
* Dawnie Steadman – anthropologist and former director of the Center at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville
* Melanie Beasley – Biological anthropologist in the Department of Anthropology at Purdue University
* Jack Lohmann – author of “White Light: The Elemental Role of Phosphorus in Our Cells, in Our Food, and in Our World”Download podcast at - https://bigpicturescience.org/episodes/the-decomposers
You can listen to this and other episodes at http://bigpicturescience.org/
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#Decomposition #BigPictureScience #SETI #News #Podcast #Science
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Big Picture Science for Oct. 20, 2025: Shipwrecks
REPEAT
Shipwrecks are scenes of tragedy, but they are also bits of history frozen in time that can provide insights into events and ideas from long ago. That is, if we can find them. From an 11th century Viking sailing ship to a WW II era British cargo ship with a mailbag of letters onboard amazingly preserved, an underwater archeologist takes us on a deep dive into history.Guest:
* David Gibbins - underwater archeologist, novelist, and the author of nonfiction, including his latest book, “The History of the World in Twelve Shipwrecks”.
Originally aired September 9, 2024
Download podcast at - https://bigpicturescience.org/episodes/shipwrecks
You can listen to this and other episodes at http://bigpicturescience.org/
Get early access to ad-free versions of every episode by joining us on Patreon. Thanks for your support!
#Shipwrecks #BigPictureScience #SETI #News #Podcast #Science
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Big Picture Science for Oct. 06, 2025: Skeptic Check: Health Fads
The tiny bean-shaped structures in your cells – mitochondria – are little powerhouses. Recent research suggests they may unlock overall good health, or, when they fail, cause diseases such as diabetes and Alzheimer’s. How strong is the science for these claims and what, if anything, should we be doing to improve our mitochondrial health? Should we take a cue from influencers who suggest drinking an industrial dye called methylene blue? Meanwhile, there have been beefed up calls for adding protein to our diets by eating high protein ice cream, energy bars and huge slabs of meat. Protein builds muscles, but is the muscle of science behind these claims? This week, we consider recent health trends on Skeptic Check.
Guests:
* Martin Picard – Professor of behavioral medicine and mitochondrial psychobiology at Columbia University, where he runs the Mitochondrial Psychobiology Group.
* Howard LeWine – General internal medicine physician at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston, Chief Medical Editor at Harvard Health Publishing, and editor in chief of Harvard Men’s Health Watch.Download podcast at - https://bigpicturescience.org/episodes/skeptic-check-health-fads
You can listen to this and other episodes at http://bigpicturescience.org/
Get early access to ad-free versions of every episode by joining us on Patreon. Thanks for your support!
#HealthFads #BigPictureScience #SETI #News #Podcast #Science
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Big Picture Science for Oct. 06, 2025: Skeptic Check: Health Fads
The tiny bean-shaped structures in your cells – mitochondria – are little powerhouses. Recent research suggests they may unlock overall good health, or, when they fail, cause diseases such as diabetes and Alzheimer’s. How strong is the science for these claims and what, if anything, should we be doing to improve our mitochondrial health? Should we take a cue from influencers who suggest drinking an industrial dye called methylene blue? Meanwhile, there have been beefed up calls for adding protein to our diets by eating high protein ice cream, energy bars and huge slabs of meat. Protein builds muscles, but is the muscle of science behind these claims? This week, we consider recent health trends on Skeptic Check.
Guests:
* Martin Picard – Professor of behavioral medicine and mitochondrial psychobiology at Columbia University, where he runs the Mitochondrial Psychobiology Group.
* Howard LeWine – General internal medicine physician at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston, Chief Medical Editor at Harvard Health Publishing, and editor in chief of Harvard Men’s Health Watch.Download podcast at - https://bigpicturescience.org/episodes/skeptic-check-health-fads
You can listen to this and other episodes at http://bigpicturescience.org/
Get early access to ad-free versions of every episode by joining us on Patreon. Thanks for your support!
#HealthFads #BigPictureScience #SETI #News #Podcast #Science
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Big Picture Science for Oct. 06, 2025: Skeptic Check: Health Fads
The tiny bean-shaped structures in your cells – mitochondria – are little powerhouses. Recent research suggests they may unlock overall good health, or, when they fail, cause diseases such as diabetes and Alzheimer’s. How strong is the science for these claims and what, if anything, should we be doing to improve our mitochondrial health? Should we take a cue from influencers who suggest drinking an industrial dye called methylene blue? Meanwhile, there have been beefed up calls for adding protein to our diets by eating high protein ice cream, energy bars and huge slabs of meat. Protein builds muscles, but is the muscle of science behind these claims? This week, we consider recent health trends on Skeptic Check.
Guests:
* Martin Picard – Professor of behavioral medicine and mitochondrial psychobiology at Columbia University, where he runs the Mitochondrial Psychobiology Group.
* Howard LeWine – General internal medicine physician at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston, Chief Medical Editor at Harvard Health Publishing, and editor in chief of Harvard Men’s Health Watch.Download podcast at - https://bigpicturescience.org/episodes/skeptic-check-health-fads
You can listen to this and other episodes at http://bigpicturescience.org/
Get early access to ad-free versions of every episode by joining us on Patreon. Thanks for your support!
#HealthFads #BigPictureScience #SETI #News #Podcast #Science
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Big Picture Science for Oct. 06, 2025: Skeptic Check: Health Fads
The tiny bean-shaped structures in your cells – mitochondria – are little powerhouses. Recent research suggests they may unlock overall good health, or, when they fail, cause diseases such as diabetes and Alzheimer’s. How strong is the science for these claims and what, if anything, should we be doing to improve our mitochondrial health? Should we take a cue from influencers who suggest drinking an industrial dye called methylene blue? Meanwhile, there have been beefed up calls for adding protein to our diets by eating high protein ice cream, energy bars and huge slabs of meat. Protein builds muscles, but is the muscle of science behind these claims? This week, we consider recent health trends on Skeptic Check.
Guests:
* Martin Picard – Professor of behavioral medicine and mitochondrial psychobiology at Columbia University, where he runs the Mitochondrial Psychobiology Group.
* Howard LeWine – General internal medicine physician at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston, Chief Medical Editor at Harvard Health Publishing, and editor in chief of Harvard Men’s Health Watch.Download podcast at - https://bigpicturescience.org/episodes/skeptic-check-health-fads
You can listen to this and other episodes at http://bigpicturescience.org/
Get early access to ad-free versions of every episode by joining us on Patreon. Thanks for your support!
#HealthFads #BigPictureScience #SETI #News #Podcast #Science
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Big Picture Science for Oct. 06, 2025: Skeptic Check: Health Fads
The tiny bean-shaped structures in your cells – mitochondria – are little powerhouses. Recent research suggests they may unlock overall good health, or, when they fail, cause diseases such as diabetes and Alzheimer’s. How strong is the science for these claims and what, if anything, should we be doing to improve our mitochondrial health? Should we take a cue from influencers who suggest drinking an industrial dye called methylene blue? Meanwhile, there have been beefed up calls for adding protein to our diets by eating high protein ice cream, energy bars and huge slabs of meat. Protein builds muscles, but is the muscle of science behind these claims? This week, we consider recent health trends on Skeptic Check.
Guests:
* Martin Picard – Professor of behavioral medicine and mitochondrial psychobiology at Columbia University, where he runs the Mitochondrial Psychobiology Group.
* Howard LeWine – General internal medicine physician at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston, Chief Medical Editor at Harvard Health Publishing, and editor in chief of Harvard Men’s Health Watch.Download podcast at - https://bigpicturescience.org/episodes/skeptic-check-health-fads
You can listen to this and other episodes at http://bigpicturescience.org/
Get early access to ad-free versions of every episode by joining us on Patreon. Thanks for your support!
#HealthFads #BigPictureScience #SETI #News #Podcast #Science
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Big Picture Science for Sep. 29, 2025: Not Just a Phage
REPEAT
We’re hurtling towards a post-antibiotic world, as the overuse of antibiotics has given rise to dangerous drug-resistant bacteria. Can we fight back using viruses as weapons? An obscure medical therapy uses certain viruses called bacteriophages to treat infection. For a century attempts to turn phage-therapy into a life-saving treatment have faltered, but today there’s renewed interest in this approach. Can we use phages to forestall the antibiotic crisis?Guests:
* Claas Kirchhelle – Medical historian at the University College, Dublin
* Tom Ireland – Journalist, editor of The Biologist and author of “The Good Virus: The Amazing Story and Forgotten Promise of the Phage”
* Steffanie Strathdee – Associate Dean of Global Health Sciences at the University of California San Diego
* Tom Patterson – Professor of psychiatry at the University of California San DiegoOriginally aired August 12, 2024
Download podcast at - https://bigpicturescience.org/episodes/not-just-a-phage
You can listen to this and other episodes at http://bigpicturescience.org/
Get early access to ad-free versions of every episode by joining us on Patreon. Thanks for your support!
#Antibiotics #Bacteria #Bacteriophages #BigPictureScience #SETI #News #Podcast #Science
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Big Picture Science for Sep. 22, 2025: Spare (Body) Parts
Big Picture Science: Spare (Body) Parts
Strapped-on brass noses, frog skin grafts, human organs grown in pigs: The world of replaceable body parts is both amazing and a bit unsettling. But who better give us a tour of the past and present of what medical engineering considers Plan B, than the inimitable science writer Mary Roach.
Guest:
* Mary Roach – Science writer and author of “Replaceable You: Adventures in Human Anatomy”
Download podcast at - https://bigpicturescience.org/episodes/spare-body-parts
You can listen to this and other episodes at http://bigpicturescience.org/
Get early access to ad-free versions of every episode by joining us on Patreon. Thanks for your support!
#BigPictureScience #SETI #News #Podcast #Science #BodyParts #Transplants #Prosthetics #MedicalEngineering
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Big Picture Science for July 14, 2025: Nuts and Bolts
REPEAT
How frequently do you think about fasteners like screws and bolts? Probably not very often. But some of them a storied history, dating back to Egypt in the 3rd century BC. They aren’t just ancient history. They help hold up our bridges and homes today. Join us as we dissect a handful of engineering inventions that keep our world spinning and intact.Guests:
* Roma Agrawal - structural engineer and author of "Nuts and Bolts: Seven Small Inventions That Changed the World (in a Big Way)"
* Ron Gordon - watchmaker, New York CityThis repeat podcast originally aired on May 6, 2024
Download podcast at - https://bigpicturescience.org/episodes/nuts-and-bolts
You can listen to this and other episodes at http://bigpicturescience.org/
Get early access to ad-free versions of every episode by joining us on Patreon. Thanks for your support!
#BigPictureScience #SETI #News #Podcast #Science #Nuts #Bolts #Screws
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Big Picture Science for May 19, 2025: Touching a Nerve
Some call it your sixth sense. You refer to it when you have a “gut feeling.” With a vast fiber network running throughout your body, the vagus nerve knows about and helps regulate every critical function in it, from heart rate to digestion to your immune system. Now bioelectric medicine is tapping into that bodily omniscience by using tiny electrical pulses on the vagus nerve to help treat diseases as diverse as epilepsy, diabetes, stroke, Parkinson’s, and even depression. In the coming months, the FDA is set to make a decision about a vagus nerve stimulation device, which, if approved, could provide first-of-its-kind treatment for an autoimmune disease that affects millions of Americans. We consider the groundbreaking potential of vagus nerve stimulation and ask whether electricity could one day replace medications.
Guest:
Kevin Tracey – Neurosurgeon, president of the Feinstein Institutes for Medical Research at Northwell Health, and author of “The Great Nerve: The New Science of the Vagus Nerve and How to Harness Its Healing Reflexes”Download podcast at - https://bigpicturescience.org/episodes/touching-a-nerve
You can listen to this and other episodes at http://bigpicturescience.org/
Get early access to ad-free versions of every episode by joining us on Patreon. Thanks for your support!
#BigPictureScience #SETI #News #Podcast #Science #VagusNerve
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Big Picture Science for Mar 10, 2025: Preventable
Two infectious diseases that we’ve been able to prevent for a half-century are re-emerging. One of the most contagious viruses in the world, measles, is spreading in the United States. Anti-vax sentiment has driven vaccination rates down leading to outbreaks in Texas and New Mexico. The U.S. has also seen an uptick in cases of tuberculosis which has reclaimed its position the deadliest infection globally. The author John Green shares how his travels to Sierra Leone inspired his new book about TB. Through the story of a young patient, Henry, he highlights the health inequities that contribute to over a million and a half tuberculosis deaths annually despite the existence of a cure.
Guests:
* Adam Ratner – Pediatric infectious disease doctor in New York City, and author of Booster Shots: The Urgent Lessons of Measles and the Uncertain Future of Children's Health
* John Green – Author of The Fault in Our Stars, The Anthropocene Reviewed, and Everything is Tuberculosis: The History and Persistence of our Deadliest InfectionDownload podcast at - https://bigpicturescience.org/episodes/preventable
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