Who are we to fight the alchemy?
Many alchemical texts are full of bizarre, metaphorical language. But what if there's interesting science hiding behind some of those metaphors? Guest: Lawrence Principe, professor of the history of ...
16 Mar 31min
Snow day!
Grab some hot cocoa and a warm blanket and let’s talk about the tiny crystals that fall from the sky. Guest: Jessica Lundquist, professor of civil & environmental engineering at the University of Was...
11 Mar 28min
My brain made me do it
A man committed a crime. He admitted it. Then something alarming showed up on an image of his brain. The criminal case that followed in 1991 brought neuroscience into the courtroom for good. How does ...
9 Mar 27min
The Codfather
How many fish are in the sea? It's a question that has had enormous consequences for the fishing community in New Bedford, Massachusetts. But one man managed to find a way around it. That man? The Cod...
25 Feb 39min
Stress ages us on a cellular level
It's no secret that stress isn't good for you… But just how bad is it? NPR's Short Wave podcast gets some answers. Host: Regina G. Barber, host of NPR’s Short Wave podcast Guest: Diana Kwon, scie...
23 Feb 14min
The Amazing Extremophiles
In the dark depths of the Gowanus Canal, strange lifeforms lurk... Guests: Brad Vogel, volunteer at the Gowanus Dredgers Canoe Club; Elizabeth Hénaff, computational biologist and artist at New York...
11 Feb 26min
Everyone does it. Why can’t I?
I’m about to burst. Guests: Laryngologist Dr. Robert Bastian and Noel King, co-host and editorial director of the Vox daily news podcast Today, Explained For more, go to http://vox.com/unexplain...
9 Feb 39min
Mysterious objects near the beginning of time
Astronomers are putting together a new picture of the early universe. It involves a lot of very weird black holes, and it could help us understand how our own galaxy formed. Guest: Caitlin Casey, ast...
4 Feb 26min
