Mosquitos and Smell, Fermentation, Model Rocket Launch. July 12, 2019, Part 2
If you’ve ever tried brewing your own beer or raising your own sourdough, then you know that the process of fermentation isn't easy to get right. How do you control the growth of mold, yeast, or bacte...
12 Jul 201947min
Degrees of Change: Food and Climate. July 12, 2019, Part 1
A quarter of the world’s greenhouse gas emissions come from putting food on the table. From the fossil fuels used to produce fertilizers, to the methane burps of cows, to the jet fuel used to deliver ...
12 Jul 201947min
The Bastard Brigade, Spontaneous Generation. July 5, 2019, Part 2
Much has been written about the Manhattan Project, the American-led project to develop the atomic bomb. Less well known is Nazi Germany’s “Uranium Club”—a similar project started a full two years befo...
5 Jul 201959min
Science Road Trips, Archaeology From Space. July 5, 2019, Part 1
Summer is here—and that means it’s time for a road trip! Dylan Thuras and Ella Morton, co-authors of Atlas Obscura: An Explorer’s Guide to the Hidden Wonders of the World, join Ira to share some sugge...
5 Jul 201946min
Paternity, Musical Proteins, Microbiome In Runners. June 28, 2019, Part 2
These days, a scientific paternity test is easily acquired, and its results are seen as almost indisputable. But what about the days before so-called foolproof DNA analysis? For most of human history,...
28 Jun 201947min
Cephalopod Week Wrap-Up, USDA Climate Change, Sinking Louisiana. June 28, 2019, Part 1
The eight-day squid-and-kin appreciation extravaganza of Cephalopod Week is nearly over, but there’s still plenty to learn and love about these tentacled “aliens” of the deep. After a rare video sight...
28 Jun 201947min
SciFri Extra: About Time
The official U.S. time is kept on a cesium fountain clock named NIST-F1, located in Boulder, Colorado. On a recent trip to Boulder, Ira took a trip to see the clock. He spoke with Elizabeth Donley, ac...
25 Jun 201914min
Smoke Chasers, Colorado Apples, Pikas. June 21, 2019, Part 2
When wildfires rage in the West, Colorado State University atmospheric scientist Emily Fischer hops into a plane, and flies straight into the smoke. The plane is a flying chemistry lab, studded with i...
21 Jun 201948min
