Sunday, March 30, 2014

Big Picture Science for 03/31/14 - Skeptic Check: Evolutionary Arms Race

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Big Picture Science - Skeptic Check: Evolutionary Arms Race

It’s hard to imagine the twists and turns of evolution that gave rise to Homo Sapiens. After all, it required geologic time, and the existence of many long-gone species that were once close relatives. That may be one reason why – according to a recent poll – one-third of all Americans reject the theory of evolution. They prefer to believe that humans and other living organisms have existed in their current form since the beginning of time.

But if you’ve ever been sick, you’ve been the victim of evolution on a very observable time scale. Nasty viruses and bacteria take full advantage of evolutionary forces to adapt to new hosts. And they can do it quickly.

Discover how comparing the deadly 1918 flu virus with variants today may help us prevent the next pandemic. Also, while antibiotic resistance is threatening to become a major health crisis, better understanding of how bacteria evolve their defenses against our drugs may help us out.

And the geneticist who sequenced the Neanderthal genome says yes, our hirsute neighbors co-mingled with humans.

It’s Skeptic Check … but don’t take our word for it!

Guests:

Permalink: http://radio.seti.org/episodes/Skeptic_Check_Evolutionary_Arms_Race

You can listen to this and other episodes at http://radio.seti.org/, and be sure to check out Blog Picture Science, the companion blog to the radio show.

X-Flare Produces 'Magnetic Crochet'


Source - Space Weather News for March 30, 2014: http://spaceweather.com

X-FLARE:  The magnetic canopy of sunspot AR2017 erupted yesterday, March 29th, producing an impulsive X1-class solar flare.  Ionizing radiation from the flare produced electrical currents in Earth's upper atmosphere and a ripple in Earth's magnetic field detected by magnetometers across the dayside of our planet. 

Read more about this rare "magnetic crochet" and the possibility of more X-flares this weekend on today's edition of http://spaceweather.com.

Thursday, March 27, 2014

A Tetrad of Lunar Eclipses


Source - NASA Science News for March 27, 2014

A total lunar eclipse on April 15th marks the beginning of a remarkable series of eclipses, all visible from North America.

The complete article can be found here: http://science.nasa.gov/science-news/science-at-nasa/2014/27mar_tetrad/

A companion video is posted below and can also be viewed at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5gzgSuJM5O8



License: Standard YouTube License

Wednesday, March 26, 2014

Surprise! An Asteroid with Rings


Source - Space Weather News for March 26, 2014: http://spaceweather.com

STRANGE BUT TRUE:  Astronomers peering into the outer solar system have found something surprising--an asteroid with rings.  The discovery has sparked a debate about how such a thing is possible and prompted a search for tiny moons threading through the asteroid's ring system.

Get the full story from http://spaceweather.com

Sunday, March 23, 2014

Big Picture Science for 03/24/14 - Do the Math

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Big Picture Science - Do the Math

ENCORE: One plus one is two. But what’s the square root of 64, divided by 6 over 12?* Wait, don’t run for the hills! Math isn’t scary. It helps us describe and design our world, and can be easier to grasp than the straight edge of a protractor.

Discover how to walk through the city and number-crunch simultaneously using easy tips for estimating the number of bricks in a building or squirrels in the park. Plus, why our brains are wired for finger-counting … whether aliens would have calculators … and history’s most famous mathematical equations (after e=mc2).

*The answer is 16

Guests:

This encore podcast was first released July 2012

Permalink: http://radio.seti.org/episodes/Do_the_Math

You can listen to this and other episodes at http://radio.seti.org/, and be sure to check out Blog Picture Science, the companion blog to the radio show.

Monday, March 17, 2014

Big Picture Science for 03/17/14 - You Think; You're So Smart

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Big Picture Science - You Think; You're So Smart

Sure you have a big brain; it’s the hallmark of Homo sapiens. But that doesn’t mean that you’ve cornered the market on intelligence. Admittedly, it’s difficult to say, since the very definition of the term is elusive. Depending on what we mean by intelligence, a certain aquatic mammal is not as smart as we thought (hint: rhymes with “caulpin”) … and your rhododendron may be a photosynthesizing Einstein.

And what I.Q. means for A.I. We may be building our brilliant successors.

Guests:

Permalink: http://radio.seti.org/episodes/You_Think_You_re_So_Smart

You can listen to this and other episodes at http://radio.seti.org/, and be sure to check out Blog Picture Science, the companion blog to the radio show.

Sunday, March 09, 2014

Big Picture Science for 03/10/14 - We Heart Robots

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Big Picture Science - We Heart Robots

ENCORE: The machines are coming! Meet the prototypes of your future robot buddies and discover how you may come to love a hunk of hardware. From telerobots that are your mechanical avatars … to automated systems for the disabled … and artificial hands that can diffuse bombs.

Plus, the ethics of advanced robotics: should life-or-death decisions be automated?

And, a biologist uses robo-fish to understand evolution.

Guests:

This encore podcast was first released on January 21, 2013

Permalink: http://radio.seti.org/episodes/We_Heart_Robots

You can listen to this and other episodes at http://radio.seti.org/, and be sure to check out Blog Picture Science, the companion blog to the radio show.

Saturday, March 08, 2014

A Telescope Bigger than a Galaxy


Source - NASA Science News for March 7, 2014

Astronomers have figured out how to use the gravity of distant galaxies to bend light and magnify images, forming gigantic telescopes that see deeper into the cosmos than ever before.

The complete article can be found here: http://science.nasa.gov/science-news/science-at-nasa/2014/07mar_frontierfields/

A companion video is posted below and can also be viewed at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3_iTofcXqfM



License: Standard YouTube License

Friday, March 07, 2014

Big Picture Science for 03/03/14 - Space for Everyone

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Big Picture Science - Space for Everyone

Is space the place for you? With a hefty amount of moolah, a trip there and back can be all yours. But when the price comes down, traffic into space may make the L.A. freeway look like a back-country lane.

Space is more accessible than it once was, from the development of private commercial flights … to a radical new telescope that makes everyone an astronomer … to mining asteroids for their metals and water to keep humanity humming for a long time.

Plus, move over Russia and America: Why the next words you hear from space may be in Mandarin.

Guests:
  • Leonard David – Space journalist, writer for SPACE.com
  • Mario Juric – Astronomer working on data processing for the LSST – the Large Synoptic Survey Telescope
  • John Lewis – Chemist, professor emeritus of planetary sciences, University of Arizona, chief scientist, Deep Space Industries
  • Philip Lubin – Professor of physics, University of California, Santa Barbara
  • James Oberg – Retired NASA rocket scientist, space historian, and a self-described space nut

Permalink: http://radio.seti.org/episodes/Space_for_Everyone

You can listen to this and other episodes at http://radio.seti.org/, and be sure to check out Blog Picture Science, the companion blog to the radio show.

Hubble Witnesses Asteroid's Mysterious Disintegration


Source - NASA Science News for March 6, 2014

NASA's Hubble Space Telescope has recorded the never-before-seen break-up of an asteroid into as many as 10 smaller pieces.

The complete article can be found here: http://science.nasa.gov/science-news/science-at-nasa/2014/06mar_asteroid/