Big Picture Science for Apr 27, Skeptic Check: Covid Conspiracy

Big Picture Science - Skeptic Check: Covid Conspiracy

Nature abhors a vacuum, but conspiracy theorists love one. While we wait for scientists to nail down the how and why of the coronavirus, opportunists have jumped into the void, peddling DIY testing kits and fake COVID cures like colloidal silver. They’ve even cooked up full-blown conspiracy theories about a lab-grown virus. Find out why this crisis has dished up more than the usual share of misinformation and hucksterism, and how these interfere with our ability to navigate it safely.

Guests:

• Whitney Phillips - Professor of communication and rhetorical studies at Syracuse University, and author of three books, most recently You Are Here: A Field Guide for Navigating Polluted Information
• Joan Donovan - Research director at Harvard’s Shorenstein Center on Media, Politics and Public Policy

Download podcast at - http://bigpicturescience.org/episodes/skeptic-check-covid-conspiracy

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

Big Picture Science for Apr 20, Treating the Virus

Big Picture Science - Treating the Virus

It’s not like waiting for Godot, because he never arrived.  A coronavirus vaccine will come.  But it is still months away.  Meanwhile, scientists are adding other weapons to our growing arsenal against this virus. The development of antibody tests, antibody cures, and antivirals offer hope that we can soon have the tools to battle those who’ve been sickened by the COVID-19 virus while we wait for the inoculation that will prevent it.

Guests:

• Deepta Bhattacharya – Immunologist at the University of Arizona whose lab is making a coronavirus antibody test.
• Mark Denison – Professor of pathology, microbiology, and immunology, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine

Download podcast at - http://bigpicturescience.org/episodes/treating-the-virus

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

Big Picture Science for Apr 13, The Other Living World

Big Picture Science - The Other Living World

Reason for hope is just one thing that ecologist Carl Safina can offer.  He understands why many of us turn to nature to find solace during this stressful time. Safina studies the challenges facing the ultimate survival of many species, but also gives a portrait of animals from their point of view. He describes how diverse animals such as sperm whales, bear cubs, macaws, and chickens deal with uncertainty, and assert their quirky individuality while learning to become part of a community. So is it possible for us to reconnect not just with humanity, but also with the other living world?

Guest:

• Carl Safina – An ecologist and McArthur Fellow who writes extensively about the human relationship with the natural world. He is the founding president of the Safina Center, a professor at Stony Brook University, and author of many books – most recently, “Becoming Wild: How Animal Cultures Raise Families, Create Beauty, and Achieve Peace”

Download podcast at - http://bigpicturescience.org/episodes/the-other-living-world

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

Big Picture Science for Apr 06, Zombies, Bigfoot, and Max Brooks

Big Picture Science - Zombies, Bigfoot, and Max Brooks

What do a zombie attack and a viral pandemic have in common?  They are both frightening, mindless, and relentless in their assault.  And both require preparedness.   That’s why the author of “World War Z” – a story about a battle against zombies – lectures at West Point.

Max Brooks has also recorded a public service announcement with his celebrated father, Mel Brooks, touting the importance of social distancing during the coronavirus pandemic.  His newest novel portrays a different assailant: Bigfoot.

Whether our enemy is the undead, a hirsute forest dweller, or an invisible virus, panic won’t help us survive.  Find out what will.

Guest:

• Max Brooks – Lecturer at West Point’s Modern War Institute. Author of “Zombie Survival Guide,” “World War Z,” and the forthcoming “Devolution.”

Download podcast at - http://bigpicturescience.org/episodes/zombies-bigfoot-and-max-brooks

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

Big Picture Science for Mar 30, Let’s Take a Paws

Big Picture Science - Let’s Take a Paws

Humans aren’t the only animals stressed-out by social distancing.  Narwhals send out echolocation clicks to locate their buddies and ease their loneliness.  And a plant about to be chomped by a caterpillar knows that the world can be a scary place.

In this episode, from dogs to narwhals to plants, we put aside human-centric stories to find out how other living creatures map their world, deal with stress, and communicate.

Guests:

• Alexandra Horowitz – Dog cognition researcher, Barnard College, and author of "Being A Dog: Following the Dog Into a World of Smell.”
• Susanna Blackwell – Bio-acoustician with Greeneridge Sciences
• Simon Gilroy – Professor of botany, University of Wisconsin, Madison

Download podcast at - http://bigpicturescience.org/episodes/lets-take-paws

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

Big Picture Science for Mar 23, How Bad Does It Have to Get?

Big Picture Science - How Bad Does It Have to Get?

“Climate change at warp speed” is the way one scientist described the coronavirus outbreak.

In a show recorded before a live audience at the Seattle AAAS meeting, and co-presented with the BBC World Service, we discuss out how politics and psychology lead people to tune out inconvenient scientific findings even when the stakes are high – as well as what we can do about it.

Guests:

• Roland Pease – BBC reporter, presenter of “Science in Action.”
• Lee McIntrye – Philosopher and Research Fellow at the Center for Philosophy and History of Science at Boston University and author of “The Scientific Attitude” and “Post-Truth”
• Reyhaneh Maktoufi – Civic Science Fellow with NOVA PBS at station WGBH, with a focus on science communication

Download podcast at - http://bigpicturescience.org/episodes/how-bad-does-it-have-to-get

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

Big Picture Science for Mar 16, It's In Material

Big Picture Science - It's In Material

Repeat - Astronauts are made of the “right stuff,” but what about their spacesuits?   NASA’s pressurized and helmeted onesies are remarkable, but they need updating if we’re to boldly go into deep space.   Suiting up on Mars requires more manual flexibility, for example.  Find out what innovative materials might be used to reboot the suit.

Meanwhile, strange new materials are in the pipeline for use on terra firma: spider silk is kicking off the development of biological materials that are inspiring ultra-strong, economical, and entirely new fabrics.  And, while flesh-eating bacteria may seem like an unlikely ally in materials science, your doctor might reach for them one day.  The bacterium’s proteins are the inspiration for a medical molecular superglue.

Plus, an overview of more innovative materials to come, from those that are 3D printed to self-healing concrete.

Guests:

• Nicole Stott – Retired NASA astronaut, artist
• Dava Newman – Professor of Astronautics and Engineering Systems, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
• Andrew Dent – Vice President of Library and Materials Research, Material ConneXion
• Mark Howarth – Biochemist, Oxford University
• Mark Miodownik – Materials scientist, University College London, author of “Stuff Matters; Exploring the Marvelous Materials that Shape Our Man-Made World

This repeat podcast was previously released on October 2, 2017

Download podcast at - http://bigpicturescience.org/episodes/its-in-material

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