Big Picture Science for July 17, 2023 - Fantastic-er Voyage

Big Picture Science - 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 Chicago

This repeat podcast originally aired on June 20th, 2022

Download podcast at - https://bigpicturescience.org/episodes/fantastic-er-voyage

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.

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Big Picture Science for 05/05/14 - Skeptic Check: What, We Worry?

Big Picture Science - Skeptic Check: What, We Worry?

We all have worries. But as trained observers, scientists learn things that can affect us all. So what troubles them, should also trouble us. From viral pandemics to the limits of empirical knowledge, find out what science scenarios give researchers insomnia.

But also, we discover which scary scenarios that preoccupy the public don’t worry the scientists at all. Despite the rumors, you needn’t fear that the Large Hadron Collider will produce black holes that could swallow the Earth.

It’s Skeptic Check, our monthly look at critical thinking … but don’t take our word for it!

Guests:

• David Quammen – Science journalist, contributing writer for National Geographic Magazine, author of Spillover: Animal Infections and the Next Human Pandemic
• Sandra Faber – Astronomer at the University of California, Santa Cruz
• Paul Saffo – Technology forecaster based in the Silicon Valley
• Seth Shostak – Senior astronomer, SETI Institute, host, Big Picture Science
• Elisa Quintana – Research scientist, SETI Institute
• Lawrence Krauss – Theoretical physicist, Director of the Origins Project at Arizona State University

Inspiration for this episode comes from the book, What Should We Be Worried About?: Real Scenarios That Keep Scientists Up at Night edited by John Brockman.

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

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.

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

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:

• Illah Nourbakhsh – Professor of robotics, Carnegie Mellon University, author of Robot Futures. Check out his Robot Futures blog.
• Marco Mascorro – Vice President of Hardware, 9^th Sense Robotics, Mountain View, California
• Curt Salisbury – Mechanical engineer, senior member, technical staff, Sandia National Laboratories
• Joe Karnicky – Retired engineer, Menlo Park, California. Videos of his gadgetry can be found at the bottom of this page.
• John Long – Professor of biology and cognitive science at Vassar College and the author of Darwin’s Devices: What Evolving Robots Can Teach Us About the History of Life and the Future of Technology

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.

Big Picture Science for 09/09/13 - Skeptic Check: Follywood Science

Big Picture Science - Skeptic Check: Follywood Science

ENCORE: The Day After. 2001. Prometheus. There are sci-fi films a’plenty … but how much science is in the fiction? We take the fact checkers to Hollywood to investigate the science behind everything from space travel to human cloning.

Plus, guess what sci-fi film is the most scientifically accurate (hint: we’ve already mentioned it). Also, why messing with medical facts on film can be dangerous … and the inside scoop from a writer of one of television’s most successful sci-fi franchises.

And, a robot who surpasses even Tinseltown’s lively imagination: a humanoid that may become a surrogate you.

Guests:

• David Kirby – Senior lecturer in science communication studies at the University of Manchester in the U.K. and author of Lab Coats in Hollywood: Science, Scientists, and Cinema
• Lucas Kavner – Reporter, Huffington Post, author of a piece on the rise of robot surrogates
• Wayne Grody – Medical geneticist, director of the DNA diagnostic Laboratory, UCLA Medical Center
• Andre Bormanis – Television writer and science consultant for Star Trek

This encore podcast was first released on July 30, 2012.

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

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.

Big Picture Science for 01/21/13 - We Heart Robots

Big Picture Science - We Heart Robots

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 artifical 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:

• Illah Nourbakhsh – Professor of robotics, Carnegie Mellon University, author of Robot Futures. Check out his Robot Future’s blog.
• Marco Mascorro – Vice President of Hardware, 9^th Sense Robotics, Mountain View, California
• Curt Salisbury – Mechanical engineer, senior member, technical staff, Sandia National Laboratories
• Joe Karnicky – Retired engineer, Menlo Park, California
• John Long – Professor of biology and cognitive science at Vassar College and the author of Darwin’s Devices: What Evolving Robots Can Teach Us About the History of Life and the Future of Technology

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.

Big Picture Science for 07/30/12 - Skeptic Check: Follywood Science

Big Picture Science - Skeptic Check: Follywood Science

The Day After. 2001. Prometheus. There are sci-fi films a’plenty … but how much science is in the fiction? We take the fact checkers to Hollywood to investigate the science behind everything from space travel to human cloning.

Plus, guess what sci-fi film is the most scientifically accurate (hint: we’ve already mentioned it). Also, why messing with medical facts on film can be dangerous … and the inside scoop from a writer of one of television’s most successful sci-fi franchises.

And, a robot who surpasses even Tinseltown’s lively imagination: a humanoid that may become a surrogate you.

Guests:

• David Kirby – Senior lecturer in science communication studies at the University of Manchester in the U.K. and author of Lab Coats in Hollywood: Science, Scientists, and Cinema
• Lucas Kavner – Reporter, Huffington Post, author of a piece on the rise of robot surrogates
• Wayne Grody – Medical geneticist, director of the DNA diagnostic Laboratory, UCLA Medical Center
• Andre Bormanis – Television writer and science consultant for Star Trek

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

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.

Big Picture Science for 04/16/12 - Humans Need Not Apply

Big Picture Science - Humans Need Not Apply

ENCORE You are one-of-a-kind, unique, indispensible… oh, wait, never mind! It seems that computer over there can do what you do … faster and with greater accuracy.

Yes, it’s silicon vs. carbon as intelligent, interactive machines out-perform humans in tasks beyond data-crunching. We’re not only building our successors, we’re developing emotional relationships with them. Find out why humans are hard-wired to be attached to androids.

Also, the handful of areas where humans still rule… as pilots, doctors and journalists. Scratch that! Journalism is automated too – tune in for a news story written solely by a machine.

Guests:

• Clifford Nass – Social psychologist at Stanford University and Director of the Communication Between Humans and Interactive Media Lab
• Tom Jones – United States astronaut, space consultant, and veteran of four Space Shuttle flights
• Chris Ford – Business director at Pixar Animation Studios
• Eric Van De Graaff -Cardiologist at Alegent Health
• James Bennighof – Vice Provost for Academic Affairs, and professor of music theory at Baylor University in Texas
• Kathy Abbott – Chief Scientific and Technical Advisor for Flight Deck Human Factors at the Federal Aviation Administration
• Kristian Hammond – Co-founder, Narrative Science

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

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.

First aired November 22, 2010.

Are We Alone for 11/22/10 - Humans Need Not Apply

Are We Alone - Humans Need Not Apply

You are one-of-a-kind, unique, indispensible… oh, wait, never mind! It seems that computer over there can do what you do … faster and with greater accuracy.

Yes, it’s silicon vs. carbon as intelligent, interactive machines out-perform humans in tasks beyond data-crunching. We’re not only building our successors, we’re developing emotional relationships with them. Find out why humans are hard-wired to be attached to androids.

Also, the handful of areas where humans still rule… as pilots, doctors and journalists. Scratch that! Journalism is automated too – tune in for a news story written solely by a machine.

Guests:

• Clifford Nass – Social psychologist at Stanford University and Director of the Communication Between Humans and Interactive Media Lab
• Tom Jones – United States astronaut, space consultant, and veteran of four Space Shuttle flights
• Chris Ford – Business director at Pixar Animation Studios
• Eric Van De Graaff -Cardiologist at Alegent Health
• James Bennighof – Vice Provost for Academic Affairs, and professor of music theory at Baylor University in Texas
• Kathy Abbott – Chief Scientific and Technical Advisor for Flight Deck Human Factors at the Federal Aviation Administration
• Kristian Hammond – Co-founder, Narrative Science

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

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

Are We Alone for 05/03/10 - Robots Call the Shots

Are We Alone - Robots Call the Shots

ENCORE Dr. Robot, I presume? Your appendix may be removed by motor-driven, scalpel-wielding mechanical hands one day. Robots are debuting in the medical field… as well as on battlefields. And they’re increasingly making important decisions – on their own. But can we teach robots right from wrong? Find out why the onslaught of silicon intelligence has prompted a new field of robo-ethics.

Plus, robo-geologists: NASA’s vision for autonomous robots in space.

Guests:

• P.W. Singer - Director of the 21^st Century Defense Initiative at the Brookings Institution, and the author of Wired for War: The Robotics Revolution and Conflict in the 21st Century
• Wendell Wallach - Chair of a technology and ethics working group for Yale University’s Interdisciplinary Center for Bioethics, and the co-author of Moral Machines: Teaching Robots Right from Wrong
• Pablo Garcia - – Principal engineer working on medical robotics at SRI International, Menlo Park, California
• Robert Anderson - Planetary geologist, NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory
• Robyn Asimov - Daughter of author Isaac Asimov

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

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

A collection of cosmic headlines for November 01, 2009

You most likely have read these stories already, but I thought I would list the links just in case you had not. Leave a comment and let me know what you think of them:

• NASA - Happy Halloween - The Cassini team sends "bats wishes" for a happy, healthy and fun Halloween.
• Space Disco : Discovery Space: 5 Frightening (But True) Space Stories - Stranded cosmonauts vs. hungry wolves, Apollo Toilet Horrors, Decompression Blues, and more.
• Physicist makes new high-res panorama of Milky Way - I just wish that the article had included a larger image :(
• Do Jupiter's Red Storms Signal Massive Climate Change? - From The Daily Galaxy about possible climate changes on Jupiter.
• SPACE.com -- The Strangest Moments in Space Launch History - Alligators, bats, and wet spacesuits, Oh my!
• Robot Armada Might Scale New Worlds - This is a great article on how future robotic missions will be more autonomous.
  

Lastly PhysOrg.com is reporting that transparent aluminium is no longer the stuff of science fiction. Below is a snippet from the PhysOrg.com article:

"Oxford scientists have created a transparent form of aluminium by bombarding the metal with the world’s most powerful soft X-ray laser. 'Transparent aluminium' previously only existed in science fiction, featuring in the movie Star Trek IV, but the real material is an exotic new state of matter with implications for planetary science and nuclear fusion."

You can read the rest of the article here: http://www.physorg.com/news167925273.html

Are We Alone for 06/01/09 - Robots Call the Shots

Are We Alone - Robots Call the Shots
Dr. Robot, I presume? Your appendix may be removed by motor-driven, scalpel-wielding mechanical hands one day. Robots are debuting in the medical field… as well as on battlefields. And they’re increasingly making important decisions – on their own. But can we teach robots right from wrong? Find out why the onslaught of silicon intelligence has prompted a new field of robo-ethics.
Plus, robo-geologists: NASA’s vision for autonomous robots in space.
Guests:

• P.W. Singer – Director of the 21^st Century Defense Initiative at the Brookings Institution, and the author of Wired for War: The Robotics Revolution and Conflict in the 21st Century
• Wendell Wallach – Chair of a technology and ethics working group for Yale University’s Interdisciplinary Center for Bioethics, and the co-author of Moral Machines: Teaching Robots Right from Wrong
• Pablo Garcia – – Principal engineer working on medical robotics at SRI International, Menlo Park, California
• Robert Anderson – Planetary geologist, NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory
• Robyn Asimov – Daughter of author Isaac Asimov

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