Big Picture Science for Monday March 28, 2016 - Skeptic Check: How Low Can You Go?

Big Picture Science - Skeptic Check: How Low Can You Go?

Baby, it’s cold outside… but you still might want to be there.  Some people claim that chilly temperatures are good for your health, and proponents of cryotherapy suggest you have a blast – of sub-zero air – to stave off wrinkles and perhaps halt aging altogether.

Meanwhile the field of cryonics offers the ultimate benefit by suggesting that you put future plans – and your body – on ice when you die.  That way you might be revived when the technology to do so is developed.

So, will a chill wind blow you some good?  Possibly, as scientists are discovering that the body can endure colder temperatures than previously thought.  We examine the science of extreme cold and claims of its salubrious benefits.

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

Guests:

• Seth Abramovitch - Senior writer at the Hollywood Reporter
• Gordon Giesbrecht - Professor of thermal physiology, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, Canada
• Grant Shoffstall - Sociologist, Williams College

Download podcast at:http://bigpicturescience.org/episodes/skeptic-check-how-low-can-you-go

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.

Coronal Canyon Spews Solar Wind Toward Earth

 
Source - Space Weather News for March 25, 2016:http://spaceweather.com

HOLE IN THE SUN'S ATMOSPHERE:  A canyon-shaped hole in the sun's atmosphere has opened up and it is spewing solar wind toward Earth. Estimated time of arrival: March 27-28.  Arctic sky watchers should be alert for a springtime display of auroras.  Visit http://spaceweather.com for more information.

NEW RADAR IMAGES OF EARTH-BUZZING COMET:  Earlier this week, comet fragment P/2016 BA14 made an unusually-close approach to Earth. Using a radar in the Mojave Desert, NASA researchers pinged the comet as it passed by, revealing an icy nucleus that looks like a brick--or a pear--depending on your point of view. See for yourself  on today's edition of http://spaceweather.com

Big Picture Science for Monday March 21, 2016 - Gene-y in a Bottle

Big Picture Science - Gene-y in a Bottle

You can’t pick your parents.  But soon you may be able to change the DNA they gave you.  CRISPR technology is poised to take DNA editing to new levels of precision and speed.  Imagine deleting genes from your body that you don’t like and inserting the ones you want.  The swap might not even require a fancy lab.  Biohackers are already tinkering with genes in their homes.

Find out how CRISPR technology might change everything when the genetic lottery is no longer destiny.

Plus, a cardiologist identifies the troublesome genes that once gave us evolutionary advantages but today are fueling obesity, depression and other modern illness.

Guests:

• Lee Goldman – Cardiologist, dean of Columbia University Medical Center, author of “Too Much of a Good Thing; How Four Key Survival Traits Are Now Killing Us”
• Jacob Corn – Scientific director, Innovative Genomics Initiative, University of California, Berkeley
• Katelynn Kazane – Research assistant, Innovative Genomics Initiative,  University of California, Berkeley
• Josiah Zayner - Biohacker, former NASA synthetic biologist.  His biohacking store.

Download podcast at: http://bigpicturescience.org/Gene-y_in_a_Bottle

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.

ScienceCasts: Amazing Moons

Source - http://science.nasa.gov/

When the Space Age began, explorers were eager to visit the planets of the solar system. As the years have passed, however, astronomers have realized that the moons of the solar system may be even more interesting.

Green Comet Approaches Earth

Source - Space Weather News for March 17, 2016: http://spaceweather.com

GREEN COMET APPROACHES EARTH: There's no danger of a collision.  However, a small green comet named "252P/LINEAR" is about to make one of the closest approaches to Earth of any comet in modern times, sailing just 5.4 million km from our planet on March 21st.  Moreover, the comet appears to have company: A possible fragment of 252P/LINEAR will fly by just one day later. A weak meteor shower could follow the double flyby near the end of March. 

Visit Spaceweather.com for more information.

Big Picture Science for Monday March 14, 2016 - Who’s Controlling Whom?

Big Picture Science - Who’s Controlling Whom?

ENCORE: A single ant isn’t very brainy. But a group of ants can do remarkable things. Biological swarm behavior is one model for the next generation of tiny robots. Of course, biology can get hijacked: a fungus can seize control of an ant’s brain, for example. So will humans always remain the boss of super-smart, swarming machines?

We discuss the biology of zombie ants and how to build robots that self-assemble and work together. Also, how to guarantee the moral behavior of future ‘bots.

And, do you crave cupcakes? Research suggests that gut bacteria control what we eat and how we feel.

Guests:

• David Hughes – Biologist, entomologist, Penn State University
• Mike Rubenstein – Roboticist, Self-Organizing Systems Research Group, Harvard University
• Wendell Wallach – Bioethicist, chair, Technology and Ethics Study Group, Yale University’s Interdisciplinary Center for Bioethics
• Athena Aktipis – Cooperation theorist, Arizona State University and director of Human and Social Evolution, Center for Evolution and Cancer, University of California, San Francisco

This encore podcast was first released on October 13, 2014

Download podcast at: http://bigpicturescience.org/episodes/Who_s_Controlling_Whom_

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.

Unexpected Geomagnetic Storm on March 11th

Source - Space Weather News for March 11, 2016: http://spaceweather.com

UNEXPECTED GEOMAGNETIC STORM:  Earlier today, the outskirts of a CME previously expected to miss Earth instead hit. The impact sparked a G2-class geomagnetic storm and bright auroras around the Arctic Circle. At the time this alert is being written, the storm is still in progress. Visit Spaceweather.com for updates.

AVIATION RADIATION EXPERIMENT: En route to observe the March 9th total eclipse in Indonesia, the students of Earth to Sky Calculus conducted an unusual experiment in aviation radiation. Their plane flew a great circle around the Pacific Ocean, skirting the Arctic Circle and crossing the equator in a relatively short period of time. This allowed them to take a snapshot of onboard cosmic radiation doses over a wide range of latitude. Visit Spaceweather.com for results.

Crazy-good Pictures of Today's Solar Eclipse

Source - Space Weather News for March 9, 2016: http://spaceweather.com

TOTAL ECLIPSE OF THE SUN:  This morning, the new Moon blocked out the sun, producing a magnificent total eclipse over Indonesia and the Pacific Ocean. Today's edition of Spaceweather.com highlights the view from some unique vantage points--including the window of an Alaskan Airlines flight that diverted into the path of totality.  Also notable are satellite movies of the Moon's cool shadow sweeping across the Pacific.

Visit http://spaceweather.com for full coverage.

Geomagnetic Storm on March 6, 2016

Space Weather News for March 6, 2016: http://spaceweather.com

POLAR GEOMAGNETIC STORM: Today, March 6th, Earth is entering a stream of solar wind, and the encounter has sparked a G1-class geomagnetic storm.  Inside the stream, magnetic fields have a negative polarity--a condition which favors auroras.  High-latitude sky watchers should be alert for Northern Lights.  Visit Spaceweather.com for more information and updates.

AVIATION RADIATION EXPERIMENT: This weekend, Spaceweather.com and the students of Earth to Sky Calculus are flying to Indonesia to observe the March 9th total eclipse.  En route, they are conducting an experiment in aviation radiation. Their flight skirts the Arctic Circle and crosses the equator, allowing them to make cosmic ray measurements over a wide range of latitudes in a relatively short amount of time. Stay tuned to Spaceweather.com to learn the results.

Big Picture Science for Monday March 07, 2016 - Land on the Run

Big Picture Science - Land on the Run

ENCORE: Hang on to your globe. One day it’ll be a collector’s item. The arrangement of continents you see today is not what it once was, nor what it will be tomorrow. Thank plate tectonics.

Now evidence suggests that the crowding together of all major land masses into one supercontinent – Pangaea, as it’s called – is a phenomenon that’s happened over and over during Earth’s history. And it will happen again. Meet our future supercontinent home, Amasia, and learn what it will look like.

Meanwhile, as California waits for the Big One, geologists discover that major earthquakes come in clusters. Also, our planet is not the only solar system body with tectonic activity. Icy Europa is a mover and shaker too.

And why is land in the western part of the U.S. literally rising up? Mystery solved!

Guests:

• John Dvorak – Geologist, author of Earthquake Storms: The Fascinating History and Volatile Future of the San Andreas Fault
• Adrian Borsa – Geophysicist, Scripps Institute of Oceanography, University of California, San Diego
• Ross Mitchell – Geologist and post-doctoral scholar at the California Institute of Technology
• Simon Kattenhorn – Structural geologist and a planetary geologist who did his work on Europa while at the University of Idaho

This encore podcast was first released on September 29, 2014

Download podcast at: http://bigpicturescience.org/episodes/Land_on_the_Run

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.

Spherical Camera Photographs the Edge of Space

Source - Space Weather News for Feb. 29, 2016: http://spaceweather.com

SPHERICAL CAMERA AT THE EDGE OF SPACE: On Feb. 27th, Spaceweather.com and the students of Earth to Sky Calculus launched a space weather balloon to monitor increasing levels of cosmic rays in the stratosphere.  The payload carried something new: a spherical camera.  Visit Spaceweather.com to view the first interactive 3D images of the edge of space.

CHANCE OF STORMS: NOAA forecasters estimate a 40% chance of minor geomagnetic storms on March 1st when a solar wind stream is expected to hit Earth's magnetic field.  Arctic sky watchers should be alert for auroras.

Big Picture Science for Monday February 29, 2016 - The Crater Good

Big Picture Science - The Crater Good

It was “one giant leap for mankind,” but the next step forward may require going back.  Yes, back to the moon.  Only this time the hardware may come from China.  Or perhaps Europe.  In fact, it seems that the only developed nation not going lunar is the U.S.

Find out why our pockmarked satellite is such hot real estate, and whether it has the raw materials we’d need to colonize it.  A new theory of how the moon formed may tell us what’s below its dusty surface.

But – before packing your bags – you’ll want to skim Article IX of the U.N. treaty on planetary protection.  We can’t go contaminating any old planetary body, can we?

Guests:

• James Oberg - Former Space Shuttle Mission Control engineer and space policy expert
• Clive Neal - Geologist, University of Notre Dame
• Edward Young - Cosmochemist, geochemist, UCLA
• Margaret Race - Biologist and research scientist at the SETI Institute

Download podcast at: http://bigpicturescience.org/episodes/crater-good

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 Monday February 22, 2016 - Eve of Disruption

Big Picture Science - Eve of Disruption

Only two of the following three creations have had lasting scientific or cultural impact:  The telescope … the Sistine Chapel ceiling … the electric banana.  Find out why one didn’t make the cut as a game-changer, and why certain eras and places produce a remarkable flowering of creativity (we’re looking at you, Athens).

Plus, Yogi Berra found it difficult to make predictions, especially about the future, but we try anyway.  A technology expert says he’s identified the next Silicon Valley.  Hint: its focus is on genetic – not computer – code and its language in the lab is Mandarin.

We got the past and the future covered.  Where’s innovation now?  We leave that to the biohackers who are remaking the human body one sensory organ at a time.  Are you ready for eye-socket cameras and mind readers?

Guests:

• Eric Weiner - Author of “The Geography of Genius; A Search for the World’s Most Creative Places from Ancient Athens to Silicon Valley”
• Alec Ross – Technology policy expert, former Senior Advisor for Innovation for Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, and author of “The Industries of the Future”
• Kara Platoni - Science reporter, author of “We Have the Technology: How Biohackers, Foodies, Physicians, and Scientists Are Transforming Human Perception, One Sense at a Time”

Download podcast at: http://bigpicturescience.org/episodes/eve-disruption

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.

Geomagnetic storm on Feb. 16th

Source - Space Weather News for Feb. 16, 2016: http://spaceweather.com

GEOMAGNETIC STORM IN PROGRESS: Earth is entering a stream of high-speed solar wind, and this is causing G1-class geomagnetic storms on Feb. 16th. This is not the CME we have been waiting for since Valentine's Day. Instead, the solar wind is flowing from a coronal hole on the sun Visit Spaceweather.com for photos and more information.

SPACE WEATHER BALLOON LAUNCH: To monitor the effect of the ongoing storm on radiation levels in the atmosphere, Spaceweather.com and the students of Earth to Sky Calculus will launch a helium balloon carrying cosmic ray sensors. Stay tuned for pictures and data from the flight, scheduled for liftoff just a few hours from now

Big Picture Science for Monday February 15, 2016 - With All Our Mites

Big Picture Science - With All Our Mites

You are not alone.  You can’t see ‘em, but your face is a festival of face mites. They’ve   evolved with us for millennia.  And a new study finds that hundreds of different tiny spiders, beetles, and – our favorite - book lice make your home theirs.  But before you go bonkers with the disinfectant, consider: eradicating these critters may do more harm than good.  Some are such close evolutionary partners with humans that they keep us healthy and can even reveal something about our ancestry.

But then there are bed bugs.  Pests without redemption.  However, their newly-sequenced genome may help us end their nightly nuisances.  And of course some microscopic critters are deadly.  So when it comes to bugs: when do we accommodate and when do we attack?

Guests:

• Michelle Trautwein – Curator of entomology, California Academy of Sciences
• Matt Bertone –  Entomologist, North Carolina State University
• Joshua Benoit -- Insect molecular biologist, University of Cincinnati
• Thomas McDade – Biological anthropologist, Northwestern University

Download podcast at: http://bigpicturescience.org/episodes/all-our-mites

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.