This Week in Science - The Kickass Science Podcast
By Dr. Kirsten Sanford Science Media
To listen to an audio podcast, mouse over the title and click Play. Open iTunes to download and subscribe to podcasts.
Podcast Description
The kickass weekly science and technology radio show presenting a humorous and irreverent look at the week in science and tech. Each show TWIS discusses the latest in cutting edge science news on topics such as genetic engineering, cybernetics, space exploration, neuro science, and a show favorite Countdown to World Robot Domination. The show is hosted by Dr. Kirsten Sanford, a PhD in neuroscience, and Justin, a wisecracking professional car salesman and armchair physicist. Consistently voted one of the top science radio shows on the web - check it out and hear a science news program like no other.
| Name | Description | Released | Price | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
1 |
02 February, 2012 – This Week in Science | (http://www.twis.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-e1277863172926.jpg) Meat Eating, Facebook Psych, This Week In Castration, Yawns Of Love, Interview w/ Shawn Lawrence Otto Re: Fool Me Twice, And Much More... Disclaimer, Disclaimer, Disclaimer!!! Like our primitive ancestors of the past, mankind is still hunter gatherer Our past prey was meant to be eaten, to be used as clothing to provide warmth and protection, and along the way we would gather material that could be fashioned into tools for hunting still more prey which we would pursue no matter where the journey took us. In the pursuit of knowledge mankind has traversed many hostile territories, fashioned many tools, and has gathered enough information from our surroundings to protect us from environmental threats both seen and unseen. We have hunted our prey across all landscapes of the earth, under the oceans, in the air and beyond the limit of our atmosphere. We have chased our prey to the moon, to mars, across the milky way, to the most distant galaxy beyond right up the first moments of the big bang We have hunted in the microbial, molecular, atomic and quantum worlds as well. And each week we return to the cave of humanity with a bounty of new beasts to feast upon Here on this week in science, coming up next. What meat do you eat? (http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2012/01/organic-meat-superbugs/) Well, it doesn't matter. Antibiotic-resistant bacteria has been found on a frighteningly-high percent of both organic, antibiotic-free meat, and the conventional meat found in stores. We're still not sure where this contamination is taking pace, either. It could be at any point in the line of processing, from the field, to the packaging plant. Facebook Psych (http://techland.time.com/2012/02/02/your-negative-status-updates-rub-people-the-wrong-way-apparently/) Your Facebook friends will like you more if your profile is positive, whereas all of your negative updates tend to rub people the wrong way. Not surprisingly, people don't go on Facebook to get depressed... They say it's voluntary (http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-16816344)... Male orb-weavers will castrate themselves during mating. Believe it or not, this has several advantages: 1) the male spider is not cannibalized by the female, 2) the male organ serves as plug to block other males from mating with the female, and 3) the organ continues to deliver sperm after copulation has been terminated, increasing the likelihood of passing on DNA. Yawning??? (http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=what-yawn-says-about-relationship) A Yawn really means "I love you." The contagion of yawns between yourself and the people around you indicates emotional closeness between the parties. Get a free audiobook at Audible.com (http://www.audiblepodcast.com/twis)! Are you reading along with the TWIS Bookclub? This month, check out 'A Planet of Viruses' (http://press.uchicago.edu/ucp/books/book/chicago/P/bo11461703.html) by Carl Zimmer Interview with Shawn Otto (http://shawnotto.com/), author of Fool Me Twice: Fighting the Assault on Science in America. From the Minion Mailbag: "First, I want to say how much I enjoy the TWIS episodes that you and Justin put together... When I heard you begin to describe the "Serial Killer Math" story, I couldn't help but cringe. While the article *sounds* interesting, it's really a terrible conglomeration of bad statistics, crackpot neuroscience, and general silliness on the part of the authors. Dr. Cosma Shalizi, a statistics professor at Carnegie Mellon University, has a very readable (and scathing) explanation of Simkin and Roychowdury's error on his blog: http://cscs.umich.edu/~crshalizi/weblog/857.html (http://cscs.umich.edu/~crshalizi/weblog/857.html ) The short version is that the data is much better fit by a log-normal distribution than a power-law distribution. | 2/7/12 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
2 |
26 January, 2012 – This Week in Science | (http://www.twis.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-e1277863172926.jpg) Jumping Neutrons, Trojan Tactics, Avian Illusions, Splitting Bonobos, Atomic X-ray Lasers, Lingering Lineages, Money For Values, Group Think, And Much More... Disclaimer, Disclaimer, Disclaimer!!! A hundred years ago we thought the universe was a really big place. But we were wrong. As it turns out, what we thought was the universe was but a single galaxy called the Milky Way. Since then we’ve discovered billions upon billions of galaxies And now we know with certainty that the universe is really, really, really, a whole lot bigger than anything we could have previously conceived of and even now that we know the scope of the scale of the thing… it still boggles our ability to comprehend. Seventy sextillion stars in the known universe at present, and by some estimates even this number falls far short of the full accounting… The basis of human comprehension in earth bound terms, is hard wired to conceive of scale in terms of comparisons… a dolphin is big when compared to a mouse, a planet is big when compared to a computer, our solar system is quite massive when compared to a grain of sand… And 70 sextillion solar systems in the known universe makes our solar system but one grain of sand compared to all the grains of sand from all the beaches on planet earth… Or ten trillion stars for every human being alive today. 700 billion stars for every human that has ever lived in the history of the planet. And while the day to day push and pull of our earthly days plays out under but one sun, we can see far beyond our own terms of existence now… and in doing so have unlocked a point of perspective in our thinking is truly beyond compare… The star stuff that we are made of is everywhere, and everywhere is big, even when it’s all in your head here on…This week in science… coming up next... Do neutrons (http://www.technologyreview.com/blog/arxiv/27517/) trip the light fantastic? Neutrons might jump between universes. There are ways that we could actually test whether these neutrons take alternate universe vacations, which would potentially indicate existence of other universes. Far out, dude... Trojan viruses (http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120126123712.htm) Trojan horse tactics have been discovered in viruses against bacteria. Viruses trick bacteria with what looks like a gift, but is actually a copy of their own genes to duplicate. They are then destroyed after the job is done. Harsh, but effective - not unusual for a virus. Dating trickery (http://arstechnica.com/science/news/2012/01/bowerbirds-woo-mates-with-a-lot-of-effort-and-a-little-illusion.ars) Great bower birds from Australia have a very specific way of organizing their trinkets within the avenue of their bower. It appears that they orient the stones from smallest to largest, to create an optical illusion. There is an almost perfect correlation between mating success and the smoothness of the gradient of the orientation of the stones. Are the girls getting confused, impressed, or hypnotized by this parlor trick? Bonobo (http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=tame-theory-did-bonobos) tame thyself What led to the split between bonobos and their close cousin (and ours), chimpanzees? The differences between the two species are paralleled by the differences between domestic and wild animals. A new theory states that an environmental divide could have caused a large variance in environmental pressures which in turn resulted in different social behaviors that affected mating choices. Get a free audiobook at Audible.com (http://www.audiblepodcast.com/twis)! Are you reading along with the TWIS Bookclub? This month, check out 'Fool Me Twice' (http://shawnotto.com/foolmetwice/) by Shawn Lawrence Otto. I've got... an atomic x-ray gun (https://www.llnl.gov/news/newsreleases/2012/Jan/NR-12-01-05.html )... In 1967, | 2/1/12 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
3 |
19 January, 2012 – This Week in Science | (http://www.twis.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-e1277863172926.jpg) Serial Killer Math, Permafrost Problems, Happy Meals?, Snake Senses, Creepy Cold Fingers, Interview W/ Eugenie Scott From NCSE, And Much More... Disclaimer, Disclaimer. Disclaimer!!! This week in science… coming up next... The math of a serial killer (http://www.technologyreview.com/blog/arxiv/27497/) UCLA scientists have analyzed the behavior of a serial killer in the Ukraine - they believe that a pattern in neuron firing influenced the timing of his murders. When new serial killers are discovered, can we predict when they will murder again? Permafrost Problems (http://www.physorg.com/news/2011-11-permafrost-loss-worse-climate-peril.html) Carbon Dioxide and Methane were found trapped in permafrost - as the polar ice caps melt, more greenhouse gasses will be released into the atmosphere. happy meals Blair's Animal House Two stories this week about animals! Energy Conservation tactics within extreme feeding adaptations in: Snakes (http://www.bbc.co.uk/nature/16580969) Snakes can sense their prey's heartbeat, so they can acquire their food with as little strength and time of constriction as possible. And Aye-Ayes (http://www.bbc.co.uk/nature/16577537) Aye-Ayes can restrict blood flow to those creepy extra-long middle fingers when not in use, so as to reduce heat loss through the large surface area of the digit. Get a free audiobook at Audible.com (http://www.audiblepodcast.com/twis)! Are you reading along with the TWIS Bookclub? This month, check out 'Fool Me Twice' (http://shawnotto.com/foolmetwice/) by Shawn Lawrence Otto. Interview with Eugenie C. Scott, Executive Director of the National Center for Science Education (www.ncse.com) - NCSE tackles Climate Change (http://arstechnica.com/science/news/2012/01/science-education-group-decides-its-time-to-tackle-climate-change.ars) - NCSE is known for its defense of evolution-inclusive science curricula, but recently announced that they are expanding their assistance to cover climate change. NCSE hired some climate scientists to help them in their quest to spread "good science," and they hope to bring scientific literacy to youth in the US. Unfortunately, there are people who would like to push forward bills that would prohibit or inhibit the instruction of climate change in schools. Science alone cannot stop climate change, so we need more people to believe and understand the issue in order for them to help initiate change. Best of luck to NCSE! If you love TWIS, please support us by donating below: | 1/24/12 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
4 |
12 January, 2012 – This Week in Science | (http://www.twis.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-e1277863172926.jpg) TDR TB!, Frying E. Coli, Food In Science, Extreme Caffeine, Extinct Tortoises Exist, Protein Resurrection, Lots Of Stars, Cheap DNA Sequencing, Andromeda Up Close, Guns And A-holes, And Much More... Disclaimer, Disclaimer. Disclaimer!!! The world as we know it is not the world as it is but the world as we have learned it This learning of the world which we people engage in comes in several basic forms which can then be sub-categorize-able and infinitely cross referenced throughout a lifetime Pulling from memory, from experience, from structured study, from second hand here-say, and from circumspect suspicion of nostalgic superstitious notions… we form knowledge of the world. Making how we learn as important as what we learn… Over many tens of thousands of years we humans have been learning and this has led to many interesting conclusions, almost all of which had to be proven wrong in order for the right answers to be found… And finding the right answers became the passion and purpose of generations of scientists, working out the facts, trimming off the false… Until we reached the modern age of knowing the world! A world that still has as much room for exploration as there are minds ready to explore it… And if this wasn’t enough, we have discovered that for every one of the 70 sextillion stars in the newly known universe, there are several more worlds in orbit around them… It seems the work of knowing about a world… has just begun Just like this week in science… coming up next TDR TB! (http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2012/01/invincible-tb-india) WHO found drug resistant TB last spring. Predicted 2 million cases of MDR (first-choice drug resistant) and XDR (resistant to three first-line drugs) by 2012. Instead, we've now found TDR TB... that is to say, totally drug resistant TB. Frying E. coli (http://www.news-medical.net/news/20120112/Low-voltage-alternating-current-can-effectively-eradicate-E-coli-on-beef.aspx ) "A short burst of low voltage" could kill even large amounts of e. coli in meat that has been contaminated. The method promises a way to sterilize beef without harsh chemicals. Could this be used for other hazardous bacterium in other food products? Food in Science... Cheese (http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/80beats/2012/01/10/captive-cheese-fungus-gobbles-up-spills-forming-a-living-self-cleaning-surface/) The fungus on cheeses with thick rinds could be isolated to coat household surfaces to keep it clean. Cheese-counter, anyone? Salmon (http://www.gizmag.com/salmon-dna-data-storage-device/21027/) Isolated DNA from Salmon could be used as "memory/data storage." What other examples of food being used in science do you know about? Let us know! Email me at kirsten@thisweekinscience.com or post a comment on our website. Extreme caffeine (http://www.hindustantimes.com/Lifestyle/Wellness/Coffee-drinkers-less-likely-to-have-Type-2-diabetes/Article1-796123.aspx) A new study shows that people who drink four or more cups of coffee a day have a 50% less chance of developing Type II Diabetes. Get a free audiobook at Audible.com (http://www.audiblepodcast.com/twis)! Are you reading along with the TWIS Bookclub? This month, check out 'Fool Me Twice' (http://shawnotto.com/foolmetwice/) by Shawn Lawrence Otto. Finding extinct tortoises (http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/notrocketscience/2012/01/09/genetic-footprints-of-extinct-giant-tortoises-offer-hope-for-resurrection) A thought-to-be-extinct lineage of Galapagos Tortoise has been found again! That-is, one-fifth of all Galapagos tortoises sampled had DNA from this lineage. In fact, the DNA from many of the tortoises indicated they were first-generation hybrids, so these tortoises should still be around (even though we can't find them), as they live around 150 years! And, ancient molecules | 1/19/12 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
5 |
05 January, 2012 – This Week in Science | (http://www.twis.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-e1277863172926.jpg) Happy New Science Year!!! Celebrity Science Stumbles, TWIS Recaps 2011 Predictions, Predicts 2012, And Much More... Disclaimer, Disclaimer. Disclaimer!!! Swaddled in election year politics, Nursing on the bosom of post war recovery The newborn year has arrived And the future looks bright by the light of those eyes… Even with a diaper full of debt The new year offers new opportunities to engage in humanity's most sacred of duties. To learn… to teach what we have learned… and to pursue new knowledge For just like a newborn baby, knowledge is a living thing. And just like human reproduction, knowledge must constantly be reproduced in order to survive. It must be communicated in order continue, encouraged in order to grow, and performed in order thrive. When we do this, the knowledge of one becomes the knowledge of the many. There is then no greater principal we can aspire to than this. To produce more than we consume. It is a method and model of intellectual sustainability that we seek to engage in each week here on This week in science… coming up next. Some celebrity science stumbles (http://www.senseaboutscience.org/news.php/225/celebrities-and-science-2011) We also recapped our 2011 predictions (http://www.twis.org/2011/01/12/804/)... just how well did we do??? Get a free audiobook at Audible.com (http://www.audiblepodcast.com/twis)! We predict the science for 2012! Let us know what you think below... If you love TWIS, please support us by donating below: | 1/11/12 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
6 |
29 December, 2011 – This Week in Science | (http://www.twis.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-e1277863172926.jpg) Merry TWISmas And A Happy New Year! TWIS Recaps The Top 11 Science Stories Of 2011... Disclaimer, Disclaimer. Disclaimer!!! On this week's show: we have 11 stories. The science stories that we feel are the cream of the crop from the past year... the TWIS Top 11. Number 11: - Quantum teleportation (http://scienceblog.com/44589/quantum-teleporter-breakthrough/) - entanglement (http://www.physorg.com/news/2011-12-vibration-entangled-diamonds.html) - light (http://www.nature.com/news/2011/110603/full/news.2011.346.html) from nothing Number 10: - The fight against aging (http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/notrocketscience/2011/07/27/memory-improves-when-neurons-fire-in-youthful-surroundings/), or The year of the vampire (http://med.stanford.edu/ism/2011/august/aging-brain.html) Number 9: The fight against diseases!!! - HIV antiretroviral (http://the-scientist.com/2011/12/23/hiv-study-named-years-best/) treatment - Malaria vaccine (http://www.cnn.com/2011/10/18/health/trial-malaria-vaccine-africa/index.html) - MIT universal (http://web.mit.edu/newsoffice/2011/antiviral-0810.html) virus cure - avian flu fiasco - Black death bacteria identified Number 8: - Fracking Number 7: Taking a new look - The Big Splat - Dark (http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/cosmicvariance/2011/09/05/more-hints-of-dark-matter/) matter (http://arstechnica.com/science/news/2011/08/the-now-you-see-it-now-you-dont-nature-of-dark-matter.ars) - New standard (http://www.technologyreview.com/blog/arxiv/27195/) candle - hayabusa Get a free audiobook at Audible.com (http://www.audiblepodcast.com/twis)! Number 6: - robots replacing us (Watson (http://arstechnica.com/media/news/2011/02/creators-watson-has-no-speed-advantage-as-it-crushes-humans-in-jeopardy.ars), lab AI (http://www.abc.net.au/science/articles/2011/02/15/3139520.htm), hypothesis generator) - or, the robots will be us - - carbon nanotubes (http://scienceblog.com/44614/researchers-create-functioning-synapse-using-carbon-nanotubes/) make synapse… bionics… Number 5: - Humans did it - - microbiome Number 4: The Earth... - Arctic sea ice loss - Extreme weather Number 3: - LHC finds a particle … and the search for the Higgs - Trapping antimatter Number 2: - Potentially FTL neutrinos Number 1: Planets - Kepler and Earthlike (potentially habitable) planets - Mercury Messenger - New Dawn If you love TWIS, please support us by donating below: | 1/1/12 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
7 |
22 December, 2011 – This Week in Science | (http://www.twis.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-e1277863172926.jpg) Merry TWISmas!!!, LHC Finds Chi, Fluoride Fighters, Neti Dangers, Maggot Medicine FTW!, Buffed Mole Rats, Techie Devices, Universal Validation, RNA Magic, Floating Drugs, And Much More... Disclaimer, disclaimer, disclaimer! 'Twas the night before Twismas, when all thro' the house, Many studies were stirring, even one on a mouse; The stories were stacked by the webcam with care, In hopes that their moment soon would be there; The minions were nestled all snug in their beds, While science-y visions danc'd in their heads, And Kirsten with her baby, and I with my pabst, Had just settled our brains for a long winter's nap- When out on the internet arose such a clatter, I sprang from my slumber to see what was the matter. Away to my windows I flew like a kite, Clicked open the browsers, and signed into my skype. The tweeters were a twitter, the inbox was full Facebook was liking it, Google was too According to NASA, something new had appeared A satellite tracking of a sleigh and rein-deer, With a little old driver, so lively and quick, I thought for a moment it must be a trick. For much faster than photons this UFO came, And whistled, and shouted, and call'd out by name: "Now! Copernicus, now! Newton, now! Einstein, and Bohr, "On! Darwin, on! Huxley, on! Watson and Crick; I read he exclaimed this, then I got a text Happy Twis mas to all from this week in science… coming up next LHC finds Chi particle (http://www.wired.co.uk/news/archive/2011-12/22/lhcs-first-new-particle) fluoride resistant (http://www.physorg.com/news/2011-12-scientists-bacteria-toxic-flouride.html ) bacteria Why Neti Pots Are Bad (http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/artful-amoeba/2011/12/21/the-return-of-the-brain-eating-amoeba-neti-pot-edition/) For Your Brain Medical maggots (http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-12-french-maggots-wounds-faster-surgery.html) Naked mole rats feel no pain when exposed to acid (http://arstechnica.com/science/news/2011/12/acid-inhibits-naked-mole-rat-acid-sensors-instead-of-activating-them.ars) Get a free audiobook at Audible.com (http://www.audiblepodcast.com/twis)! Techie devices (http://www.hpcwire.com/hpcwire/2011-12-22/researchers_develop_optical_device_for_on-chip_communication.html) Validating the universe (http://www.interactions.org/cms/?pid=1031333) RNA (http://www.physorg.com/news/2011-12-cad-type-tools-rna.html) to DNA Drugs (http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/80beats/2011/12/19/cocaine-concentrations-in-the-air-above-italian-cities-correlate-with-drug-use/) In the Air (http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2011/12/illegal-drugs-air-quality/) Hormones make women more sensitive (http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/discoblog/2011/12/15/ncbi-rofl-the-cutest-little-baby-face-a-hormonal-link-to-sensitivity-to-cuteness-in-infant-faces/) to cute babies If you love TWIS, please support us by donating below: | 12/27/11 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
8 |
15 December, 2011 – This Week in Science | (http://www.twis.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-e1277863172926.jpg) Hiding Higgs, Fracking Up The Water, Science 8-Ball, PTSD Shot, Spider Science, Chest Waxers Beware, Ant Warfare, Sheep Politics, Tetrapod Trickiness, A Mini Stirling, And Much More… Disclaimer Disclaimer Disclaimer Look! at the world we live in Consider the history of human advancement across the ages, Tremendous progress over thousands of years, against great odds and overwhelming opposition Progress which pales in comparison to the drastic changes over the last hundred years, over the last ten years, or sometimes the great changes can even take place between episodes of this show…. Ask yourself, In a world like this, with people like us, is anything impossible? Nothing can be unachievable by a people who have achieved such greatness over and over again. Yes there are politics, yes there is a recession, yes mans inhumanity to man continues… Times are tough, but they’ve been tougher. The road ahead looks rough, but it’s looked rougher And with our look back in time, We can see what mysterious force of in history unlocked in the modern age that put such distance between the promise of the present and the struggles of the past… We can see it then and watch it now, as it continues to shape the future civilization here on… This week in science… coming up next Still no Higgs (http://arstechnica.com/science/news/2011/12/possible-higgs-boson-signals-but-we-wont-know-for-sure-until-next-year.ars)... Fracking water (http://arstechnica.com/science/news/2011/12/how-the-epa-linked-fracking-to-contaminated-well-water.ars) Fracking wells (http://www.nytimes.com/2011/12/13/science/some-blame-hydraulic-fracturing-for-earthquake-epidemic.html?_r=1&ref=science) New research tool to accelerate correlative (http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2011-12/hu-tdp121611.php) data studies A PTSD (http://www.popsci.com/science/article/2011-12/can-single-injection-cure-symptoms-post-traumatic-stress-disorder) shot??? Get a free audiobook at Audible.com (http://www.audiblepodcast.com/twis)! Spider (http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/80beats/2011/12/15/study-each-hair-on-a-spiders-body-is-an-ear/ ) science (http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/discoblog/2011/12/14/little-spiders-have-huge-brains-that-spill-into-their-legs/) Democracy for the Sheeple (http://www.mpg.de/4726963/crowd_followers_democracy ), by the Sheeple Protect against bedbugs (http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/discoblog/2011/12/14/ncbi-rofl-chest-waxers-beware-body-hair-protects-against-bedbugs/)... grow hair! Chemical (http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/notrocketscience/2011/12/15/look-no-hands-ants-kill-termites-with-airborne-chemical-weapons/) warfare in Antville! Tracks of tetrapods (http://arstechnica.com/science/news/2011/12/devonian-era-lungfish-may-have-faked-us-out-left-tetrapod-like-tracks.ars) Shrinking the Stirling (http://arstechnica.com/science/news/2011/12/scientists-shrink-a-stirling-heat-engine-to-single-microscopic-particle.ars ) engine If you love TWIS, please support us by donating below: | 12/23/11 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
9 |
08 December, 2011 – This Week in Science | (http://www.twis.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-e1277863172926.jpg) Arsenic Bacteria Genome, Cheap Solar, Touchy Feely Chimps And Rats, Bad Science, Thank You Video Games, Mammoth Cloning, Inheriting Worms, Old Marbles, Vaccines, Vitamins, And Much More... Disclaimer disclaimer disclaimer Science rewards the scientist with great personal satisfaction. The labor of learning is a labor of love, and those that make further discovery find the greatest satisfaction in what was already a rewarding endeavor. When first announced, new discovery can be met with tremendous resistance from the general public. Fear of the unknown presuming unknown danger, or fear of real danger, ignoring potential benefits. This has happened often enough throughout history that we can wonder how many times fire must have been discovered by some happy inventor… Only to have it stamped out by the feet of fearful cavemen thinking some evil spirit had been released But as time passes the unknown becomes the ordinary. Eventually they accept fire as fire, and move on to worshiping the shadows at the back of the cave wall Those who benefit from the warmth and light of scientific labor know little of the long hours of work, or the great joy and triumph of discovery and so …value it as ordinary As though all the scientific discovery of the past centuries was inevitable, as if knowledge simply leaks out into the world through an eventual randomness of time. But it simply is not so. It requires the dedication and knowledge of scientists across the globe to make progress happen. Without this hard work we couldn’t even have something as simple as… This Week in Science… Coming up next. Arsenic Bacteria (http://news.sciencemag.org/scienceinsider/2011/12/genome-of-controversial-arsenic.html) genome (http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/loom/2011/12/02/happy-birthday-arseniclife/)? Solar power (http://www.queensu.ca/news/articles/solar-power-much-cheaper-produce-most-analysts-realize-study-finds) is cheaper than you think Chimpanzee synesthete (http://www.nature.com/news/the-chimpanzee-who-sees-sounds-1.9541) Empathic (http://arstechnica.com/science/news/2011/12/rats-show-empathy-will-come-to-the-aid-of-other-rats.ars) rats? The worst (http://www.psychologicalscience.org/index.php/news/releases/why-arent-we-smarter-already-evolutionary-limits-on-cognition.html) science paper of the year... Get a free audiobook at Audible.com (http://www.audiblepodcast.com/twis)! Video games (http://www.esrc.ac.uk/news-and-events/press-releases/18763/avatars-develop-real-world-skills.aspx) make kids smarter Cloning (http://www.popsci.com/science/article/2011-12/scientists-world-were-going-finally-clone-woolly-mammoth-weve-been-talking-about) a mammoth (http://ksjtracker.mit.edu/2011/12/07/clone-a-mammoth-um-no-not-at-all-likely/)? Worm inheritance (http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/80beats/2011/12/07/worms-can-pass-a-trait-down-for-100-generations-without-using-dna/) Vitamin D and MS (http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-16086004) A vaccine (http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-16011748) for Ebola A sleeping (http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/80beats/2011/12/05/a-sleeping-pill-awakens-some-minimally-conscious-patients/) pill for waking? If you love TWIS, please support us by donating below: | 12/21/11 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
10 |
01 December, 2011 – This Week in Science | (http://www.twis.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-e1277863172926.jpg) Flu In The Lab, Red Matter, Flavor Networks, Making The Earth Move, TWIThe End Of The World, Worms In Space!!!, Oak Ridge Shorties, Sex On The Brain, And Much More... Disclaimer disclaimer disclaimer! The modern age has been brought to you by knowledge … We didn’t invent this modern age, and we don’t own the knowledge that made it possible. We owe our place in this world to the knowledge that has been lent to us over many millennia… It is on loan to us from the past, and we must repay it with interest. Interest in physics… interest in biology… Interest in human health… Interest in engineering… art and design Interest in literature… philosophy and democracy Interest in math, language, and cosmology We must take serious interest in our own education, as a sacred duty to the past and future generations of this earth. We are uniquely situated in the present day, as were past generations in their present days past… For like them, we too are at the pinnacle of all human history… They took that opportunity to push us forward into the modern age. To unlock the secrets of the atomic building blocks, to cure diseases and improve our standard of living, to launch us into orbit, take us to the moon, explore the solar system and universe beyond They invented the automobile, the satellite, the space shuttle and the hubble telescope. They invented the telephone, the radio, the television, the computer and microwave oven. They cured polio, chicken pox, small pox, measles, mumps, diphtheria and typhoid fever… We have their hard work to thank for where we are today, not our own. And in the interest of honoring the great minds that moved us forward and the tradition of hard work and dedication to the future we offer you… This Week in Science… Coming up next. Flu (http://www.cidrap.umn.edu/cidrap/content/influenza/avianflu/news/nov1711board.html) in the lab (http://news.sciencemag.org/scienceinsider/2011/11/scientists-brace-for-media-storm.html?rss=1). Want more on this story? Check out TWiV (http://www.twiv.tv/2011/11/27/twiv-159-flu-gets-the-redd-light/)! Newly discovered red matter (http://www.cfa.harvard.edu/news/2011/pr201133.html) Flavor Networks - http://www.technologyreview.com/blog/arxiv/27372/ Get a free audiobook at Audible.com (http://www.audiblepodcast.com/twis)! The ability to make the earth move (http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/11/111130142245.htm)... with proper lubrication End of the world... Corals (http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/11/111128132700.htm) and pH Climate (http://arstechnica.com/science/news/2011/11/study-of-the-last-glacial-maximum-suggests-lower-climate-sensitivity.ars) sensitivity (http://ksjtracker.mit.edu/2011/11/28/battling-blogs-and-sedate-news-reports-on-new-study-of-climate-sensitivity-or-how-hots-it-probly-gonna-get) Climate perception (http://arstechnica.com/science/news/2011/11/us-public-accepts-climate-consensus-they-just-dont-know-what-it-is.ars) Water, food (http://ksjtracker.mit.edu/2011/11/29/wires-un-agency-says-exhausted-lands-water-shortages-threaten-global-food-supply) Durban (http://ksjtracker.mit.edu/2011/11/29/lots-of-ink-not-so-much-news-uns-climate-talks-on-in-durban-so-africa-where-to-next) Worms (http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-15897803)... in space!!! 4 or 5 great short stories out of Oak Ridge National Laboratory Cleavage Wars (http://www.digitaljournal.com/article/314880) Naked Brains (http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2011/11/the-psychology-of-nakedness/) Sex with Neanderthals (http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2011/11/111125-neanderthals-sex-humans-dna-science-extinct/) If you love TWIS, please support us by donating below: | 12/9/11 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
11 |
17 November, 2011 – This Week in Science | (http://www.twis.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-e1277863172926.jpg) Prostate Pill Problems, A Faster Internet, From Whence Came The Gamburtsevs, Dropping The Climate To Sell, Alien Rats, Burning Then Dying, And Much More... Disclaimer disclaimer disclaimer! The universe as we know it now Is not the universe as we once believed it to be It’s bigger… smaller… and much more complex than any of the great cosmic ponderers of the past could possibly have imagined Now, as always, we stand on the brink of history, at the pinnacle of scientific and technological capability… What we will learn in the next wave of scientific discoveries will cover more ground, uncover more mysteries and produce a more detailed picture of the universe than the one we now see… Along the way to this greater discovering, we will encounter strange new possibilities, unintuitive potential universes in a multiverse of time and space probabilities that force us to conceive of our reality as only one amongst many others… as though our entire universe is but a single page of a reference book upon a library shelf surrounded by volume upon volume of cosmic narratives… And then again… if the past has taught us one thing about the universe it is that it has always been strange… Just when you’re sure of one you’ll find it’s gone and made a change… In attempt to keep you in tune with at least one version of reality we bring you This week in science… coming up next Is the pill causing increases in prostate (http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-15720478) cancer? A faster internet (http://science.energy.gov/news/in-focus/2011/11-15-11/) on the way! Gamburtsev origins (http://www.ldeo.columbia.edu/news-events/researchers-unravel-origins-antarcticas-ice-covered-mountains) news... not once, but twice! A Frozen Planet treading on thin ice (http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/earthnews/8889541/BBC-drops-Frozen-Planets-climate-change-episode-to-sell-show-better-abroad.html)? Get a free audiobook at Audible.com (http://www.audiblepodcast.com/twis)! Alien (http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-15738837) rats... First comes the burning (http://arstechnica.com/science/news/2011/11/the-great-dying-first-it-warmed-then-it-burned.ars), then the dying... And, the pain (http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/notrocketscience/2011/11/16/coral-snake-venom-pain/). The Leonids (http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-15775514) are here! If you love TWIS, please support us by donating below: | 11/30/11 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
12 |
10 November, 2011 – This Week in Science | (http://www.twis.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-e1277863172926.jpg) Of Monkeys And Men, Mighty Mice, Guts And Brains, Toxo Chem Lab, Predicting Risk, Attention And Vision, Magnetic Moon, You In A Dish, And Much More... Disclaimer disclaimer disclaimer! The lunatics are running the asylum… And while we all may have been assuming the asylum staff would be able to get things back under control, it is quite clear now that the gig of being an asylum staffer was not a career choice, and hardly worth returning to under adverse conditions… that or they have been eaten by the inmates… In any case… The way in which the governments of the world have set their priorities seem to indicate that they have no idea how civilization got where it is today… It was science! Not investment banks that discovered how to harness electricity, how to light our homes, power a motor, and how to build the first computers It was science! Not service providers that unlocked the secrets of gravity, of rocketry, of physics that launched the satellites into space It was science! Not massive media conglomerates that invented radio, television, analog and digital recordings… It is science! That saves us from illness before we get sick and rescues us again when we do… Not health insurance companies or pharmaceutical companies… It is science that has lead the way over and over again throughout human history and it is science in which we must trust to lead us through the current problems we face… But you won’t hear talk like that anywhere other than… This week in science!… coming up next Egalitarian monkeys (http://www.abc.net.au/science/articles/2011/11/08/3358110.htm) in Brazil... selective advantage for first human colonists (http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/11/111103143237.htm)... Creating Mighty (http://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/science-news/8881342/Scientists-tweak-gene-to-create-mighty-mouse.html) mouse... Does our large brain stem from our guts (http://www.abc.net.au/science/articles/2011/11/10/3360267.htm)? Toxo (http://www.leeds.ac.uk/news/article/2635/brain_parasite_directly_alters_brain_chemistry) alters brain chemistry... Get a free audiobook at Audible.com (http://www.audiblepodcast.com/twis)! Computer predicts breast cancer (http://www.nature.com/news/the-computer-will-see-you-now-1.9324) risk... Looking versus seeing (http://www.abc.net.au/science/articles/2011/11/11/3362282.htm)... Moon's magnetized rocks (http://www.abc.net.au/science/articles/2011/11/10/3360649.htm)... Pituitary gland (http://blogs.nature.com/news/2011/11/pituitary_gland_in_a_dish_make.html) in a dish... If you love TWIS, please support us by donating below: | 11/25/11 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
13 |
03 November, 2011 – This Week in Science | (http://www.twis.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-e1277863172926.jpg) Long Live The Mice!, Oh The Climate Is A'Changing, Changing The Rules, Putting Off Inevitability, Memory Doors, Astronaut Eyes, Bacterial Swap Meet, Bacteria Vamps, And Much More… Disclaimer disclaimer disclaimer! Mice (http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2011/11/cellular-senescence) living healthier! Justin rants on Chlymatia (http://www.sustainablebusinessoregon.com/articles/2011/11/osu-global-warming-prompts-tree.html), Science (http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2011-11/w-thc110311.php), and Skeptics who used to be Skeptics (http://www.nytimes.com/2011/11/04/opinion/dr-mullers-findings-on-global-warming.html)... One more reason (http://news.discovery.com/tech/one-step-closer-to-borg-111102.html ) to stop climate change. Get a free audiobook at Audible.com (http://www.audiblepodcast.com/twis)! Electromagnetism (http://www.abc.net.au/science/articles/2011/11/02/3353491.htm ) found to vary. Be wary. Higgs (http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-205_162-57317697/higgs-boson-hunt-on-hold-until-2012/) hiding for another year... The brain's rich club (http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn21117-the-rich-club-that-rules-your-brain.html). Doorway to your memory (http://bps-research-digest.blogspot.com/2011/11/how-walking-through-doorway-increases.html ) Astronaut (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/nasa-sponsored-study-describes-how-space-flight-impacts-astronauts-eyes-and-vision-2011-11-03) Eyes... Humans… bacterial trading (http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/notrocketscience/2011/10/31/our-bodies-are-a-global-marketplace-where-bacteria-trade-genes/) cards Vampire (http://www.livescience.com/16822-vampire-bacteria-genome.html) bacteria If you love TWIS, please support us by donating below: | 11/9/11 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
14 |
20 October, 2011 – This Week in Science | (http://www.twis.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-e1277863172926.jpg) A Malaria Vaccine, Gypsy King Ancestors, A Near Miss?, Carbonated Rivers, Not So Faster Than Light?, High On Depression, Math Anxiety, No TV For Baby, New Planets, An Artistic Challenge, And Much More... Disclaimer disclaimer disclaimer! In the following hour you will hear stories that are neither true nor false Neither fact nor fiction Neither six of this nor half dozen of the other Neither concrete, nor abstract nor a hazy concoction of the two as agreed upon by anonymous vote… What you will hear instead is the absolute best guess of what reality has taken place in the past, and what realities we are likely to undergo in the future… This system of gathering from past observations to predict the future is called science And while nothing in science is ever as certain as the whimsical beliefs of mankind… Certainly it has its place as a backup plan for when our ideal world fails to materialize… Though occasionally our whimsical nature is rewarded as we see when we faithfully tune into another episode and find… This Week in Science… coming up next A Malaria Vaccine (http://ksjtracker.mit.edu/2011/10/19/experimental-malaria-vaccine-protects-nearly-half-of-children/) On Course to Eradication (http://ksjtracker.mit.edu/2011/10/18/malaria-deaths-fell-20-percent-during-last-decade-who-says-world-on-course-to-eradicate-in-the-next/) Gypsy (http://www.ars.usda.gov/is/pr/2011/111019.htm) King Ancestors A Kraken of a comet (http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/badastronomy/2011/10/17/did-a-fragmenting-comet-nearly-hit-the-earth-in-1883-color-me-very-skeptical/) Carbonated (http://www.nsf.gov/news/news_summ.jsp?cntn_id=121994) Rivers Get a free audiobook at Audible.com (http://www.audiblepodcast.com/twis)! Maybe Not So Super (http://ksjtracker.mit.edu/2011/10/17/superluminal-neutrinos-relativity-theory-rescued-by-relativity-theory/)... Luminal (http://ksjtracker.mit.edu/2011/10/19/zippy-neutrinos-yet-another-challenge-no-cerenkov-radiation/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=zippy-neutrinos-yet-another-challenge-no-cerenkov-radiation) High Praise (http://www.apa.org/pubs/journals/releases/emo-11-5-1096.pdf) for Depression Turn Off Your TV - http://arstechnica.com/science/news/2011/10/its-official-to-protect-babys-brain-turn-off-the-tv.ars New (http://ksjtracker.mit.edu/2011/10/20/time-naturenews-new-scientist-etc-star-swaddled-in-smashed-comets-dust-and-vapor-rain-forecast-for-alien-planet/) Planets (http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/badastronomy/2011/10/20/the-first-direct-image-of-a-baby-planet-being-born-maybebut-probably/) And, Greedy, Party Crashing (http://arstechnica.com/science/news/2011/10/stars-that-shouldnt-be-there-form-by-sucking-not-smashing.ars) Stars An Artistic (http://pubs.acs.org/cen/science/89/8942sci2.html) Challenge If you love TWIS, please support us by donating below: | 10/26/11 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
15 |
13 October, 2011 – This Week in Science | (http://www.twis.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-e1277863172926.jpg) A Kraken Tale, Toothy Pterosaurs, Coloring Fossil Moths, Digital Dinos, Black Death Sequenced, Marriage Madness, The Hard Lives of Stars, We Got Muscles, No More Vitamins, And Much More... Disclaimer disclaimer disclaimer! Without a pre amble the post amble can seem pointless And when things seem pointless the problems that face us become too daunting to deal with Things too daunting are ignored or resigned to as inevitable When things are ignored, they are not taught, no teachers, no students, no new thoughts and with no new thoughts, no new solutions are possible… and so the problems continue In science, there is nothing so daunting as having no teachers, no students, and no new thoughts For the problems facing us are not nearly so great as the opportunities for greatness that are going unanswered… Without the questioning minds, there are no questions asked, and no answers found… even though solutions are still required We people are capable of far greater feats of solution finding than we have performed so far And as proof of this, we offer you This week in science… coming up next A Kraken (http://arstechnica.com/science/news/2011/10/the-giant-prehistoric-squid-that-ate-common-sense.ars) of a Tale (http://io9.com/5848192/giant-prehistoric-krakens-may-have-sculpted-self+portraits-using-ichthyosaur-bones) Toothy Pterosaur (http://www.livescience.com/16542-giant-toothed-pterosaur.html) Black holes destroy (http://www.spaceref.com/news/viewpr.html?pid=34906&utm_campaign=&utm_medium=srs.gs-twitter&utm_source=t.co&utm_content=api) stars There's a bounty of failed (http://www.artsci.utoronto.ca/main/media-releases/astronomers-find-bounty-of-failed-stars) stars out there Materialism and Marriage (http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2011-10/byu-cbm101111.php) Black death (http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/notrocketscience/2011/10/12/scientists-sequence-the-full-black-death-genome-and-find-the-mother-of-all-plagues/) sequenced And, fossil (http://www.insidescience.org/research/fossil-moths-reveal-their-true-colors) moths show some color Get a free audiobook at Audible.com (http://www.audiblepodcast.com/twis)! Muscles of the future (http://www.publicaffairs.ubc.ca/2011/10/13/ubc-researchers-invent-tiny-artificial-muscles-with-the-strength-flexibility-of-elephant-trunk/ ) Don't take your vitamins (http://www.acsh.org/factsfears/newsid.1657/news_detail.asp) The LHSee (http://www.stfc.ac.uk/News+and+Events/37666.aspx) Stopping inflammation (http://web.mit.edu/newsoffice/2011/inflammation-1009.html) If you love TWIS, please support us by donating below: | 10/19/11 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
16 |
06 October, 2011 – This Week in Science | (http://www.twis.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-e1277863172926.jpg) Ignobel Awards, Crab Nebula Calling, LUCO, Icarus Plans, Fins To Feet, Cometary Origins, Pee To Fuel, Happy Hate, Placebo Receptor, And Much More... Disclaimer disclaimer disclaimer! There are more wrong answers to questions than there are correct ones. On the surface this may seem obvious, but if you drill down a bit you soon discover that it is not only obvious, but also plain to see… That the wrong information is prevalent in absolutely every human endeavor for the unknown itself begins as everything everywhere and only ends in an infinite number of best guesses. It is utterly unavoidable that we must constantly make decisions based on incorrect data derived from poorly constructed questions under less than ideal experimental conditions with insufficient history of past results upon which to base future predictions… And yet… our margin of error ridden decision making has allowed us humans to survive, to multiply and to produce magnificent achievements of the mind, terrific triumphs of technology and irrefutable rationalizations of the physical realities of time and space… And while some will tell you that the old solutions are still the best solutions to our way forward… Others, unsatisfied with simply having it right some of the time, continue to pursue more perfect solutions. Are occupying themselves with the possibilities that were either overlooked or entirely unforeseen… and are challenging the best answers of the past in order to find better ones for the future. For no matter how much ground has been gained from the unknown in the many millennia of human knowledge we must not rest upon the laurels of giants… And remind ourselves that the pioneering spirit of mankind still has an unexplored frontier ahead… For there are still more wrong answers to questions than there are correct ones. Although there is one thing we do know with great certainty… that it is time for This week in science… coming up next Ignobel (http://improbable.com/ig/winners/#ig2011) Awards!!! Crab Nebula (http://news.wustl.edu/news/Pages/22719.aspx) News First common (http://io9.com/5847099/) organelle Flying Closer to the Sun (http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-15146082) Fins to legs (http://www.abc.net.au/science/articles/2011/10/05/3332050.htm) Get a free audiobook at Audible.com (http://www.audiblepodcast.com/twis)! Water from Comets (http://news.discovery.com/space/comet-hartley-water-111005.html)? Bacteria turns urine (http://www.abc.net.au/science/articles/2011/10/03/3330834.htm) into rocket fuel Happy people (http://www.dcs.warwick.ac.uk/~feng/papers/mp_11_jf.pdf) more likely to hate Some placebos (http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2011/10/cannabinoids-placebos-pain/) act via cannabinoid receptors Hey ladies! Make-up (http://the-scientist.com/2011/10/05/makeup-enhances-likability/) makes people like you better. Brain variation (http://www.abc.net.au/science/articles/2011/10/05/3332673.htm) determines memory accuracy. If you love TWIS, please support us by donating below: | 10/12/11 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
17 |
29 September, 2011 – This Week in Science | (http://www.twis.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-e1277863172926.jpg) A New Standard, Hallucinating Personality, Synthetic Brains, Anabolic Mustard, Icebergs Kill Invertebrates, 5 Giants, Justin Gets Embarrassed, The Dead Sea Lives, And Much More... Disclaimer disclaimer disclaimer! New Standard (http://www.technologyreview.com/blog/arxiv/27195/) Candle Gravity Clusters (http://news.sciencemag.org/sciencenow/2011/09/galaxy-clusters-validate-einstei.html) for Einstein Fermilab (http://www.popsci.com/technology/article/2011-09/fermilab-physicists-will-help-check-revolutionary-faster-light-claim) checking CERN Magic Mushrooms (http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2011-09/jhmi-sdo092811.php) Change You Synthetic (http://www.popsci.com/science/article/2011-09/israeli-researchers-build-rat-cyborg-packing-digitally-derived-cerebellum) cerebellum Spatial competition in the brain (http://news.sciencemag.org/sciencenow/2011/09/beam-me-up-ratty.html) Get a free audiobook at Audible.com (http://www.audiblepodcast.com/twis)! Natural steroids (http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2011-09/foas-lwe092911.php) you can buy in your grocery store A home remedy for spinal injuries (http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2011-09/uok-cus092811.php) Red Wine (http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2011-09/foas-rwi092911.php) Cures Icebergs (http://arstechnica.com/science/news/2011/09/liberated-icebergs-messing-with-antarctic-biodiversity.ars) and biodiversity A 5th Gas Giant (http://www.popsci.com/technology/article/2011-09/lost-planet)? The number one reason people should never trust (http://newscenter.berkeley.edu/2011/09/28/easily-embarrassed/) Justin New bacterial (http://www.popsci.com/science/article/2011-09/weird-new-forms-bacterial-life-found-dead-sea) life Darker (http://www.technologyreview.com/blog/arxiv/27202/) than black If you love TWIS, please support us by donating below: | 10/5/11 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
18 |
22 September, 2011 | (http://www.twis.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-e1277863172926.jpg) Faster Than Light?, Smarty Party, Seagull Poo, Parasite Hacker, What You Eat, DNA Triple Threat, TWIWRD, Nervous Genes, Gaming For Science, And Much More… Disclaimer disclaimer disclaimer! If you have not yet heard the news, this announcement may be reaching you too late… While it is likely too late for you to do anything about it, the news is so shocking, so un-paralleled in it awe inducing implications… as to have rendered those with advanced knowledge vaguely helpless and little more than mild panic has occurred in the meantime… The story is that the speed of light might have been broken in a laboratory… and with it, a major pillar of science has cracked and all of physics is now in jeopardy of collapsing around us… While this is a preliminary observation and has yet to be properly vetted, Already we see the effects of this unprecedented paradigm shifting event as NASA satellites, uncertain about the validity of special relativity, have begun plummeting from their orbits in despair… And thought the end of the world as we know it may be at hand… fear not brave minions! For the world as we did not know it is under foot… And in the final analysis, the brave new world we are walking into May not be that much different than… This Week in Science… Coming up next Faster (http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/44629271/ns/technology_and_science-science/) than light (http://motls.blogspot.com/2011/09/italian-out-of-tune-superluminal.html)? Justin's pro-gifted minds rant Society would benefit from increasing the number of individuals who make path breaking, field-altering discoveries Birds (http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2011/09/seagulls-resistant-poop/) and Bacteria Toxo un-veiled (http://www.news.cornell.edu/stories/Sept11/Toxoplasma.html) Get a free audiobook at Audible.com (http://www.audiblepodcast.com/twis)! The history (http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2011-09/hms-dk091611.php) of (http://www.news.cornell.edu/stories/Sept11/SiepelMigration.html) mankind ( http://news.ku.dk/all_news/2011/2011.9/aboriginals-get-new-history/) Rice (http://www.popsci.com/science/article/2011-09/we-incorporate-genetic-information-food-we-eat-says-new-study) is in you! TWIWRD - Fingerprints (http://www.technologyreview.com/blog/arxiv/27176/) for robots New genes for nerve repair ( http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2011-09/uoc--usd092111.php) Gaming (http://www.npr.org/blogs/health/2011/09/19/140606555/gamers-solve-stubborn-viral-mystery-the-shape-of-a-key-enzyme) for Science (http://www.cs.washington.edu/homes/zoran/NSMBfoldit-2011.pdf) If you love TWIS, please support us by donating below: | 9/27/11 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
19 |
15 September, 2011 – This Week in Science | (http://www.twis.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-e1277863172926.jpg) My Two Suns, Bachmann's HPV Debacle, Bird News, Arctic Ice, What Is Life?, Black Hole Galaxy, Self-Delusion Nation, TWIWRD, City: Mongolia, Auto Algorithms, And Much More… My 2 Suns (http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/kepler/news/kepler-16b.html )... The retarded HPV challenge (http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-504763_162-20106117-10391704.html) Smart (http://www.physorg.com/news/2011-09-crows-humans.html ) birdies... Birds (http://www.sciencemag.org/content/333/6049/1619.abstract) of a feather (http://www.nytimes.com/2011/09/20/science/20feather.html) Gimme a north pole (http://www.cbc.ca/news/technology/story/2011/09/15/north-arctic-ice-study-confirms-low.html)... neat. Get a free audiobook at Audible.com (http://www.audiblepodcast.com/twis)! What is Life (http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/09/110915091625.htm)??? - (Thanks, Tim!) Black holes in galaxy creation (http://www.physorg.com/news/2011-09-small-distant-galaxies-host-supermassive.html ) Self-delusion (http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2011-09/uoe-sdi091411.php) is good for you? TWIWRD (http://news.discovery.com/tech/robot-evolta-ironman-hawaii-110915.html ) Algorithms (http://www.technologyreview.com/blog/arxiv/27166/) for your car If you love TWIS, please support us by donating below: | 9/21/11 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
20 |
08 September, 2011 – This Week in Science | (http://www.twis.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-e1277863172926.jpg) Dark Hints, Football Impacts, Stimulation Weight Loss, Magnets Lie, Pre-Human Fossil Stories, Brain Science, Room Temp Superconductors, TWIWRD (Crab Edition), Crab Invaders, And Much More... Hints of the dark (http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/cosmicvariance/2011/09/05/more-hints-of-dark-matter/) Football (http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/09/08/head-blows-on-the-football-field/) impacts Stimulation (http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/09/110906121242.htm) weight loss Magnetic stimulation for lying (http://io9.com/5837983/scientists-can-make-you-lie-using-magnets) Delaying gratification (http://arstechnica.com/science/news/2011/09/why-impulse-control-doesnt-get-easier-with-age.ars) as you age Seeing and Feeling (http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2011-09/uosc-usp090811.php) Hearing (http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2011-09/m-hwm090811.php) and Seeing Get a free audiobook at Audible.com (http://www.audiblepodcast.com/twis)! Room temp superconducters (http://www.technologyreview.com/blog/arxiv/27135/?p1=blogs) Pre-human was mix of modern (http://the-scientist.com/2011/09/08/the-mosaic-pre-man/) and old (http://arstechnica.com/science/news/2011/09/origin-story-new-papers-claim-a-sediba-as-human-ancestor.ars) What about African interbreeding (http://arstechnica.com/science/news/2011/09/did-africans-join-in-on-archaic-interbreeding.ars)? TWIWRD - watch out crabs (http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-14793436)! Crab invaders (http://news.sciencemag.org/sciencenow/2011/09/scienceshot-king-crab-invasion.html)! VIDEO: Contagion (http://io9.com/5838431/contagions-bacteria-grown-billboard-is-the-perfect-viral-marketing) If you love TWIS, please support us by donating below: | 9/15/11 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
21 |
01 September, 2011 – This Week in Science | (http://www.twis.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-e1277863172926.jpg) Unexpected Star, Dull Drunks, We Like Animals, Reversing Baldness, Blood!, Old Tools, No Sex For Skinks, Cleverbot Debate, And Much More… The star (http://www.physorg.com/news/2011-08-star.html) that shouldn't exist (http://www.abc.net.au/science/articles/2011/09/01/3306919.htm) Dull Drunks (http://www.scienceagogo.com/news/20110801235243data_trunc_sys.shtml) Our brain (http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2011/08/seeing-animals/) likes animals (http://io9.com/5835391/our-brains-dont-consider-us-to-be-animals) Fatty Scalp (http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-14746365) Get a free audiobook at Audible.com (http://www.audiblepodcast.com/twis)! Blood (http://www.technologyreview.com/biomedicine/38457/?p1=MstRcnt)! And, more blood (http://www.technologyreview.com/biomedicine/38464/?p1=A3)! Old tools (http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2011/09/homo-erectus-tools/) What keeps species (http://io9.com/5835261/lizard-species-keep-trying-to-interbreedbut-theyre-just-the-wrong-size) separate? Sometimes it's physical TWIWRD - Chatbots (http://io9.com/5835508/ ) have a conversation If you love TWIS, please support us by donating below: | 9/7/11 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
22 |
25 August, 2011 – This Week in Science | (http://www.twis.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-e1277863172926.jpg) Non-emergent Gravity, Bad Juju Girl Style, Time Cells, Vagina Monologues, On Female Choice, Case Of The Missing Higgs, And Much Much More... Gravity (http://www.technologyreview.com/blog/arxiv/27102) Doesn't Emerge Women Anticipate Negative (http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/233275.php) Things On Female (http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2011-08/uoe-fcm082311.php) Choice (http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2011-08/uocp-ces082511.php)... In Birds Justin Is Concerned About Vaginas (http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-504763_162-20096886-10391704.html) Everywhere Get a free audiobook at Audible.com (http://www.audiblepodcast.com/twis)! You Have Time Cells (http://news.sciencemag.org/sciencenow/2011/08/time-cells-weave-events-into-mem.html) Smoke 'Em If You're An Adult The Higgs (http://news.sciencemag.org/sciencenow/2011/08/hints-of-higgs-boson-appear-weaker.html) Is Still Missing If you love TWIS, please support us by donating below: | 8/30/11 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
23 |
18 August, 2011 – This Week in Science | (http://www.twis.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-e1277863172926.jpg) Dark Matter Illusion, Air Fowled By Dogs, Exploding Bacteria, Toxo Rats, Spinning Spiders, Bad Ads, Butterflies and Bears, And Much More... Dark Matter Illusion (http://www.physorg.com/news/2011-08-dark-illusion-quantum-vacuum.html) Detection inconsistencies (http://arstechnica.com/science/news/2011/08/the-now-you-see-it-now-you-dont-nature-of-dark-matter.ars) Why Cleveland stinks (http://www.colorado.edu/news/r/988b8965845b604ca9e384fbaf808a60.html). Bursting (http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=engineered-bacteria-secrete-toxin) Bacteria (http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/notrocketscience/2011/08/16/scientists-engineer-suicide-bomber-bacteria-to-kill-other-bacteria/) Bombs (http://ksjtracker.mit.edu/2011/08/16/the-scientist-re-engineered-e-coli-find-a-superbug-and-kill-it-while-exploding/) Toxo rats (http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0023277) Toxoplasma (http://www.scientificamerican.com/podcast/episode.cfm?id=toxoplasma-infected-rats-love-their-11-08-17) in the news (http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2011-08/plos-pir081711.php) - Get a free audiobook at Audible.com (http://www.audiblepodcast.com/twis)! How spiders (http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2011-08/tum-wsd081711.php) do that thing that they do...make webs. Bats See (http://arstechnica.com/science/news/2011/08/bats-navigate-with-visual-map-additional-unknown-cues.ars) Their Way Home Let Sleeping Bears (http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2011-08/bc-fat081511.php) Lie If you love TWIS, please support us by donating below: | 8/23/11 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
24 |
11 August, 2011 – This Week in Science | (http://www.twis.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-e1277863172926.jpg) Viral Cure-All, Bug Love, Not Spoiling Anything, Fungus Amungus, Lab Sphincters, It's Not A Trap!!!, TWIWRD, A Giant Bird, And Much More... Imagine All The Viruses (http://web.mit.edu/newsoffice/2011/antiviral-0810.html)... cured Spoilers Don't Spoil (http://arstechnica.com/science/news/2011/08/spoilers-dont-spoil-anything.ars) the Fun Get a free audiobook at Audible.com (http://www.audiblepodcast.com/twis)! Anal sphincters (http://scienceblog.com/46996/researchers-use-human-cells-to-engineer-functional-anal-sphincters-in-lab) in the lab Info Escapes (http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2011-08/uoy-egc081011.php) Giant bird (http://news.discovery.com/animals/bird-lived-alongside-dinosaurs-110809.html) lived with dinos TWIWRD (http://www.popsci.com/cars/article/2011-08/human-caused-driverless-car-crash-more-evidence-cars-should-just-take-over) If you love TWIS, please support us by donating below: | 8/16/11 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
25 |
04 August, 2011 – This Week in Science | (http://www.twis.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-e1277863172926.jpg) Two Moons In One, Old People Do It, Bumpin' Universe, Heat Seeking Vampires, Smarties Getting Smarter, Curing Sleep, We Are Chimera, Rat Slobber, And Much More... Two, two, two moons (http://ksjtracker.mit.edu/2011/08/04/lots-of-ink-our-moon-may-once-have-been-two-then-they-merged-or-splatted/) in one!!! Old People (http://www.einstein.yu.edu/home/news.asp?id=678) Do It Did our universe (http://ksjtracker.mit.edu/2011/08/03/bbc-is-the-sky-bruised-did-a-bubble-universe-bump-us-only-planck-can-tell/) go bump in the night? Get a free audiobook at Audible.com (http://www.audiblepodcast.com/twis)! Jonah Lehrer asks 'Are smart people getting smarter (http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2011/08/are-smart-people-getting-smarter/)'? Beware the toxic rat slobber (http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/08/110802201836.htm) We are all chimeras (http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2011/08/human-cells-chimera/) If you love TWIS, please support us by donating below: | 8/11/11 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
26 |
28 July, 2011 – This Week in Science | (http://www.twis.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-e1277863172926.jpg) What's Old Acts Young, Toxo Cancer Link?, Is Cancer A Parasite?, A Trojan For Earth, Slim Chance For Life, Interview w/ Joel Primack and Nancy Ellen Abrams About The New Universe, And Much More... Everything old can be young (http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/notrocketscience/2011/07/27/memory-improves-when-neurons-fire-in-youthful-surroundings/) again... Toxoplasma (http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/notrocketscience/2011/07/26/is-the-parasite-toxoplasma-gondii-linked-to-brain-cancer/) and Cancer? Maybe, Maybe Not. Cancer a Parasite (http://newscenter.berkeley.edu/2011/07/26/are-cancers-newly-evolved-species/)? Earth has a Trojan (http://arstechnica.com/science/news/2011/07/astronomers-find-earths-first-trojan-asteroid.ars) ET life (http://www.technologyreview.com/blog/arxiv/27025/?ref=rss)? Slim chance... Get a free audiobook at Audible.com (http://www.audiblepodcast.com/twis)! In the second half of the show, we interviewed Joel R. Primack and Nancy Ellen Abrams about their new book: The New Universe (http://new-universe.org). If you love TWIS, please support us by donating below: | 8/3/11 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
27 |
21 July, 2011 – This Week in Science | (http://www.twis.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-e1277863172926.jpg) A New Dawn, The 4th Moon, Invisible Time, Electric Tadpoles, Spark of Life, High Schoolers With Rulers, A Tale Of Two Mice, UC Davis Monkey Pox, And Much More... A New Dawn (http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/dawn/news/dawn20110718.html)... Hubble finds 4th moon around Plutp (http://hubblesite.org/newscenter/archive/releases/2011/23/full/) Temporal Invisibility (http://www.technologyreview.com/blog/arxiv/26992/ )??? Electric tadpoles ( http://news.discovery.com/animals/electrical-patterns-frog-110720.html#mkcpgn=rssnws1) foretell future events. The Spark (http://www.nih.gov/news/health/jul2011/nichd-21.htm) of Life... Get a free audiobook at Audible.com (http://www.audiblepodcast.com/twis)! High Schoolers (http://www.biologynews.net/archives/2011/07/21/unlisted_ingredients_in_teas_and_herbal_brews_revealed_in_dna_tests_by_high_school_students.html) With Rulers A Tale of Two Mice (http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/notrocketscience/2011/07/21/house-mice-picked-up-poison-resistance-gene-by-having-sex-with-related-species/)... UC Davis Primate Virus (http://arstechnica.com/science/news/2011/07/species-hopping-virus-found-in-california-primate-facility.ars) Want to look for sharks (http://www.scientificamerican.com/citizen-science/project.cfm?id=shark-observation-network)? If you love TWIS, please support us by donating below: | 7/27/11 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
28 |
14 July, 2011 – This Week in Science | (http://www.twis.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-e1277863172926.jpg) Justin Raps, Stem Cell-o-Rama!, Fish Using Tools, TWIWRD Disturbs Us All, Lizard VS. Bird, The Internet Is Your Mind, And Much More... Justin's Disclaimer Rap: Disclaimer to the many minions and fans of twis If you gotta hungry brain it’ll bounce to this And as I labor to find the inspired line of reason to rhyme So I can spit science-y alliterations when it comes show time Dr kiki gets the show rolling with a phd of kick ass knowing and kicks will be going to my shins if my speech is slowing or my tangent starts flowing But seriously how do you contain within a brain frame of just one hour That the world as we know it is but one drop in an informational shower That everything we know now is only ten percent of what we will learn in fifty years hence Its mind boggling to say the least That each week we could have such feast Of new ideas and new discovery From exoplanets to ancient dna recovery From the big bang to the latest advances We got more science news than Chinese zoos got pandas And all the great finds of late minds over the history of time on the shoulders of giants we put it in context This week in science is coming up next... Stem Cell Round up!!! California Eyes Stem Cells - http://www.popsci.com/science/article/2011-07/first-trial-embryonic-stem-cell-treatment-blindness-begins-california Stem Cell Breakthrough (http://www.plosbiology.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pbio.1001099 )... in Mice First Synthetic Organ (http://www.popsci.com/science/article/2011-07/using-lab-grown-trachea-surgeons-conduct-worlds-first-synthetic-organ-transplant) Transplant Teeth (http://www.popsci.com/science/article/2011-07/mice-molars-grown-stem-cells-form-fully-functional-transplantable-teeth) From Stem Cells Fish Using Tools (http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/80beats/2011/07/13/fish-join-the-list-of-tool-using-animals/) A (surprisingly) great compilation (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/07/12/tusk-fish-using-tools-eat_n_895563.html) of the press on this story Get a free audiobook at Audible.com (http://www.audiblepodcast.com/twis)! TWIWRD! Robots For Climate Science (http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=climate-scientists-to-use-robo) Really Disturbing Robot (video from popsci (http://www.popsci.com/technology/article/2011-07/moaning-mouth-bot-learns-croon-even-creepier-ever), and Kagome (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kagome_Kagome) song) But, neverfear, NYT article (http://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/12/science/12robot.html?_r=1&ref=science) reassures us that robots aren't us yet... Lizard (http://news.sciencemag.org/sciencenow/2011/07/scienceshot-tropical-lizards-get.html) vs. Bird The Internet (http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/notrocketscience/2011/07/14/the-extended-mind-%E2%80%93-how-google-affects-our-memories/) Of Our Memory (http://arstechnica.com/science/news/2011/07/study-why-bother-to-remember-when-you-can-just-use-google.ars) If you love TWIS, please support us by donating below: | 7/19/11 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
29 |
07 July, 2011 – This Week in Science | (http://www.twis.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-e1277863172926.jpg) Repairing Damaged Brains, Overpriced Drugs, Speaking in Genes, Let's Get Dirty, TWIWRD!, Pollution Stupidity, The Romance Novel, Finger Ratio, The (Not So) Holographic Life, Minion Experiment!, And Much More… Repairing The Damage (http://the-scientist.com/2011/07/04/new-target-for-myelin-repair/) Of MS From Speech (http://hosted.verticalresponse.com/609780/11166221c6/289803557/b10e12f275/) To Brain (http://www.plosgenetics.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pgen.1002145) How much do drugs cost ( http://www.genengnews.com/gen-articles/drug-r-d-costs-questioned/3707) to make? Get a free audiobook at Audible.com (http://www.audiblepodcast.com/twis)! Let's Get Dirty (http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702304314404576413303666083390.html)... - Robots Of The Future Stink (http://www.engadget.com/2011/06/30/robotic-armpit-sweats-you-out-of-harms-way-uncanny-valley-just/) Bad Air Bad For Brains (http://the-scientist.com/2011/07/06/air-pollution-stunts-cognition/) How Long Is Your Finger (http://the-scientist.com/2011/07/05/digit-ratio-predicts-penis-length/ )? Is Our Universe Holographic (http://news.discovery.com/space/we-might-not-live-in-a-hologram-after-all-110701.html)? Take part in our experiment! Listen to the show to see if you can get involved... If you love TWIS, please support us by donating below: | 7/18/11 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
30 |
30 June, 2011 – This Week in Science | (http://www.twis.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-e1277863172926.jpg) Flipping Neutrinos, Hallucinogens And Headaches, Bird News, The Epileptic Switch, Selling Monkey Sex, Prune Fingers, And Much More... Takin' LSD (http://news.sciencemag.org/sciencenow/2011/06/lsd-alleviates-suicide-headaches.html) For My Headaches... Oh, and Flipping Neutrinos (http://arstechnica.com/science/news/2011/06/neutrino-transformation-could-help-explain-mystery-of-matter.ars) Bird Talk (http://io9.com/5816441/birds-are-the-first-non+human-animals-to-use-grammar) Crow Grudges (http://news.discovery.com/animals/angry-crows-memory-life-threatening-behavior-110628.html) Get a free audiobook at Audible.com (http://www.audiblepodcast.com/twis)! Selling Monkey (http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn20618-the-first-advertising-campaign-for-nonhuman-primates.html) Sex (http://www.canneslions.com/festival/event_detail_page.cfm?event_id=149) Tripping the Epileptic (http://today.uci.edu/news/2011/06/nr_baram_110627.php) Switch Food NOT Calories (http://old.news.yahoo.com/s/livescience/20110630/sc_livescience/foodtypenotcaloriecontentmattersmoreinweightgain)... Prune fingers (http://www.nature.com/news/2011/110628/full/news.2011.388.html) grip better. If you love TWIS, please support us by donating below: | 7/5/11 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
31 |
23 June, 2011 – This Week in Science | (http://www.twis.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-e1277863172926.jpg) Oceanic Blues, Udder Engineering, Mercury Revs, Who's Earth's Daddy?, Parental Blame, Orca Ears, Dino Thermometers, Memory Prosthetics, Zombie Parasite, and Much More... So Go The Oceans (http://ksjtracker.mit.edu/2011/06/21/lots-of-ink-ocean-quality-dropping-fast-its-quantity-is-way-up-not-so-much-ink-except-fox-colorado-scientists-doctored-sea-level-data/)... Oceanic ears ( http://news.stanford.edu/news/2011/june/orca-ears-microphone-062311.html) Mercury (http://www.skyandtelescope.com/news/124079034.html) Revs (http://ksjtracker.mit.edu/2011/06/17/nytimes-etc-the-planet-mercury-it-is-interesting-more-so-anyway-than-the-experts-expected/) - cows engineered ( http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20110616/od_uk_nm/oukoe_uk_china_cows_1) to produce human milk... Autism... Blame it On The Parents (http://arstechnica.com/science/news/2011/06/kids-autism-may-be-result-of-parents-talent-for-system-oriented-thinking.ars) Get a free audiobook at Audible.com (http://www.audiblepodcast.com/twis)! Earth - Sun origins (http://www.space.com/12059-earth-formation-sun-building-blocks-nebula.html ) out of whack Taking Dinosaurs Temperatures (http://media.caltech.edu/press_releases/13429) Brain Prostheses (http://www.kurzweilai.net/artificial-hippocampal-system-restores-long-term-memory) For Memory (http://www.popsci.com/technology/article/2011-06/artificial-memory-chip-rats-can-remember-and-forget-touch-button) And, the latest zombie parasite news (http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-13860891) If you love TWIS, please support us by donating below: | 6/29/11 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
32 |
16 June, 2011 – This Week in Science | (http://www.twis.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-e1277863172926.jpg) Water From Stars, Why Americans Die, Happy K-Holes, Lose Weight Easy, Holy Batcopter!, The Peacock Factor, Date Like Dad, Chandra News, And Much More... Water From Stars (http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2011/06/110613-space-science-star-water-bullets-kristensen/) What is killing americans? lack of TWiS in their daily routine (http://www.apha.org/)... How Ketamine Makes People Happy (http://news.sciencemag.org/sciencenow/2011/06/why-ketamine-makes-you-happy.html ) Scientists develop Batcopter (http://www.popsci.com/technology/article/2011-06/batcopter-flies-bat-swarms-helping-researchers-study-bat-flight-patterns) Get a free audiobook at Audible.com (http://www.audiblepodcast.com/twis)! Promiscuity can be inherited (http://news.discovery.com/human/playboy-gene-promiscuity-110613.html) Chandra News ( http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/chandra/news/H-11-183.html) If you love TWIS, please support us by donating below: | 6/21/11 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
33 |
June 09, 2011 – This Week in Science | (http://www.twis.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-e1277863172926.jpg) Request For Help, Light From Nothing, Human Origins, Kids On Math, Fat Damage, Bird Brain Differences, Got Regrets?, Ant Wars, And Much More... A request (http://www.pressbanner.com/view/full_story/10001757/article-Scotts-Valley-student-battles-leukemia) for help.... Light From Nothing (http://www.nature.com/news/2011/110603/full/news.2011.346.html)? Top regrets in life, not what you may have guessed... Brain (http://www.nytimes.com/2011/06/07/health/07learn.html) Training Kids Brains On Math (http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-06-early-math-lessons-children-brains.html) Get a free audiobook at Audible.com (http://www.audiblepodcast.com/twis)! The Intelligence Difference (http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/notrocketscience/2011/06/08/crows-and-parrots-–-brainy-birds-but-in-different-ways/) California! Uber-Ants (http://io9.com/5809680/how-a-small-group-of-california-ants-are-challenging-the-global-argentine-ant-empire)! If you love TWIS, please support us by donating below: | 6/14/11 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
34 |
02 June, 2011 – This Week in Science | (http://www.twis.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-e1277863172926.jpg) Arsenic Life Report, WHO Knows Cells, Bed Of Algae, Short-term Brain, Breaking Photon Records, RIP Spirit, And Much More... Arsenic (http://www.the-scientist.com/news/display/58190/) life (http://www.slate.com/id/2295724) report (http://www.slate.com/id/2276919)... WHO knows Cellphones (http://ksjtracker.mit.edu/2011/06/01/lots-of-ink-world-health-organization-doesnt-quite-say-cell-phones-dont-cause-brain-cancer-maybe-it-does/) Get a free audiobook at Audible.com (http://www.audiblepodcast.com/twis)! Get your algae filters (http://io9.com/5807800/why-a-simple-bed-of-algae-could-save-us-from-water-pollution-and-fuel-shortages)! Brain in a dish (http://scienceblogs.com/deanscorner/2011/05/growing_a_brain_in_a_dish.php) has a memory (http://www.popsci.com/science/article/2011-06/tiny-artificial-rat-brain-exhibits-12-seconds-short-term-memory)! Breaking photonic (http://www.popsci.com/science/article/2011-06/researchers-entangle-and-observe-eight-photons-simultaneously-smashing-previous-record) records! RIP (http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/mer/news/mer20110524.html) Spirit (http://www.popsci.com/technology/article/2011-06/last-image-spirit-mars-rover-ever-saw) If you love TWIS, please support us by donating below: | 6/8/11 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
35 |
26 May, 2011 – This Week in Science | (http://www.twis.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-e1277863172926.jpg) Missing Matter Found, Skin To Neurons, FeelingSmall, Moon Mystery, Interview With Robert Brand RE: Balloons To Space, And Much More… Universe's Missing Mass Found (http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/05/110524094515.htm)! How big (http://io9.com/5805799/how-to-trick-people-into-thinking-theyre-the-size-of-barbie-dolls) are you (http://dx.plos.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0020195)??? Get a free audiobook at Audible.com (http://www.audiblepodcast.com/twis)! Interview with Robert Brand (http://wotzup.com/space-quest/)... If you love TWIS, please support us by donating below: | 6/2/11 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
36 |
19 May, 2011 – This Week in Science | (http://www.twis.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-e1277863172926.jpg) Justin vs. the LHC, Zombie Science, Fear Of Death, Lonely Planets, Climatic Politics, Fear Of Food, Melty Freezy Earth, Fear Of Fearlessness, Neanderthals, The Rapture, And Much Much More… LHC False Alarm (http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-13424231)! Zombie (http://hubpages.com/hub/Scientists_cure_cancer__but_no_one_takes_notice) Science (http://scienceblogs.com/insolence/2011/05/the_dca_zombie_arises_again.php) Planets without orbits... ArsTechnica (http://arstechnica.com/science/news/2011/05/exoplanets-without-a-star-galaxy-teems-with-lonely-jupiters.ars) Lots of Ink (http://ksjtracker.mit.edu/2011/05/18/lots-of-ink-lensing-study-says-therere-more-rejected-planets-floating-free-than-stars-maybe-indecently/) Are We in Danger? (http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/badastronomy/2011/05/19/are-we-in-danger-from-a-rogue-planet/) Get a free audiobook at Audible.com (http://www.audiblepodcast.com/twis)! Wikileaks and the Arctic Stampede (http://ksjtracker.mit.edu/2011/05/13/bbc-wikileaks-cables-reveal-intl-rush-to-stake-mineral-claims-in-arctic-ocean/) Climate Critic Plagiarism (http://arstechnica.com/science/news/2011/05/climate-science-critic-sees-paper-retracted-due-to-plagiarism.ars) and Retraction Melting and Freezing At the Core (http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/05/110518131421.htm) Happy Rapture (http://ksjtracker.mit.edu/2011/05/19/miller-mccune-theres-this-idiotic-end-of-world-scheduled-this-week-but-not-to-insult-anybodys-faith/) everyone!!! If you love TWIS, please support us by donating below: | 5/24/11 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
37 |
12 May, 2011 – This Week in Science | (http://www.twis.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-e1277863172926.jpg) Frakking Controversy, Remembering Memories, World Robot Domination, Whisky Power, Talking Sperm, Learning to Speak Whale, Decoding DNA, BPA Baby Dangers, Tech VS Nature, And Much More... Frakking A Musical (http://ecocentric.blogs.time.com/2011/05/12/a-musical-introduction-to-fracking/) Into To... Who Do You Trust (http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/intersection/2011/05/10/fracking-is-good-for-you-trust-me-i-have-a-nice-voice-and-i-could-be-your-neighbor/)? Explosive H2O (http://arstechnica.com/science/news/2011/05/natural-gas-fracking-can-make-local-well-water-explosive.ars) Shale Methane Leaks (http://news.discovery.com/earth/hydrofracking-shale-methane-leak-in-wells-110511.html) In the age old battle between nature (http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2011-05/asu-pop051211.php) and technology ( http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2011-05/msu-scm051211.php), which one is winning? Early Memories (http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-13351681)... The '$1,000 genome' decoding may be here soon… what good will it do? (http://www.hpcwire.com/hpcwire/2011-05-11/the_genomics_conundrum.html) World Robot Domination!!! Robo-birds (http://www.newscientist.com/blogs/nstv/2011/03/robot-bird-soars-through-the-sky.html)... Schizophrenic Computers (http://news.discovery.com/tech/paranoid-android-simulating-schizophrenia-on-a-computer-110511.html)... Get a free audiobook at Audible.com (http://www.audiblepodcast.com/twis)! Whales have accents (http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/05/110512104252.htm)! Gamma Ray Mystery (http://ksjtracker.mit.edu/2011/05/11/science-news-bbc-crab-nebula-and-its-sizzling-pulsar-erupt-with-mystery-gamma-bursts/)... Human Lung Stem Cell (http://blogs.nejm.org/now/index.php/human-lung-stem-cells-a-breathtaking-discovery/2011/05/11/) Discovered! The Power of Whisky (http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/discoblog/2011/05/10/a-toast-to-scottish-homes-powered-by-whisky/)... If you love TWIS, please support us by donating below: | 5/24/11 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
38 |
05 May, 2011 – This Week in Science | (http://www.twis.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-e1277863172926.jpg) Bin Laden DNA, Monkey Business, They've Got... Personality, Confirming Einstein, Trapping Anti-matter, Better Diagnosis, Minion Mailbag, And Much More… Bin Laden (http://blogs.nature.com/news/2011/05/how_dna_could_confirm_bin_lade.html) DNA (http://www.scientificamerican.com/blog/post.cfm?id=how-do-you-id-a-dead-osama-anyway-2011-05-02) Monkey (http://www.sciencenews.org/view/generic/id/72895/title/Gone_fishing,_orangutan-style) Business (http://news.discovery.com/animals/chimpanzees-self-awareness-110504.html#mkcpgn=rssnws1)... They've Got (http://jeb.biologists.org/content/214/10/1732.abstract)... Personality (http://www.the-scientist.com/news/display/58162/)... Get a free audiobook at Audible.com (http://www.audiblepodcast.com/twis)! Confirming Einstein (http://www.nasa.gov/home/hqnews/2011/may/HQ_11-134_Gravity_Probe_B.html)... Trapping Anti-matter (http://www.popsci.com/science/article/2011-05/cern-physicists-trap-antimatter-full-quarter-hour-eclipsing-previous-efforts) Better Diagnosis (http://arstechnica.com/science/news/2011/05/autism-epidemic-more-likely-were-just-better-at-diagnosis.ars) If you love TWIS, please support us by donating below: | 5/11/11 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
39 |
April 28, 2011 – This Week in Science | (http://www.twis.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-e1277863172926.jpg) Big Physics News, Human Brain Hacking, Big City Bird Brains, Sleepy Neurons, Smart Motivation, Hot Mosquito Action, And Much More... Big Physics Headlines... Anti-helium (http://arstechnica.com/science/news/2011/04/anti-helium-4-detected-heaviest-anti-nucleus-yet.ars) Higgs (http://blogs.nature.com/news/thegreatbeyond/2011/04/spokesman_quashes_god_particle.html) Rumors (http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2011/04/higgs-rumor/) SETI (http://arstechnica.com/science/news/2011/04/were-sorry-but-seti-cant-take-your-call-right-now.ars) Brain stuff... Self-Consciousness (http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/04/110427131818.htm) Erasing Memories (http://newsroom.ucla.edu/portal/ucla/can-traumatic-memories-be-erased-202146.aspx) And, Brainy Birds... Discovery.com (http://news.discovery.com/animals/brainy-birds-city-urban-110427.html#mkcpgn=rssnws1) Get a free audiobook at Audible.com (http://www.audible.com/twis)! Sleepy Gets Solitary... ArsTechnica (http://arstechnica.com/science/news/2011/04/if-you-only-feel-half-awake-you-probably-are.ars) ScienceBlog (http://scienceblog.com/44833/from-the-beginning-the-brain-knows-the-difference-between-night-and-day/) NIH (http://www.nih.gov/news/health/apr2011/nimh-27.htm) Motivation (http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/notrocketscience/2011/04/26/iq-scores-reflect-motivation-as-well-as-intelligence/) Hot Mosquitoes (http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/80beats/2011/04/26/after-a-nice-hot-blood-lunch-mosquitoes-go-into-shock/) If you love TWIS, please support us by donating below: | 5/4/11 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
40 |
April 21, 2011 – This week in Science | (http://www.twis.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-e1277863172926.jpg) Quantum Teleportation & Nanotube Synapses, Cars With Lasers, What's Your Enterotype?, Bacteria Belly, Staph In The Marketplace, An Intelligence Booster, Self-Confidence VS Climate Change, Bad For Baby, I Had 3 Parents, And Much More... Get a free audiobook at Audible.com (http://www.audible.com/twis)! And join in with the bookclub: grab your copy of today! If you love TWIS, please support us by donating below: | 4/27/11 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
41 |
14 April, 2011 – This Week in Science | (http://www.twis.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-e1277863172926.jpg) Is Gravity A Force, Xenon 100 And Dark Matter, Thinning Cortical Areas And Alzheimer's, Humpback Whale Song Patterns, Vegetarianism And Metabolic Syndrom, And Much More... Get a free audiobook at Audible.com (http://www.audible.com/twis)! And join in with the bookclub: grab your copy of today! If you love TWIS, please support us by donating below: | 4/20/11 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
42 |
7 April, 2011 – This Week in Science | (http://www.twis.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-e1277863172926.jpg) Rationalizing Global Warming, Space X Preps Largest Rocket, Environmentally Friendly Bullets, A New Mineral Discovered, Self Cooling Graphene Transistors, And Much More... Get a free audiobook at Audible.com (http://www.audible.com/twis)! And join in with the bookclub: grab your copy of today! If you love TWIS, please support us by donating below: | 4/13/11 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
43 |
31 March, 2011 – This Week in Science | (http://www.twis.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-e1277863172926.jpg) Self-strengthening Nanocomposite, Robotic SmartBird, Robot Locomotion, BrainGate Milestone, Effects Of April Fools, And Much More... Get a free audiobook at Audible.com (http://www.audible.com/twis)! And join in with the bookclub: grab your copy of today! If you love TWIS, please support us by donating below: | 4/7/11 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
44 |
24 March, 2011 – This Week in Science | (http://www.twis.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-e1277863172926.jpg) Brain Injuries In Hockey, New Administration Of Alzheimer's Drug, Fourth Domain Of Life, 3D Movies Of Living Cells, And Much More... Get a free audiobook at Audible.com (http://www.audible.com/twis)! And join in with the bookclub: grab your copy of today! If you love TWIS, please support us by donating below: | 4/5/11 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
45 |
17 March, 2011 – This Week in Science | (http://www.twis.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-e1277863172926.jpg) Earthquake In Japan, Large Hadron Collider, Genetically Modified Food, Space Junk, Messenger Probe To Orbit Mercury, Bio Fuel Breakthrough, And Much More... Get a free audiobook at Audible.com (http://www.audible.com/twis)! And join in with the bookclub: grab your copy of today! If you love TWIS, please support us by donating below: | 3/22/11 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
46 |
3 March, 2011 – This Week in Science | (http://www.twis.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-e1277863172926.jpg)A Strange Symptom Of Smoking Cessation, Watery Footprints, Bird Deaths, Bulk Metallic Glasses, Modified Theory Of Gravity, And Much More... Get a free audiobook at Audible.com (http://www.audible.com/twis)! And join in with the bookclub: grab your copy of today! This Week in Nano (http://web.mit.edu/newsoffice/2011/update-microworms-0217.html) Medicine (Thanks, Ed and Monkey) Planets (http://www.mpg.de/1172275/protoplanetary_disks?filter_order=L) in the making (Thanks, Ed) 50 billion exoplanets (http://news.discovery.com/space/milky-way-stuffed-with-50-billion-alien-worlds.html) in the Milky Way (Thanks, Dale, David) Minion mailbag From minion Davey - "Just wanted to clear up something on Watson, it didn’t have a single microphone. So of course it couldn’t hear what the other contestants were saying and it can’t actually understand human speech. Clues were sent to Watson via text at the same time the clue was read to the humans and then after the question it was sent the right answer by text as well. The break through was in parsing the important parts of the question from all the word play that is used in the clue. There is a real nice documentary about Watson that can be found here (http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/tech/smartest-machine-on-earth.html)" If you love TWIS, please support us by donating below: | 3/9/11 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
47 |
24 February, 2011 – This Week in Science | (http://www.twis.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-e1277863172926.jpg)Cell Phone Redux, A Mouse Heart, TWIWRD, Print Your Skin, Mind On Driving, Unlocking The Locked In, Bloody Chemicals, Planets And Exoplanets, A Leaky Gut, And Much More... Show Notes: Some of the stories we discussed... Cell phones (http://jama.ama-assn.org/content/305/8/808.abstract) redux (http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/02/22/cellphone-use-tied-to-changes-in-brain-activity/?hpw) Mouse hearts grow like the Grinch's (http://www.utsouthwestern.edu/utsw/cda/dept353744/files/629319.html ) This Week in World Robot Domination: A helping Robot Hand (http://www.zeitnews.org/robotics/robotic-hand-nearly-identical-to-a-human-one.html) (Thanks, Monkey) Slip me some skin (http://news.discovery.com/tech/inkjet-inspired-skin-tech-110220.html)... (Thanks, David and Pamela) Look, Ma (http://www.zeitnews.org/transportation/scientists-steer-car-with-the-power-of-thought.html)! No hands (http://www.kurzweilai.net/mind-control-puts-you-in-charge-of-driverless-cars)! (Thanks, Monkey) Get a free audiobook at Audible.com (http://www.audible.com/twis)! And join in with the bookclub: grab your copy of today! This Week in Nano (http://web.mit.edu/newsoffice/2011/update-microworms-0217.html) Medicine (Thanks, Ed and Monkey) Planets (http://www.mpg.de/1172275/protoplanetary_disks?filter_order=L) in the making (Thanks, Ed) 50 billion exoplanets (http://news.discovery.com/space/milky-way-stuffed-with-50-billion-alien-worlds.html) in the Milky Way (Thanks, Dale, David) Minion mailbag From minion Davey - "Just wanted to clear up something on Watson, it didn’t have a single microphone. So of course it couldn’t hear what the other contestants were saying and it can’t actually understand human speech. Clues were sent to Watson via text at the same time the clue was read to the humans and then after the question it was sent the right answer by text as well. The break through was in parsing the important parts of the question from all the word play that is used in the clue. There is a real nice documentary about Watson that can be found here (http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/tech/smartest-machine-on-earth.html)" If you love TWIS, please support us by donating below: | 3/2/11 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
48 |
17 February, 2011 – This Week in Science | (http://www.twis.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-e1277863172926.jpg)Stardust, TWIWRD, Bones And Sperm, TWIBabies!, Gonorrhea Steals Genes, Pesticides and Parkinsons, Walk Like An Egyptian, Tyche Controversy, And Much More... Show Notes: Some of the stories we discussed... Stardust (http://ksjtracker.mit.edu/2011/02/15/lots-of-ink-coming-stardust-probe-sending-its-picture-of-the-one-bashed-handsome-comet-tempel-i/) Update This Week in World Robot Domination: Watson (http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20110211/ap_en_ot/us_tv_man_vs_machine) plays (http://arstechnica.com/media/news/2011/02/creators-watson-has-no-speed-advantage-as-it-crushes-humans-in-jeopardy.ars) Jeopardy (http://www.fastcompany.com/1728740/inside-ibms-jeopardy-winning-watson-supercomputer)! Evolution (http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/sciencenotfiction/2011/02/14/robots-that-evolve-like-animals-are-tough-and-smart%E2%80%94like-animals/) makes robots stronger. This Week in Babies: Interesting brain (http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2011/02/baby-brain-activity-sleep/) activity pattern found at 20 weeks Counting (http://www.abc.net.au/science/articles/2011/02/16/3140322.htm) kicks in at 18 months; earlier than previously thought (Thanks, Pamela) Get a free audiobook at Audible.com (http://www.audible.com/twis)! And join in with the bookclub: grab your copy of today! Two pesticides (http://www.abc.net.au/science/articles/2011/02/14/3138286.htm) linked to Parkinsons (http://ehp03.niehs.nih.gov/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1289%2Fehp.1002839)' Disease (http://www.niehs.nih.gov/news/releases/2011/parkinson/) (Thanks, Pamela and Ed!) Continuing on from last week's news of jumping genes and horizontal gene transfer... first transfer (http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2011/02/gonorrhea-human-genes/) of human genetic material to bacteria Walk (http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn20119-mummies-false-toes-put-a-spring-in-amputees-step.html?#commentForm) like an Egyptian... Looking for Tyche - For (http://www.independent.co.uk/news/science/up-telescope-search-begins-for-giant-new-planet-2213119.html) and (http://www.lifeslittlemysteries.com/mystery-planet-tyche-probably-not-there-1356/) against (http://dvice.com/archives/2011/02/is-there-a-plan.php) If you love TWIS, please support us by donating below: | 2/23/11 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
49 |
10 February, 2011 – This Week in Science | (http://www.twis.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-e1277863172926.jpg)This Week in Brains, Dating The Voynich, Parrots And Left Hands, A Gas Influencing Orbit, Bubbles Of Clay, Deserts And Jumping Genes, Justin Has Snake Legs, And Much More! Show Notes: Some of the stories we discussed... Brains- Love (http://news.discovery.com/human/valentines-day-love-first-sight-110210.html) and the brain Death, decapitation (http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg20927993.700-death-rattle-of-a-decapitated-brain.html), and consciousness What's the Frequency (http://news.wustl.edu/news/Pages/21826.aspx), Kenneth? (Thanks, Monkey) Thinking cap (http://news.discovery.com/tech/thinking-cap-brain-creativity-tech-110210.html) continues to get news... The Voynich Manuscript (http://scienceblog.com/42652/university-of-arizona-experts-determine-age-of-book-nobody-can-read/)Gets Dated! Left-handed parrots (http://www.abc.net.au/science/articles/2011/02/07/3131593.htm) (Thanks, Pamela) Get a free audiobook at Audible.com (http://www.audible.com/twis)! And join in with the bookclub: grab your copy of today! Historic methane levels (http://www.abc.net.au/science/articles/2011/02/07/3130206.htm) influenced by Earth's orbit (Thanks, Pamela) Genes- Gene promoters (http://arstechnica.com/science/news/2011/02/an-oasis-of-regulatory-elements-found-in-a-gene-desert.ars) found in DNA deserts Horizontal jumpers (http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/02/110204144545.htm) found in fungus (Thanks, Dale) Jumping (http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/02/110204205507.htm) genes (http://genome.cshlp.org/content/early/2010/10/27/gr.114777.110) prevalent in people... (Thanks, Ed Dyer) Snakes (http://www.livescience.com/11816-rays-reveal-snake-hidden-legx-rays-reveal-snake-hidden-leg.html) had legs? If you love TWIS, please support us by donating below: | 2/15/11 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
50 |
03 February, 2011 – This Week in Science | (http://www.twis.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-e1277863172926.jpg)Kepler Finds, Our Big Universe, Power To The Future, Brains And Bacteria, Military Alternatives, Getting Humans Out, Making Better Chips, Minion Mailbag, And Much More... Show Notes: Some of the stories we discussed... Kepler finds (http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/badastronomy/2011/02/02/kepler-finds-a-mini-solar-system/) mini-solar system (http://www.space.com/10744-alien-planets-solar-system-kepler-mission.html) (Thanks to David Eckard, Gord Mcleod, Ed Dyer!) Universe (http://www.technologyreview.com/blog/arxiv/26333/) bigger (http://arxiv.org/abs/1101.5476) than thought (Thanks to Monkey, David Eckard!) Bacteria (http://www.pnas.org/content/early/2011/01/26/1010529108) and (http://ki.se/ki/jsp/polopoly.jsp?d=2637&a=115860&l=en&newsdep=2637) the Brains (http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/sciencenotfiction/2011/02/02/does-ai-need-guts-to-get-to-the-singularity/) (Thanks to Ed Dyer and Gord McLeod!) Get a free audiobook at Audible.com (http://www.audible.com/twis)! And join in with the bookclub: grab your copy of today! Humans left Africa (http://www.abc.net.au/science/articles/2011/01/28/3124019.htm) earlier than thought (Thanks, Pamela! ) Humans left Trees (http://news.discovery.com/archaeology/human-ancestors-trees-bipedal-110128.html) 4.2 mya Molybdenum (http://www.kurzweilai.net/106270), yum! Molybdenum better for transistors (http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/80beats/2011/01/31/a-mineral-you%E2%80%99ve-never-heard-of-could-create-next-gen-electronics/) (Thanks, Monkey, Gord McLeod!) If you love TWIS, please support us by donating below: | 2/9/11 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
51 |
27 January, 2011 – This Week in Science | (http://www.twis.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-e1277863172926.jpg)A Guest Host!, Corals Marching, Burning Coal, Nabokov's Butterflies, Life In Space, TWIWRD, The Social Fish, 20 Moves, Remembering To Remember, And Much More... Show Notes: Some of the stories we discussed... Corals get their marching orders (http://www.nature.com/news/2011/110121/full/news.2011.33.html) Hunka, hunka burnin' coal (http://www.abc.net.au/science/articles/2011/01/24/3120458.htm)... in the Permian (http://www.nature.com/ngeo/journal/vaop/ncurrent/full/ngeo1069.html) Nabokov liked butterflies, and his ideas on evolution were finally proved correct! (http://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/01/science/01butterfly.html) Life gets its left-handed start in space. (http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-12240549) Get a free audiobook at Audible.com (http://www.audible.com/twis)! And join in with the bookclub: grab your copy of today! TWIWRD (http://news.discovery.com/tech/robot-weight-loss-coach-helps-you-diet.html) - The robots will control your diet. Social fish are better at making decisions. (http://www.abc.net.au/science/articles/2011/01/25/3120936.htm) Solve a Rubik's Cube in 20 moves. No less. (http://www.popsci.com/science/article/2010-08/gods-number-revealed-20-moves-will-solve-any-rubiks-cube-position) Remembering to remember helps you remember. (http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/01/110121111216.htm) If you love TWIS, please support us by donating below: | 2/1/11 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
52 |
20 January, 2011 – This Week in Science | (http://www.twis.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-e1277863172926.jpg)Teleportation Thru Time And Space, Black Holes Everywhere, Not Really Tuned For Life, Polygamice Win At Selection, Mammoth Cloning, Amoeba Lunches, Birdie Piggie Back, Biological Bird Clocks, Dog Food, And Much More... Show Notes: Some of the stories we discussed... Transporters and Time Travel? (http://www.technologyreview.com/blog/arxiv/26270) Polygamouse (http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn20004-polygamy-boosts-mouse-sperm-fitness.html) versus Monogamouse... Problems with Mammoth Cloning (http://io9.com/5735293/the-first-mammoth-cloning-experiment-is-officially-underway) Get a free audiobook at Audible.com (http://www.audible.com/twis)! And join in with the bookclub: grab your copy of today! Bird News! How are some bird calls like horror movies (http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/01/110117184452.htm)? Do little birds feel the ticking of a biological clock (http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/01/110118101515.htm)? We used to eat dogs (http://www.physorg.com/news/2011-01-oldest-domesticated-dog-americas.html)... If you love TWIS, please support us by donating below: | 1/26/11 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
53 |
13 January, 2011 – This Week in Science | (http://www.twis.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-e1277863172926.jpg)This Week in Space!, Drawer Dinos, Airborne Prions, Interview w/ Sheril Kirshenbaum on The Science of Kissing, And Much More... Show Notes: We discussed some presentations from the American Astronomical Society's meeting in Seattle... ... Big black hole (http://ksjtracker.mit.edu/2011/01/10/astronomers-in-seattle-early-surprise-news-nearby-supermassive-black-hole-in-a-super-puny-galaxy/) in a tiny galaxy... A rocky earthlike planet (http://www.nasa.gov/topics/universe/features/rocky_planet.html)... And, the moon has an earthlike core (http://news.discovery.com/space/moon-core-formation-110107.html)! Grad student finds new dino in a drawer (http://www.ens-newswire.com/ens/jan2011/2011-01-10-02.html)! And, Prions (http://cts.vresp.com/c/?PublicLibraryofScien/ed1df9b82c/b10e12f275/dda71cf678/utm_campaign=Aerosols%20transmit%20prions%20to%20mice%2C%20causing%20disease%20-%20PLoS%20Pathogens%20press%20release&utm_medium=Email&utm_source=VerticalResponse&utm_term=http%3A%2F%2Fdx.plos.org%2F10.1371%2Fjournal.ppat.1001257) go airborne... Get a free audiobook at Audible.com (http://www.audible.com/twis)! And join in with the bookclub: grab your copy of today! If you enjoyed our interview with Sheril Kirshenbaum (http://sherilkirshenbaum.com/) on "The Science of Kissing" you can get your copy here: If you love TWIS, please support us by donating below: | 1/24/11 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
54 |
06 January, 2011 – This Week in Science | (http://www.twis.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-e1277863172926.jpg)Predictions for 2011!!! How Did We Do Predicting Last Year? What Do We Predict For 2011? And, Much More... Show Notes: Sense About Science yearly review of celebrity missteps (http://www.senseaboutscience.org.uk/PDF/celebscience2010%20FINAL.pdf) Predictions from 2010 in Review!!! Get a free audiobook at Audible.com (http://www.audible.com/twis)! And join in with the bookclub: grab your copy of today! Predictions for 2011! Kirsten predicts: - The LHC will make some amazing discoveries this year, but it will not find the Higgs Boson. Fermi Lab will be given an extended run-time. - Efforts to curb government spending will lead to major attacks on NIH and NSF grants... "Joe the Plumber" will play the main prosecutor. - Results of human hESC trials in cases of macular degeneration and spinal column damage will show positive therapeutic results. - We will see pluripotent stem cells produced from blood in a cheap, easy manner: draw blood, immerse blood cells in RNA cocktail, get stem cells. How will this - affect garage biotech experimentation??? - NASA will permanently retire the space shuttles, but not before at least two more flight delays and an additional mission is added at the end of the year. But, the Mars Science Laboratory Mission will launch without a hitch. - Virgin's SpaceShipTwo will launch and fly safely taking us one step closer to commercial space flights. - From last year: We will see $1000 genome sequencing this year. And, I'm betting $100 sequencing before the end of the year... maybe not results within 24 hours, but the price will come down significantly. - Genetic cancer screening will be introduced. And, tests for chromosomal disorders in unborn babies will no longer require probabilities or invesive tests, as research from 2010 into screening the mother's blood for cells from her baby will lead to the development of a new, simple blood test. - While many question the existence of dark matter due to sparse and indirect evidence, we will see more concrete evidence of the stuff before the end of the year. One such experiment, IceCube, in the South Pole will enable high energy neutrino detection that could provide evidence of dark matter particles interacting with the sun. - A computer will make a major scientific discovery this year. - More planets... not just "earthlike", but a good replacement, will be found. - 2011 will be a bad year for bees and bats. - I will produce a human child. If you love TWIS, please support us by donating below: | 1/12/11 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
55 |
30 December, 2010 – This Week in Science | The annual TWISmas episode, also it's our 300th podcast episode! We're bringing you The Top 11 Science Stories of 2010!!! Show Notes: Number 11: Lancet retraction (http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/03/health/research/03lancet.html) Number 10: Microbes everywhere The water of Lost Hammer (http://www.astrobio.net/pressrelease/3519/methane-eaters-at-lost-hammer) Animals Survive Without Oxygen (http://discovermagazine.com/2011/jan-feb/65) Microbes Are the Key to a Happy Gut (http://discovermagazine.com/2011/jan-feb/39) Number 9: Solar ships Space Ship Sails on a Breeze of Sunshine (http://discovermagazine.com/2011/jan-feb/24) Sun-Powered Plane Takes a 24-Hour Flight (http://discovermagazine.com/2011/jan-feb/91) Number 8: Visions of our universe A Portrait of Saturn's Moons (http://discovermagazine.com/2011/jan-feb/79) The Map of Everything (http://discovermagazine.com/2011/jan-feb/07) Is Life's Chemistry Cooking on Titan? (http://discovermagazine.com/2011/jan-feb/69) Number 7: Prostheses E-Legs by Berkeley Bionics (http://techcrunch.com/2010/11/24/elegs-berkeley-bionics-valley-medical-center/) Restoring vision in the blind Second sight in the market (http://www.economist.com/node/17647663?story_id=17647663&fsrc=rss) Retina implant (http://www.news24.com/SciTech/News/Retina-implant-cures-blindness-20101220) Robot Skin Can Feel Your Touch (http://discovermagazine.com/2011/jan-feb/85) Number 6: Big Physics Large Hadron Collider Gets Going With a Bang (http://discovermagazine.com/2011/jan-feb/52) Large Hadron Collider officially made the switch from protons to lead ions (http://tinyurl.com/264bquu) Early universe was a liquid (http://tinyurl.com/343vkzk) Antimatter atoms successfully stored for the first time (http://tinyurl.com/23j8xch) Do Physical Laws Vary From Place to Place? (http://discovermagazine.com/2011/jan-feb/46) Get a free audiobook at Audible.com (http://www.audible.com/twis)! And join in with the bookclub: grab your copy of today! Number 5: Commercial Space Flight Falcon 9 and Dragon capsule (http://www.nasa.gov/offices/c3po/home/spacexfeature.html ) Working with NASA (http://www.nasa.gov/exploration) Number 4: Neanderthals + Humans Stone-Age Romeos and Juliets (http://discovermagazine.com/2011/jan-feb/72) Number 3: Ocean Census Marine Census Completes Its Count (http://discovermagazine.com/2011/jan-feb/67) Census of marine life (http://tinyurl.com/2a83jr6) Number 2: Synthetic Life and regenerative medicine Creation of synthetic life (http://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/17/health/17synthetic.html?partner=rss&emc=rss) and conversations about regulation (http://www.technewsworld.com/story/White-House-Urges-Cautious-Exploration-of-Synthetic-Biologys-Potential-71477.html?wlc=1292903599) Nerve cells created from stem cells (http://www.cosmosmagazine.com/news/3257/brain-cells-created-directly-skin-cells%E2%80%9D) Number 1: NASA NASA-Funded Research Discovers (http://www.nasa.gov/topics/universe/features/astrobiology_toxic_chemical.html) Life Built With Toxic Chemical (http://tinyurl.com/38zz68m) - The Goldilocks Planet (http://www.nasa.gov/topics/universe/features/gliese_581_feature.html) The First Peek at the Solar System's Edge (http://discovermagazine.com/2011/jan-feb/55) NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory - A Portrait of a Violent Star (http://discovermagazine.com/2011/jan-feb/100) Water on the Moon (http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/LRO/news/lro-lcross-impact.html) If you love TWIS, please support us by donating below: | 1/5/11 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
56 |
23 December, 2010 – This Week in Science | (http://www.twis.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/itunes_logo-e1277862826339.jpg)Genomic Fossils, Ecstasy Therapy, Brainy Photons, Smart Feels Good, Matter Matters, Anti-Microbial Colding, Correlation Station, BPA Eggs, A Lunar Eclipse, And Much More... Show Notes to come! Get a free audiobook at Audible.com (http://www.audible.com/twis)! And join in with the bookclub: grab your copy of today! If you love TWIS, please support us by donating below: | 12/31/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
57 |
This Week in Science – 16 December, 2010 | (http://www.twis.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/itunes_logo-e1277862826339.jpg)No Baby Black Holes, Changing Atomic Weight, This Week in Space, TWIWRD, You Say Amond, Magnetic Fields Forever, HIV Cures???, And Much More... Show Notes to come! Get a free audiobook at Audible.com (http://www.audible.com/twis)! And join in with the bookclub: grab your copy of today! If you love TWIS, please support us by donating below: | 12/26/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
58 |
09 December, 2010 – This Week in Science | (http://www.twis.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/itunes_logo-e1277862826339.jpg)Mice Two Dads, Political Saccades, The X-Factor, Aspirin Cures Cancer, Space X Launch!, Sesame Street - Better Than School, Yellow-Bellied Solar Hornets, Arsenic Redux, Minion Mailbag, And Much More... Show Notes to come! Get a free audiobook at Audible.com (http://www.audible.com/twis)! And join in with the bookclub: grab your copy of today! If you love TWIS, please support us by donating below: | 12/17/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
59 |
02 December, 2010 – This Week in Science | (http://www.twis.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/itunes_logo-e1277862826339.jpg)This Toxic Life, More Stars!, Prediction Hearing, Gut Love, Botox Weakness, Vitamin D NOT A Cure-all, Wired Drunks Are Bad, Gamburtsev Questions, Moderation Wins Again, And Much More!!! Show Notes to come! Get a free audiobook at Audible.com (http://www.audible.com/twis)! And join in with the bookclub: grab your copy of today! If you love TWIS, please support us by donating below: | 12/8/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
60 |
22 November, 2010 – This Week in Science | (http://www.twis.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/itunes_logo-e1277862826339.jpg)Bang! Crunch! Goes The Universe, Microflora For Milk, Indian Rat Plague, Bacterial Reanimation, TWIWRD, Don't Believe The Hype, TWI The End Of The World, Minion Mailbag, And Much More! Show Notes to come! Get a free audiobook at Audible.com (http://www.audible.com/twis)! And join in with the bookclub: grab your copy of today! If you love TWIS, please support us by donating below: | 11/30/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
61 |
18 November, 2010 – This Week in Science | (http://www.twis.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-e1277863172926.jpg)Hayabusa Update!, Oil Countdown, Repairing Spines, Toxic Dart Games, Trapping Anti-Matter, Carve the Rainbow, Drink For Your Health, Snot Cocoons, Sexy Schizophrenia, This Week in Pregnancy, And Much More... Show Notes to come! Get a free audiobook at Audible.com (http://www.audible.com/twis)! And join in with the bookclub: grab your copy of today! If you love TWIS, please support us by donating below: | 11/25/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
62 |
11 November, 2010 – This Week in Science | (http://www.twis.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-e1277863172926.jpg)Lead on Lead Action, Justin Rants About Gravity, New Neutrino News, Wandering Mind, Fearful Brains, Skin Blood, Fastest EColi in the West, Your Mom Was an Alien Zombie, Uses for Electrocution, Gamma Bubbles, Brains on Yoga, Deformed Birds, and Much More! Show Notes to come! Get a free audiobook at Audible.com (http://www.audible.com/twis)! And join in with the bookclub: grab your copy of today! If you love TWIS, please support us by donating below: | 11/19/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
63 |
04 November, 2010 – This Week in Science | (http://www.twis.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-e1277863172926.jpg)Electrify Your Brain, Disease Genes?, Liver Keg!, Supersize Dragonflies, Bacterial Boost, The Ozzy-ome, Claim Your Brand, Saturn's Solar System, And Much More! Show Notes to come! Get a free audiobook at Audible.com (http://www.audible.com/twis)! And join in with the bookclub: grab your copy of today! If you love TWIS, please support us by donating below: | 11/9/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
64 |
28 October, 2010 – This Week in Science | (http://www.twis.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-e1277863172926.jpg)A Fifth Of Verts, Liberal Genes, The Tongue In Your Lung, The Madness of Smoking, Portable Breast Scanners, TWiWorld Robot Domination, An Interview w/ Tucker Hiatt re: Wonderfest, And Much More!!! Show Notes: Species Threatened (http://www.arkive.org/news/20101027-IUCN-study-confirms-vertebrate-extinction-crisis.html) A global study by 3000 scientists in 38 countries has revealed that up to a fifth of all vertebrate species are threatened by extinction. The main threat of loss of species comes from South East Asia due to habitat loss and unsustainable hunting. But all is not bad, the report suggests that conservation is playing a great role in protecting many species. Without such conservation efforts, 20% of species would already have disappeared. New genetic test to replace voting (http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/10/101027161452.htm) Genetics could play a large role in people's political leanings. Scientists conclude that ideology is affected by social factors as well as a gene called DRD4, a dopamine receptor. The researchers studied 2000 subjects in which they compared their genetic information with their social networks. The subjects were more likely to have liberal leanings if they had this DRD4 gene and an active social life combined. Taste Receptors in Lungs (http://www.hhmi.org/news/welsh20090723.html) Scientists have discovered that human lung tissue has taste buds. Bitter compounds relaxed the lung tissue tremendously and opened the air ways better than any known substance. The researchers say that this could have huge implications for people who suffer from asthma. Smoking in Midlife may cause Dementia. (http://psychcentral.com/news/2010/10/29/heavy-smoking-and-dementia-linked/20176.html) Smoking is known for it’s adverse effects on the human body. Now researchers have added dementia and Alzheimer's disease to that list. They found that people who smoked more than two packs of cigarettes a day during mid-life had a greater chance of developing these diseases later on in life. Replacing Mammograms (http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/10/101027090838.htm) Scientists have created a portable breast scanning device which uses radio frequency technology to scan for tumors present in the breast. These scanners can be used at a GP’s office or at home and deliver real time video images to a computer. It is a quicker and less invasive way to look for tumors and because of it’s speed and efficiency and size, could dramatically cut down waiting times for x-rays and save more lives. Get a free audiobook at Audible.com (http://www.audible.com/twis)! And join in with the bookclub: grab your copy of today! WORLD ROBOT DOMINATION: Saved by Emily, The Robotic Lifeguard (http://www.popsci.com/gadgets/article/2010-06/invention-month-robot-lifeguard) It may not be as eye catching as Pamela Anderson in a red bathing suit, but EMILY, Emergency Integrated Lifesaving Lanyard, may just save your life. It is a remote controlled robotic device especially designed to search for swimmers in distress. It can travel at 28 miles per hour through the surf, and gives a platform for swimmers to hang on to while EMILY races back to shore and to rescue. Coffee in the Hand (http://www.physorg.com/news/2010-10-robotic-gripper-coffee-balloons.html) Engineers have bypassed the traditional methods of creating a robotic hand grip and have created a unique device that utilizes balloons and coffee. This robotic hand is a latex balloon filled with ground coffee, which can conform to the shape of many objects by vacuuming the air out of the balloon, solidifying the grip on the object. Robot Pancakes (http://www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2010/10/robot-pair-make-pancakes/) Two robots, James and Rosie, have learned how to make pancakes from scratch. One robot fetches the ingredients and the other cooks and flips it. | 11/3/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
65 |
21 October, 2010 – This Week in Science | (http://www.twis.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-e1277863172926.jpg)It Happened Once, A Long Time Ago In A Galaxy..., Planetary Shuffle, Sexy Rats, Babies <3 Robots, The Power of Light, Solar System Weigh-in, Bacterial Thermometers, Mosquitoes Diverge?, And Much Much More... Show Notes: The Energy Evolution of Life (http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn18734-why-complex-life-probably-evolved-only-once.html) Although the universe may be teeming with bacterial life, complex organisms may be a rare occurrence in the universe. Alien life forms could only evolve if an event that happened just once in earth's history was repeated on another planet. The evolution of complex life might be dependent solely on mitochondria, the power house of cells. The Oldest Galaxy Found? (http://www.astronomy.com/en/sitecore/content/Home/News-Observing/News/2004/02/A%20galaxy%20near%20the%20start%20of%20it%20all.aspx) Astronomers think they have found the oldest galaxy in the universe. Galaxy UDFy-38135539 was imaged by the Hubble Telescope and it’s light was calculated to have taken 13 billion years to reach earth. Although the light from this Galaxy is incredibly faint, Astronomers theorize that there could be other galaxies nearby, which could have cleared a path through the ultraviolet light absorbing hydrogen fog, by ionizing these gases, allowing the light emitted to reach earth. Shuffling the Solar System (http://www.skyandtelescope.com/news/105108519.html) Our Solar System looks like an orderly place in the cosmos, but something is amiss... In the grand scheme of things, Mars should be bigger, due to it’s position in the middle of the protoplanetary disk. Why are Neptune and Uranus so big on the outer edges of the solar system since they have slim pickings so far away from the sun? And why is Jupiter not shackled to the sun as other giant planets are to their stars? This conundrum may have been solved. Sisters Decrease Sexiness??? (http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/10/101021113012.htm) Experiments with rats have revealed, that growing up with a lot of sisters may make you less sexy. According to scientists, growing up with female dominated siblings could have an impact on the sexuality of the male. Get a free audiobook at Audible.com (http://www.audible.com/twis)! And join in with the bookclub: grab your copy of Dark Banquet by Bill Schutt (http://www.amazon.com/dp/0307381137?tag=thesciwor-20&camp=14573&creative=327641&linkCode=as1&creativeASIN=0307381137&adid=120R48A9GB8EGC319JQH&) today! Babies See Robots as Sentient Beings (http://www.geekologie.com/2010/10/study_babies_mistake_robot_for.php) Research has revealed that babies may see robots as humans. In an experiment, the researcher and the robot interacted together with the baby, asking questions to the baby and pointing to various objects. The baby’s gaze followed both the researchers and robots movements. Once the researcher left the room, the robot and the baby continued to interact. Limbs Moved By Light (http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn19596-robot-limbs-to-plug-into-the-brain-with-light.html) Scientists have created a bionic arm that can plug into the the nervous system, being controlled directly by the brain. This arm can also feel pressure and heat. They use sensors that pick up nerve signals using light, by employing optical fibers and polymers that will be less likely than metal to trigger a immune response and won't corrode. So How Heavy is Our Solar System? (http://www.space.com/scienceastronomy/weighing-solar-system-planets-pulsars-100823.html) How Bacteria Tell if it is Cold (http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/10/101019121918.htm) Mosquito Divergence (http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/205599.php) If you love the show, keep it going. Donate below: | 10/27/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
66 |
14 October, 2010 – This Week in Science | (http://www.twis.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-e1277863172926.jpg)Slushy Moons, TWiThe End of the World OR Clymidia, Electric Microbes, GoupStress, TWiWorld Robot Domination, Minion Mailbag, And Much More!!! Show Notes: Microbial... | 10/19/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
67 |
07 October, 2010 – This Week in Science | (http://www.twis.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-e1277863172926.jpg)Solar Cooling. Asteroids and ice. Lost Language Found. Bacteria and Asthma Linked. From Eye to Brain. No Need To Smooch a Stranger to Save a Life. Bad Moos for the future Show Notes: Less Solar Activity, Earth Gets Warmer (http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v467/n7316/full/nature09426.html) A snapshot of the solar activity between 2004 and 2007 has revealed unexpected results. A study by Joanna Haigh has revealed than in spite of a decline of the Suns activity in this period, the Earth may have become warmer, challenging what we knew about the Sun’s role on our climate. By using satellite data and computer modelling, researchers have analyzed how the spectrum of radiation and the amount of energy from the Sun has changed since 2004. Second Asteroid Found with Water Ice (http://www.space.com/scienceastronomy/water-ice-discovered-65cybele-asteroid-101008.html) Scientists have discovered water ice on an asteroid for the second time. Researchers studying Asteroid 65 Cybele, have found evidence of water ice and other organic materials on this 180 mile diameter asteroid which is orbiting the Sun between Mars and Jupiter. This evidence as well as the water ice discovery on asteroid 24 Themis, suggests that water ice could be more common on space rocks than previously thought, supporting the theory that an asteroid had brought our planet its water and the building blocks for life to form here. Language Found New To Science (http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/10/101005133339.htm) National Geographic’s Enduring Voices project expedition to Northern India, has stumbled upon a completely new language to science called Koro. Researchers targeting a language hot spot in Nothern India came across the language while researching two poorly recorded languages of Aka and Miji in the hills of Arunachal Pradesh. They discovered that Koro is spoken by about 800 people and is so unique compared to the local dialects that it is as different as Japanese is to English. Check out the TWIS Bookclub Book of the Month: Need more science-y reading? Want to listen rather than read? Get a free audiobook download at Audible.com (http://www.audiblepodcast.com/twis)! Bacteria, Another Cause of Asthma Attacks in Children (http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/10/101007092716.htm) Scientists in Denmark have discovered that bacterial infections may trigger asthma attacks in children. A study examining 361 children found viral and bacterial infections during asthma attacks. This opens a whole new possibility of using antibiotics in the treatment of people with asthma. From the Eye to the Brain (http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/10/101006141550.htm) Scientists have finally mapped how cells in the eyes communicate with the brain. By comparing a clearly defined visual input to an electrical output of the retina, scientists were able to trace for the first time the neuronal circuitry that connects individual photoreceptors with retinal ganglion cells, the neurons that carry visual signals from the eye to the brain. The discovery may lead to better retinal implants. Untrained Bystanders Should Attempt CPR (http://jama.ama-assn.org/cgi/content/abstract/304/13/1447?hits=10&RESULTFORMAT=&FIRSTINDEX=0&maxtoshow=&fulltext=cpr&searchid=1&resourcetype=HWCIT) Researchers have concluded that there is no need to give mouth to mouth resuscitation if you come across someone in need. During their studies, they found that the odds of survival was more when people used compression only. They found that people were less reluctant to try CPR when mouth to mouth was not involved, therefore eliciting a quicker response in attempting to save a life. Meat Lovers May Endanger the Future of the Planet | 10/12/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
68 |
30 September, 2010 – This Week in Science | (http://www.twis.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-e1277863172926.jpg)Planet Goldilocks, Hectic Heliosheath, Robot Hood, Dinosaurs Taller than Previously Thought, The Zebra Finch and the Ancient Virus Fossil, Atomic Bondage, Escaping the Event Horizon, And Much More... Show Notes: Planet Goldilocks (http://www.skyandtelescope.com/community/skyblog/newsblog/104031014.html) A new planet that could be just right for life has been discovered just 20 light years away. Orbiting the middle of a 'habitable zone' around the red dwarf star Gliese 581, means it could possibly have water on it’s surface. It has a mass of 3 or 4 times that of the Earth and is tidally locked to it’s sun, one half in a perpetual day the other a perpetual night. Life in the Collision Zone (http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/ibex/news/solar-boundary.html) So what really goes on in the depths of space where the edge of the Heliosphere meets the beginning of infinity? Nasa’s Interstellar Boundary Explorer spacecraft was launched on October 19th to map the interactions between the Solar Wind and the Energetic Neutral Atoms of Hydrogen ( ENAs ) and discovered that not all is what it seemed. Interstellar space is more dynamic than previously thought. Robot Hits the Target (http://www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2010/09/robot-teaches-itself-to-fire-a-bow-and-arrow/) Scientists at the Italian Institute of Technology have created the iCub, a robot that teaches itself to fire a bow and arrow. The researchers created a complicated algorithm called ARCHER, using a camera to process the bull’s eye and trial and error to figure out the right angle, force, and trajectory to eventually hit the centre of the target. Get a free audiobook download at Audible.com (http://www.audiblepodcast.com/twis)! Dinosaurs Taller Than Previously Thought (http://www.physorg.com/news205089845.html ) For years paleontologists have calculated the height of dinosaurs by reconstructing the skeletons of these ancient beasts. However, new research indicates that they may have gotten it wrong. Scientists studying the closest living relatives of the dinosaur, the ostrich and the alligator, have discovered that by removing the cartilage from their limbs and measuring the skeletons, they were up to 10% shorter. So, by not factoring in the cartilage in the measurement of dinosaur skeletons, their heights have been underestimated. The Zebra Finch and the Ancient Virus (http://www.plosbiology.org/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fjournal.pbio.1000495) The Hepatitis B family of viruses has been around for a long time, but new discoveries in Zebra Finch DNA have revealed that these viruses have been around for at least 19 million years. The studies have changed the understanding of the timescale of the evolution of the Hepadnavirus. Slicing Proteins with Occams Razor (http://www.uvm.edu/~uvmpr/?Page=News&storyID=17075) How does myoglobin have different functions in different animals? This oxygen binding protein functions differently in different animals. From the lightning reflex of the cheetah to the lumbering descent of the whale. Researchers are trying to figure out why myglobin releases oxygen at different rates for different mammals. Scientists have found a way to unlock the secrets of myoglobin at an atomic level. Escaping the Event Horizon (http://arstechnica.com/science/news/2010/09/ultrafast-laser-pulse-makes-desktop-black-hole-glow.ars) Are Italian Scientists on the verge of proving Hawking's Radiation hypothesis in the lab? Hawking theorised that some energy does indeed escape a black hole. Now, researchers in Italy are experimenting with lasers and glass, to replicate a mini black hole with surprising results. Love what you hear? Support TWIS by making a donation below: | 10/6/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
69 |
23 September, 2010 – This Week in Science | (http://www.twis.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-e1277863172926.jpg)Malaria - Blame it on the Gorilla, Triclosan v’s Toxoplasma Gondii - The Lesser of Two Evils, Russian Anti Aging, Naval Research Battles Against Energy Waste, Have an Ice Life, Soil Bacteria in the Arctic, Oscillating Neurons, Urban Evolution, Neanderthal Complexities, Plants Learning to Live with Radiation and much more. Show Notes: Gorillas and Malaria (http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg20727793.800-ape-dung-reveals-gorilla-origin-of-malaria.html?DCMP=OTC-rss&nsref=health)Scientists at the University of Alabama, Birmingham studying primate droppings for genetic material in their HIV studies, have discovered that gorilla malaria Plasmodium Falciparum is more similar to the human form of the parasite than chimp Plasmodium. Their research have led them to wonder if the malaria parasite Plasmodium Falciparum primarily jumped species from gorilla to humans, be it through eating gorilla bush meat or via mosquitos that tucked into gorilla blood before snacking on humans. If Plasmodium Falciparum is eradicated from humans, should we target eradicating it from the gorilla population too? Triclosan v's Toxoplasma Gondii (http://www.physorg.com/news204376013.html)Many anti-bacterial products from soap to toothpaste, contains the ingredient Triclosan. But could Triclosan eventually lead to the creation of a superbug, which will eventually resist all forms of medication ? Also, when mixed with Chlorine, it’s possible that it could be carcinogenic. However, it also blocks the enzyme which requires Toxoplasma Gondii to thrive. This leave us with a dilemma, which is the lesser of the two evils? Russian Anti - Aging (http://singularityhub.com/tag/vladimir-skulachev/)A Scientist in Russia, claims to have found a method to live longer and healthier. By creating a treatment for Glaucoma, he discovered that the substance he used, penetrated the mitochondria which reduced oxidation damage to the cells. Further research on mice using his treatment, resulted in the mice living 100% longer. How will society be effected if we all lived a healthier and longer life? Will the dynamics of society change? The Navy researching for Better Use of Energy. (http://www.onr.navy.mil/~/link.aspx?_id=136583C0089741239D98621EB4A3C98D&_z=z)Researchers have designed a system that controls the electrical flow for lighting, which has reduced peak power usage by 39 %. This system harnesses and recycles residual magnetic power and also produces less heat and less electromagnetic interference and is hoped that overall energy consumption will be reduced considerably. . Good for the environment perhaps? Or will this lead to cheaper energy and more consumption? Get a free audiobook download at Audiblepodcast.com/twis (http://www.audiblepodcast.com/twis). Did Life Evolve from Ice? (http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/notrocketscience/2010/09/21/a-possible-icy-start-for-life/)The general consensus for the beginnings of life, is that it evolved in a hot, volatile environments such as thermal vents or hot mud. But, could it have also evolved in icy conditions? Contrary to popular belief, Ice is not 100 % solid, it contains a microscopic network of channels and spaces, which allow cold loving RNA Ribozyme molecules to replicate better in conditions below freezing. These sub zero temperatures stabilizes the molecules and prevents them from breaking down. Perfect for RNA to take off. Soil Bacteria in the Arctic. (http://queensu.ca/news/articles/arctic-soil-study-turns-surprising-results)Although plant and animal life is more diverse towards the tropics, the opposite is true for soil bacteria. Studies have revealed that the rules for determining plant and animal species patterns are different for bacteria. These findings will help to understand the biological and ecological factors that determine where and why species occur where they do. | 9/28/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
70 |
16 September, 2010 – This Week in Science | (http://www.twis.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-e1277863172926.jpg)Everything's Evolving, A Fountain Of Youth, This Week in Space, Inspecting The Introspective, Deceptive Birds, Savings On CEOs, How To Be Human, And Much More!!! Support TWIS: Try out Audible.com (http://www.audiblepodcast.com/twis), and get a free audiobook download. Or, donate below: | 9/24/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
71 |
09 September, 2010 – This Week in Science | (http://www.twis.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-e1277863172926.jpg)Say Goodbye To Ali, Aging Oxygen, Monkey Touch Monkey Buy, Selfish Mom Genes, Preemie Predictions, Fertility Secrets, SneakyBots (TWIWRD), Prescription Tunes, Stress Hair, Crazy D, Marscanoes, Minion Mailbag, and Much, Much More!!! | 9/14/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
72 |
02 September, 2010 – This Week in Science | (http://www.twis.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-e1277863172926.jpg)Changing Laws of Physics, A New Human Organ, Testing Strings, Forbidden Food, Tiny Cannibals, People Power, Red Rain and Aliens, Whirly Bird Lasers, You Can't Stop The Madness, Accidental Chemistry, We Need Stem Cells, Volcanic Eruptions, and Much, Much More... Show Notes: Fighting the Law (http://www.technologyreview.com/blog/arxiv/25673/) The laws of physics may vary through time and through different parts of the universe. It's possible that we live in a very special pocket of physical laws that sustain life. New Organ Found in Humans (Mostly Americans) Some scientists argue that taken as a whole fat cells could actually be considered an organ. Instead of just passively storing fat, these cells actively send chemical signals to other parts of that body. 20 types of hormones and other substances have been shown to be secreted from fat cells that are not secreted from anywhere else in the body, contributing to problems such as heart disease. Physical Physics (http://www.popsci.com/science/article/2010-09/researchers-figure-out-how-test-untestable-theory-everything) Scientists are attempting to physically test the mathematical predictions made by string theory using quantum entanglement. They hope to give string theory (which has long been purely theoretical) some evidential backing. From DNA to GPA Scientists analyzing the correlation between genetics and academic success have found that academic performance tends to suffer if certain dopaminergic variants are present. Death by One's Own Sword (http://arstechnica.com/science/news/2010/08/bacterial-cannibalism-factor-could-lead-to-new-antibiotics.ars) Its long been known that bacteria engage in chemical warfare, including a certain cannibalistic bacteria called Bacillus subtilis. Researchers used imaging mass spectrometry to pinpoint the killing factors that were involved in this species' attack. They isolated the proteins and then used these isolated chemicals to kill the Bacillus as well as other species of bacteria. Is this the first step towards using a bacteria's own chemical defense system against itself? September calls for a new book of the month! This month read along with the TWIS Bookclub as we dive into Code: The Hidden Language of Computer Hardware and Software by Charles Petzold. Get your copy now: Interested in audio books instead? Well, sign up for a trial membership and a free audiobook download now: http://www.audiblepodcast.com/twis (http://www.audiblepodcast.com/twis) Laser-Copters New lasers attached to helicopters are designed to shoot down guided missiles. Breakthrough in Fuel Cell Efficiency The goal of self sufficient houses is to make each home its own power system with solar panels on the roof, and a fuel cell in the basement. Until now a limiting factor has been finding a catalyst for splitting water that will take minimal electrical input. Now a new catalyst is boosting the current system by 200 fold. This is your Brain on Thinking... (http://news.discovery.com/human/brain-exercises-dementia.html) Exercising your brain has been shown to delay dementia, but new research shows that once dementia does set in, a well exercised brain actually decays due to dementia faster. Stem Cell Ruling Halts Research for Sight A freeze in federal funding has halted research that was on the way to restoring sight for the blind. Scientists warn the public that a generation of researchers may turn away from stem cell research if these political standstills continue. Aliens in the Rain (http://www.technologyreview.com/blog/arxiv/25699/) In 2001 red rain the fell on India. A physicist examining samples of this mysterious rain found cells with no DNA. After years of studying these cells, he found that they reproduce at a temperature of 121 degrees Celsius. | 9/7/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
73 |
26 August, 2010 – This Week in Science | (http://www.twis.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-e1277863172926.jpg)New Worlds Ahoy, Neptune Makes A Lap, Air-tricity, Oil-Nom-Nom, Dry Water Is Not Wet, Destroying HIV, Buzz-Buzz-Groom, New Memristor Circuit, Space Flight Electroshock, Bi-focalled Bugs, Jetlag Fix, The Sex Lives of Birds, Double Complete Hand Transplant, And... A Camel! No, Wait... Tom Merritt! Show Notes: Get a free audio-book download at http://www.audiblepodcast.com/twis (http://www.audiblepodcast.com/twis) Donate to TWIS by clicking the buttons below: | 9/1/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
74 |
19 August, 2010 – This Week in Science | (http://www.twis.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-e1277863172926.jpg)Mitochondrial Eve, Vitamins Cause Cancer, Pills For Life, Like Father Not Like Son, Crazy Kindergartners, Beer Goggles, Fuzzy Holes, Monkey See Monkey Say, Zombie Ants, and Much More!!! Show Notes: Mitochondrial Eve (http://www.media.rice.edu/media/NewsBot.asp?MODE=VIEW&ID=14646&SnID=1094492668) Scientists are using mitochondrial evidence to discover the earliest female ancestor of Homo sapiens. Vitamins Cause Cancer?!? (http://mbio.asm.org/content/1/3/e00112-10) Approximately 1/2 the world's population is infected with Helicobactor pylori, a bacterium known to be involved in cancer and stomach ulcers. A new study found that H. pylori requires vitamin B6 to establish an infection. The Pill That Makes You Live Forever (http://www2.med.umich.edu/prmc/media/newsroom/details.cfm?ID=1689) Restricted caloric intake has been shown to increase lifespan, and now scientists have identified the specific gene which is responsible for this phenomena. Are we one step closer to life-extending pills? Tall Babies from Short Parents (http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/08/100811085416.htm) Researchers study the way transposons allow traits not present in either parent to be expressed in offspring. Crazy Kindergartners (http://news.msu.edu/story/8160/) Younger children are far more likely to be diagnosed with ADHD, possibly simply because the symptoms of ADHD are the same as those of childhood. Beer Goggles (http://news.discovery.com/human/alcohol-attraction-symmetry.html) A study done on the effects of alcohol on the perceived attractiveness of faces confirms that beer goggles do in fact exist. Drink up! Do you want to read along with the TWIS Bookclub? Get your copy of this month's book, 'Good Natured' by Frans de Waal: Fuzzy Holes (http://news.sciencemag.org/sciencenow/2010/08/the-mystery-of-the-absent-black-.html) Researchers are fuzzy about why they see a magnetar where they expected a black hole. Monkey See Monkey Say (http://www.physorg.com/news200216585.html) A new study finds that people don't only imitate the sound of people around them, but they imitate the facial movements of the people speaking. Zombie Ants (http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/80beats/2010/08/18/parasite-infested-zombie-ants-walked-the-earth-48-million-years-ago/) A fungus parasitic behavior that turns ants into virtual zombies turns out to be much older than previously thought. Thanks for listening! If you enjoy what you hear, please, donate below: | 8/27/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
75 |
12 August, 2010 – This Week in Science | (http://www.twis.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-e1277863172926.jpg)Stone Tools To Rule Them All, Video And The Media Star, An Old Mantle Piece, Take Two And Have A Nice Day, It's A Miracle... Tomato, Anger For Happiness?, Indian Super... | 8/17/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
76 |
05 August, 2010 – This Week in Science | (http://www.twis.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-e1277863172926.jpg)Solar Flare Watch, Keep That Inner Child, Imaginary Dinosaurs, Gamers Beating Computers, Global Warming Benefits, Cultural Brain Wiring, And A Bit Of Artificial Intelligence. Blow Out Your Flares and Make a Wish (http://cosmiclog.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2010/08/02/4802055-here-comes-the-sun-storm) The first solar flare of this cycle kicked off on Dr. Kiki's birthday, August 1st. It continues, and earth's magnetic field is still reverberating (http://spaceweather.com/). It has sparked auroras as far south as Wisconsin and Iowa, so look out for increased auroral activity. People Never Change (http://www.livescience.com/culture/children-personality-adults-100804.html) A study found that teachers assessments of certain personality traits in children remained true after four decades. Triceratops Didn't Exist (http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-501465_162-20012471-501465.html) Scientists now believe that triceratops is actually just a younger version of a torosaurus. Humans Are Still Smarter Than Computers (http://arstechnica.com/science/news/2010/08/gamers-beat-algorithms-for-finding-protein-structures.ars) Fold it is an online game that uses humans ability to recognize patterns to solve the problem of how to fold proteins. A computer program is used to fold them, but the algorithm isn't able to quite complete the protein, so this game was created to harness the power of people to get past the threshold of an algorithm's ability. Check out Monty Harper's Kickstarter project (http://tinyurl.com/2d4nsyl)! Join the TWIS BookClub in reading this month's book: The Silver Lining Justin looks at the 'bright' side of global warming by listing some animals that will benefit from its effects, including sharks, starfish, and jellyfish. Culture Wires the Brain (http://www.psychologicalscience.org/media/releases/2010/park.cfm) A study looks a the way the collectivist nature of eastern cultures versus the individualistic nature of western culture has wired the brains of participants in that culture. This Week in World Robot Domination: Digital Life (http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg20727723.700-artificial-life-forms-evolve-basic-intelligence.html) Avidians "live" in a computer world called Avida, and they replicate using strings of coded computer instructions rather than DNA. When "released" into a competitive "environment" they have been able to evolve memory. Could we possibly evolve a computer program to have artificial intelligence comparable to our own? The Sponge In You (http://www.astrobio.net/pressrelease/3578/sponge-reveals-animal-origins) Sponges look, well... spongey. But, you have a lot in common with the absorbent creatures, and they may just divulge secrets from our ancient common ancestor. Have comments on today's episode? Response to Justin's ideas about advertising and psychology? Make them below... Like what you hear? Donate to TWIS: | 8/10/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
77 |
This Week in Science – 29 July, 2010 | (http://www.twis.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-e1277863172926.jpg)Bankrolling ITER, The Ass Family Tree, Daydreaming Again?, No Safe Prions, The Mind of God, TWIWRD, Snails For Your Head, TWITEOTW, Porcine Optimism, And Much More! Fusion (http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-10793883) Financed, Finally (http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/8485669.stm) A deal has been reached for the timetable and financing of the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor to be built in Southern France. How to Make an Ancient Ass (http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2010-07/uof-adi072810.php) of Yourself Scientists have traced the family tree of the domestic donkey and found that the critically endangered African wild ass is actually the living ancestor of the modern donkey. Daydreaming (http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/07/100726124424.htm) to Forget A study shows that people who daydream about things that are farther away or longer ago find it harder to recall what they were doing in the present. No Prion is Safe (http://www.scripps.edu/news/press/20100726.html) New research indicates that infectious prions can possibly arise spontaneously in healthy brain tissue. The Mind of God (http://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/news/media/releases/brainstem_spinal_cord_images_hidden_in_michelangelos_sistine_chapel_fresco) In Michaelangelo's painting "Separation of Light from Darkness," the depiction of God's unusually lumpy neck has been an object of curiosity and controversy. Recently, it was noted by a neurosurgeon that the shape appears to be a spinal cord seen from the perspective of one performing an autopsy. Michaelangelo's "The Creation of Adam" also appears to have some neurological secrets. The God and angels surrounded by cloth in the painting form almost the exact shape of a human brain. This Week in World Robot Domination (http://twiwrd.blogspot.com/) Pancake flipping robots are out there. Videos are available online. Eat a Sea Snail, Cure your Headache (http://pubs.acs.org/cen/science/88/8830sci2.html) The toxin injected by marine cone snails into their prey is a potent painkiller... at least in rats. This Week in the End of the World - Phytoplankton (http://ksjtracker.mit.edu/2010/07/29/ap-climatewire-sciam-drops-in-the-bucket-are-adding-up-now-the-oceans-phytoplankton-are-dying-away/) have been dropping in their abundance for the last century; about a 40% drop in the last sixty years - 2010 (http://ksjtracker.mit.edu/2010/07/29/lots-of-ink-new-data-confirm-that-2000-onward-hottest-decade-ever-measured-skeptics-might-say-so-we-said-that-already/) is on track to be the hottest year. Since the year 2000 it's been the hottest decade EVER. - We'll potentially be smashed by an asteroid (http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/07/100727082656.htm) predicted to hit in 2082. Optimistic Pigs (http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2010-07/nu-cya072710.php) New study shows that pigs living in enriched environments are more optimistic about life whereas those in dull environments are more pessimistic. What The Ze-Donk?!? (http://www.treehugger.com/files/2010/07/rare-zebra-donkey-hybrid-born-at-wildlife-preserve.php) Where Do Roos Call Home? (http://www.plosbiology.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pbio.1000437) Need TWIS more places??? You can also get TWIS on your Android phone. Look for TWIS4Droid in the Android Marketplace. | 8/4/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
78 |
22 July, 2010 – This Week in Science | (http://www.twis.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-e1277863172926.jpg)Our Battles With Viruses, Invisibility Cloaks, Big Stars, Bacteria and MS, Engineering Malaria, And Much More! Viral News - A new gel (http://www.nytimes.com/2010/07/20/world/africa/20safrica.html) prevents transmission of HIV by up to 50%, and is now available to women. - A push to increase male circumcision (http://articles.latimes.com/2010/jul/20/news/la-heb-aids-circumcision-20100720) in Africa is based on possibly faulty research that suggest circumcised men are less likely to carry HIV. - The search continues for a universal flu vaccine (http://io9.com/5589883/universal-flu-vaccine-could-be-just-around-the-corner) and we are getting closer. - Officials just announced the 6th death in California from whooping cough, needlessly, since it is highly preventative. So vaccinate! The vaccine wears off, so adults, especially pregnant women, should get a booster shot. Sub-par Servers What is the worst kind of customer service? A new study aims to answer this question, and the results are surprising. Mosquito 2.0 (http://www.smartplanet.com/technology/blog/science-scope/how-engineering-malaria-resistant-mosquitoes-could-save-millions-of-lives/2995/) Biologists are engineering mosquitoes that can't carry and transmit malaria, in hopes of repopulating the world with them and preventing malaria. Just How Big Can a Star Get? (http://arstechnica.com/science/news/2010/07/researchers-find-giant-stars-with-300-times-the-suns-mass.ars) Bigger than we thought, it seems. Previously scientists thought that stars could never be larger than 150 times the mass of our sun. Now, using images from the Hubble telescope, they have found at least 4 stars that are over 300 solar masses. Buckyballs in Space (http://www.nasa.gov/home/hqnews/2010/jul/HQ_10-174_Buckyballs.html) First observed in the laboratory 30 years ago, these molecules contain 60 carbon atoms arranged in 3d spherical patterns. These are the largest molecules known to exist in space. Monty Harper is creating a CD of unique science songs for kids, and using Kickstarter.com to try and raise the money to make a really top-flight recording. Check out his pitch video here (http://tinyurl.com/2d4nsyl)! Invisibility Cloaks (http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/07/100721164007.htm) A new step towards invisibility cloaks uses glass resonators to make objects invisible. Stopping Spraying Zinc in Your Nose! (http://archotol.ama-assn.org/cgi/content/short/136/7/673) Studies show that intranasal zinc is not only ineffective in alleviating the common cold, it can also cause you to lose your sense of smell. Massive Marmots (http://www.csmonitor.com/Science/2010/0721/Another-consequence-of-global-warming-more-marmots) A study indicates that, due to global warming, marmots are getting bigger and more plentiful. With the melting snow, they hibernate less time and spend more time putting on the weight. A Gut Feeling About MS (http://media.caltech.edu/press_releases/13362) Researchers have found a surprising link between multiple sclerosis and gut bacteria. Support TWIS by Donating: | 7/28/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
79 |
15 July, 2010 – This Week in Science | (http://www.twis.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-e1277863172926.jpg)Blackholes Around Us, Gravity Defying, Practice Makes Perfect, Birds And Magnets, Three Blind Mice, Lying Eyes, Plants and Intelligence, Microbe Planets, Minion Mailbag, and Much More... | 7/21/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
80 |
08 July, 2010 – This Week in Science | (http://www.twis.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-e1277863172926.jpg)Pretty Planck Pics (http://su.pr/1Mx0SR), Sexy Ticking Clocks, Living Longer? (http://su.pr/2PZ3NX), Need New Now, TWIS Decade in Review: Epigenetics, and Much More! For more information on Epigenetics, check out these links: The Epigenome Network of Excellence (NoE): http://epigenome.eu/ (http://epigenome.eu/) Epigenetic Research: http://www.epidna.com/ (http://www.epidna.com/) The Human Epigenome Project: http://www.epigenome.org/ (http://www.epigenome.org/) ScienceNOW on PBS Nova: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/sciencenow/3411/02.html (http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/sciencenow/3411/02.html) Epigenetics Society: http://www.dnamethsoc.com (http://www.dnamethsoc.com) Also, join in reading The Weather Makers by Tim Flannery with the TWIS Bookclub (twisbookclub.ning.com): | 7/14/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
81 |
01 July, 2010 – This Week in Science | (http://www.twis.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-e1277863172926.jpg)Nature’s Speed Limit, Life Getting Older, Drinking Makes You Trackable, Quantum Fleas on Mt. Everest, Science of Happiness, Dental Discoveries, Kids On Walls, and Much, Much More… Don't forget about the book of the month! Head on over to the TWIS BookClub (http://twisbookclub.ning.com)... Physics addicts out there should take a look at a new stackoverflow community site for physics (http://area51.stackexchange.com/proposals/1908/physics). Says Nick Gotch, "a place for students, hobbyists, and researchers to exchange knowledge both at the beginner level and advanced." Happy 4th of July everyone!!! Even if you aren't listening or watching this in the US, it's a day to reflect on your country, wherever you are. Let's try to learn from our past mistakes and not ever have a rainbow sky (http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=128170775) on the 4th... | 7/6/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
82 |
28 June, 2010 – This Week in Science | (http://67.222.3.122/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-150x150.jpg)Scientific Fields Entangled (http://su.pr/1GMqjs) Biology and Physics merge as scientists try to explain the DNA double helix with quantum entanglement. Attack of the Long-Lasting Tomatoes Researchers used yeast genes to creat a transgenic tomato that delays decay for up to a week longer than what is currently normal. Bedtimes for the Japanese (http://su.pr/2E4JBd) The Japanese government is urging people to go to bed an hour earlier with the goal of reducing carbon emissions. Super Salmon (http://su.pr/29olKT) The FDA is considering allowing the growth and sale of genetically-modified, fast-growing Atlantic salmon with a constant stream of growth hormone. Robo-Fish Will Lead You (http://su.pr/1Frqag) Researchers have created a robotic fish that is so convincing that it tricks and even impresses other fish. The Crashiest Season of All When is the most dangerous time of the year to drive your car? This Week in Science History (http://su.pr/4xvcb1) 1660's scientist Robert Boyle was right! A document was found filled with his insightful predictions many of which prove accurate today. Bursting Bubbles for Cancer (http://su.pr/2d5Tyk) A new cancer drug delivery system uses bubbles filled with drugs and bursts them using ultrasound at intended locations. Hayabusa Update! (http://su.pr/1DQuk1) The little probe that could is a little gassy. And, consider reading the TWIS Bookclub (http://su.pr/1KBCyi) book of the month for July: The Weather Makers by Tim Flannery | 6/29/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
83 |
21 June, 2010 – This Week in Science | (http://67.222.3.122/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-150x150.jpg)Celestial Tinker Toys, Kepler Vision, 3 Reasons To Save The Whales, TWiWorld Justin Domination, News Bites, and Interview with Joseph Jackson and Eri Gentry about Open Science. | 6/24/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
84 |
07 June, 2010 – This Week in Science | (http://67.222.3.122/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-150x150.jpg)Teeming Titan?, Insulated Earth?, Stupid Suicide, Weird Canadian Animals, Mini-Black Holes, Monkey-Cat Sighting?, Changing Constants And Bleeding Eyes, Life And Genetics, Ancient Carnivore Brains, and LOTS of Scott Sigler!!! | 6/8/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
85 |
24 May, 2010 – This Week in Science | (http://67.222.3.122/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-e1277863172926.jpg)Build Your Own Bacteria (http://www.nature.com/news/2010/100519/full/news.2010.253.html) Scientists have created a completely synthetic organism by copying the genome a certain species of bacteria, thereby paving the way for a new method of creating bacteria that will do specific tasks such as clean up oil spills. Poo Power Fuel from municipal sludge is now within a few cents of being cost-effective for use. Treatment plants are looking to microorganisms that can produce higher amount of usable fuel. The Antelope that Cried Wolf (http://researchnews.osu.edu/archive/topimate.htm) Topi Antelopes in southwest Kenya have observed male scientists lying to increase their chances of getting females to mate with them. Whats the Matter with Matter and Antimatter? (http://www.interactions.org/cms/?pid=1029449) Researchers at The National Accelerator looking at 8 years of data are observing the decay of neutral beta mesons. As these particles decay they turn into either a matter particle or an antimatter particle, in a ratio that scientists predicted would be 50:50. However, they found that there is an asymmetry of 1%. Do Cell Phones Cause Cancer? (http://www.iarc.fr/en/media-centre/pr/2010/pdfs/pr200_E.pdf) ..... We still don't know. The Interphone Study Group analyzed individuals with incidences of brain cancer and their self reported cell phone use for over ten years. They found results that could be interpreted to say that cell phone actually protects you from cancer. There are issues with this study however, since self reporting is never entirely accurate, and the radiation from cell phones has changed over time. Learning by Osmosis In a study looking at people in both China and the US found that the level of education children attain is linked less to their country of residence or the education level of their parents, than to the number of books in the household. Brainy Bacteria (http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2010-05/asfm-cbm052010.php) A common soil bacteria appears to have the ability to not only boost your mood but to also make you smarter (or at least better at mazes). So far the effects have only been studied in mice. | 5/25/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
86 |
17 May, 2010 – This Week in Science | (http://67.222.3.122/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-150x150.jpg)Scanning Archaeopteryx, Scary Pee, Labs On A Chip, Killer Robots in the Kitchen, Stem Cells for Hearing, Take A Pill, Minion Mailbag, and Much More... | 5/18/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
87 |
10 May, 2010 – This Week in Science | (http://67.222.3.122/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-e1277863172926.jpg)Neanderthal Family Tree, It Wasn't The Poppy Seed, X-ray Vision, Kalimantan MonkeyCat, Itty-Bitty Life, This Week in the End of The World, and Mice in Pain. | 5/12/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
88 |
03 May, 2010 – This Week in Science | (http://67.222.3.122/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-e1277863172926.jpg)A Twin Mystery, Nose Spray Romance, Aphids Taste Like Roses, Searching For Dark Star, Betting On Bacteria, Terraforming Mars, NASA And The Aliens, And Much More... | 5/4/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
89 |
26 April, 2010 – This Week in Science | (http://67.222.3.122/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/TWIS_podcast_logo-e1277863172926.jpg)Recantations, Bubbling Tar Microbes, Nervous Nerves, Dark Matters, Brainy Science, The Skinny, Migrating Genes, and More! | 4/27/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
90 |
19 April, 2010 – This Week in Science | KDVS Fundraiser Week!, Beneficial Breasts, Multitudes of Microbes, Cyber-Security, DARPA loves Cats, Brainy Fibers, NASA's Moon Mission, Electrified Space, Chicken or Egg, Messing With Mitochondria, and Much More! | 4/20/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
91 |
12 April, 2010 – This Week in Science | Deep Black Smokers, World Robot Domination, Cooperating Neurons, Surfer's Theory Sinks, Autistic Genes, Supertaskers Among Us, Banning Old Drivers, Australopi Missing Link, Memristors Return, Empathy Versus Violence, Demoting Fruit Flies, Japanese Gut Bacteria, And Much More... | 4/13/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
92 |
06 April, 2010 – This Week in Science | Science news from the week, special guest appearances, and the Decade of Climate Change in Review... | 4/6/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
93 |
30 March, 2010 – This Week in Science | Hubble Confirmations, Brainy Drug Dealer, PacMan In Space, Fuel Friendly Yeast, Methanogens Breathe Easy, Pinky Sex, A Lead Burrito, Seeing In The Dark, Momma Knows Best, Stinky Birds, This Week in World Robot Domination, And Much More! | 3/30/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
94 |
23 March, 2010 – This Week in Science | SXSW Recap, Exceptional Shrimps, Could Be A Hobbit's Uncle, How To Grow A New Leg, Glaucoma Gets Brainy, Planck Gets Dusty, Seaweed Supplementation, Sperm Play Tron, Science Plays Poker, LHC Record Breaking, And Much More! | 3/23/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
95 |
09 March, 2010 – This Week in Science | A City On the Move, Asteroids To Blame, Minion Miffed At Geo-Engineering, Ritalin On The Brain, A Snowball's Chance, Gluten-Free Genes, Magnetic Meanderings, Ants vs. Toads, and Much More... | 3/9/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
96 |
02 March, 2009 – This Week in Science | Materialistic Quantum Leap, R U Who U Think U R, Planets Old And New, Beware Cows And Women, Discriminating Damselfish, Cocaine 4 Babies, and Interview w/ Rich Mooney and Todd Roberts on Bird Brains and Lasers. | 3/2/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
97 |
23 February, 2010 – This Week in Science | Kirsten Goes to AAAS, Dolphin Debates, Math With A Purpose, Power Naps, Wasps And Butterflies, Biological Aging, Exploring Explorit, TWI the Decade of Science: Brain-Computer Interfaces, and Much, Much More... | 2/23/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
98 |
16 February, 2010 – This Week in Science | In the show this week: Synthesizing Proteins, Tiny Tightrope Walkers, GABA Goes Immune, Fabricating Electric Clothes, Multidemensional Drake Equation, Adventurous Great Tits, The Dino-Bird Question, Robot Patients, The Spiritual Brain, This Week in The End of The World, and Much More! | 2/16/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
99 |
09 February, 2010 – This Week in Science | Quantum Algae, Determining Vegetative States - Or, Ali Pulls the Plug on Justin, Remember the Prions, Gay Science, Zen Bats and Drunk Bats, Scientists Say: Drink Beer, Daddy Sang Bass, Minion Mailbag, and Much More! | 2/9/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
| Total: 99 Episodes |
Customer Reviews
Lame. Really lame.
I wanted to like this podcast, I really did, but the hosts make is so difficult... Justin is contstandly cracking jokes and Kirsten is forever laughing. The problem is, see, that Justin isn't funny and Kirsten laughs when she obviously has nothing to say. It's pretty awkard sometimes. It might just be my general dislike of annoying people that makes this podcast so unlistienable, so your milage may vary. Give it a shot, you might find you have a higher tollerance for their brand of stupid than I.
Goofy but endearing
This is not your typical science show, but that is what makes it likeable IMO. It is heavy on the subject matter but light in the mood. This may make serious and highbrow scientists quickly hit the skip button. I think it is fun without displaying bad manners. So there.
Get rid of the annoying sidekick
I really enjoy this show, I listen to it on my way to school. However I really dislike the annoying sidekick. He is arrogant and so annoying to listen to over the radio. Dr. Kirsten is so much more radio suitable, and I wish she would get another co-host, because that would make this podcast perfect. I have to force myself not to turn it off whenever the sidekick says anything. Otherwise the science is interesting and easy to follow if you don't know much about it.
Listeners also subscribed to
- Slacker Astronomy podcast
- Michael Koppelman, Doug Welch, Aaron Price et al
- View In iTunes
