Science for the People

#544 Prosperity Without Growth

14 Dec 2019

Contributed by Lukas

The societies we live in are organised around growth, objects, and driving forward a constantly expanding economy as benchmarks of success and prosper...

#543 Give a Nerd a Gift

07 Dec 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Yup, you guessed it... it's Science for the People's annual holiday episode that helps you figure out what sciency books and gifts to get that special...

#542 Climate Doomsday

30 Nov 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Have you heard? Climate change. We did it. And it's bad. It's going to be worse. We are already suffering the effects of it in many ways. How should w...

#541 Wayfinding

16 Nov 2019

Contributed by Lukas

These days when we want to know where we are or how to get where we want to go, most of us will pull out a smart phone with a built-in GPS and map app...

#540 Specialize? Or Generalize?

09 Nov 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Ever been called a "jack of all trades, master of none"? The world loves to elevate specialists, people who drill deep into a single topic. Those peop...

#539 A Bit of Bird Behaviour

26 Oct 2019

Contributed by Lukas

This week we're discussing birds, behaviour, and chickadees. How do you look at behavioural traits in birds, how different birds value information gat...

#538 Nobels and Astrophysics

19 Oct 2019

Contributed by Lukas

This week we start with this year's physics Nobel Prize awarded to Jim Peebles, Michel Mayor, and Didier Queloz and finish with a discussion of the No...

#537 Science Journalism, Hold the Hype

11 Oct 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Everyone's seen a piece of science getting over-exaggerated in the media. Most people would be quick to blame journalists and big media for getting in...

#536 Let Them Eat Dirt

27 Sep 2019

Contributed by Lukas

This week on Science for the People, we're discussing how the gut microbiome is shaped by experiences and circumstances during early childhood. We'll ...

#535 Superior

20 Sep 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Apologies for the delay getting this week's episode out! A technical glitch slowed us down, but all is once again well. This week, we look at the ofte...

#534 Bacteria are Coming for Your OJ

13 Sep 2019

Contributed by Lukas

What makes breakfast, breakfast? Well, according to every movie and TV show we've ever seen, a big glass of orange juice is basically required. But ou...

#533 Breaking the Rodent Glass Ceiling

31 Aug 2019

Contributed by Lukas

When a new science finding is published about animal research, you might assume that scientists are trying to find out things that are useful for huma...

#532 A Class Conversation

23 Aug 2019

Contributed by Lukas

This week we take a look at the sociology of class. What factors create and impact class? How do we try and study it? How does class play out differen...

#SB2 2019 Science Birthday Minisode: Mary Golda Ross

09 Aug 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Our second annual Science Birthday is here, and this year we celebrate the wonderful Mary Golda Ross, born 9 August 1908. She died in 2008 at age 99, ...

#531 Induced Seismicity

02 Aug 2019

Contributed by Lukas

This week we're talking about earthquakes. If you live in Alberta or Oklahoma, you've probably heard about fracking or waste water wells causing earth...

#530 Why Aren't We Dead Yet?

19 Jul 2019

Contributed by Lukas

We only notice our immune systems when they aren't working properly, or when they're under attack. How does our immune system understand what bits of ...

#529 Do You Really Want to Find Out Who's Your Daddy?

05 Jul 2019

Contributed by Lukas

At least some of you by now have probably spit into a tube and mailed it off to find out who your closest relatives are, where you might be from, and ...

#528 A Shock Machine and The Lost Boys

28 Jun 2019

Contributed by Lukas

This week, we take a look at 2 notable post world war 2 social psychology experiments and their creators: Stanley Milgram and his "shock machine", and...

#527 Honey I CRISPR'd the Kids

14 Jun 2019

Contributed by Lukas

This week we're coming to you from Awesome Con in Washington, D.C. There, host Bethany Brookshire led a panel of three amazing guests to talk about th...

#526 Let Me See You Sweat

07 Jun 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Summer is coming, and summer means sweat. Why do we sweat so much, and how do we do it? We hear from Yana Kamberov about the evolutionary origins of o...

#525 Chernobyl

31 May 2019

Contributed by Lukas

This week we're looking back at a man-made disaster that changed the world: the Chernobyl meltdown. We take a closer look at all the contributing fact...

#524 The Human Network

17 May 2019

Contributed by Lukas

What does a network of humans look like and how does it work? How does information spread? How do decisions and opinions spread? What gets distorted a...

#523 Happy As A Clam (Garden)

10 May 2019

Contributed by Lukas

This week we’re discussing clam gardens on the west coast of Canada and the US, and how indigenous people have been actively managing food resou...

#522 Home Alone?

03 May 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Do you keep your house clean? Do you think that, maybe with the exception of the dog, you're alone in your home? Well, we hate to tell you this, but y...

#521 The Curious Life of Krill

19 Apr 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Krill may be one of the most abundant forms of life on our planet... but it turns out we don't know that much about them. For a creature that underpin...

#520 A Closer Look at Objectivism

12 Apr 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Update: the previous file had overlapping tracks during the second interview. This has now been fixed. This week we broach the topic of Objectivism. W...

#519 Animal Architects

05 Apr 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Don't make the mistake of thinking that humans are the only species that's mastered architecture. There are bugs out in this world that form huge, sel...

#518 With Genetic Knowledge Comes the Need for Counselling

22 Mar 2019

Contributed by Lukas

This week we delve into genetic testing - for yourself and your future children. We speak with Jane Tiller, lawyer and genetic counsellor, about genet...

#517 Life in Plastic, Not Fantastic

15 Mar 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Our modern lives run on plastic. It's in the computers and phones we use. It's in our clothing, it wraps our food. It surrounds us every day, and when...

#516 The Keys to Skeletons Lost

08 Mar 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Until we break a bone or two, we tend not to spend too much time thinking about our bones, where they come from, and how we know what we know about th...

#515 Humanimal

01 Mar 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Are humans special? We feel special, like we're somehow different from the rest of life on the planet. But are we really? This week, we spend the hour...

#514 Arctic Energy (Rebroadcast)

22 Feb 2019

Contributed by Lukas

This week we're looking at how alternative energy works in the arctic. We speak to Louie Azzolini and Linda Todd from the Arctic Energy Alliance, a no...

#513 Dinosaur Tails

15 Feb 2019

Contributed by Lukas

This week: dinosaurs! We're discussing dinosaur tails, bipedalism, paleontology public outreach, dinosaur MOOCs, and other neat dinosaur related thing...

#512 All Over The Map

08 Feb 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Today we're talking about maps: why we can spend hours pouring over them, the stories they tell, the information they visualize, and how they border b...

#511 Ok you worked out, now what?

01 Feb 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Ok, you got out the door and did a workout. Excellent work! Now you're sore. Rats. What do you do? Foam roll? Stretch? Stand butt naked in a tank pump...

#510 Gene Drives (Rebroadcast)

25 Jan 2019

Contributed by Lukas

This week on Science for the People: who is driving this genetic bus? We'll talk with Kevin Esvelt about gene drives, what they are, where they come f...

#509 Anisogamy: The Beginning of Male and Female

18 Jan 2019

Contributed by Lukas

This week we discuss how the sperm and egg came to be, and how a difference of reproductive interest has led to sexual conflict in bed bugs. We'll be ...

#508 Freedom's Laboratory

11 Jan 2019

Contributed by Lukas

This week we're looking back at where some of our modern ideas about science being objective, independent, and apolitical come from. We journey back t...

#507 Poaching, and We Don't Mean Eggs

04 Jan 2019

Contributed by Lukas

We all know poaching elephants for their ivory and pangolins for their scales is wrong, right? Then why do people keep doing it? We speak with Rachel ...

#506 Everybody Poops (Rebroadcast)

28 Dec 2018

Contributed by Lukas

This week on Science for the People, everybody poops! And everybody pees. But we probably don't spend a lot of time thinking about exactly how that wo...

#505 Top Science Stories of 2018

21 Dec 2018

Contributed by Lukas

We're looking back over 2018 and calling out our favourite science news stories from this past year: the ones we think you should remember -- or hear ...

#504 The Art of Logic

14 Dec 2018

Contributed by Lukas

How can mathematics help us have better arguments? This week we spend the hour with "The Art of Logic in an Illogical World" author, mathematician Eug...

#503 Postpartum Blues (Rebroadcast)

07 Dec 2018

Contributed by Lukas

When a woman gives birth, it seems like everyone wants to know how the baby is doing. What does it weigh? Is it breathing right? Did it cry? But it tu...

#502 Nerd Gift Extravaganza

30 Nov 2018

Contributed by Lukas

It's that time of year when nerds who care about each other buy each other nerdy presents. And because we know it can be so difficult to find that "ju...

#501 Hidden Technology

23 Nov 2018

Contributed by Lukas

This week we spend the hour with Kat Jungnickel to discuss her new book "Bikes & Bloomers: Victorian women inventors and their extraordinary cycle...

#500 500th Episode

16 Nov 2018

Contributed by Lukas

This week we turn 500! To celebrate, we're taking the opportunity to go off format, talk about the journey through 500 episodes, and answer questions ...

#499 Technology, Work and The Future (Rebroadcast)

09 Nov 2018

Contributed by Lukas

This week, we're thinking about how rapidly advancing technology will change our future, our work, and our well-being. We speak to Richard and Daniel ...

#498 The Poison Squad

02 Nov 2018

Contributed by Lukas

This week, let's go back in time. Back to the 1900s, when life was pure and clean, and your milk was preserved with formaldehyde, your meat with Borax...

#497 Built

26 Oct 2018

Contributed by Lukas

This week we're talking about towers, bridges, sinking cathedrals, and other feats of structural engineering. How do we build skyscrapers? How do engi...

#496 Anti-Intellectualism: Down With the Scientist!

19 Oct 2018

Contributed by Lukas

This week we get to the bottom of anti-intellectualism. We'll be speaking with David Robson, senior journalist at BBC Future, about misology -- the ha...

#495 Earth Science in Space

12 Oct 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Some worlds are made of sand. Some are made of water. Some are even made of salt. In science fiction and fantasy, planet can be made of whatever you w...

#494 The Tangled Taxonomic Tree

05 Oct 2018

Contributed by Lukas

The idea of the tree of life appears in many of the world's religions, and it appears, famously, in science, with Darwin's famous tree of life, where ...

#493 Trowel Blazing (Rebroadcast)

28 Sep 2018

Contributed by Lukas

This week we look at some of the lesser known historical figures and current public perception of anthropology, archaeology, and other fields that end...

#492 Flint Water Crisis

21 Sep 2018

Contributed by Lukas

This week we dig into the Flint water crisis: what happened, how it got so bad, what turned the tide, what's still left to do, and the mix of science,...

#491 Frankenstein LIVES

14 Sep 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Two hundred years ago, Mary Shelley gave us a legendary monster, shaping science fiction for good. Thanks to her, the name of Frankenstein is now famo...

#490 Breaking Down Chemical Weapons

07 Sep 2018

Contributed by Lukas

It sounds like something out of a spy novel: an ex-spy is poisoned on a park bench, or a dictator's brother is sprayed in the face with a chemical wea...

#489 Sand

31 Aug 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Did you know that, even though sand the most used building materials in world, the sand in the desert is more or less useless? Did you know there is a...

#488 Big Chicken (Rebroadcast)

24 Aug 2018

Contributed by Lukas

We eat a lot of chicken. But we didn't used to. What changed? In part, what changed was the discovery that antibiotics could build a bigger, better ch...

#487 Knitting in PEARL

17 Aug 2018

Contributed by Lukas

This week we're discussing math and things made from yarn. We welcome mathematician Daina Taimina to the show to discuss her book "Crocheting Adventur...

#486 Volcanoes

10 Aug 2018

Contributed by Lukas

This week we're talking volcanoes. Because there are few things that fascinate us more than the amazing, unstoppable power of an erupting volcano. Fir...

#485 Fine Times with Wine

03 Aug 2018

Contributed by Lukas

How do you pick your wine? By its history? By its grape? By the picture on the bottle? Well you're about to get your wine world turned upside down. We...

#484 Animal Weapons (Rebroadcast)

27 Jul 2018

Contributed by Lukas

This week, we're talking about weapons: both the ones that evolve in nature, and those created by humanity. We'll talk about the arms races that spur ...

#483 Wild Moms

20 Jul 2018

Contributed by Lukas

This week we're talking about what it takes to be a mother in the wild, and how how human moms compare to other moms in the animal kingdom. We're spen...

#482 Body Builders

13 Jul 2018

Contributed by Lukas

This week we explore how science and technology can help us walk when we've lost our legs, see when we've gone blind, explore unfriendly environments,...

#481 23 and You

06 Jul 2018

Contributed by Lukas

These days, all you need to do is fill a tube with spit and mail it off to find out all about your ancestors, and even about your risks for certain di...

#480 Cursing and Conversation

29 Jun 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Ever notice how the bits of language we use all the time are often the bits we study the least? Like 'ums' and 'uhs', the way conversations flow and o...

#479 Garden of Marvels (Rebroadcast)

22 Jun 2018

Contributed by Lukas

This week we're learning about botany and the colorful science of gardening. Author Ruth Kassinger joins us to discuss her book "A Garden of Marvels:&...

#478 She Has Her Mother's Laugh

15 Jun 2018

Contributed by Lukas

What does heredity really mean? Carl Zimmer would argue it's more than your genes along. In "She Has Her Mother’s Laugh: The Power, Perversions,...

#477 Cure for Catastrophe

08 Jun 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Tsunamis. Earthquakes. Volcanoes. These are the sorts of natural disasters movies are made from, because throughout history we've learned that natural...

#476 Science in Fiction

01 Jun 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Nerds and geeks of all stripes love to dissect exactly how their favorite (or least favorite) sci-fi and fantasy tales got science so wrong. But many ...

#SB1 2018 Science Birthday Bonus Short Minisode: Lloyd Quarterman

31 May 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Our very first Science Birthday spotlight shines on Lloyd Quarterman, born May 31, 1918. He died in 1982, but not before leaving his mark on science. ...

#475 Mother Nature is Trying to Kill You (Rebroadcast)

25 May 2018

Contributed by Lukas

This week, we're learning how deadly and delightful our planet and its ecosystem can be. We're joined by biologist Dan Riskin, co-host of Discove...

#474 Appearance Matters

18 May 2018

Contributed by Lukas

This week we talk about appearance, bodies, and body image. Why does what we look like affect our headspace so much? And how do we even begin to resea...

#473 Colour Me... Structurally?

11 May 2018

Contributed by Lukas

This week on Science for the People, we're looking at a different way of producing colour than you might be used to. Structural colour relies on nano-...

#472 A Good Bout of Plague

04 May 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Who doesn't love a good medical pandemic? This week we're diving into the bubonic plague. We'll talk with Boris Schmid about whether rats should reall...

#471 Pigs and Fish: Personality in Animals

27 Apr 2018

Contributed by Lukas

This week we learn about how personality is studied in two of our favorite animals: pigs and fish. We'll be speaking with Rose O'Dea, PhD candidate at...

#470 Information Spookyhighway

20 Apr 2018

Contributed by Lukas

This week we take a closer look at a few of the downsides of the modern internet, and some of the security and privacy challenges that are becoming in...

#469 The Death and Life of the Great Lakes

13 Apr 2018

Contributed by Lukas

What happens when you take 5 enourmous freshwater lakes isolated in the middle of a continent and suddenly open them up to the Atlantic? The ecology o...

#468 Slicing into Surgery

06 Apr 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Surgery isn't generally a good time these days. There's pain and danger. But surgery today is nothing to the surgery of the past, when desperate patie...

#467 Pests in the City (Rebroadcast)

30 Mar 2018

Contributed by Lukas

This week, we're exploring the ways human-made environments support - and shape - the lives of many species we think of as vermin. We'll talk to Geogr...

#466 Wildfire

23 Mar 2018

Contributed by Lukas

This week we're talking about fire: in particular, wildfires. How they spread and how we manage them, but also the deeper history of wildfires on our ...

#465 How The Nose Knows

16 Mar 2018

Contributed by Lukas

We've all got a nose but how does it work? Why do we like some smells and not others, and why can we all agree that some smells are good and some smel...

#464 How We Endure

09 Mar 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Endurance athletes. How do they do it? How does someone push themselves to run an almost 2 hour marathon? How does someone else push themselves to fin...

#463 Trench to Bedside (Rebroadcast)

02 Mar 2018

Contributed by Lukas

This week we're taking on maggots, wounds, and diarrhea in an episode about medical problems that plague the military, so make sure your last meal is ...

#462 The Future of Energy

23 Feb 2018

Contributed by Lukas

This week, we have some very special guest hosts, sharing a recording of a panel they moderated about the future of energy and where we can draw inspi...

#461 Adhesives

16 Feb 2018

Contributed by Lukas

This week we're discussing glue from two very different times. We speak with Dr. Jianyu Li about his research into a new type of medical adhesive. And...

#460 Brake For Menopause

09 Feb 2018

Contributed by Lukas

I don't know about you, but when I learned about the female reproductive cycle, I learned that hey, these are the hormone changes that happen. Then in...

#459 Postpartum Blues

02 Feb 2018

Contributed by Lukas

When a woman gives birth, it seems like everyone wants to know how the baby is doing. What does it weigh? Is it breathing right? Did it cry? But it tu...

#458 Circumcision (Rebroadcast)

26 Jan 2018

Contributed by Lukas

This week we’re looking at the contentious medical and ethical history of circumcision. We're joined by Sarah B. Rodriguez, medical hi...

#457 Trowel Blazing

19 Jan 2018

Contributed by Lukas

This week we look at some of the lesser known historical figures and current public perception of anthropology, archaeology, and other fields that end...

#456 Inside a Conservation NGO

12 Jan 2018

Contributed by Lukas

This week we take a close look at conservation NGOS: what they do, how they work, and - most importantly - why we need them. We'll be speaking with Sh...

#455 New Year's Resolutions

05 Jan 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Happy New Year! Science for the People is ringing in the new year with a hard look at new year's resolutions. A lot of these involve long term goals, ...

#454 Sports Science (Rebroadcast)

29 Dec 2017

Contributed by Lukas

This week we're exploring the ways that science and technology are changing sports, on and off the playing field. We'll speak to journalist Mark McClu...

#453 The Biggest Science Stories of 2017

22 Dec 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Should old science findings be forgot, and never brought to mind? No! For the year may be nearly over but we're going to see it out in style! This wee...

#452 Face Recognition and Identity

15 Dec 2017

Contributed by Lukas

This week we deep dive into the science of how we recognize faces and why some of us are better -- or worse -- at this than others. We talk with Brad ...

#451 Merry Science Giftmas

08 Dec 2017

Contributed by Lukas

You probably have shopping to do and plenty of gifts to buy, and -- as is our tradition -- we have put together a list of helpful suggestions for thin...

#450 Sing a Little Song

01 Dec 2017

Contributed by Lukas

How do we talk? And how do we sing? Most of us walk around making sound all day without any real idea of how we do it. We'll speak with vocologist Ing...

#449 Arctic Energy

24 Nov 2017

Contributed by Lukas

This week we're looking at how alternative energy works in the arctic. We speak to Louie Azzolini and Linda Todd from the Arctic Energy Alliance, a no...

#448 Pavlov (Rebroadcast)

17 Nov 2017

Contributed by Lukas

This week, we're learning about the life and work of a groundbreaking physiologist whose work on learning and instinct is familiar worldwide, and almo...

#447 Stormy Weather

10 Nov 2017

Contributed by Lukas

This week on we take a closer look at weather forecasting, meteorology, and the science (and art) of predicting severe weather patterns, both locally ...