The Science in The Fiction
Episodes
Micaiah Johnson on Necropolitics (Part 2) in 'The Unkilled: White Supremacy's Insidious Preservation of Black Lives'
25 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
This is the second half of our conversation with Micaiah Johnson continued from our last episode about necropolitics in Ned Beauman's 'Venom...
Micaiah Johnson on Necropolitics in 'Venomous Lumpsucker' (Part 1)
10 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
We welcome Micaiah Johnson back to the show, this time in her role as a PhD specialist on the topic of Necropolitics, which we tackled in our last epi...
Ned Beauman on Necropolitics in 'Venomous Lumpsucker'
18 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Ned Beauman is the author of 'Venomous Lumpsucker', a biting satire which examines the environmental and social consequences of capitalism r...
William Bains on Dark Ecology in 'Shroud'
14 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Marty speaks with biochemist and astrobiologist William Bains on the topic of Dark Ecology, as a final chapter to our 4 previous episodes on this topi...
Nicholas Keating Casbarro on World-Building in 'Vitalerium'
13 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Marty speaks to Nicholas Keating Casborro about the hard-scrabble, dystopian world portrayed in his book 'Vitalerium: Descent into the Void'...
Chris Kulp on Artificial Intelligence in 'Lost Origins'
14 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Chris Kulp is a professional physicist and science fiction author, who has won the Mike Resnick award for his first published story ‘What Would You ...
Adrian Tchaikovsky on Dark Ecology in 'Shroud'
17 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Adrian Tchaikovsky is a bestselling British author whose work has taken the science fiction world by storm since his seminal sci-fi novel Children of ...
Julius Csotonyi on Dark Ecology in 'Dark Eden' - Part 2
19 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
This is the second part of Marty's conversation with Julius Csotonyi about dark ecology in relation to the dark rogue world of Chris Beckett’s ...
Julius Csotonyi on Dark Ecology in 'Dark Eden' - Part 1
05 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Julius Csotonyi is a thermal vent biologist with expertise on organisms that thrive on geothermal energy in the dark depths of the ocean where there i...
Chris Beckett on Dark Ecology in 'Dark Eden'
23 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Holly and Marty speak with Chris Beckett about his Dark Eden trilogy, comprised of Dark Eden – which won the Arthur C. Clarke Award in 2012, and was...
Susan MacKinnon on Ursula K. LeGuin in 'The Left Hand of Darkness' and 'The Dispossessed'
08 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Holly and Marty get together with their friend Susan MacKinnon to discuss the science fiction of Ursula K. LeGuin, literary icon of speculative fictio...
Douglas Phillips on Extra Dimensions in 'Quantum Time'
25 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
This is part 2 of Marty's conversation with Douglas Phillips about his 'Quantum' Series of hard science fiction novels. In our last e...
Douglas Phillips on Extra Dimensions in 'Quantum Space'
10 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
This is one of those episodes that exemplifies what we try to do here on this show, going deep on some very big science ideas, and then going off the ...
Barron Wenham on Cosmology and Astrophysics in the Mind of a Super Smart Kid
27 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
This is a rather special episode, and something of a delightful experiment. Barron Wenham is on of the smartest and most well-informed 10-year-olds ...
Henry Erlich on DNA Sequencing Technology in 'Genetic Reconstruction of the Past'
14 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Marty speaks with Dr. Henry Erlich, whose research career gave him a front seat to the development of DNA sequencing technology from its infancy in th...
Alan Smale on Lunar Warfare in 'Hot Moon'
27 Feb 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Marty talks to Alan Smale, a professional astronomer and author of hard science fiction, alternate history, historical fiction, fantasy, and horror. W...
Micaiah Johnson on The Multiverse in 'The Space Between Worlds' and 'Those Beyond the Wall'
13 Feb 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Holly and Marty speak with science fiction author Micaiah Johnson about her absolutely incredible 'Ashtown' duology. This isn't reall...
Mike Carey on The Multiverse in 'The Pandominion' Duology
30 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Marty and Holly speak for a second time with Mike Carey in the first installment on our new topic: The Multiverse. Mike has written comics for many ...
James Kerwin on Quantum Consciousness in 'Yesterday Was A Lie'
16 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Marty speaks with Hollywood writer and director James Kerwin about Quantum Consciousness in his sci-fi film noir ‘Yesterday Was a Lie’, as well as...
Robert J. Sawyer on Quantum Consciousness in 'Quantum Night'
04 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Robert J. Sawyer is one of the world’s science fiction luminaries, and a great source of Canadian pride as one of our most prolific, successful and ...
Daniel H. Wilson on Planetary Protection in 'The Andromeda Evolution'
19 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Daniel H. Wilson has a PhD in robotics and is the author of the non-fiction books ‘How to Survive a Robot Uprising’, ‘How to Build a Robot Army’...
Alex Moskaluk on the Science of Sci-Fi Fungi
05 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
This is our fourth and final episode on the theme of Sci-Fi Fungi, where we dig a little deeper into the current science and future science of mycolog...
Kaitlyn Kuehn on Sci-Fi Fungi on The Flora Funga Podcast
21 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Marty speaks with Kaitlyn Kuehn (KK), creator and host of the Flora Funga Podcast, discussing recent developments in real world applications of fungi,...
Mike Carey on Sci-Fi Fungi in 'The Girl With All The Gifts'
07 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
We speak with M. R. Carey about his book 'The Girl With All The Gifts', where the zombie fungus Cordyceps plays a central role in bringing a...
Benjamin Percy on Sci-Fi Fungi in 'The Unfamiliar Garden'
24 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Beginning our highly anticipated new topic of Sci-Fi Fungi, we talk to science fiction author Benjamin Percy about the second book of his Comet Cycle,...
Marty and Holly on Sci-Fi Fungi and The Multiverse in Upcoming Books and Interviews
10 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Marty and Holly discuss our upcoming theme of Sci-Fi Fungi with interviews of science fiction authors Benjamin Percy and Mike Carey, along with mycolo...
Edward M. Lerner on First Contact in 'On The Shoals of Space-Time'
26 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
We talk to a returning guest and friend of the show, science fiction author Edward M. Lerner, about his latest book 'On The Shoals of Space-Time&...
Mark Milne on Geoengineering in 'The Ministry for the Future'
12 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode we talk to Mark Milne as a follow-up on our interviews with science fiction author Kim Stanley Robinson and glaciologist Heidi Sevestr...
Peter Watts in Conversation with Justin Gregg - Part 2
29 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
We continue the conversation between science fiction author Peter Watts and scientist Justin Gregg, and now they get down to the tricky business of di...
Peter Watts in Conversation with Justin Gregg - Part 1
15 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode we present a conversation between science fiction author Peter Watts and scientist Justin Gregg, following up on our individual interv...
George Paxinos on Neuroscience and Cloning in 'A River Divided'
01 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Marty and Holly talk to George Paxinos - neuroscientist, environmental activist and author of 'A River Divided', a book that explores neurol...
David Brin on First Contact in 'Existence'
20 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
We speak with David Brin, science fiction icon, scientist, futurist and civilizational optimist. We discuss his particular view of first contact wit...
Avi Loeb on First Contact in 'Extraterrestrial'
04 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Marty and Holly speak with Professor Avi Loeb from the Harvard Astronomy department, and he is one of the most generous, gregarious, kind and thoughtf...
Anniversary Special - Marty and Holly on The First Year of The Sci in The Fi
20 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
To celebrate the first anniversary of our podcast, Marty and Holly do a little retrospective to discuss their favorite books, people and interviews fr...
David Curtin on Dark Matter in 'Sunfall' (Part 2)
06 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
This is the second part of our interview with Dr. David Curtin, Canada Research Chair in Theoretical Particle Physics at the University of Toronto. ...
David Curtin on Dark Matter in 'Sunfall' (Part 1)
30 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Dr. David Curtin is the Canada Research Chair in Theoretical Particle Physics at the University of Toronto, and specializes in exotic theories of dark...
Jim Al-Khalili on Dark Matter in 'Sunfall'
16 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Our theme in the next two episodes is dark matter, the kind of far-out science that is stranger than fiction and presents realms of possibility that a...
Edward M. Lerner on Planetary Protection in 'Life and Death on Mars'
02 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode we return to the theme of Planetary Protection, continuing the conversation we started in episodes 19 and 20 where we discussed the re...
Peter Gorniak and Cydney Nielsen on Artificial Intelligence and Virtual Reality in 'Stealing Worlds'
19 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Marty sits down with his university pals Drs. Peter Gorniak and Cyndey Nielsen, to discuss Karl Schroeder's book 'Stealing Worlds'. ...
Karl Schroeder on Artificial Intelligence and Virtual Reality in 'Stealing Worlds'
04 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Karl Schroeder is a science fiction author and foresight analyst. His fiction is known for both its scientific rigour and its visionary quality of b...
Peter Watts (Part 2) on Intelligence and Consciousness in 'Blindsight'
21 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In the second part of our interview with Peter Watts, we delve into his ideas about intelligence and consciousness. Does consciousness serve any fun...
Peter Watts (Part 1) on Intelligence and Consciousness in 'If Nietzsche Were a Narwhal'
14 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
We talk to acclaimed science fiction author Peter Watts about Justin Gregg's book 'If Nietzsche Were a Narwhal'. We ask if the human ...
Justin Gregg on Intelligence and Consciousness in 'If Nietzsche Were a Narwhal'
29 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Marty and Holly sit down with zoologist Justin Gregg to discuss his book 'If Nietzsche Were a Narwhal: What Animal Intelligence Reveals About Hum...
Heidi Sevestre on Geoengineering in Kim Stanley Robinson's 'The Ministry For The Future'
15 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Marty and Holly sit down with Dr. Heidi Sevestre for a conversation about climate change and geoengineering, as portrayed in The Ministry For The Futu...
Kim Stanley Robinson on Geoengineering in 'The Ministry For The Future'
01 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode we are super excited to present our conversation with Kim Stanley Robinson, one of the greatest science fiction writers of all time, w...
Tim Swindle on Planetary Protection in the OSIRIS-REx Mission and 'The Andromeda Strain'
18 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
This conversation was a great example of what we’re trying to do with this podcast, the perfect balance between Science and Science Fiction. Marty...
Thomas Zega on Planetary Protection in the OSIRIS-REx Mission and 'The Andromeda Strain'
04 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
NASA's recent OSIRIS-REx mission has returned a sample of asteroid Bennu all the way to Earth for detailed analysis. It is difficult to ignore ...
Stephen Gay and Ben Feist on Moon Colonization in 'Night Owls'
21 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This is our favorite kind of episode, hosting a conversation between e a science fiction author and a scientist, where each shares their work and expe...
Damien Walter Part 2 - The Sociology of Science Fiction
07 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This is part two of our conversation with Damien Walter, the science fiction guru. He is the host of the Science Fiction Podcast and Science Fiction...
Damien Walter Part 1 - The Psychology of Story
30 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Damien Walter is one of the world’s foremost voices in critical thinking about science fiction as the emerging cultural mythos of our modern global ...
Cory Doctorow's 'Red Team Blues' - Chapter 1 of Audiobook
16 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Cory Doctorow has given us permission to play the first chapter of Red Team Blues directly on our podcast! And as an added treat, the audio-book is ...
Cory Doctorow on 'The Lost Cause', 'Red Team Blues' and 'Chokepoint Capitalism'
02 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Marty and Holly sit down with Cory Doctorow, an author known not only for his near-future social and political science fiction, but also for his real-...
Paco Calvo on Intelligent Plants in 'Planta Sapiens'
19 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Following up on our discussion of intelligent plants with Sue Burke in our last episode, we have invited Paco Calvo, a cognitive scientist and philoso...
Sue Burke on Intelligent Plants in 'Semiosis'
05 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode we embark on a discussion of sci-fi botany, by way of Sue Burke’s novel 'Semiosis' and its sequel 'Interference'...
Marty and Holly on Books by David Zindell, Sue Burke and Cory Doctorow
21 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Marty and Holly finish up their discussion of 'Neverness' by David Zindell from the last two episodes, and then have a conversation about th...
Mark Mac Lean on Mathematics in 'Neverness' by David Zindell
07 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Marty has a conversation about David Zindell's 'Neverness' with Mark Mac Lean, professor of Mathematics at the University of British Co...
David Zindell on Mathematics in 'Neverness'
24 Aug 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Marty and Holly sit down with David Zindell, author of Neverness, a book full of big ideas in a far future civilization where Master Pilots manipulate...
Robert J. Sawyer in Conversation with Arik Kershenbaum - Part 2
10 Aug 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This is the second half of the conversation begun in our last episode, between science fiction author Robert J. Sawyer and zoologist Arik Kershenbaum....
Robert J. Sawyer in Conversation with Arik Kershenbaum - Part 1
03 Aug 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode we present our first conversation between a science fiction author and a scientist, both of whom we’ve spoken to before. We have w...
Arik Kershenbaum on Exo-Biology in 'The Zoologist's Guide to the Galaxy'
27 Jul 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Following up on our interview with Julie Czerneda and continuing with the theme of exo-biology, in this episode Marty sits down with zoologist Arik Ke...
Julie Czerneda on Exo-Biology in 'To Each This World'
13 Jul 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Marty sits down with Canadian science fiction writer and biologist Julie Czerneda to discuss her book 'To Each This World'. Our conversati...
Marty and Holly on Brain Uploads in ‘The Terminal Experiment’
29 Jun 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Marty and Holly discuss Robert J. Sawyer's Nebula Award-winning book The Terminal Experiment. We talk about the possibility of uploading our mi...
Jaymie Matthews on Solar Physics in 'The Oppenheimer Alternative' and 'Variable Star'
23 Jun 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode Marty sits down with Prof. Jaymie Matthews, astrophysicist from the University of British Columbia, to discuss the some of the solar p...
Robert J. Sawyer on Solar Physics in 'The Oppenheimer Alternative'
15 Jun 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Marty and Holly sit down with Canadian science fiction superstar Robert J. Sawyer to talk about his book The Oppenheimer Alternative. Robert tells u...
Marty and Holly Introduce The Sci in The Fi
15 Jun 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Marty and Holly describe what we'd like to do in this podcast. We will talk to science fiction authors and scientists about topics in both hard...