Science

Science

episodes

Interviews with scientists about their new books.

Kostas Kampourakis, "Ancestry Reimagined: Dismantling the Myth of Genetic Ethnicities" (Oxford UP, 2023)

October 27, 2024

Ancestry Reimagined

Kostas Kampourakis

Recent social and political psychological research indicates that increased access to ancestry testing has strengthened the notion of genetic essentia…

Francisco Aboitiz, "A History of Bodies, Brains, and Minds: The Evolution of Life and Consciousness" (MIT Press, 2024)

October 19, 2024

A History of Bodies, Brains, and Minds

Francisco Aboitiz

Francisco Aboitiz is a professor at the Medical School and the director of the Interdisciplinary Center for Neuroscience at Pontificia Universidad Cat…

Alan F. Blackwell, "Moral Codes: Designing Alternatives to AI" (MIT Press, 2024)

October 6, 2024

Moral Codes

Alan F. Blackwell
Hosted by Michael LaMagna

Why the world needs less AI and better programming languages. Decades ago, we believed that robots and computers would take over all the boring jobs a…

Bring Science to the Reviewing of Science: Evidence-Based Standards for Peer Review

September 22, 2024

Bring Science to the Reviewing of Science

Paul Ralph
Hosted by Daniel Shea

Listen to this interview of Paul Ralph, Professor, Dalhousie University, Canada. We talk about what's wrong with peer review — and how to fix it! Pau…

Camilla Nord, "The Balanced Brain: The Science of Mental Health" (Princeton UP, 2024)

September 20, 2024

The Balanced Brain

Camilla Nord

There are many routes to mental well-being. In this groundbreaking book, neuroscientist Camilla Nord offers a fascinating tour of the scientific devel…

Al Posamentier and Christian Speitzer, "The Mathematics of Everyday Life" (Prometheus Books, 2018)

September 8, 2024

The Mathematics of Everyday Life

Al Posamentier and Christian Speitzer
Hosted by Jim Stein

Today I talked to Al Posamentier about his books (co-authored with Christian Speitzer) The Mathematics of Everyday Life (Prometheus Books, 2018). We a…

S4E4 In Defense of Bad Science and the Philosophy of Being: A Conversation with Dr. William Allen

September 4, 2024

In Defense of Bad Science and the Philosophy of Being

William Allen
Hosted by Laura Laurent

What role does science play in shaping our laws? How do we distinguish between good science and bad science? Where does science hit its limits due to …

Kostas Kampourakis, "Darwin Mythology: Debunking Myths, Correcting Falsehoods" (Cambridge UP, 2024)

September 3, 2024

Darwin Mythology

Kostas Kampourakis

Many historical figures have their lives and works shrouded in myth, both in life and long after their deaths. Charles Darwin (1809–82) is no exception…

Brian Clegg, "Ten Patterns That Explain the Universe" (MIT Press, 2021)

September 2, 2024

Ten Patterns That Explain the Universe

Brian Clegg
Hosted by Galina Limorenko

Our universe might appear chaotic, but deep down it's simply a myriad of rules working independently to create patterns of action, force, and conseque…

Directions of Peer Review in Software Engineering

August 27, 2024

Directions of Peer Review in Software Engineering

Bram Adams
Hosted by Daniel Shea

Listen to this interview of Bram Adams, Professor at the School of Computing, Queen's University, Canada. We talk about current developments in peer r…

Cyrus Mody on the Importance of Square (as in NOT COOL) Scientists and Engineers

August 26, 2024

On the Importance of Square (as in NOT COOL) Scientists and Engineers

Cyrus Mody
Hosted by Lee Vinsel

Peoples & Things host, Lee Vinsel, talks to Cyrus Mody, Professor in the History of Science, Technology, and Innovation and Director of the STS Progra…

Nick Chater, "The Mind Is Flat: The Remarkable Shallowness of the Improvising Brain" (Yale UP, 2019)

August 24, 2024

The Mind Is Flat

Nick Chater
Hosted by John Griffiths

Psychologists and neuroscientists struggle with how best to interpret human motivation and decision making. The assumption is that below a mental “sur…

Nick Haddad, "The Last Butterflies: A Scientist's Quest to Save a Rare and Vanishing Creature" (Princeton UP, 2019)

August 23, 2024

The Last Butterflies

Nick Haddad
Hosted by Rachel Pagones

Butterflies have long captivated the imagination of humans, from naturalists to children to poets. Indeed it would be hard to imagine a world without …

Iris Berent, "The Blind Storyteller: How We Reason about Human Nature" (Oxford UP, 2020)

August 11, 2024

The Blind Storyteller

Iris Berent
Hosted by Joseph Fridman

Do newborns think-do they know that 'three' is greater than 'two'? Do they prefer 'right' to 'wrong'? What about emotions--do newborns recognize happi…

David Badre, "On Task: How Our Brain Gets Things Done" (Princeton UP, 2020)

July 21, 2024

On Task

David Badre
Hosted by Joseph Fridman

On Task: How Our Brain Gets Things Done (Princeton UP, 2020) is a look at the extraordinary ways the brain turns thoughts into actions—and how this sh…

David J. Hand, "Dark Data: Why What You Don't Know Matters" (Princeton UP, 2020)

July 8, 2024

Dark Data

David J. Hand
Hosted by Cory Brunson

There is no shortage of books on the growing impact of data collection and analysis on our societies, our cultures, and our everyday lives. David Hand…

Alan Lightman, "Einstein's Dreams" (Vintage, 1992)

July 7, 2024

Einstein's Dreams

Alan Lightman

Einstein’s Dreams (Vintage, 1992) by Alan Lightman, set in Albert Einstein’s “miracle year” of 1905, is a novel about the cultural interconnection of…

Pierre Sokolsky, "Clock in the Sun: How We Came to Understand Our Nearest Star" (Columbia UP, 2024)

July 5, 2024

Clock in the Sun

Pierre Sokolsky
Hosted by Garima Garg

On the surface of the Sun, spots appear and fade in a predictable cycle, like a great clock in the sky. In medieval Russia, China, and Korea, monks an…

Pandemic Perspectives 15: The Dynamic Nature of Science

July 2, 2024

The Dynamic Nature of Science

Michael Gordin
Hosted by Howard Burton

In this Pandemic Perspectives Podcast, Ideas Roadshow founder and host Howard Burton talks to Michael Gordin, Rosengarten Professor of Modern and Cont…

Ann Johnson and Johannes Lenhard, "Cultures of Prediction: How Engineering and Science Evolve with Mathematical Tools" (MIT Press, 2024)

June 24, 2024

Cultures of Prediction

Ann Johnson and Johannes Lenhard
Hosted by Nikki Stevens

A probing examination of the dynamic history of predictive methods and values in science and engineering that helps us better understand today's cultu…