Curiosity Weekly

Not all music is created equally. You may love the soundtrack of your favorite film, television show, or video game just as much as you enjoy Beethoven's 9th, but you may not know how deliberately the score from your favorite form of entertainment was composed. Elliot Callighan, independent composer and sound designer, joins the Curiosity Podcast to reveal how musicians in the 21st century write for media that didn't even exist when most of history's greatest composers were alive.Elliot Calligan is a classically trained violinist and pianist, metal guitarist and electronic music enthusiast, a Soundpost Co-Chair for the Chicago Symphony Orchestra Overture Council, and an adjunct faculty member in the Film & Game programs at DePaul University. His work has been featured in campaigns for United Airlines, The Chicago Advertising Federation, GMC, The Godrej Group, Chevrolet Motors, The Goodman Theatre as well as many independent films and games.Additional resources discussed:Ramova Music, Elliot's web siteNative Instruments Komplete 11 Software SuiteSpectrasonics Omnisphere 2Newzoo Global Games Market ReportMPAA Theatrical Market Statistics 2016 ReportHigh Score: How Video Games are Offering New Opportunities to Composers, Producers and OrchestrasNational Endowment for the Arts Research Report #58, January 2015Musical chord preference: cultural or universal? Data from a native Amazonian societyYour culture—not your biology—shapes your musical tasteTo learn more about this topic and many others check out Curiosity.com, download our 5-star iOS or Android app and join the conversation on Facebook and Twitter. Subscribe on iTunes, Stitcher, Google Play Music, and everywhere else podcasts are found so you don't miss an episode! Full episode transcript here: https://curiosity-daily-4e53644e.simplecast.com/episodes/21st-century-composing-scoring-music-for-film-and-video-games Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Renowned skeptic Dr. Steven Novella, host of The Skeptics' Guide to the Universe and author of the NeuroLogica Blog, joins the Curiosity Podcast to explain how to tell the difference between reality and fantasy – and why it's sometimes hard to do so. He brings years of experience as a neuroscientist and researcher to take a look inside the minds of both skeptics and those who believe in pseudoscience and conspiracy theories.Dr. Novella is an academic neurologist at Yale University School of Medicine. In addition to his work on The Skeptics' Guide to the Universe podcast, he is the president and co-founder of the New England Skeptical Society. His NeuroLogica science blog covers news and issues in neuroscience, but also general science, scientific skepticism, philosophy of science, critical thinking, and the intersection of science with the media and society.More from Steven Novella:The Skeptics' Guide to the UniverseNew England Skeptical SocietyNeuroLogica blogAdditional resources discussed:"The Righteous Mind: Why Good People Are Divided by Politics and Religion"The Skeptic MovementWhy Is There a Skeptical Movement?Carl Sagan's Life and Legacy as Scientist, Teacher, and SkepticScience Curiosity and Political Information Processing (Study)Bill Nye Had a Fixed View on GMOs. Then Something Happened.Follow Curiosity Daily on your favorite podcast app to get smarter with Cody Gough and Ashley Hamer — for free! Still curious? Get exclusive science shows, nature documentaries, and more real-life entertainment on discovery+! Go to https://discoveryplus.com/curiosity to start your 7-day free trial. discovery+ is currently only available for US subscribers. Full episode transcript here: https://curiosity-daily-4e53644e.simplecast.com/episodes/inside-pseudoscience-and-conspiracy-theories Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Renowned relationship expert Dr. Eli Finkel discusses the structure of successful marriages, the evolution of marital expectations, and the impact of societal changes on relationships. Topics include navigating traditional gender roles, the influence of modern dating apps, Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs, and the promotion of a new sharing service for podcast clips.

The dating world has radically transformed over the last few decades. Combine advances in technology with radical changes in social roles and a rise in non-traditional relationships and sexual preferences, and you end up with a pretty confusing dating environment. Dr. Eli Finkel joins the Curiosity Podcast to discuss everything from one-night stands to Tinder to pickup artists – and everything in-between.Dr. Finkel is a social psychology professor who studies interpersonal attraction, marriage, conflict resolution, and more. He is the director of Northwestern University's Relationships and Motivation Lab and has published more than 130 scientific articles – primarily on relationships – as well as being a regular contributor to the Op-Ed page of The New York Times.More from Dr. Eli Finkel:Dr. Eli Finkel's websiteIs Romantic Desire Predictable? Machine Learning Applied to Initial Romantic Attraction (Study)Can technology bring us true love? Eli Finkel at TEDxNorthwesternU 2014"Self and Relationships: Connecting Intrapersonal and Interpersonal Processes""The All-or-Nothing Marriage: How the Best Marriages Work"Additional resources discussed:Sex at Dawn: How We Mate, Why We Stray, and What It Means for Modern RelationshipsFour Fallacies of Pop Evolutionary PsychologyHow evolutionary psychology gets evolution wrongAshley Madison Hack: All Fun and Puritanical Games Until Somebody Gets Dead"More than Two: A Practical Guide to Ethical Polyamory""Polyamory and Jealousy: A More Than Two Essentials Guide""Opening Up: A Guide to Creating and Sustaining Open Relationships""The Game: Penetrating the Secret Society of Pickup Artists"Follow Curiosity Daily on your favorite podcast app to get smarter with Cody Gough and Ashley Hamer — for free! Still curious? Get exclusive science shows, nature documentaries, and more real-life entertainment on discovery+! Go to https://discoveryplus.com/curiosity to start your 7-day free trial. discovery+ is currently only available for US subscribers. Full episode transcript here: https://curiosity-daily-4e53644e.simplecast.com/episodes/the-past-present-and-future-of-dating Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Research isn't always conducted in a laboratory. Dr. Brian T. Murphy runs a research program that takes him all around the world collecting aquatic microorganisms, en route to the discovery and development of new antibiotics. On this podcast, Dr. Murphy explains how antibiotics work and the importance of discovering new ones, as well as detailing some of the exotic underwater adventures involved in his line of work.Ongoing projects in Dr. Murphy's lab merge the identification of small molecules with marine microbiology, molecular biology, genomics, and bioinformatics. To date, his lab has built a collection of over 1,500 aquatic bacteria and are using them to generate small molecule libraries that they screen against bacterial pathogens and cancers. The lab is also innovating the way drug discovery libraries are managed to make them more intuitive and efficient.Antibiotics research crowdsourcing programs:Great Lakes Freshwater Sponge Ecology And Drug-Discovery (Murphy Lab project)University of Oklahoma's Citizen Science Soil Collection ProgramDrugs from Dirt (US)Swab and Send (UK)Small World InitiativeAdditional scientific resources discussed:Murphy Lab UIC websiteCurrent Murphy Lab projectsFeature on Murphy Lab in Toronto StarBill and Melinda Gates FoundationTB AllianceMurphy Lab on TwitterFollow Curiosity Daily on your favorite podcast app to get smarter with Cody Gough and Ashley Hamer — for free! Still curious? Get exclusive science shows, nature documentaries, and more real-life entertainment on discovery+! Go to https://discoveryplus.com/curiosity to start your 7-day free trial. discovery+ is currently only available for US subscribers. Full episode transcript here: https://curiosity-daily-4e53644e.simplecast.com/episodes/the-microscopic-chemical-warfare-of-antibiotics Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The human voice is the oldest musical instrument. But how exactly does it work? Voice training is a lot more complicated than you might think, and in this podcast, opera singer Matthan Ring Black discusses why. A baritone with decades of experience as a performer, Matthan gets into the science behind how the human voice works, with some bonus insights into the worlds of vocal pedagogy and opera.Matthan has performed in several Chicago premieres, including the world premiere of Gregory Spears’ Jason and the Argonauts with the Lyric Opera of Chicago’s Lyric Unlimited. He is also a founding member of Chicago Fringe Opera and is collaborating with composer Ross Crean for the international recording of his new opera, The Great God Pan.Additional resources discussed:Matthan Ring Black's WebsiteDoing The Work with Matthan Black (podcast)Chicago Fringe OperaRoss Crean: The Great God PanVerdi's Rigoletto (DVD)The History of Opera audiobookFollow Curiosity Daily on your favorite podcast app to get smarter with Cody Gough and Ashley Hamer — for free! Still curious? Get exclusive science shows, nature documentaries, and more real-life entertainment on discovery+! Go to https://discoveryplus.com/curiosity to start your 7-day free trial. discovery+ is currently only available for US subscribers. Full episode transcript here: https://curiosity-daily-4e53644e.simplecast.com/episodes/the-science-of-singing Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Astronomy isn't just about looking up at the sky. The Adler Planetarium's Michelle Nichols delves deep into the lessons that astronomy can teach us about our own world and gives an update on when (and why) we're hoping to finish the "race to Mars." Plus: the surprising relationship many scientists have with religion.As Director of Public Observing, Michelle leads the Adler Planetarium's various telescope and sky observing efforts, including the 'Scopes in the City telescope outreach program, free nighttime observing in the Doane Observatory via Doane at Dusk, Adler's telescope volunteer program, and much more.Additional resources discussed:The Adler Planetarium websiteSo you want to be an astronaut? Here's what it takes (USA Today)Eggplant (Solanum melongena) Domestication History and GenealogyOrigins of the PotatoAstronomy Lab for Kids: 52 Family-Friendly Activities (Lab Series)Follow Curiosity Daily on your favorite podcast app to get smarter with Cody Gough and Ashley Hamer — for free! Still curious? Get exclusive science shows, nature documentaries, and more real-life entertainment on discovery+! Go to https://discoveryplus.com/curiosity to start your 7-day free trial. discovery+ is currently only available for US subscribers. Full episode transcript here: https://curiosity-daily-4e53644e.simplecast.com/episodes/what-space-can-teach-us-about-our-world Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Have you ever wanted to discover a long-lost magic spell or incantation? Well now is your chance! Experts from the Newberry Library in Chicago discuss how you can read and even help decipher unique medieval manuscripts from the comfort of your own home. They also take a closer look at how understanding magic in the Middle Ages can help us understand our world better.This week's guests include: Jill Gage, Custodian of the John M. Wing Foundation on the History of Printing and Bibliographer for British Literature and History; Christopher Fletcher, Program Assistant in the Renaissance Center; and Matthew Clarke, Digital Initiatives and Metadata Assistant.Resources from the Newberry Library:Religious Change and Print 1450-1700 project siteThe Transcribing Faith resourceBlog post covering the technical details of the projectThe Civil War in Letters, a past transcription projectNewberry resources for classroomsGenealogy at the Newberry LibraryDigital exhibitions and research collections on Internet Archive and CARLIFollow Curiosity Daily on your favorite podcast app to get smarter with Cody Gough and Ashley Hamer — for free! Still curious? Get exclusive science shows, nature documentaries, and more real-life entertainment on discovery+! Go to https://discoveryplus.com/curiosity to start your 7-day free trial. discovery+ is currently only available for US subscribers. Full episode transcript here: https://curiosity-daily-4e53644e.simplecast.com/episodes/magic-or-medicine-medieval-mysteries Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Why is the solar eclipse on August 21, 2017, going to be such a huge deal? Michelle Nichols, educator and astronomer at the Adler Planetarium in Chicago, joins us on a special episode of the Curiosity Podcast to explain everything from the science to the community surrounding this astronomical event.As Director of Public Observing, Michelle leads the Adler Planetarium’s various telescope and sky observing efforts, including the ‘Scopes in the City telescope outreach program, free nighttime observing in the Doane Observatory via Doane at Dusk, Adler’s telescope volunteer program, and much more.More eclipse resources:Your Total Solar Eclipse Instruction ManualThe 2017 Eclipse at the Adler PlanetariumSafe Solar Viewing GuidelinesMain NASA Site For This EclipseFollow Curiosity Daily on your favorite podcast app to get smarter with Cody Gough and Ashley Hamer — for free! Still curious? Get exclusive science shows, nature documentaries, and more real-life entertainment on discovery+! Go to https://discoveryplus.com/curiosity to start your 7-day free trial. discovery+ is currently only available for US subscribers. Full episode transcript here: https://curiosity-daily-4e53644e.simplecast.com/episodes/why-the-2017-solar-eclipse-is-such-a-huge-deal Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Executive coach and happiness expert Stella Grizont explains exactly how happiness works, why it matters, and the steps a person can take to find it. Grizont was one of the first graduate students in the world to receive a Masters in Applied Positive Psychology from the University of Pennsylvania.From speaking to consulting to coaching, Grizont designs immersive learning experiences for organizations like Google, Johnson & Johnson, and Columbia University. She has also coached more than 1,300 high performers in 17 countries, with a focus on working with executives to achieve greater impact, meaning, and satisfaction at work.Links we discussed:The Vision Generator (free from Stella Grizont)David Cooperrider, one of Stella Grizont's former professorsBarbara Frederickson, leading researcher on positive emotionStella Grizont's TEDx Talk: The play instinctFollow Curiosity Daily on your favorite podcast app to get smarter with Cody Gough and Ashley Hamer — for free! Still curious? Get exclusive science shows, nature documentaries, and more real-life entertainment on discovery+! Go to https://discoveryplus.com/curiosity to start your 7-day free trial. discovery+ is currently only available for US subscribers. Full episode transcript here: https://curiosity-daily-4e53644e.simplecast.com/episodes/the-psychology-of-happiness Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.