Science Talk

In this episode, Scientific American contributing editor Wayt Gibbs talks about a session at the recent meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science devoted to the question of scientific authority: who has it, how they got it and what the public should know about it. Plus we'll read listener mail, talk about the movie Something The Lord Made (which depicts the first heart surgeries) and test your knowledge about some recent science in the news. Websites mentioned on this episode include www.aaas.org; www.sciamdigital.com; www.sciam.com/news; www.hbo.com/films/stlm Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, TV essayist and radio host Mo Rocca talks about the science of comedy and vice versa; and journalist Corinna Wu reports on the annual meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. Plus we'll test your knowledge about some recent science in the news. Websites mentioned on this episode include www.sirius.com; www.aaas.org; www.tinyurl.com/33x2ww Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, Scientific American Mind contributing editor Robert Epstein talks about the pitfalls and potential of online dating. And Myelin Repair Foundation founder Scott Johnson talks about how the foundation is accelerating the search for multiple sclerosis therapies, as well as serving as a model for a new kind of biomedical research approach. Plus we'll test your knowledge about some recent science in the news. Websites mentioned on this episode include www.sciam.com; www.sciammind.com; www.myelinrepair.org Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, SciAm.com associate editor David Biello discusses the report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change released last week in Paris; Academy Award Winner and Dolby Laboratories Senior VP Ioan Allen talks about the cyan dye audio track innovation that will be honored Saturday at the Scientific And Technical Academy Awards ceremony. Plus we'll test your knowledge about some recent science in the news. Websites mentioned on this episode include www.sciam.com; blog.sciam.com; www.sciammind.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, journalist Michael Antonoff, author of the article Digital TV At Last? in the February issue of Scientific American, talks about the upcoming switch to all digital television broadcasting, scheduled to take place February 17, 2009; SciAm.com associate editor David Biello discusses the war being waged between open access science journals and those that charge readers; and Scientific American magazine editor Mark Alpert gives us the lowdown on how the last Congress's failure to pass a budget has left Fermi National Laboratory in the lurch. Plus we'll test your knowledge about some recent science in the news. Websites mentioned on this episode include www.sciam.com; blog.sciam.com; www.sciammind.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, food ingredient expert Roger A. Clemens discusses research suggesting that coffee drinking has numerous beneficial health effects. Scientific American editor-in-chief John Rennie talks about pseudoscience and paranormal debunker The Amazing Randi's skeptic conference last weekend in Las Vegas. Plus we'll test your knowledge about some recent science in the news. Websites mentioned on this episode include www.ift.org; blog.sciam.com; www.sciam.com/news Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, mathematician Michael Jones talks about improved methodologies for cake cutting. (It involves the equitability of the division, not the sharpness of the knife.) Los Alamos National Laboratory theoretician Eli Ben-Naim talks about relative competitiveness of professional team sports and devising more efficient schedules. Plus we'll test your knowledge about some recent science in the news. Websites mentioned on this episode include www.sciam.com/podcast; http://cnls.lanl.gov/~ebn; http://www.ams.org/notices/200611/fea-brams.pdf; http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?chanID=sa006&colID=15&articleID=1373A988-E7F2-99DF-3DF48A64628C76E9 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, author and journalist Carl Zimmer talks about his Scientific American article Evolved For Cancer?, which looks at how natural selection has led to what appears to be an inevitable tendency for human beings to develop the disease. Dmitry Vaintrob, winner of the 2006-07 Siemens Competition in Math, Science and Technology for high school students, talks about his project in string topology. Plus we'll test your knowledge about some recent science in the news. Websites mentioned on this episode include www.sciam.com/podcast; www.carlzimmer.com; www.siemens-foundation.org Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, journalist Chip Walter, author of Thumbs, Toes and Tears, takes us on a tour of the physical traits that are unique to humans, with special attention to crying, the subject of his article in the current issue of Scientific American MIND. The University of Cambridge's Gordon Smith discusses the alarming lack of any randomized, controlled trials to determine the efficacy of parachutes. Plus we'll test your knowledge about some recent science in the news. Websites mentioned on this episode include www.sciammind.com; www.chipwalter.com; www.bmj.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, robotics writer Daniel Wilson talks about his book How To Survive A Robot Uprising: Tips On Defending Yourself Against The Coming Rebellion. Naturalist Kurt Auffenberg from the University of Florida talks about wrangling Komodo Dragons. Plus we'll test your knowledge about some recent science in the news. Websites mentioned on this episode include www.sciam.com/podcast; www.sciam.com/news; www.danielhwilson.com; www.robotuprising.com; www.sciamdigital.com; http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?chanID=sa006&colID=1&articleID=9312A198-E7F2-99DF-31DA639D6C4BA567 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices