Fiction Science
Alan Boyle
Cosmic Log's podcast from the place where science and technology intersect with science fiction and popular culture, hosted by science writer Alan Boyle and science-fiction writer Dominica Phetteplace. Become a supporter for less than (or more than) a dollar a month.
Episodes
Mentioned books
Oct 13, 2025 • 33min
Native American legends are woven into a UFO tale
Cherokee science-fiction author Daniel H. Wilson blends ancient tales about extraterrestrials with up-to-date speculation about alien visitations in a new novel called "Hole in the Sky."
Sep 26, 2025 • 40min
'Rocket Dreams' and rocket realities
Washington Post staff writer Christian Davenport, author of "Rocket Dreams," discusses the parallel space races between America and China, and between Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos.
Aug 11, 2025 • 30min
Thriller explores Florida's flooded future
Tim Chawaga, the author of a climate-fiction thriller titled "Salvagia," weaves the implications of future sea-level rise and other high-tech twists into a Florida murder mystery.
Jul 4, 2025 • 60min
Dinosaur facts vs. fiction in 'Jurassic World Rebirth'
Tech pioneer Nathan Myhrvold and paleontologist Thomas Holtz discuss how dinosaur science has evolved over the past three decades - and do a reality check on the latest "Jurassic World" dino-movie.
Jun 18, 2025 • 35min
How the Rubin Observatory will change astronomy
Mario Juric, director of the University of Washington's DiRAC Institute, explains why astronomers are celebrating the Vera C. Rubin Observatory's "First Look" at the cosmos - and tells you how to join the party.
May 19, 2025 • 41min
Get a reality check on AI hype
Emily M. Bender and Alex Hanna, authors of "The AI Con," say the benefits of AI are being played up while the costs are being played down — and they lay out strategies for fighting the hype.
Apr 1, 2025 • 44min
How dictators use tech in fact and fiction
Science-fiction author Ray Nayler talks about his latest book, "Where the Axe Is Buried," a chilling tale of AI-powered repression and resistance that was inspired by current events as well as Nayler's familiarity with authoritarianism.
Mar 8, 2025 • 31min
How humans will be reinvented for life in space
Copies of human bodies can't be printed out, as shown in the space-based satire "Mickey 17," but biomedical researcher Christopher Mason says it should be possible to re-engineer humans to make them more suited for living in space.
Feb 14, 2025 • 22min
Mary Roach on the science of space sex
In a Valentine's Day episode, Mary Roach, the author of "Packing for Mars," brings us up to date on one of the big questions about living in space: What would zero-G sex be like?
Jan 29, 2025 • 24min
Scientists dream up solar system adventures
Planetary scientist John E. Moores and astrophysicist Jesse Rogerson weave tales about interplanetary adventures that are like nothing on Earth in a book titled "Daydreaming in the Solar System."
