Ep. 96: Humans to Mars, Part 3 – Terraforming Mars

And now we reach the third part of our trilogy on the human exploration and colonization of Mars. Humans will inevitably tire of living underground, and will want to stretch their legs, and fill their lungs with fresh air. One day, we'll contemplate the possibility of reshaping Mars to suit human life. Is it even possible? What technologies would be used, and what's the best we can hope for?

Ep. 96: Humans to Mars, Part 3 – Terraforming Mars
(more…)

Ep. 83: Wave Particle Duality

Have you ever heard that photons behave like both a particle and a wave and wondered what that meant? It's true. Sometimes light acts like a wave, and other times it behaves like a little particle. It's both. This week we discuss the experiments that demonstrate this, explain how scientists figured it all out in the first place. What does wave/particle duality have to do with astronomy? Well, everything, since light is the only way astronomers can see out into the Universe.

Episode 83: Wave Particle Duality
(more…)

Ep. 74: Antimatter

Sometimes, we don't get to decide what our show's about. So many threads come together at the same time driving the decision for us. This is one of those situations. We've gotten so many questions from listeners in just the last week about antimatter that our show had just been chosen for it. You command, we obey. Let's talk about antimatter.

Episode 74: Antimatter (15.4MB)
(more…)

Ep. 73: Questions Show #8

We've been so crazy following our own whims through the universe that we've neglected your questions. That ends today. It's time to dig deep into our overflowing email box to retrieve the puzzling questions our listeners have sent in.

Episode 73: Questions Show #8 (16.8MB)
(more…)

Ep. 72: Cosmic Rays

We're going to return back to a long series of episodes we like to call: Radiation that Will Turn You Into a Superhero. This time we're going to look at cosmic rays, which everyone knows made the Fantastic Four. These high-energy particles are streaming from the Sun and even intergalactic space, and do a wonderful job of destroying our DNA, giving us radiation sickness, and maybe (hopefully!) turning us into superheroes.

Episode 72: Cosmic Rays (13.3MB)
(more…)

Ep. 69: The Large Hadron Collider and the Search for the Higgs-Boson

When it was first developed, the standard model predicted a collection of particles, and thanks to more and more powerful colliders, physicsists have been able to find them all except one: the Higgs-Boson. It's an important one because it should explain how objects have mass. The European Large Hadron Collider should have the power and sensitivity to find the Higgs-Boson.

Episode 69: The Large Hadron Collider and the Search for the Higgs-Boson (12.7MB)
(more…)

Ep. 32: The Search for Neutrinos

Trillions of neutrinos are produced in our Sun through its nuclear reactions. These particles stream out at nearly the speed of light, and pass right through any matter they encounter. In fact, there are billions of them passing through your body right now. Learn how this elusive particle was first theorized and finally discovered.

 
Episode 32: The Search for Neutrinos (13.8 MB)
(more…)

Ep. 16: Across the Electromagnetic Spectrum

We see the Universe in visible light with our photon detecting eyes. We can feel infrared heat with our photon detecting hands, and we get sunburns with our ultraviolet photon detecting skin (ouch). But there's a whole spectrum of photons out there, from radio waves to gamma rays that astronomers use to understand the Universe. It's time to see the whole picture.

Download Episode 16: Across the Electromagnetic Spectrum (12.3 MB)
(more…)