Episode 9: Getting Meta with Materials

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Now you see it, now you don’t – episode 9 of Yet Another Science Show is finally here! Special guest, Harvard PhD Student Phil Munoz, sits down at Jesse’s table with Orad, Jes and Nina to talk meta-atoms, metamaterials and invisibility cloaks. Don’t miss out!

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Episode 8: Making Sense of Smell

Armin Kübelbeck, CC-BY-SA, Wikimedia CommonsSmell is a powerful thing.  In fact, some say it’s the most powerful of our senses. But it’s not a well-understood sense by any means.  Every now and again, a new study appears with a new set of categories or a new angle, but for now, the definitive answer on how smell really works remains elusive. A recent study set the number of odour categories at 10, but the YASSers think that something about it just smells off. Take a listen to find out why.

After a brief hiatus, the guys are back! Orad and Jesse introduce their new co-host Nina Pariser and discuss smell. Plus, our first legit voicemail!

 

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Yet Another Science Minute #2: The Edge of the Solar System

Hi Yassers!

Miss Yet Another Science Show? Well, here’s a quick teaser of our imminent return. It’s a convo Jes and Orad had about Voyager when it was leaving the solar system. Stay tuned for more full-length episodes and science minutes, coming soon!

Yet Another Science Minute #1: Mpemba

Good morning Yassers!

We’re trying something new at Yet Another Science Show called our Science Minute. No time to explain it (that’s the point!) so just give her a listen and let us know what you think.

And don’t you fear – a full episode of Yet Another Science Show will be coming up in just two short weeks!

Episode 4: Speciation: Mini Elephants, Giant Rats and the Cycle of Cichlids

African Cichlid

An African Cichlid. Source: Flickr user orlyscis

Deep in Africa’s Rift Valley lakes, a story of extinction and evolution is unfolding at an incredible rate, while elsewhere, islands have their own stories of divergent evolution writ large in their fossils. Speciation is an unending process that has shaped our planet’s history in many ways, and continues to do so today.

In this episode, Jesse and Orad tackle the topic of speciation — from its different types to its more extreme cases — along with special guest (and regular behind-the-scenes team member) Aimee Gillespie!

Next episode

Our next show will be about the history of lighting and how the simple light bulb has changed over the years. Post questions below or contact us here!

Note: due to scheduling conflicts with our guest, we will not be able to discuss the planned topic (material toughness) quite yet, but stay tuned! Continue reading

Episode 3: Paul Dirac and the Magnetic Monopole

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An example of a “real” magnetic dipole found in ordinary matter, created by a current-carrying wire. Source: Wikipedia

Magnetic monopoles are one of those things that really should be real. There’s practically an empty space in physics waiting to be filled by them. But nobody’s found one yet.

In some ways, Paul Dirac was as elusive a figure as his monopoles are. Taciturn, impossible to know and sometimes downright bizarre, he nevertheless gave the world of science some of its most enduring theories and equations.

Join us for a discussion on Paul Dirac and the magnetic monopole, featuring Orad’s new microphone and Jesse’s wicked head cold.

Our next episode will be about genetic diversification, so write in or call about it if you’ve got questions you want us to answer!

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Next up: Magnetic monopoles

Thanks for the great feedback about episode 2! We’re hard at work taking down notes to make the show better, and make it what you want to hear.

We’re getting together to record the third episode about magnetic monopoles soon. You  still have time to be featured on the mailbag segment of the show if you call in or write in now! You can even reply to this post below, of course. So if you have any thoughts about magnetic charges (or if you still want to talk about black holes), now’s your chance to let us know about them.

Site Launch

Hey All!

Welcome to the official home of the Yet Another Science Show podcast! While we’re getting our act together, please follow us on Twitter, like us on Facebook and subscribe to our RSS feed to keep up with our going-ons once we go live.

Thanks!

Orad and Jesse.