| April 6, 2012 |
Tech Roundup
- Researchers have designed a camera that can see around corners.
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| April 4, 2012 |
Light Circuits
- Researchers are designing faster, smaller circuits that use light instead of electricity.
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| February 24, 2012 |
Nanotech Roundup
- The flight of butterflies could inspire miniature flying robots.
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| February 10, 2012 |
Podcast for 10 February 2012
- Are cyclones and earthquakes related? Why recent bad winters may be the result of global warming. And what life might be like on a planet with two stars. Also: we answer a listener's question about the temperature of the sun.
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| February 6, 2012 |
The Sun’s Temperature
- A listener asks: How hot is the surface of the sun?
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| January 27, 2012 |
Light Roundup
- The sunflower’s spirals inspire new solar power plant design.
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| January 23, 2012 |
Weightless Flies
- Magnetically levitated flies may help researchers study the effects of weightlessness.
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| December 20, 2011 |
Fastest Spinning Star
- A powerful telescope has detected the fastest rotating star yet.
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| December 16, 2011 |
Solar Energy Roundup
- Researchers have created a combination of fool’s gold and silicon that could be used to make inexpensive solar cells.
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| December 7, 2011 |
Supercooled Water
- On a molecular level, water doesn't have to become ice until minus-55 degrees Fahrenheit.
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| November 16, 2011 |
Light-Based Pacemaker
- Scientists have designed a pacemaker that restarts the heart with light instead of electricity.
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| November 4, 2011 |
Podcast for 4 November 2011
- THE SCIENCE OF LIGHT & VISION - A pacemaker that restarts the heart with light, and a secret code made from fluorescent bacteria. And, could a lack of outdoor activity be making kids more nearsighted? Also: new research suggests that IQ might not be as stable as once thought.
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| November 3, 2011 |
Mirage Cloaking
- A new technique creates a “mirage effect” underwater, making objects seemingly vanish.
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| October 26, 2011 |
Anti-Magnets
- Scientists have designed a theoretical anti-magnet. If it works in practice, it could have profound effects on both medicine and industry.
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| October 6, 2011 |
Podcast for 7 October 2011
- MERCURY SPECIAL REPORT - The MESSENGER spacecraft is revealing new discoveries about the planet closest to our Sun.
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| September 1, 2011 |
Darkest Planet
- Scientists have identified the darkest known extrasolar planet.
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| August 12, 2011 |
Climate Roundup
- Climate scientists who want to know how airplanes might affect the climate are gaining new insights by looking nearly seventy years into the past.
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| August 11, 2011 |
Frog Feet
- A new study reveals how tree frogs clean their feet as they hop.
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| August 1, 2011 |
Ultrasound Safety
- A listener asks: Can medical ultrasound damage your ears?
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| July 22, 2011 |
Medical Roundup
- New research lends clues to why a bad sunburn hurts so much.
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| July 8, 2011 |
Podcast for 8 July 2011
- NOISE & NAVIGATION: Bats maneuver in the dark with the help of microscopic wing hairs, researchers expose a dolphin's secret sonar, killer whale ears inspire better microphones, and how a tiny bug with a big sound has eluded biologists for centuries. Also: Do humans have an internal compass?
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| June 29, 2011 |
Rainbow Polymer
- Color-shifting polymers could make money and other documents harder to copy.
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| June 28, 2011 |
Deaf Vision
- The retinas of people who have been deaf from birth enhance their peripheral vision.
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| June 27, 2011 |
Reindeer Vision
- Reindeer can detect ultraviolet light with their retinas, which may help them survive dark Arctic winters.
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| June 3, 2011 |
Podcast for 3 June 2011 – Searching for Life in Outer Space
- Astronomers are using new tools to look for life in outer space. And, the search for intelligent life in the universe is targeting the best candidate planets. Also: how tsunamis impact sealife.
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| May 23, 2011 |
3-D Space Map
- Using light from quasars, scientists are mapping the distant universe.
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| March 14, 2011 |
Slimy Frog Skin
- A listener asks: Why is frog skin slimy?
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| March 11, 2011 |
Podcast for 11 March 2011: Animal Adaptations
- Regional dialects in gibbons, a squid attack pheromone, bats and carnivorous plants, and why frogs are slimy.
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Cancer Detection Roundup
- A new laser technique could diagnose skin cancer in minutes.
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| March 10, 2011 |
Star Distance
- Astronomers calculate the distance to the furthest stars by comparing them to stars they know.
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| January 20, 2011 |
Solar Wasps
- Wasps that harvest the sun's rays could inspire solar cell design.
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| January 7, 2011 |
Podcast
- NATURE OF INVENTION: Sea urchin teeth could inspire new nano-materials, and hornet stripes could lead to better solar technology. Also: automatic transmissions could revolutionize electric wheelchairs, and there's new research on the genetics of hair color and male pattern baldness.
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| December 23, 2010 |
Stonehenge Engineering
- A new hypothesis explains how prehistoric people transported huge slabs of rock to Stonehenge.
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| December 3, 2010 |
Cat Roundup
- Tigers are highly endangered in the wild and the remains of over one thousand of the big cats have been seized in the past decade.
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| December 2, 2010 |
Speedy Diodes
- A new processor technology may potentially supplant the silicon chip.
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| November 23, 2010 |
Robot Gripper
- Researchers have engineered a robotic gripper out of balloons and sand that is capable of picking up many kinds of objects.
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| October 18, 2010 |
Rail-Space Launcher
- Giving spacecraft a running start on a long rail may significantly reduce launch costs.
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| October 12, 2010 |
White Clouds
- If water droplets are clear, why do the clouds that form from them appear white?
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| October 8, 2010 |
Podcast
- SPACE UPDATE: NASA prepares to launch a human-like robot into space, engineers are designing a more efficient system for launching payloads into orbit, why microwaves aren't as dangerous as some people think, and the physics behind the color of clouds.
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| October 6, 2010 |
Edgy Clouds
- A listener asks why clouds have such well-defined edges.
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| September 29, 2010 |
Microwaves
- Some people think microwave ovens and cell phones are dangerous, but their fears are not backed up by science.
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| September 22, 2010 |
Mica Life Hypothesis
- A new hypothesis suggests that life began between ultra-thin sheets of minerals.
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| September 17, 2010 |
Podcast
- AIR & SPACE: The moon is shrinking - slowly, astronomers discover a solar system similar to our own, exploring the moons of Jupiter, how satellite-based mapping programs can help during natural disasters, and why clouds have distinct borders.
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| September 16, 2010 |
Bug Bifocals
- Biologists have discovered a beetle with built-in bifocals.
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| September 14, 2010 |
Pigeon Illusions
- A listener asks: Why do pigeons bob their heads back and forth when they walk?
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| September 13, 2010 |
Moons of Jupiter
- Designing instruments for planned missions to explore Jupiter's many moons requires a combination of scientific acumen and engineering skill.
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| September 8, 2010 |
Motor Oil
- A listener asks what the numbers on a bottle of motor oil mean.
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| August 23, 2010 |
Designing Faces
- An engineering design technique can help surgeons reconstruct the delicate bones of the face.
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| August 6, 2010 |
Podcast
- SUNSCREEN & SUPPLEMENTS: Sunscreens from ivy, why tanning oil speeds up skin damage, and when to apply sunscreen. Also: the link between fructose and pancreatic cancer, and over-the-counter weight-loss supplements fail the grade.
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| August 4, 2010 |
Ivy Sunscreen
- English ivy produces natural nano-sized particles that could improve sunscreens.
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