PODCAST · science
This is a Science Show
by Dustin Driver
Science starts with the words, “I don’t know.” When we admit that, we can start to unravel the mysteries of the universe. Are we alone? Will we settle other worlds? How will we survive climate change? What will humanity look like in a thousand years? Join the greatest science minds and me, Dustin Driver, as we go Through the Unknown.
Episodes
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GenAI: Killing Craft
When I was about eight years old, I became irrationally upset by the fact that I had all these fantastic stories and ideas swirling around in my head that required real work to become, well, real. Why was I gifted with such a fabulous imagination in a world that completely ignored my thoughts? I...
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Diamonds Are Weirder Than You Think
In Neal Stephenson’s science fiction masterpiece The Diamond Age: Or, A Young Lady's Illustrated Primer, microscopic nanobots build fantastic structures and extravagant objects out of diamond. They assemble mile-high buildings atom by atom, constructing colossal translucent towers stronger and…
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Why do we have clean air regulations?
Many of us never got to experience it, but the air quality in LA in the ‘40s ‘50s, ‘60s, and ‘70s was deadly. Smog hung in the air like a thick fog and many residents actually said that it hurt to breathe. Sources:...
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How does James Webb telescope work? What will it see?
The atoms in our bodies were forged deep within the bellies of red giant stars eons ago. And if we peer deep enough into the night sky, we can see stars just like them taking shape at the edge of the observable universe. The light from those stars is more than 13 billion years old and thanks to…
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Did we just discover warp drive?
In Star Trek the crew of the USS Enterprise zips between the stars in mere days, traveling a distance that takes light itself months or even years to cover. To do it they use a fantastic sci-fi technology called warp drive. The antimatter-powered warp drive bends spacetime for the Enterprise,...
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Where are all the aliens?
In this off-the-cuff episode I talk about some solutions to the Fermi Paradox (where is everybody in the galaxy?), the intergalactic object ʻOumuamua, and some science fiction. Enjoy!
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Can drugs give you superpowers?
My current novel is about everyday people who get superpowers from amazing future technology that I totally made up. The tech simply doesn’t exist, and probably won’t in my lifetime—or ever. But I want superpowers NOW. Fortunately, there are a myriad of for-real superpower technologies out there....
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Is wood the building material of the future?
A new treatment process could make wood stronger than steel. In 1940 the de Havilland aircraft company introduced the Mosquito—a combat aircraft made almost entirely out of wood. A few years later the famously fastidious Howard Huges built the Spruce Goose out of, well, spruce (and other woods).…
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Should You Wear a Mask?
Yes, yes you should.
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How do squids change their own DNA?
When you edit DNA, it’s permanent. The cell you edit will be changed forever, or at least until it dies. But what if there was a less-permanent way to edit genes? There is, actually. It’s called RNA editing and it happens quite a bit in our own cells. RNA is the go-between in protein synthesis.…
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Can you fix depression with magnets (TMS)?
The doctors in Star Trek have an assortment of devices that can heal your ailments in seconds with beams of light or energy. Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) uses high-powered magnets to beam energy directly into your brain. Proponents say the magnetic fields—and the electric currents they...
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How do drugs help depression?
Prozac was a miracle cure for my depression—until it wasn't. In this episode I explore serotonin's role in depression and why people like me experience "Prozac poop-out syndrome." Featuring Dr. George Keepers, Professor of Psychiatry at the Oregon Health and Science University's School of Medicine.
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How do hydrogen cars work?
The 2002 General Motors Hy-Wire was a hydrogen fuel cell car built to represent the future of GM—and automobiles in general. I got to drive the thing way back in 2002 during a press event. The Hy-Wire represented decades of research by engineers, and turned out to be a pretty good prediction of…
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Can we burn metal as fuel?
Even if we stick solar panels on every roof in the world, we’d still need a way to store energy to use when it gets dark. And a way to use that energy later to do more than just power a lightbulb—to do things like power construction equipment or move a cargo ship across the Pacific. Metal powder...
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What‘s a pandora moth?
I caught the tail end of the Pandora moth outbreak on a recent visit to Bend, Oregon. I lived in Bend for almost five years without seeing a single Pandora moth. This summer I saw thousands littering the streets and parking lots, mostly dead or dying. When I asked friends about the moths, I got...
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Can we go completely solar? With John McCone
In this podcast I talk to scientist and philosopher John McCone about his excellent article “Blueprint for a Solar Economy.” John outlines a way to transition from fossil fuels to solar power using some of our existing fossil fuel infrastructure and existing solar technology. He paints a pretty...
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Will climate change destroy humanity?
For the first time in human history, the concentration of CO2 in the atmosphere is 415 ppm. But what does that mean? Are we doomed to suffocate under a blanket of carbon, slowly cooking to death as the planet melts away beneath us? It’s not quite that bad, but it does not bode well for humanity....
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Superhero Science: Monica Rambeau aka Spectrum
Carol Danvers isn't the most powerful Captain Marvel. That honor may just go to Monica Rambeau, the second Captain Marvel. She can transform into and manipulate any form of energy in the electromagnetic spectrum.
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What‘s an analog computer?
Digital is the past—the future is analog. Crackling, hissing, buzzing, messy, full-spectrum analog. The arcane electronic contraptions put people on the moon and they could be the key to true AI, perfect biological simulations, and even room-temperature quantum computing. Featuring a 1960s...
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Superhero Science: Captain Marvel
She can punch through interstellar dreadnaughts like they were tissue paper, fire photon blasts that vaporize steel, and propel herself across the galaxy. She’s the most powerful superhero in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), and the science behind her powers is nothing short of spectacular.
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What is reality?
Dreamworlds are notoriously fickle. They exist solely in our minds, and thus aren’t grounded in any objective reality. In a very real sense, the act of observing something in a dream DOES change it because the dream and observer are one in the same. But what if the universe behaves in the same…
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Why is fusion power taking so long? With John McCone
Holding a miniature sun in a magnetic bottle isn't easy. But that's how you make a fusion reactor. In this episode I chat with plasma physicist John McCone about the challenges of building a functional fusion reactor. We talk about plasma blowtorches, neutron bombardment, lumpy magnetic fields…
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What‘s the Deal with Dieselgate?
In 2015, the world's second largest car maker got caught cheating on emissions tests. It was bad. Really, really bad. VW diesel cars were cranking out toxic levels of nitrous oxides—and not the happy laughing gas kind. The deadly kind. Here's how it all went down.
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Is alcohol poison?
This summer a lot of science news bubbled up out of the quantum foam, but the one thing that really caught my attention was booze. And not Oregon’s world-famous craft beers. A study landed that allegedly found that any amount of alcohol—any—is bad for you. But that doesn't mean you shouldn't…
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Why is raccoon scat deadly?
That’s the bone-chilling shriek of America’s favorite pest, the trash panda. Or Raccoon. And while they may sound like demons shredding the flesh from helpless babes, there’s something even more terrifying about them: Their poop.
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Should we make a humanzee?
Psychologist and author David P. Barash recently wrote an article for Nautilus Magazine arguing that now is the time to make a humanzee. I wrote a story about an experiment gone horribly wrong. How are they related? Listen to find out!https://dustindriver.com/simple-procedure.html...
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What is CRISPR? With Sam Sternberg
No fancy sci-fi introduction is needed this time, folks, because today we have world-renown CRISPR expert Sam Sternberg. Sam worked with biochemist, author, and science celebrity Jennifer Doudna to refine CRISPR gene editing technology at UC Berkeley. The two wrote best-selling book A Crack in...
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Can you teach a computer to talk? With Kelly Davis
In this episode I had the opportunity to chat with the head of the Common Voice project, Kelly Davis. Kelly is a trained physicist who studied string theory before getting hooked on artificial intelligence in the late ‘90s. We talk about AI art collectives, his fascination with creating an...
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Is fusion power right around the corner?
Nuclear fusion technology could herald a golden age of energy that will make the fossil fuel age look like the stone age! That’s right, limitless carbon-free energy for everyone, all thanks to the hard work of genius nuclear physicists and engineers! MIT recently announced that their fusion…
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Are we doomed to nuclear apocalypse?
Are we headed for nuclear apocalypse? Everybody’s favorite crony capitalist and democratically elected dictator Vladimir Putin just announced an all-new nuclear-powered cruise missile that can hit any target on earth. The missile can, according to Putin, fly under any existing US missile defense...
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Can you clone your dog?
Barbra Streisand cloned her favorite dog and things didn’t turn out as expected. Why? And How? And, most importantly, Whuuuuuuuut? First, Streisand revealed in a recent interview with Variety Magazine that she had her recently deceased dog Samantha cloned—twice. Well, she had two clones made....
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How do crawdads clone themselves?
In science fiction they call it gray goo - nanobots that replicate without limits until eventually everything on the planet is a featureless gray goo. It’s the first thing that came to mind when I read a recent article in the NY Times about a new species of crayfish that clones itself and is…
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Are mole rats immortal?
That’s right, naked mole rats may be the true underlords of this planet, shriveled immortals lurking beneath our feet, sewing discontent throughout society until humanity is on the verge of collapse. Explains the current state of the world quite well, I’d say. But unfortunately we can’t pin...
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What are Spectre and Meltdown?
Detroit’s hottest dubstep DJs Spectre and Meltdown live at the Music Institute Thursday, January 4th 2018. Get your tickets today at ticketmeister.org. Spectre and Meltdown are actually two serious security vulnerabilities discovered in nearly every computer processor made since 1995. So what…
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What is CRISPR? With Amy Koski at OHSU
In this, the very first podcast, I chat with Amy Koski at the Oregon Health and Science University about CRISPR/Cas9 gene editing. Amy is the lab manager at the Center for Embryonic Cell and Gene Therapy at OHSU. The lab made headlines in August 2017 when they successfully repaired heart disease...
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ABOUT THIS SHOW
Science starts with the words, “I don’t know.” When we admit that, we can start to unravel the mysteries of the universe. Are we alone? Will we settle other worlds? How will we survive climate change? What will humanity look like in a thousand years? Join the greatest science minds and me, Dustin Driver, as we go Through the Unknown.
HOSTED BY
Dustin Driver
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Frequently Asked Questions
How many episodes does This is a Science Show have?
This is a Science Show currently has 35 episodes available on PodParley. New episodes are automatically indexed when they're published to the podcast feed.
What is This is a Science Show about?
Science starts with the words, “I don’t know.” When we admit that, we can start to unravel the mysteries of the universe. Are we alone? Will we settle other worlds? How will we survive climate change? What will humanity look like in a thousand years? Join the greatest science minds and me, Dustin...
How often does This is a Science Show release new episodes?
This is a Science Show has 35 episodes. Check the episode list to see recent publication dates and frequency.
Where can I listen to This is a Science Show?
You can listen to This is a Science Show on PodParley by clicking any episode. We provide an embedded audio player for direct listening, and you can also subscribe via your preferred podcast app using the RSS feed.
Who hosts This is a Science Show?
This is a Science Show is created and hosted by Dustin Driver.
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