Fuzzy Logic Science Show

What happens when rocks get grumpy? Anything from a minor grumble lava flow right up to a full explosive tantrum. Here's an insight into volcanoes from Dr Adele Bear, volcanologist from Geoscience Australia. Interview by Rod at the open day, 17 Oct.

With footy grand finals being contested and the Commonwealth Games about to start, Fuzzy Logic decided it was time to look at some of the science behind sport. Join Pahia, Roof & Broderick as they investigate some amazing sports people and some questionable technologies in sport. Special bonus: our tips for the NRL & AFL grand finals!

Silly question, of course they should. But what do they do differently from male writers? Kathy Sullivan is from Broad Universe, an organisation with the goal of promoting women science fiction writers. I caught up with Kathy at Worldcon (aka Aussiecon4) in Melbourne. www. BroadUniverse.org Interview by Rod  5min.

Should we colonise the Moon? I've just been down to Melbourne, and dropped in at the science fiction / fantasy conference WorldCon. By chance I bumped into Chris Carson from the Luna Project ( www.lunarcc.org ).  Good thing, because I really enjoyed this interview. I think you'll find it fascinating too. What would we get on the Moon. How would we get there. What about the dust! And most of all, W...

Most of us love the taste of honey, but what does it take to keep bees? Our helpful little insect friends bring flavour to a slice of bread, and even us useful antibacterials.  But what does it take to keep bees? Interview by Eamon at the Australian Science Festival.

Here we are at the Shine Dome, The Australian Academy of Science for the Science Festival. What a day! Lots of great talks by top Australian scientists doing ground breaking research. Dr David Topping is Chief Research Scientist CSIRO Food and Nutritional Sciences. So you thought it was enough to eat less meat?  Hear the fascinating role of starch in our diet, and how the CSIRO is working to help...

Is it a good idea to ask a cosmologist about accounting?  Hear what happens in this interview with acclaimed astronomer, and lead on the Skymapper project at Mt Stromolo Observatory, Dr Brian Schmidt. We discuss the missing matter - dark matter in the universe, WIMPS, MACHOS, and black holes in the CERN collider. Gurarranteed to contain no election coverage. Hosted by Rod and Eamon. 52 min, 24MB

Most of us like to watch police shows, especially where the clever scientist helps unveil the crime. Here is an intriguing story, both scientific an personal. Dr Lynne Milne played a key role in bringing a murder case to justice using the evidence provided by pollen. This pollen tells the tale of a journey of a crime from house to bushland. Dr Milne reveals not just the scientific savvy needed to...

In the course of this podcast the Moon will move nearly half a millimeter* away from the Earth.  Does this mean it was once crazily close to us? For this show we were over the moon because our guest from a few weeks ago returned for another episode of Fuzzy.  Dr Phil Nicholson is a fabulous speaker and among other things, he tells us about work he's been doing with Dr Charley Lineweaver (Fuzzy gue...

What happens to the air as it circulates around ground level? To find out you could build wind tunnels and mathematical models. Dr Margi Bohm, senior lecturer University of Canberra does exactly that. Also today we discuss using the online game Second Life to study mining techniques. What?? That's right, find out here. And we look at plastic and the Plastiki voyage in a boat built of reused drink...

Water, water everywhere, but is it fit to drink?  This week Fuzzy takes a look at how we can make our water drinkable and talks to Sunny Forsyth from Abundant Water about the amazing work that is being done in Laos to give communities fresh drinking water. Brought to you by Eamon, Pallavi and Broderick MP3, 47:52, 22MB

The science of ecstacy. From the archives, here's a re-pod this fascinating interview where ex-Fuzzy Tim interviews Amanda George. 6MB 6min MP3 We're on Facebook

What colour is the number 2?  Why does "Fuzzy Logic" have taste like fried tomatoes? Okay, maybe not, but perhaps you've heard of the strange phenomenon called synaesthesia. This is where some people associate things - such as numbers - with other things such as taste or colour.  So what does 2 have to do with red? Nothing really, but this is the sort of thing people with synaesthesia experience....

Our guest today has been researching one of big questions: what are we made of? There seems to be a progression from older, simpler forms of life up to more complex forms such as ourselves. As we move 'up' the tree of life, we use more and more of the available types of matter. Older life forms use fewer elements than newer forms. You could say, they accessorise themselves with a greater number of...

It seems no part of world is safe from development. I remember a time when the Kimberley region of West Australia was considered so remote that for many people, visiting it was a major exercise. These days it's a popular destination, and now it seems set for large scale resource development. In the light of oil disasters there and in the Gulf of Mexico, this interview is a timely reminder of what'...

Professor Robert Street, AO is one of the pioneers of nuclear engergy, and worked on one of the first reactors ever constructed in Harwell , Great Britain. He is an advocate of the peaceful use of nuclear energy as a way to combat greenhouse gas emissions and global warming. Robert was a dear friend of my late father, and were part of group of eminent people calling themselves E4E - Energy For the...

Most of us only ever see our food delivered in plastic wrapping on the supermarket shelf. But where does it really come from? Who grew it, and how? How does fertilizer, salt, and water fit in all this. And what is going to happen as the world supply of oil and gas can no longer meet demand. You've heard of Peak Oil, but what of Peak Phosphorus? Also a look at what it means to get your science book...

What do oceanographers know about global warming? Hear evidence from one who knows it first hand. Dr Brad Opdyke, paleo climatologist is our guest today. Interviewed by Pallavi from the BBC, and Rod from Fuzzy Logic. Find us on Facebook . 58min 27MB

Why did we evolve that large bony box on top of our shoulders? Presumably to house something important. That would be our brain. We talk about the basic organisation of the brain, types cortex, left and right hemispheres. Brendan describes the groundbreaking research on the bionic eye now going on in Australia. Fascinating stuff. Rod interviews Brendan O'Brien from the ANU School of Psychology, an...

Of all issues facing the nation right now, the future of the Murray Darling river system is near the top.  How is our most important river system going to feed a growing population? The Murray Darling Basin Authority is soon to release its landmark plan for how we manage the system. Fraser McLeod is executive director of the basin plan for the MDBA. Interview by Rod 12.9MB MP3 28min.

Do, re, mi, fuzzy!  This week we talk about the science of music and show some music about science.  Sally, Priyanka and Broderick sing their way through the episode. Unfortunately, the podcast only caught the last fifteen minutes of the show, but you can still listen to some fantastic fuzzy-ness including Sally's original songs about genetics.  Listen to learn and laugh! Broadcast live on Februar...

Get your thinking caps on for this interview with Charley Lineweaver, ranging over deep topics. No subject out of bounds as we discuss entropy in the universe, multiverses, religion. What is life, and would we recognise it anyway? How about a dust devil? Does tidying your room decrease entropy? Find out here. Interview by Nyssa Skilton and Rod Taylor. 1Hr, 27MB

Where did laughter come from? Are imaginary friends useful? Flies aid hearing research. Jo and Rod present a fun assortment of science stories. Oh, and I should confess - at one point you'll hear me saying "motor" neurons. Astute listeners will know that I really mean "mirror" neurons.  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mirror_neuron . 24MB 53min

Robert Rapier from the Oil Drum and the R-Squared Energy Blog talks about the future of oil. A fascinating look at a momentous topic. Robert's blog . The OilDrum Interview by Rod.