Science for the People

This week we're talking about meningitis and legal issues surrounding parents and standards of care. We speak with three members of The Maiden Lab, a multidisciplinary group working on understanding the biology of bacterial pathogens, including meningitis. From their team we were joined by Martin Maiden, Professor of Molecular Epidemiology in the Department of Zoology at the University of Oxford;...

This week, we're revisiting a previous episode and exploring genetics, neuroscience, and psychology, to find out what makes every person - and personality - unique. We'll talk to science writer Jennifer Ouelette about her newest book "Me, Myself and Why: Searching for the Science of Self." And science writer Ed Yong takes a critical look at the hype surrounding the hormone oxytocin.

This week we're taking a look at two very different types of white collar crime -- financial fraud and painting forgery -- and how we use investigation and science to detect them. We'll speak to Jennifer Fiddian-Green, a partner at Grant Thornton and lead of their National Forensic and Dispute Resolution Advisory practice, about forensic accounting and the ways we try to discover fraud. And we'll...

This week we're looking at astrophysics, zooming out to get a better idea of how universe works and what it might look like. Astrophysicist Ethan Siegel returns to talk about his new -- and first -- book "Beyond the Galaxy: How Humanity Looked Beyond Our Milky Way and Discovered the Entire Universe". And we'll speak with astrophysicist Katie Mack about the discovery of gravity waves, first predict...

This week we're exploring our evolving understanding of neurodiversity and the different ways people think. We've invited award winning science writer Steve Silberman back to continue the conversation about autism, neurodiversity, and his book "Neurotribes: The Legacy of Autism and the Future of Neurodiversity."

This week on Science for the People, we’re talking with three guests about the technology challenges, possible repercussions, and ethical quandaries of self-driving cars. We'll speak with University of Waterloo Professor and Director of the Waterloo Autonomous Vehicles Laboratory Steven Waslander about the technological hurdles involved in creating autonomous road vehicles, and how these pro...

This week, we're looking at the field of Evolutionary Psychology: what is it, how the research is done, what types of questions it might be good at answering, and times its ideas may have led us astray. We are joined by a panel of four: Maeve O'Donovan, Associate Professor and chair of Philosophy at Notre Dame of Maryland University; Kirk Honda, Chair of the Couple and Family Therapy Program at An...

This week, we're looking at how food -- and the containers it comes in -- have changed over time, and some of the factors that have influenced these changes. We'll speak with Anastacia Marx de Salcedo about her new book "Combat-Ready Kitchen: How the U.S. Military Shapes The Way You Eat" about the ways military needs have influenced the food we all eat. And we'll speak with statistician Patrick Mc...

This week, we're looking back at a previous episode to get a gripping first person account of the challenges involved in mental health diagnosis and treatment. We'll spend the hour with Dr. Christine Montross, Assistant Professor of Psychiatry and Human Behavior, and the Director of Counseling Resources at the Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University, to talk about her book "Falling I...

This week we're looking at the surprisingly robust science research that can be done with animals that have died along our highways. We'll speak with Sarah Perkins, an ecologist at Cardiff University in Wales, about the Project Splatter, a citizen science project tracking roadkill on UK roads. And we'll speak with Kyle Elliott, an ecologist at McGill University in Montréal about his work st...

This week we're talking about sex education: why we started teaching it in schools in the first place, how it's changed over the years, and what it might – or should – look like in the future. We'll speak with Jonathan Zimmerman, professor of education and history at New York University, about his new book "Too Hot to Handle: A Global History of Sex Education". And we'll speak with sex...

This week, we're taking a closer look at the medical marijuana controversy. How effective is medical marijuana and for what conditions is it a suitable treatment? In our attempt to separate evidence from anecdote we're joined by a panel of three: Dr. David Casarett, a palliative care physician and author of the book "Stoned: A Doctor's Case for Medical Marijuana"; Dr. Robert Wolff, a systematic re...

This week, we're going inside the courtroom to try and understand how evidence and witness testimony is presented, and how courtroom strategy can affect a trial's outcome. We spend the hour with Colin Miller, a Professor of Law at the University of South Carolina School of Law, creator of the EvidenceProf Blog, and a co-host of the Undisclosed Podcast.

This week we're focusing in on the Zika virus and the current outbreak to better understand what we know about how its spreading and what the risks are. Meghan Rosen, a staff writer from Science News who has been following the outbreak, talks about where the virus came from, what we know about why it's spreading, and its connections with microcephaly. Epidemiologist and microbiologist Tara Smith r...

This week, we're looking at the progress we've made toward connecting our minds with machines. We talk with journalist Malcolm Gay about the challenge of creating prosthetics, how close we are to controlling them with our thoughts alone, and his new book "The Brain Electric: The Dramatic High-Tech Race to Merge Minds and Machines". We also speak to artist and blogger Amy Davis Roth about Mad Art C...

This week we're looking at two types of insects that have made their homes among us in our cities, and are almost always found in large groups and colonies. We'll speak with Dr. Corrie Moreau, an Associate Professor/Curate at the Field Museum of Natural History in Chicago, about the colony behaviors of ants. And we'll talk with Richard Schweid, a journalist and documentary reporter, about his book...

This week, we're revisiting a previous episode, exploring the evolving frontier of extreme weather, and how it's influenced by our warming planet. We'll talk about the largest Atlantic storm system ever recorded with writer Kathryn Miles, author of "Superstorm: Nine Days Inside Hurricane Sandy." And we'll talk about the relationship between climate change and hurricane strength and frequency with...

This week, we've brought together a panel of experts to talk about the history of HIV/AIDS, and get an update on the current science, ongoing research, and medical treatments. Joining us on the panel are Salim Abdool Karim, clinical infectious diseases epidemiologist, Jonathan Engel, author of "The Epidemic: A History of AIDS", Dázon Dixon Diallo, founder of SisterLove, Inc, the first women...

This week we're talking about fear: how it works, what it does to our bodies and brains, and why we sometimes seek it out. We'll spend the hour with Margee Kerr – a sociologist, fear researcher, and diehard haunted house fan – talking about her new book "Scream: Chilling Adventures in the Science of Fear".

This week, we're trying to better understand our human brain, it's quirky ways and unexpected processes, so we can use it better in daily life. We'll speak with Guy Harrison, author of "Good Thinking: What You Need to Know to be Smarter, Safer, Wealthier, and Wiser", about how to cope with our brain's built-in pitfalls. And we'll speak to Ben Lillie about The Story Collider, a podcast that blends...

This week we're taking a closer look at our current – and potential future – contraceptive methods. We'll speak with Beth Sundstrom and Andrea DeMaria, Co-Directors of the Women's Health Research Team at the College of Charleston, about why the pill is still our go-to birth control choice when we have long acting reversible contraception methods like the IUD and the implant availa...

This week, we're learning about imaginative ways to teach science to children, and how to use science as a tool for parenting. We'll hear about fanciful tales written to explain scientific concepts, with Cambridge University science historian Melanie Keene, author of "Science in Wonderland: The Scientific Fairy Tales of Victorian Britain." And we'll talk to author/illustrator Lynn Brunelle ab...

This week, we're looking back to a fan favourite, "Getting Away With Murder," a panel discussion about forensic science and pop culture recorded live at CONvergence 2014. Panelists Amanda Leinbaugh, Emily Finke, Bug Girl Gwen Pearson, and Raychelle "Dr. Rubidium" Burks discuss the Hollywood treatment of forensic investigations, and the way crime scene security, DNA analysis, and pattern evidence w...

This week, we're talking about artificial intelligence, and how thinking machines are fitting into – and changing – our lives and cultures. Should we be concerned or excited about the future of artificial intelligence? To try and find out, we're joined by a panel of four: Kerstin Dautenhahn, Professor of Artificial Intelligence at the University of Hertfordshire; Raymond Mooney, D...

This week, we're discussing ecosystems, biodiversity, and whether or not "invasive" outside species are really as bad as they're made out to be. We'll spend the hour speaking to Dr. Ken Thompson, lecturer in the Department of Animal and Plant Sciences at the University of Sheffield, about his book "Where Do Camels Belong? Why Invasive Species Aren't All Bad." Read the companion post on Skepchick.