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How often do you think about the seeds buried underneath your feet? Thor Hanson, biologist and author of The Triumphs of Seeds, takes us through the diverse biology and cultural history of seeds, from a date palm that sprouted from a 2,000-year-old seed to the dispersal ability of the java cucumber seed that inspired human flight. 

Then, a new documentary examines the fight to save seeds, in all their genetic diversity. Seeds of Time, directed by Sandy McLeod, follows agriculturalist Cary Fowler on his quest to secure the world’s seed banks, and with them, the crop diversity that will help farmers adapt to climate change.

The Small But Mighty Seed

Ryan Rykaczewski describes one of the most massive migrations on the planet, driven by the sun. Image by Tintinnidguy (Own work) [CC BY-SA 4.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)], via Wikimedia Commons 

#ExplainTheSun  - The Largest Migration on The Planet

Once, there was the ordinary incandescent light bulb. It shone brightly, but wasted much of the energy put into it as heat. Then came the compact fluorescent. And as costs have dropped, consumers have increasingly been switching to light-emitting diode (LED) technology for many lighting applications, in an ongoing search for a more efficient bulb. Now, in work published in the journal Nature Nanotechnology, researchers report that nanophotonic devices may be able to breathe new life into old incandescent technology. Marin Soljačić and Ognjen Ilic, two authors of the study, explain how they’ve been able to “recycle” some of the incandescent bulb’s wasted heat and re-emit it as visible light, boosting efficiency.

For the Lowly Incandescent Bulb, a Ray of Hope

Science, technology, and other cool stuff from public radio's Science Friday. It's brain fun, for curious people. From WNYC Studios.

The Small But Mighty Seed

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