15.09 podcasts

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

Should you put your food on a red plate or a blue plate? Do you drink your beer out of an angular glass or a round one? What dinner music do you cue up? It turns out that such mundane-seeming decisions can have a significant effect on how we perceive the flavors and textures of our food. For example, people report an enhanced appreciation for umami flavors in the din of an airplane, but a decreased ability to taste sweet things. That could explain why you might crave tomato juice or Bloody Mary mix during a long flight.

University of Oxford experimental psychologist Charles Spence is a self-described “gastrophysicist” who experiments with the ways aesthetics, environment, and even subtle cues in packaging can change how we perceive sweetness, bitterness, crispness and other qualities of our food. He describes how restaurants, both expensive and midrange, are using this knowledge, and how a greater understanding of gastrophysics can improve even the humble (and often wasted) hospital meal.

Season Your Meal With All Five Senses

Fingerprint scanners are standard on new smartphones, and new ID methods are on the way. But security researchers say biometrics are still too easily duped.

How To Make Spoof-Proof Biometric Security

Modern evolutionary science has some advantages Darwin did not. What are we learning from DNA, experimentation, and more?

Inevitable Or Accident? Tackling The Big Questions Of Evolution

Modern fake flavors owe more to the chemistry of the past than their real fruit counterparts.

Why Doesn't Cherry Candy Taste Like Real Cherries?

The idea that some people learn best from visual or audio materials has been around since the 1950s. But there is little evidence to support it.

The Myths That Persist About How We Learn

Seven innovative science teachers have turned Science Friday stories into lessons you can use in the classroom and at home.

Back-To-School Lessons From The Science Friday Educator Collaborative

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

Season Your Meal With All Five Senses

SciFri

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