to listen

SciFri

scifri

Natural History Favourites

Exoplanet astronomer Geoff Marcy, who was accused of sexual harassment by four former undergraduate students, resigned from the University of California, Berkeley this week. BuzzFeed News Science Reporter Azeen Ghorayshi, who broke the story, takes us through the developments. She also discusses a new test for dementia in dogs, as well as other selected short subjects in science from this week.

Plus, Cuba's government has opened up three dozen wifi hotspots on the island. The new hotspots could enhance information exchange and communication for Cubans, but they could also increase government surveillance. Journalist Jonathan Katz discusses the benefits and pitfalls of Cuba coming online.

News Roundup: Sexual Harassment Allegations, Doggie Dementia, and Cuban Internet

What Are Fingerprints For? June 12th, 2009 SciFri

When the brain suffers certain kinds of damage, the results can resemble something out of a B-horror flick. Consider Cotard’s syndrome (sometimes called “walking dead syndrome”), where the sufferer believes—against all available evidence—that they are actually dead. Or how about “alien hand syndrome,” where a patient’s hand goes rogue, acting against its owner’s wishes? Writer Sam Kean joins Ira to talk about the science behind some of the brain’s most ghoulish glitches, and what they can teach us about how healthy brains operate.

Discovering the Brain’s Ghoulish Glitches

Oyster farmers have been hit hard by acidifying seas. Can they adapt?

For Oysters, Challenges and Hope in the Changing Ocean

A flesh-eating parasite, previously eradicated on U.S. soil, has decimated endangered Key deer. Can the screwworm be re-eradicated in time to save them?

Return of the Screwworm Is Bad News for Endangered Deer

How mapping plant chromosomes can guide scarce resources to the most threatened species.

DNA as a Key to Plant Conservation

The Midcontinent Rift is an ancient rift system that could have split the country into two parts a billion years ago.

What Caused the Midcontinent Rift?

Microbial ecologist Bo Adu-Oppong takes us on a tour of the microbes and slime molds living in the soil, and gives her recipe for making a microbial layer cake—an experiment you can try at home.

The Microscopic World Beneath Our Feet

Game developer Ian Bogost has a way to make life more fun that doesn't require an app.

Ignore Mary Poppins. Find Fun in the Medicine

Scientists across the globe compete in a challenge to explain science to kids.

What Is Energy? Alan Alda—and a Bunch of Kids—Want to Know

The Achilles heel of the internet turns out to be all the stuff that is connected to it.

Attack of the Internet of Things

Amy Nordrum of IEEE Spectrum joins us to discuss the weeks science news, including an update on the origin of AIDS in the U.S.

AIDS Patient Zero, Sleepless Swifts, and Self-Driving Deliveries

Researchers have created a 3D-printed glove with fingerprints, which they say will allow us to standardize tests of biometric systems. But will it hand criminals a new tool?

This Glove Fits You With Someone Else's Fingerprints

Scientists are using electrodes to tap into the brains of jumping spiders to study their ability to plan and carry out complex behaviors.

Leap Into the World of Jumping Spiders

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