In this Flashcard Friday episode of Math, Science, History, host Gabrielle Birchak takes you into the steamy jungles of the 19th-century Malay Archipelago, where a fever-stricken explorer had a revelation that would change biology forever. Meet Alfred Russel Wallace, the naturalist whose fieldwork and tropical travels led to the theory of natural selection, at the same time as Darwin.

From his challenging journey to his humility in the face of discovery, Wallace’s story reminds us that science doesn’t always happen in a lab. It sometimes happens in a mosquito-filled hut, guided by sheer determination and a passion for nature.

Do you know?! 

- How Alfred Russel Wallace independently developed the theory of natural selection during his expedition?

- The significance of the "Wallace Line" and its impact on biogeography?

- Why Wallace’s collaboration with Darwin remains a model of scientific integrity and humility?

Resources:

The Malay Archipelago by Alfred Russel Wallace on Project Gutenberg

Short Documentary on Wallace's Life (NHM London)

Visit us! Explore more on our website: mathsciencehistory.com To buy my book Hypatia: The Sum of Her Life on Amazon, visit https://a.co/d/g3OuP9h

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🎵 Music: All music is public domain and has no Copyright and no rights reserved. Selections from The Little Prince by Lloyd Rodgers Until next time, carpe diem!

In this special podcast swap episode, Math Science History teams up with History Daily to bring you one of the most enduring mysteries in modern folklore — the legend of the Loch Ness Monster. From ancient Scottish lore to one of the most infamous photographic hoaxes of the 20th century, this captivating narrative blends history, myth, and media manipulation.

Gabrielle Birchak, host of Math Science History, also shares a brief reflection on Hypatia of Alexandria and her latest book Hypatia, The Sum of Her Life, now available on Amazon.

Enjoy this rich collaboration with History Daily, and discover how a blend of mystery, myth, and media shaped the global fascination with Nessie.

Three things you will learn:

1. How a 1933 eyewitness account sparked worldwide interest in the Loch Ness Monster.

2. The shocking truth behind the famous “Surgeon’s Photograph” and the man who staged it.

3. How hoaxes, headlines, and history intersected to build a lasting legend.

Resources & Links:

Listen to History Daily on your favorite podcast platform.

History Daily on Apple

History Daily on Spotify

History Daily is a coproduction of Airship and Noiser

Explore more on our website: mathsciencehistory.com To buy my book Hypatia: The Sum of Her Life on Amazon, visit https://a.co/d/g3OuP9h

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If you love Math, Science, History, here’s how you can help:🌟 Leave a review! It helps more people discover the show!📢 Share this episode with friends & fellow history buffs!🔔 Subscribe on your favorite podcast platform

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🎵 Music: All music is public domain and has no Copyright and no rights reserved. Selections from The Little Prince by Lloyd Rodgers

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In this episode of Flashcards Friday at Math! Science! History! Gabrielle Birchak unzips the fascinating world of packing problems, the mathematical puzzles behind fitting everything into your suitcase. Discover how optimization theory and combinatorial math are at play every time you pack, ship, or store something efficiently. Whether you're prepping for vacation or running a tech company, the same mathematical rules apply.

3 Take-aways! (Pun intended!)

1. What packing problems are and why they matter in math, logistics, and data storage.

2. Why packing problems are so difficult, and why your perfect suitcase is more impressive than it seems.

3. How optimization techniques like sorting, rotating, and greedy filling are used in real-world applications, and how to apply them to your next trip.

Resources & Further Reading

Math for Liberal Studies: Bin-Packing Algorithms

Solving Hard Problems with Heuristics: A Beginner’s Guide

🔗 Explore more on our website: mathsciencehistory.com 📚 To buy my book Hypatia: The Sum of Her Life on Amazon, visit https://a.co/d/g3OuP9h

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🎵 Music: All music is public domain and has no Copyright and no rights reserved. Selections from The Little Prince by Lloyd Rodgers

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In this episode of Math! Science! History! we take a walk through the Scottish Highlands with Peter Higgs, figuratively and historically, to uncover the quiet moment in 1964 when a simple hike sparked a revolutionary idea in physics.

Discover how the weak nuclear force and electromagnetism are deeply connected by symmetry, why mass was such a mystery to physicists in the 20th century, and how the Higgs field changed everything.

From the elegance of theoretical predictions to the drama of the 48-year search for the Higgs boson, this story is not just about particles, it's about patience, creativity, and discovery.

3 Things You’ll Learn in This Episode:

How symmetry connects the weak nuclear force to electromagnetism and why that connection broke down.

What the Higgs field is and how it gives mass to particles like W and Z bosons.

Why Peter Higgs's quiet walk in the mountains became one of the most important moments in modern physics.

Resources & References:

CERN: The Higgs boson: What makes it special?

University of Edinburgh: Brief History of the Higgs Mechanism

Physics World: Peter Higgs on CERN and his career

Retrospect Journal: The Peter Higgs Plaque and Its Background

🔗 Explore more on our website: mathsciencehistory.com 📚 To buy my book Hypatia: The Sum of Her Life on Amazon, visit https://a.co/d/g3OuP9h

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🎧 Enjoying the Podcast?

If you love Math, Science, History, here’s how you can help:🌟 Leave a review! It helps more people discover the show!📢 Share this episode with friends & fellow history buffs!🔔 Subscribe on your favorite podcast platform

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🎵 Music: All music is public domain and has no Copyright and no rights reserved. Selections from The Little Prince by Lloyd Rodgers 

🎵 Audio Editor: Podcast mixed by David Aviles

Until next time, carpe diem!

✈️ Episode Overview

Have you ever searched for a flight, left the tab open, and then gasped when the price jumped just a few hours later? In this Flashcards Friday episode of Math! Science! History!, Gabrielle Birchak explores the mystery behind fluctuating airline prices—and reveals that it’s not magic, but a powerful blend of mathematics, algorithms, behavioral psychology, and dynamic pricing strategies.

From fare buckets and revenue management to the cookies on your browser, Gabrielle breaks down how airlines control pricing and what you can do to outsmart the system and save money.

🎓 3 Things You'll Learn in This Episode

- How airline pricing algorithms use math and historical data to determine real-time ticket prices.

- Why flight prices often increase after multiple searches and how your browser behavior influences fares.

- Proven strategies and tools for booking smarter and avoiding price spikes.

🔗 Resources Mentioned

Google Flights – Great for tracking price history and alerts

Hopper – App that predicts the best times to buy flights

Skyscanner – Fare comparison across airlines and booking sites

ITA Matrix Airfare Search – Advanced search tool used by travel agents

The Discipline of Revenue Management – For those interested in the math and economics behind pricing algorithms

🔗 Explore more on our website: mathsciencehistory.com

📚 To buy my book Hypatia: The Sum of Her Life on Amazon, visit https://a.co/d/g3OuP9h

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🎧 Enjoying the Podcast?

If you love Math, Science, History, here’s how you can help:🌟 Leave a review! It helps more people discover the show!📢 Share this episode with friends & fellow history buffs!🔔 Subscribe on your favorite podcast platform

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🎵 Music: All music is public domain and has no Copyright and no rights reserved. Selections from The Little Prince by Lloyd Rodgers

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Long before telescopes and satellites, Hipparchus of Nicaea looked to the skies and changed the course of scientific history. In this fascinating episode of Math Science History, Gabrielle revisits the life and legacy of the ancient astronomer whose innovations in trigonometry, geography, and star mapping still resonate today. From discovering axial precession to laying the groundwork for the astrolabe, Hipparchus helped humanity understand our place in the cosmos: mathematically, geographically, and philosophically.

Three Key Take-Aways

How Hipparchus measured the Earth's axial precession and why this was a monumental scientific discovery.

The mathematical brilliance behind his trigonometric tables and how they informed tools like the astrolabe.

How ancient astronomy evolved into cartography, influencing how we view geography and time today.

Resources & References

Griffith Observatory Astronomers Monument: https://griffithobservatory.org

Ptolemy's Almagest: Loeb Classical Library

Hipparchus in The Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy: https://iep.utm.edu/hipparchus/

Cosimo Bartoli’s Del modo di misurare: https://archive.org/details/delmododimisurar00bart

 🔗 Explore more on our website: mathsciencehistory.com 📚 To buy my book Hypatia: The Sum of Her Life on Amazon, visit https://a.co/d/g3OuP9h

 🌍 Let’s Connect!

Website: mathsciencehistory.com Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/mathsciencehistory.bsky.social Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/math.science.history 🎧 Enjoying the Podcast?

If you love Math, Science, History, here’s how you can help:🌟 Leave a review! It helps more people discover the show!📢 Share this episode with friends & fellow history buffs!🔔 Subscribe on your favorite podcast platform

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🎵 Music: All music is public domain and has no Copyright and no rights reserved. Selections from The Little Prince by Lloyd Rodgers

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Episode Overview:

What do black holes, a teenage genius, and a long ocean voyage have in common? In this Flashcard Friday episode of Math, Science, History, Gabrielle tells the incredible story of Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar, who, at just 19 years old, sailed from India to England and made a discovery that would transform astrophysics forever.

Armed only with a notebook and fresh ideas from quantum mechanics, Chandrasekhar calculated the limit of stellar collapse, now called the Chandrasekhar Limit, which revealed when a star collapses into a black hole. This isn't just a story about equations; it's a story about persistence, quiet genius, and the power of taking a break.

3 Things You'll Learn in This Episode:

1. What the Chandrasekhar Limit is and why it's essential for understanding black holes

2. How quantum mechanics, relativity, and statistical math came together to predict the death of stars

3. Why slowing down and giving your mind time to wander can lead to world-changing discoveries

Resources:

NASA: Black Holes Explained

Biography of Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar – NobelPrize.org

A. S. Eddington and Chandrasekhar Controversy – arXiv

Chandrasekhar’s Original 1931 Paper (PDF)

Explore more on our website: mathsciencehistory.com To buy my book Hypatia: The Sum of Her Life on Amazon, visit https://a.co/d/g3OuP9h

Let’s Connect!

www.Instagram.com/math.science.history

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Music: All music is public domain and has no Copyright and no rights reserved. On Matters of Consequence from The Little Prince by Lloyd Rodgers

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Episode Overview

Once dismissed as mathematical absurdities, black holes are now recognized as real, powerful features of our universe—cosmic wells where space, time, and even light collapse. In this episode of Math! Science! History!, we explore the astonishing story of how black holes evolved from a rejected theory to an accepted reality. From Einstein’s reluctance and Oppenheimer’s overlooked models, to John Wheeler’s advocacy and Stephen Hawking’s revolutionary radiation theory, this episode traces the full arc of scientific discovery—and what black holes reveal about our own place in the cosmos.

Three Key Take-Aways

Why Karl Schwarzschild’s World War I-era math predicted black holes decades before anyone took them seriously

How John Wheeler changed the game by naming—and championing—the black hole

What modern observations like Cygnus X-1, Hawking radiation, and LIGO’s gravitational wave detection tell us about collapsed stars and spacetime

Resources & References (the books include affiliate links)

Oppenheimer & Snyder (1939): On Continued Gravitational Contraction

David Finkelstein (1958): Past-Future Asymmetry of the Gravitational Field

Kip Thorne’s book: Black Holes and Time Warps: Einstein’s Outrageous Legacy

Marcia Bartusiak’s book: Black Hole: How an Idea Abandoned by Newtonians, Hated by Einstein, and Gambled on by Hawking Became Loved

LIGO and gravitational wave discovery (2015)

🔗 Explore more on our website: mathsciencehistory.com📚 To buy my book Hypatia: The Sum of Her Life on Amazon, visit https://a.co/d/g3OuP9h

🌍 Let’s Connect!

Website: mathsciencehistory.com Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/mathsciencehistory.bsky.social Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/math.science.history

🎧 Enjoying the Podcast?

If you love Math, Science, History, here’s how you can help:🌟 Leave a review! It helps more people discover the show!📢 Share this episode with friends & fellow history buffs!🔔 Subscribe on your favorite podcast platform

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🎵 Music: All music is public domain and has no Copyright and no rights reserved. Selections from The Little Prince by Lloyd Rodgers 🎵 Audio: Podcast mixed by David Aviles

Until next time, carpe diem!

In this Flashcard Friday episode, Gabrielle dives into the surprising history and science of sunblock. From ancient Egypt’s jasmine oils to modern SPF 50 sprays, discover how sunscreen evolved and why it’s one of the best defenses against deadly melanoma. Gabrielle shares the statistics on skin cancer, explains how sunblock works, and gives you simple tips to stay protected. With her favorite motto, “Just say NO to melanoma,” she’ll leave you ready to face the sun smartly.

3 Things Listeners Will Learn:

- The fascinating history of sunblock, from ancient remedies to modern formulations.

- How sunscreen protects the skin and how to use it correctly for maximum safety.

- Eye-opening facts about melanoma risk, survival rates, and prevention through sun protection.

Resource Links

American Cancer Society: Melanoma Skin Cancer Overview

All About Sunscreen: Why You Need It. How it Works for You

Melanoma Treatment (PDQ®)–Patient Version

Visit us! 

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Let’s Connect!

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Music: All music is public domain and has no Copyright and no rights reserved. On Matters of Consequence from The Little Prince by Lloyd Rodgers

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Episode Overview

In this special re-release, we revisit the life and mind of Blaise Pascal, a mathematician, physicist, inventor, philosopher, and theologian who left a lasting impact on multiple disciplines. From his early genius in geometry to his pioneering work in probability theory, Pascal was a thinker who never stopped exploring the boundaries between logic and faith. In this episode, Gabrielle Birchak explores how Pascal’s scientific brilliance intersected with his spiritual journey, shedding light on the man who helped shape modern science, mathematics, and religious philosophy.

Whether you're hearing this episode for the first time or giving it a second listen, Pascal's story continues to resonate through the centuries.

3 Things You Will Learn

How Pascal’s early work in conic sections and projective geometry led to “Pascal’s Theorem.”

Why his collaboration with Fermat on probability theory is considered the foundation of modern decision science.

How Pascal reconciled science and religion through his writings, including Pensées and Pascal’s Wager.

Resources & References

Read the blog: Pascal’s Higher Power

Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy – Blaise Pascal

Khan Academy – Pascal’s Triangle and Applications

🔗 Explore more on our website: mathsciencehistory.com 📚 To buy my book Hypatia: The Sum of Her Life on Amazon, visit https://a.co/d/g3OuP9h

🌍 Let’s Connect!

Website: mathsciencehistory.com Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/mathsciencehistory.bsky.social Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/math.science.history

🎧 Enjoying the Podcast?

If you love Math, Science, History, here’s how you can help:🌟 Leave a review! It helps more people discover the show!📢 Share this episode with friends & fellow history buffs!🔔 Subscribe on your favorite podcast platform

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🎵 Music: All music is public domain and has no Copyright and no rights reserved. Selections from The Little Prince by Lloyd Rodgers

Until next time, carpe diem!