Dinosaurs might not have been the roaring beasts many imagine. Neuroscientist Erich Jarvis explains why modern birds—living dinosaurs—offer clues about vocal learning and why dinosaurs could have been singers.

For more, check out the extended interview with Erich Jarvis. 

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If the universe is expanding, why aren’t galaxies stretching apart? Cosmologist Adam Riess breaks down the physics behind cosmic expansion, the forces that resist it, and why dark energy dominates the vast spaces between.

For more, check out the extended interview with Adam Riess.

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What if black holes are hiding the answers cosmologists have been chasing for a century? Born from the explosive deaths of massive stars, black holes are so dense even light cannot escape – making them challenging to observe. But after decades of chasing the unseeable and building ever more sophisticated observation tools, researchers are now discovering that they hold profound clues about the nature of spacetime, the formation of galaxies, and the energy that powers our universe.

To watch the full film, visit https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/video/black-hole-apocalypse/ 

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Why does thinking too hard ruin your rhythm? Neuroscientist Heather Berlin unpacks the science of flow states, explaining why mastery means trusting your brain’s hidden systems to do what they do best.

For more, check out the extended interview with Heather Berlin.

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Black holes can be bigger on the inside than they are on the outside. Astrophysicist Janna Levin explains how this is possible, and what that means about how black holes work. 

For more, check out the extended interview with Janna Levin.

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Are we really in control of our own minds? Research suggests our sense of control may be far more fragile – and far stranger – than we imagine. From moments when the body seems to act without us, to the eerie ways our brains can warp what we think we’ve heard, scientists are uncovering a picture of the mind that’s anything but straightforward. And beneath it all lies a surprising discovery: the brain is less an observer of reality than a prediction engine, forever guessing what comes next.

To watch the full film, visit https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/series/your-brain/ 

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What’s the difference between a fact, a law, and a theory? Mineralogist Robert Hazen and astrobiologist Michael Wong unpack the hierarchy of scientific ideas and reveal how laws of nature elegantly unify the universe.

For more, check out the extended interview with Robert Hazen and Michael Wong.

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Sorry, Beyoncé, it turns out microbes rule the world. Microbiologist Peter Girguis explains how to conceptualize just how many microbes are on Earth… and how understanding this helps us look for life on other worlds. 

For more, check out the extended interview with Peter Girguis.

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Scientists have discovered the oldest DNA ever found: tiny fragments hidden in the dirt. The idea that soil could hold genetic traces from creatures that vanished millions of years ago seemed impossible – until one researcher had the wild idea to go and look. But how did he find DNA that most scientists thought could never survive? What forgotten worlds can this buried DNA reconstruct? And what might these revelations tell us about our own future on a rapidly changing planet?

To watch the full film, visit here.

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Growth rings on trees can measure time, allowing scientists to date things from the deep past. But, paleobotantist Dr. Kirk Johnson explains why, in the tropics, some trees have no rings.

For more, check out the extended interview with Kirk Johnson.

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