Science! With Friends

In this week’s episode, Jocelyn and Bradley are joined by scientific super couple Dr. Elena Echeverria of Oklahoma State University and Dr. Jose Monroy of Cornell University! From the kinky behavior of boron to the so-called “God particle,” Elena and Jose tell us how their personal and professional paths converged in their native Colombia, how they decided to study physics, and how they navigate the joys and challenges of marriage and research . . . with a little help from Metallica (insert guitar solo).

Links:
Learn more about Jose at https://www.huskeralum.org/s/1620/images/editor_documents/neb_mag/2015/smashing_atoms_summer2015.pdf?sessionid=1bfefa82-79f9-4b89-80e7-173575c92610&cc=1
and Elena at
https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=RRvqGasAAAAJ&hl=en.

“The Higgs Boson: A Not-So-Godlike Particle”: https://www.space.com/36724-higgs-boson-not-so-godlike.html

Boron carbide: https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/chemical-engineering/boron-carbide

Contact Science! With Friends (especially if you’re a scientist interested in a lively conversation about your science and science story) at Gmail or Twitter!
• Gmail: [email protected]
• Twitter @SciWithFriends

Science! With Friends Podcast is created and hosted by Jocelyn Bosley (@SciTalker) and Bradley Nordell (@bradleynordell) and Produced by the Basement Creators Network. You can find them at https://www.basementcreators.network/

Sound Editing by Vince Ruhl

In this week’s episode, Jocelyn and Bradley talk with the irrepressible Bridget Gross, a graduate student at the University of Nebraska Bee Lab and Entomology Education Lab. Bridget tells us how an eye-opening experience involving killer bees, scorpions, and Taylor Swift (?) transformed her from a young girl who feared insects and didn’t think she was particularly good at science to - - - drumroll - - - a scientist who studies insects! Bridget discusses her current project documenting the experiences of women beekeepers, as well as her recent work in the Dominican Republic. She offers insight into what everyday people can do to support threatened bee populations, and the friends discuss the value of citizen science more generally. Also, bee jokes of dubious quality.

Links:
https://www.facebook.com/unlentomology/posts/10157300158532836

UNL Bee Lab: https://entomology.unl.edu/bee-lab
UNL Entomology Education Lab: https://entedlab.unl.edu/
Bumble Boosters: http://bumbleboosters.unl.edu/

Contact Science! With Friends (especially if you’re a scientist interested in a lively conversation about your science and science story) at Gmail or Twitter!
• Gmail: [email protected]
• Twitter @SciWithFriends
The Science! With Friends Podcast is created and hosted by Jocelyn Bosley (@SciTalker) and Bradley Nordell (@bradleynordell)

The Science! With Friends Podcast is Produced by the Basement Creators Network. You can find them at https://www.basementcreators.network/

Sound Editing by Vince Ruhl

What makes someone good at science? Are scientists just smarter than other people? And what does "smart" really mean, anyway? In this episode, Jocelyn and Bradley discuss the complexity of intelligence and our longstanding cultural obsession with measuring it. In addition to the socioeconomic, racial, gender, and "specialty" biases that plague IQ tests, the hosts discuss the utility of these tests—or, rather, their lack of utility—as a predictor of future achievement, and why "innate" intelligence is not a thing. They also take on the myth that scientists are smarter than other people, arguing that this (mis)perception adversely affects everyone, including scientists at all levels who are vulnerable to imposter syndrome.


Sources & Links:

•https://www.independent.co.uk/news/science/iq-tests-are-fundamentally-flawed-and-using-them-alone-to-measure-intelligence-is-a-fallacy-study-8425911.html?amp
•https://www.wnycstudios.org/story/g-unnatural-selection
•http://www.nea.org/home/73288.htm


Contact Science! With Friends (especially if you’re a scientist interested in a lively conversation about your science and science story) at Gmail or Twitter!

•Gmail: [email protected]
•Twitter @SciWithFriends

The Science! With Friends Podcast is created and hosted by Jocelyn Bosley (@SciTalker) and Bradley Nordell (@bradleynordell)

The Science! With Friends Podcast is Produced by the Basement Creators Network. You can find them at https://www.basementcreators.network/
Sound Editing by Vince Ruhl

In this week’s episode, Science! With Friends goes international! Jocelyn and Bradley are joined by the one and only Axel “P-CAT” Enders, nanoscientist and professor of physics at the University of Bayreuth, Germany. Axel shares his science story (SPOILER ALERT: even successful scientists sometimes feel like everyone else is smarter than them!) and invites us to journey with him into the nanoworld. He tells the hosts about playing atomic Legos to build nanoscale machines from the bottom up, and how he exploits the process of self-assembly that gives us complex structures like snowflakes and DNA to create novel nanostructures in the lab. The friends also discuss 21st-century wonder material graphene and Axel’s current research with graphene ribbons. So, press play, friends, and join us for a whole new kind of Enders Game!

You can find Axel Enders on Twitter at @iEnders. And For more on Axel Enders research and publications, see:
https://www.enders.uni-bayreuth.de/en/
https://unlcms.unl.edu/cas/physics/enders/node/1
2D electronics: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Vahr6LPFpI
Self-assembly:
https://funsizephysics.com/from-nanowaffles-to-nanostructures/
https://funsizephysics.com/froot-loops-legos-self-assembly/
A Boy and his Atom: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oSCX78-8-q0
Nanobot: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ObvxPSQNMGc
Scale:
Powers of Ten: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0fKBhvDjuy0
Scale of the Universe 2: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uaGEjrADGPA



Contact Science! With Friends (especially if you’re a scientist interested in a lively conversation about your science and science story) at Gmail or Twitter!
•Gmail: [email protected]
•Twitter @SciWithFriends

The Science! With Friends Podcast is created and hosted by Jocelyn Bosley (@SciTalker) and Bradley Nordell (@bradleynordell)

The Science! With Friends Podcast is Produced by the Basement Creators Network. You can find them at https://www.basementcreators.network/
Sound Editing by Vince Ruhl

On this week’s very special edition of Science! With Friends, one host reunites with a (young) old friend! Jocelyn’s former student Luke Moberly is now a senior at Lincoln High School, a builder of high-powered rockets, a budding physicist, a nationally ranked debater, and an ardent champion of effective science communication. In this episode, Luke tells Bradley and Jocelyn how his enthusiasm for science communication began with a fortuitous encounter between a wayward rocket and a Nebraska farmer. He offers his perspective on how and why scientists should make the effort to share their work with the public; the influences and experiences that have shaped his interest in science; and how he plans to continue sharing his passion for science in his future career. In addition to the challenges and rewards of communicating across lines of discipline and expertise, the friends discuss the central role of creativity in the scientific process.

The next generation of science communication is upon us! As Luke would say: “Ready . . . three, two, one . . . launch.”

Links:
•Epic Rap Battle: c vs. π: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V0BQxF5vDYU
•The Human Periodic Table Sings Tom Lehrer's "The Elements": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tbzi1upkVJ4
•Science is deeply imaginative: why is this treated as a secret?: https://aeon.co/ideas/science-is-deeply-imaginative-why-is-this-treated-as-a-secret

Contact Science! With Friends (especially if you’re a scientist interested in a lively conversation about your science and science story):
•Gmail: [email protected]
Science! With Friends Podcast is Produced by the Basement Creators Network. You can find them at https://www.basementcreators.network/
Sound Editing by Vince Ruhl

In this episode, Jocelyn and Bradley consider how a more sophisticated understanding of causation and causality can help both scientists and non-scientists better understand the world. Using gun violence and climate change as case studies, the hosts discuss how controversies frequently arise from differing interpretations of causal relationships, and how the seductive lure of deterministic, linear thinking can lead us astray. Drawing inspiration from Aristotelean philosophy, modern physics, and Nicolas Cage (because, well, sure), the hosts argue that the way we think and talk about causes is crucial to having productive conversations on critical issues in science and society. Join us, friends, as we journey together into . . . the Cause-mos.

Links:
•xkcd, “Correlation”: https://xkcd.com/552/
•Spurious correlations: https://www.tylervigen.com/spurious-correlations
•Strange Days on Planet Earth, “The One Degree Factor”: https://www.pbs.org/strangedays/episodes/onedegreefactor/
•https://www.gunviolencearchive.org/reports/mass-shooting

Contact Science! With Friends (especially if you’re a scientist interested in a lively conversation about your science and science story):
•Gmail: [email protected]

Produced by the Basement Creators Network. You can find them at https://www.basementcreators.network/
Sound Editing by Vince Ruhl

In this episode, Jocelyn and Bradley are joined by Justine LaViolette, entomology graduate student and future “Jim Henson of science.” (You heard it here first, folks.) In addition to her research monitoring and tracking mosquito populations in Nebraska, Justine talks about how her childhood ambition to become a coroner (!) led her to the field of entomology; how she incorporates her love of art—specifically, puppet-making—into her educational videos about insects; and how she is using these videos to create a unique and powerful niche in the world of science communication. Justine also shares her struggles with anxiety and depression, as well as some strategies she has developed to navigate these challenges. Furthermore, the friends discuss the vital importance of talking openly about mental health in grad school and beyond.

You can find Justine’s latest videos on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/learnwithjustinelavi/) and her earlier work on YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCBp-1RKlWYM_zLhR81GtMgg).

Contact Science! With Friends (especially if you’re a scientist interested in a lively conversation about your science and science stories):

●Gmail: [email protected]

Produced by the Basement Creators Network
Sound Editing by Vince Ruhl

In the first installment of a semi-occasional series highlighting some of the most frequently misunderstood words in science, Jocelyn and Bradley discuss the meaning of “basic” research. (HINT: It has nothing to do with the degree of difficulty, alkaline pH, OR pumpkin spice lattes.) The hosts discuss the importance of basic research, how it differs from “applied” research, and whether this is ultimately a false—and potentially destructive—dichotomy.

Contact Science! With Friends (especially if you’re a scientist interested in a lively conversation about your science and science stories):

●Gmail: [email protected]

Produced by Basement Creators Network
Sound Editing by Vince Ruhl

(B-Side: Being for the Benefit of Mr. Perovskite!)

Can we produce solar cells efficient enough to make a real dent in our fossil fuel consumption? In this episode, Jocelyn and Bradley talk with Dr. Andrew Yost, Assistant Professor of Physics at Oklahoma State University, whose research addresses this question. With some judicious cursing, Andrew describes the advantages and disadvantages of various solar cell materials, including traditional silicon-based approaches, a special class of materials called perovskites, and the new promise of quantum dots. He even tells us how we can print our own flexible solar cells at home using a regular inkjet printer! As the friends discuss the “hope and hype” of solar energy, myths about solar cell efficiency, and how science communication will play an essential role in transitioning the U.S. from a fossil fuel society to a renewable energy one, we also learn about Andrew’s journey into science and the most challenging and gratifying aspects of his life and work.

Learn more about Andrew Yost and his research at:

•https://scholar.google.com/citations?hl=en&user=UDhy5AcAAAAJ&view_op=list_works&sortby=pubdate

•https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Andrew_Yost2

Read more about quantum dot arrays, Perovskite solar cells, and printable solar cells at:

•https://www.jove.com/video/58760/inkjet-printing-all-inorganic-halide-perovskite-inks-for-photovoltaic
•https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-019-01985-y
•https://funsizephysics.com/future-solar-energy-inkjet-printer/
•https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quantum_dot
•https://www.nature.com/articles/nmat4908.pdf?proof=true1
•https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6393492/

Contact Science! With Friends (especially if you’re a scientist interested in a lively conversation about your science and science stories):

●Gmail: [email protected]

Produced by Basement Creators Network
Sound Editing by Vince Ruhl

In this episode, Jocelyn and Bradley talk with Dr. Alan Christensen about his journey from biochemist to fruit fly researcher to plant mitochondria whisperer and genetics professor at the University of Nebraska. Alan shares the most gratifying and challenging parts of his work, the weirdest phenomena he has observed in his research, and his love of The Princess Bride. The friends also discuss the complex relationship between genes and traits, and how this complexity is often lost when genetic discoveries are reported to the public. INCONCEIVABLE!

Learn more about Alan Christensen and his research:

•https://biosci.unl.edu/alan-christensen
•Twitter: @AChristensenPhD

Additional links:
•https://aeon.co/videos/what-toddlers-can-teach-us-about-how-the-human-brain-does-science

Contact Science! With Friends (especially if you’re a scientist interested in a lively conversation about your science and science stories):

●Gmail: [email protected]

Produced by Basement Creators Network
Sound Editing by Vince Ruhl