The Current Science & Technology Podcast

As 2018 winds down, the Museum of Science, Boston has looked back on the year’s game-changing science and technology news and compiled its list of the Top 10 Science Stories of 2018. From animals that can teach us a thing or two about growing old gracefully to ethics in the brave new world of Artificial Intelligence, 2018 has been a year of groundbreaking scientific discoveries and achievements.

Dr. Chelsea Huang, and exoplanet scientist from MIT, describes the search for new exoplanets with the TESS mission.

Dr. Parag Gad from UCLA describes a non-invasive electrical stimulation technique to return bodily functions to paralyzed individuals.

Dr. Ron Walsworth, physicist at Harvard University, discusses quantum science and how pink diamonds are being used to revolutionize today's technology.

Dr. Giovanni Traverso, a gastroenterologist at Brigham and Women's Hospital, is developing a once a week pill to treat (and possibly even prevent) HIV infections.

From fossil discoveries to space exploration, learn what science stories made our Top 10 list.

Daniel Theobald, co-founder of Mass Robotics and Chief Innovation Officer for Vecna Robotics in Cambridge, MA, discusses how robots will affect our daily lives over the coming years.

What can we learn when we place our modern scientific knowledge in a historical context? In this new type of segment, we explore speciation research. Who was Henry Walter Bates and what role have he and butterflies played in our knowledge of species? What can genetics tell us about species? Featuring The Caterpillar Lab’s Sam Jaffe, biographer Anthony Crawforth, and geneticist James Mallet.

How do you propel a spacecraft without fuel? Hear about LightSail, the Planetary Society’s solar sailing spacecraft set to launch in 2018.

Dr. Ann McKee, Chief of Neuropathology at VA Boston and Director of the CTE Center at BU, highlights her current CTE research and imparts her vision for the future.