The Marvels of Science

My podcast, my rules! This episode, we break the format and leave science behind in favor of a different set of tools: Philosophy!

With Philosophy Expert Professor Ross P. Cameron and Color Commentator Sarah Rice Scott (who has seen exactly one MCU movie), we take a look at the ethics and metaphysics of the MCU and its characters. Should Cap have been the one to make the final Snap? Is Vision right, and trading lives is okay? And what is the Ship of Theseus anyway?

We return to our regularly scheduled programming next week, but right now it's The Marvels of Philosophy!

We return to the topic of artificial intelligence, briefly touched upon in Episode 5: Robots!  What's the Singularity? How close are we to making Alexa more like JARVIS? Is it harder to teach a computer how to play chess or process an image? What even is intelligence? What happens if we make real intelligence and release a new life form upon the world? And what are our social responsibilities when figuring out how best to apply these artificial intelligences?

To answer these questions, Color Commentator Caroline Bailey and I chat with Science Expert and AI researcher Ronen Tamari. I'm very proud - I almost understand all of what we talked about!

The Marvels of Science is a podcast that I make about the science and tech of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Each 30ish-minute episode, I sit down with a Science Expert and a Color Commentator to discuss the plausibility of a character, bit of technology, or sci-fi phenomenon in the MCU. It's a sneaky way to expose listeners to some science education while they think they're just listening to a movie podcast.

This week, I expand the show's scientific umbrella to include psychology as I discuss Tony Stark's apparent (though denied) Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder in Iron Man 3. What makes PTSD different from healthy ways of recalling trauma? For that matter, what is trauma? And what are panic attacks and panic disorders? Is the movie's portrayal of Tony's symptoms in line with these disorders, and do we feel comfortable diagnosing a fictional character?

Psychologist Kelsey Myers is the Science Expert this week, helping Color Commentator and social worker Caitlin Levine (returning from Episode 3: Ultron and the Internet) and I understand the ins and outs of these questions and more.

Links:

Welcome back to Marvels of Science! Season...uh, PHASE 2 has a lot more science and a lot more Marvel! Come to think of it, probably the same amount.

Here's a promo to whet your appetite! See you on Episode 11 next week!

The Marvels of Science is a podcast that I make about the science and tech of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Each 30ish-minute episode, I sit down with a Science Expert and a Color Commentator to discuss the plausibility of a character, bit of technology, or sci-fi phenomenon in the MCU. It's a sneaky way to expose listeners to some science education while they think they're just listening to a movie podcast.

This episode looks back on the meteoric rise of The Marvels of Science and looks ahead to Season, err...Phase 2.

Here again I wish to express my gratitude to all my guests, Science Expert and Color Commentator alike.

Thanks for listening, and cross your fingers there's a Phase 2!

-Dave Reinersmann

The Marvels of Science is a podcast that I make about  the science and tech of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Each  30ish-minute episode, I sit down with a Science Expert and a Color Commentator to discuss the plausibility of a character, bit of  technology, or sci-fi phenomenon in the MCU. It's a sneaky way to expose listeners to some science education while they think they're just listening to a movie podcast.

I tracked down an expert on Alaskan wood frogs, Don Larson, to talk about Captain America, no joke. See, they regularly freeze themselves to  survive super-cold winters. And Captain America was frozen in the Arctic ice for 70 years - is he part frog? Would that have helped? How does hibernation work? Can Adam Correia design a frog better than natural selection? Let's find out!

I chatted with spider enthusiast and researcher Sebastian Echeverri (host of, I'm not kidding, www.spidernightlive.com)  and Emily Osterhus, a former DC-er, current North Carolinian, and friend of mine, all about what spiders can and cannot do compared to what we see teenage superhero Peter Parker accomplish. Can spiders  balance homework, MJ, and fighting super villains? I didn't ask that, but I did ask how spiders stick to walls, shoot webs, and do they have a sixth sense? #tomhollandismyspider-man #respectthehyphen

Check out Sebastian's favorite piece of writing about spiders and Spider-Man here: https://www.inquirer.com/science/superhero-spider-science-spider-man-far-from-home-20190712.html

Welcome   to The Marvels of Science, a podcast from me, Dave Reinersmann, about   the science and tech of the MCU! Each episode, I sit down with a  science  expert and a "color commentator" to discuss the plausibility of  a  character, bit of technology, or sci-fi phenomenon in the Marvel   Cinematic Universe.

Episode 8 stars nuclear physicist Lumen Wright and the mild-mannered* Danny Mortensen who talk with me about gamma radiation and how to make it work for you (spoiler: get a nuclear physics degree)!  What's a gamma ray? How many bananas will give me radiation poisoning? Should I work on a ball of plutonium with a screwdriver? Find out in this episode!

Head to davereinersmann.com/marvelsofscience for info on past and future episodes, and do me a favor by sharing this far and wide.

If you know any science experts or funny people, send them my way!

*...for now

Welcome  to The Marvels of Science, a podcast from me, Dave Reinersmann, about  the science and tech of the MCU! Each episode, I sit down with a science  expert and a "color commentator" to discuss the plausibility of a  character, bit of technology, or sci-fi phenomenon in the Marvel  Cinematic Universe.

Episode 7 stars Daniel Whiteson and Liesel Reinersmann who talk with me about Ant-Man and his incredible shrinking tech. Ant-Man plays it pretty fast and loose with the quantum physics, but do they hit the mark ever?

If you know any science experts or funny people, send them my way!

Welcome to The Marvels of Science! Normally, I sit down with a Science Expert and a Color Commentator for 30 to 45 minutes and dig in to a science topic presented to us in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (with varying degrees of plausibility). But if we just get a taste or a mention of something in the MCU, we'll present a Minisode!

Here in Minisode 1, we briefly discuss a mention of the Cosmic Microwave Background Radiation in WandaVision episode 4. What is it, and did the show get it right? Daniel Whiteson (of UC Irvine, Large Hadron Collider, and Daniel and Jorge Explain the Universe) and Liesel Reinersmann (of being my sister) tackle the topic for a couple minutes.

SPOILERS (very mild) for WandaVision Episode 4, "We Interrupt this Program."