Episode 054 Doctors know that a treatment for cancer is probably working if the tumor shrinks in size. Today, tumor size is usually measured every couple of months or so, but it would be useful if the size could be monitored continuously...

Episode 053 Scientists and engineers are always trying to develop better ways to make patterns on surfaces. Such patterns are the basis for how lots of things work....

Episode 052 In comic books and movies, Spider-Man uses wrist-worn devices called Web Shooters to capture enemies and swing between buildings at high speeds. The Web Shooters emit streams of liquid, which solidify and stick to the intended target. Awesome! But is this possible in real life?....

Episode 051 Scientists and engineers are always looking for ways to make computers more powerful. Some have speculated that this might be possible using DNA, the molecules in our bodies that store genetic information....

Episode 050 Over 20% of all electricity in the US is now generated by renewable wind and solar power. That’s impressive, but wind turbines and solar panels are fickle: sometimes they generate more electricity than is needed, and other times none at all...

Episode 049 Everyone – especially teenagers – hates spots caused by acne. The bacteria that cause acne can be killed by antibiotics, but a big problem is the eventual development of antibiotic resistance...

Episode 048 What's warm when it's cold and cool when it's hot? One surprising answer is the Namibian chameleon! This chameleon can control how much sunlight it absorbs by changing its skin color...

Episode 047

How do you prove that you are you? One way is to take advantage of the fact that your fingerprints make a pattern that is uniquely yours. But how do we prove that the things around us from dollar bills to documents to pharmaceuticals are genuine and not counterfeits?...

Episode 046

Spray-on windshield coatings that repel rain are really slick: they consist of a thin film of silicone, the same rubbery material used as caulking around the home. Silicones are hydrophobic, which means that they repel water, but some materials repel water so strongly that they are called superhydrophobic....

Episode 045

In nanotechnology, the big ideas involve really small things, such as quantum dots. Quantum dots are very small chunks of matter that can be tuned to absorb or emit light of different colors simply by changing the size of the dot...