Universe University

Universe University

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Universe University episodes

  • Episode 18: The High Ground: Part 1

    Outer space is the ultimate strategic high ground for the world's great powers. This is true for both spy satellites and ballistic missiles. During the Cold War, President Ronald Reagan proposed the creation of a technologically advanced, space-based defensive weapon system known as S.D.I.. But critics of the proposal dubbed it 'Star Wars' and said it would trigger a new arms race with the Soviet Union. What historical lessons can be learned from this episode in history?

    REFERENCES:

    "Adolf Hitler's Plot to Bomb New York" By David Robinson

    https://www.express.co.uk/news/world/368490/Adolf-Hitler-s-plot-to-bomb-New-York

    "The 1983 Military Drill that Nearly Sparked Nuclear War with the Soviets" by Francine Uenuma

    https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/the-1983-military-drill-that-nearly-sparked-nuclear-war-with-the-soviets-180979980/

    "Strategic Defense Initiative" State.gov

    https://2001-2009.state.gov/r/pa/ho/time/rd/104253.htm

    MUSIC:

    "Nonstop" Kevin MacLeod (incomptech.com)

    Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License
    http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

    "Ossuary 6 - Air" Kevin MacLeod (incomptech.com)

    Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License
    http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

    "Shores of Avalon" Kevin MacLeod (incomptech.com)

    Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License
    http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

    "Perspectives" Kevin MacLeod (incomptech.com)

    Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License
    http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

    39 min
  • Episode 17: The Twelfth Man

    50 years ago today, the three Apollo 17 astronauts departed the Moon to return to Earth. It was the first time in human history that a scientist set foot on another world: geologist Harrison 'Jack' Schmitt. What lessons does this historic mission have to teach us in the coming years as humans finally return to the Moon with the Artemis program?

    RECORDED BY: Jantzen Carter

    REFERENCES:

    'Apollo 17: Diary of the Twelfth Man' by Harrison 'Jack' Schmitt

    'The Last Man on the Moon' by Eugene Cernan and Don Davis

    'A Man on the Moon' by Andrew Chaikin

    MUSIC:

    "Nonstop" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)

    Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License
    http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

    "Thunderbird" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)

    Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License
    http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

    "Ossuary 1: A Begining" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)

    Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License
    http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

    18 min
  • After Talk for Episode 16 w/Andrew Chaikin (pt 2 of 2)

    The renowned and deeply insightful Andrew Chaikin joins the After Talk to share his views on space exploration along with his experiences interviewing the Apollo astronauts. Chaikin is the author of 'A Man on the Moon', 'Voices from the Moon', and 'A Passion for Mars'.

    MUSIC:

    "Slow Burn" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)

    Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License
    http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

    33 min
  • After Talk for Episode 16 w/Andrew Chaikin (pt 1 of 2)

    The renowned and deeply insightful Andrew Chaikin joins the After Talk to share his views on space exploration along with his experiences interviewing the Apollo astronauts. Chaikin is the author of 'A Man on the Moon', 'Voices from the Moon', and 'A Passion for Mars'.

    MUSIC:

    "Slow Burn" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)

    Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License
    http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

    47 min
  • Episode 16: On the Shoulders of Giants

    Nearly half a century before the space age began in earnest, a few brilliant visionaries had the courage to look beyond their own time and see humanity’s future. From Russia to the United States, a few brilliant minds transformed science fiction into science fact, giving birth to the space age.

    REFERENCES:

    ‘The Russian Cosmists: The Esoteric Futurism of Nikolai Fedorov and His Followers’

    by George M. Young

    ‘The Case for Space: How the Revolution in Spaceflight Opens Up a Future of Limitless Possibility’

    by Robert Zubrin

    MUSIC:

    "Ossuary 1 - A begining" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)

    Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License
    http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

    “Tenebrous Brothers Carnival: Act Two” Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)

    Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License
    http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

    "Infinite Perspective" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)

    Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License
    http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

    "Perspectives" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)

    Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License
    http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

    40 min
  • Bonus After Talk: Reflections on Mars (part 2 of 2)

    Host and producer discuss the future of space travel and manned missions to Mars.

    If you would like to make a contribution to the program, click this link: https://www.patreon.com/universeuniversity?fbclid=IwAR0GJjAwa3C1f8KKxDi7aeGVEO-Ou3dL10vmf1kQHjssQu5eEgmCkyNFMgw

    MUSIC:

    "Slow Burn" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)

    Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License
    http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

    REFERENCES:

    "Scientists and Seaman" [article]

    By Ben Finney

    "Humans Will Never Colonize Mars" [article]

    By George Dvorsky

    "The Case for Space"

    By Robert Zubrin PhD

    "Merchants of Despair: Radical Environmentalists, Criminal Pseudo-Scientists, and the Fatal Cult of Antihumanism"

    By Robert Zubrin PhD

    "Elon Musk: Telsa, SpaceX, and the Quest for a Fantastic Future"

    by Ashlee Vance

    49 min
  • Bonus After Talk: Reflections on Mars (part 1 of 2)

    Host and producer discuss the future of space travel and manned missions to Mars.

    If you would like to make a contribution to the program, click this link: https://www.patreon.com/universeuniversity?fbclid=IwAR0GJjAwa3C1f8KKxDi7aeGVEO-Ou3dL10vmf1kQHjssQu5eEgmCkyNFMgw

    MUSIC:

    "Slow Burn" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)

    Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License
    http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

    REFERENCES:

    "The Case for Space"

    By Robert Zubrin PhD

    "Merchants of Despair: Radical Environmentalists, Criminal Pseudo-Scientists, and the Fatal Cult of Antihumanism"

    By Robert Zubrin PhD

    "Elon Musk: Telsa, SpaceX, and the Quest for a Fantastic Future"

    by Ashlee Vance

    1 hr 6 min
  • After Talk for Episode 15 w/Robert Zubrin PhD

    Dr. Robert Zubrin joins the after talk for an in depth discussion on space exploration. He starts by telling us the story of his Mars Direct plan, the founding of the Mars Society, and his relationship with the young Elon Musk. We go on to discuss the technical and political challenges of sending human beings to Mars as well as his personal philosophyof human space exploration.

    To watch the video version of this interview, click this link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_4cWRQo2_Iw

    MUSIC:

    "Slow Burn" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)

    Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License
    http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

    REFERENCES:

    "The Case for Space"

    By Robert Zubrin PhD

    "Merchants of Despair: Radical Environmentalists, Criminal Pseudo-Scientists, and the Fatal Cult of Antihumanism"

    By Robert Zubrin PhD

    "Elon Musk: Telsa, SpaceX, and the Quest for a Fantastic Future"

    by Ashlee Vance

    Special Guest: Robert Zubrin.

    1 hr 44 min
  • Episode 15: Life on Mars

    Mars has captivated the human imagination for generations. Yet the question remains: is there organic life on the Red Planet? If so, how can we search for it and what would such life be like? And what will day-to-day life be like for the first astronauts to set foot on Mars? The brilliant Dr. Robert Zubrin joins us to help answer some of these questions.

    If you would like to make a contribution to the program, click this link: https://www.patreon.com/universeuniversity?fbclid=IwAR0GJjAwa3C1f8KKxDi7aeGVEO-Ou3dL10vmf1kQHjssQu5eEgmCkyNFMgw

    VOICE CREDIT: A very generous, anonymous Patreon contributor offered to act as the voice to Agustina Lusky because Lusky does not speak English as her first language. The words in the episode are entirely Lusky's words.

    REFERENCES:

    "The Case for Mars: The Plan to Settle the Red Planet and Why We Must"

    By Robert Zubrin PhD

    "The Mars Underground" [2007 Documentary]

    Dir. Scott J. Gill

    "From Antarctica to Outer Space: Life in Isolation and Confinement"

    Edited by A.A. Harrison, Y.A. Clearwater, and C.P. McKay

    "Strife and Despair at South Pole Illuminate Psychology of Isolation"

    By Robert Reinhold, New York Times

    "A Brief History of Mars Missions" Space.com

    "Mars and Its Canals" by Percival Lowell

    MUSIC:

    "Nonstop" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)

    Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License
    http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

    "Ossuary 6 - Air" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)

    Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License
    http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

    "Infinite Perspective" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)

    Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License
    http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

    "Thunderbird" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)

    Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License
    http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

    "Perspectives" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)

    Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License
    http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

    "Ossuary 1 - A begining" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)

    Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License
    http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

    Special Guest: Robert Zubrin.

    59 min
  • After Talk for Episode 14 w/Nick Conant

    Nick Conant, a science communicator and Theater Manager of the Fiske Planetarium, sits down for an After Talk about: Native American astronomy, craters, comets as a (proposed) water source on Earth, and the ethics of asteroid mining.

    If you would like to make a contribution to the program, click this link: https://www.patreon.com/universeuniversity?fbclid=IwAR0GJjAwa3C1f8KKxDi7aeGVEO-Ou3dL10vmf1kQHjssQu5eEgmCkyNFMgw

    MUSIC:

    "Slow Burn" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)

    Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License
    http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

    Special Guest: Nick Conant.

    1 hr 37 min

About Universe University

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Universe University takes listeners on a cosmic adventure through outer space: from the history of human spaceflight and astronomy to the cutting edge theoretical physics. It is an entertaining and…