Big Picture Science

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Big Picture Science is a one-hour radio show and podcast that connects ideas in surprising and humorous ways to illuminate the origins, the behavior, and the future of life—and  technology—on Earth.

What came before the Big Bang?  How does the brain work? Will our descendents be human or machine?  What’s the origin of humor?  We ponder these questions daily... and expound on them weekly.

But, wait!  There’s more!

Are you a doubting Thomas?  Good.  Join us as we separate science from pseudoscience—and facts from the phony—in Skeptic Check, our monthly episode devoted to critical thinking.

Whether it’s astrology, Bigfoot, or just the incessant onslaught of UFOs, we take it all on, wielding the skeptical scalpel of solid science.

It’s Skeptic Check... but don’t take our word for it!

 

 

 

Series

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Big Picture Science 
309 Pieces

Big Picture Science is a weekly one-hour science magazine that connects ideas in surprising and humorous ways to illuminate the origins and evolution of life and technology on this planet… and beyond.

Pieces

Life in the Solar System
From: Big Picture Science
Series: Big Picture Science
Caption: Life in the Solar System, Credit: Seth Shostak
Spewing lava and belching noxious fumes, volcanoes seem hostile to biology. But the search for life off-Earth includes the hunt for these hotheads ...

Bought by CHSR-FM 97.9, RadioFreePalmer, KICI Iowa City, and KMXT


  • Added: May 29, 2023
  • Length: 54:00
  • Purchases: 4
Let's Stick Together
From: Big Picture Science
Series: Big Picture Science
Caption: Let's Stick Together, Credit: Seth Shostak
Crowds driving you crazy? Remember, we evolved to be together. Humans are not only social, we’re driven to care for one another. We look at some...

Bought by KTAL-LP [Las Cruces Community Radio], WRGY, Cove Mountain Educational Broadcasting, KBBI Alaska, KZUM and more


  • Added: May 22, 2023
  • Length: 54:00
  • Purchases: 13
Skeptic Check: Shroom With a View
From: Big Picture Science
Series: Big Picture Science
Caption: Shroom with a View, Credit: Seth Shostak
Magic mushrooms – or psilocybin - may be associated with tripping hippies and Woodstock, but they are now being studied as new treatments for depre...

Bought by CHSR-FM 97.9, KIYU-FM, KTAL-LP [Las Cruces Community Radio], Cove Mountain Educational Broadcasting, KZUM and more


  • Added: May 15, 2023
  • Length: 54:00
  • Purchases: 15
Catching Fire
From: Big Picture Science
Series: Big Picture Science
Caption: Catching Fire, Credit: Seth Shostak
We have too much “bad fire.” Not only destructive wildfires, but the combustion that powers our cars and provides electricity has generated a worry...

Bought by KTAL-LP [Las Cruces Community Radio], KIYU-FM, CHSR-FM 97.9, WRGY, Cove Mountain Educational Broadcasting and more


  • Added: May 08, 2023
  • Length: 54:00
  • Purchases: 14
Finding Endurance
From: Big Picture Science
Series: Big Picture Science
Caption: Finding Endurance, Credit: Seth Shostak
In 1915, Endurance, the ship that took Ernest Shackleton to the Antarctic, was slowly crushed and sank. Shackleton, and the 28 men he brought with ...

Bought by KIYU-FM, CHSR-FM 97.9, KTAL-LP [Las Cruces Community Radio], Cove Mountain Educational Broadcasting, KZUM and more


  • Added: May 01, 2023
  • Length: 54:00
  • Purchases: 15
The Latest Buzz
From: Big Picture Science
Series: Big Picture Science
Caption: The Latest Buzz, Credit: Seth Shostak
Is your windshield accumulating less bug splatter? Insects, the most numerous animals on Earth, are becoming scarcer, and that’s not good news. The...

Bought by KIYU-FM, KTAL-LP [Las Cruces Community Radio], RadioFreePalmer, WRGY, Cove Mountain Educational Broadcasting and more


  • Added: Apr 24, 2023
  • Length: 54:00
  • Purchases: 15
CRISPR Mosquitoes
From: Big Picture Science
Series: Big Picture Science
Caption: CRISPR Mosquitoes, Credit: Seth Shostak
The powerful gene editing tool CRISPR is already being tested on animal and plant cells. It has even been used on humans. How might this revolutio...

Bought by KIYU-FM, CHSR-FM 97.9, WRGY, Cove Mountain Educational Broadcasting, KBBI Alaska and more


  • Added: Apr 17, 2023
  • Length: 54:00
  • Purchases: 12
Skeptic Check: Feeling Risky
From: Big Picture Science
Series: Big Picture Science
Caption: Feeling Risky, Credit: Seth Shostak
It’s not just facts that inform our decisions. They’re also guided by how those facts feel. From deciding whether to buckle our seat belts to addre...

Bought by KTAL-LP [Las Cruces Community Radio], Cove Mountain Educational Broadcasting, WRGY, WHCP-LP Cambridge, KBBI Alaska and more


  • Added: Apr 10, 2023
  • Length: 54:00
  • Purchases: 15
Calling All Aliens
From: Big Picture Science
Series: Big Picture Science
Caption: Calling All Aliens, Credit: Seth Shostak
Are we alone in the universe? Is there other intelligence out there? COSMIC, the most ambitious SETI search yet, hopes to answer that. We hear upda...

Bought by CHSR-FM 97.9, WVTF, Cove Mountain Educational Broadcasting, KTAL-LP [Las Cruces Community Radio], WRGY and more


  • Added: Apr 03, 2023
  • Length: 54:00
  • Purchases: 15
Make Space For Animals
From: Big Picture Science
Series: Big Picture Science
Caption: Make Space for Animals, Credit: Seth Shostak
Long before Yuri Gagarin became the first human to go into space, Laika, a stray dog, crossed the final frontier. Find out what other surprising sp...

Bought by WGBH Radio Boston, KTAL-LP [Las Cruces Community Radio], CHSR-FM 97.9, Cove Mountain Educational Broadcasting, WRGY and more


  • Added: Mar 27, 2023
  • Length: 54:00
  • Purchases: 15

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People who work with Big Picture Science

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Barbara Vance
Producer
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Gary Niederhoff (Admin)