Six podcasts for science lovers

Finding engaging science podcasts amid a long list of iTunes search results can be a daunting task. Physics Today is here to help. Whether you’re looking for in-depth interviews about scientific research, carefully crafted feature stories, or something you can listen to with your kids, there’s something on this list for you.

Documentary filmmaker and former NASA intern Philip Shane teams up with historian of science Matthew Stanley for a podcast that mixes whimsical speculation with scientific facts. Episode titles such as “Bubbling Brew of PARALLEL UNIVERSE Stew” and “Can You Trust Your Family ROBOT?” hint at the energetic, slightly tongue-in-cheek tone. Many episodes of What the If? are just Stanley and Shane imagining what would happen if humans could, say, spit hagfish slime or see the way pigeons do. Other episodes feature interviews with interesting scientists who join Shane and Stanley in their speculative fun. Recent guests have included cosmologist Brian Keating , whale researcher Vanessa Pirotta, and theoretical physicist and graphic novel author Clifford Johnson . Episodes are released every Tuesday.

Caltech theoretical physicist Sean Carroll hosts and produces this podcast, in which he conducts in-depth interviews with scientists, artists, humanists, and other interesting figures. Guests so far have included physicist Roger Penrose, chemist Raychelle Burks, religion scholar Anthony Pinn, and professional poker player Liv Boeree. Carroll is an engaging interviewer and chooses his topics and guests with care. Although the episodes are longer than those of the other podcasts on our list, the discussions are deep enough to keep your attention.

The Science History Institute’s long-running podcast tells in-depth and fascinating stories from the history of science, stories that often have implications for major controversies going on today. One recent episode discusses the 1988 patent for OncoMouse, a mouse genetically predisposed to develop cancer. The hosts use OncoMouse’s story to explore questions about the scientific, legal, and moral implications of patenting living organisms. Distillations also produces multiepisode investigations, such as its timely and moving three-part spotlight on the history of opioid treatment. The podcast skillfully mixes interviews, historical audio clips, and voice-overs from the hosts and reporters; if you prefer NPR-style storytelling over long interviews or loosely structured chats, Distillations is for you.

Aimed at elementary school students, Brains On! offers a kid-friendly scientific perspective on everything from cooking to roller coasters. Each episode packs in a ton of scientific facts, jokes and puns, and questions from listeners. Adults may find some of the humor too silly, but young science enthusiasts will love the fast-paced, high-energy take on science and nature. Minnesota Public Radio producer Molly Bloom cohosts with a new kid guest host in every episode.

If you’ve been looking for a podcast on the latest and most interesting news from the physics community, consider this offering from Physics World. In nicely bite-size episodes, the magazine’s journalists talk about stories they’re working on, scientific papers they’re excited about, and predictions of what lies ahead in physics. Some of the most interesting episodes include interviews with physicists such as Melanie Windridge, who talks about how physics has changed the climb up Mount Everest.

Biomedical engineer Liz Wayne and literary scholar Christine “Xine” Yao are the minds behind the thought-provoking PhDivas, which they bill as “a podcast about academia, culture, and social justice across the STEM/humanities divide.” Wayne and Yao are both early-career academics, and their podcast puts an important spotlight on what it’s like to be a graduate student or postdoc in 2019, especially for marginalized scholars. One recent episode on applying to graduate school gives practical, encouraging, and clear-eyed advice to prospective applicants; in another, the hosts discuss the ups and downs of being a public expert on platforms like Twitter. Wayne and Yao also invite fascinating researchers from a variety of disciplines to talk about their work. One recent episode features Saori Ogura, a graduate student in ecology, discussing the ethical questions she grappled with while conducting fieldwork in Zimbabwe and the Himalayas.

(Thumbnail image credit: What the If?)