Science History Podcast

What did the ancient world discover about the cosmos? What were the contributions of Copernicus, Kepler, and Galileo? How did the science of astronomy advance under Newton? And how did everything change again with the discoveries of special relativity, general relativity, and quantum mechanics? With us to answer these questions is Sarah Alam Malik. Sarah is an expert on dark matter, and her work on large-scale experiments such as the Large Hadron Collider has placed her at the cutting edge of exploring the universe's mysteries and its fundamental laws. Today we discuss her new book entitled, A Brief History of the Universe (and our place in it).

Chemical exposures in the womb can lead to what biologists call organizational effects - that is, impacts on the developing child that are irreversible. How were developmental problems associated with chemical exposures during pregnancy first discovered? And how did these discoveries influence policy? With me to discuss chemicals and child development is Tracey Woodruff. Tracey is a professor in the Department of Epidemiology and Population Health at Stanford University, where she co-leads the UCSF/Stanford Environmental Research and Translation for Health Center. She is an expert on environmental pollution exposures and impacts on health, with a focus on pregnancy, infancy and childhood, and health equity. Tracey was elected to the National Academy of Medicine in recognition of her pioneering work advancing environmental health and reproductive justice.

The age of exploration altered the course of human history, but how did early explorers find their way? Calculating their latitude at sea was a relatively straightforward proposition, but calculating longitude presented a vexing problem. Given the big power competition for colonies, conquest, and riches, the search to discover an accurate means of assessing longitude became a scramble. A major piece of the puzzle lay in the accurate assessment of time on a rocking vessel, which tested the ingenuity of the most creative clock makers. With me to discuss the history of the technologies associated with the measurement of longitude is Emily Akkermans. Emily is the Curator of Time at Royal Museums Greenwich, which includes the Royal Observatory Greenwich. The observatory is Britain's oldest purpose-built scientific institution, and it just celebrated its 350th anniversary - which is the impetus for this episode. The observatory is the birthplace of modern astronomy and the home of Greenwich Mean Time and the Prime Meridian.

Today we explore the life and legacy of the physicist Niels Bohr through the reflections of his grandson Tomas Bohr. Tomas is an Emeritus Professor at the Technical University of Denmark. He studies fluid dynamics, biophysics, chaos, turbulence and statistical mechanics, and he has a long and distinguished career publishing in these fields. He is a member of the Royal Danish Academy of Sciences and Letters.

Often in the history of science, myths overrun scientific findings and take hold with such force that they are difficult or nearly impossible to dislodge from public understanding. Perhaps no example of this phenomenon is more pronounced than that of the societal collapse of Easter Island, also known as Rapa Nui. With us to unravel the myth from the science is Mike Pitts. Mike is a writer and broadcaster (a frequent voice on BBC radio), archaeologist (directing excavations at Stonehenge), and one-time museum curator. He has written for The Times, Telegraph, Sunday Times, Observer, and Guardian, and many magazines including New Scientist, Archaeology, and BBC History. He edited British Archaeology magazine for 20 years and has written books on topics ranging from the discovery of Richard III's grave to How to Build Stonehenge. His original research has been published in peer-reviewed journals such as Nature, World Archaeology, and Antiquity. He is a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries.