Science Rules! with Bill Nye
157 episodes - English - Latest episode: 6 months ago - ★★★★★ - 4.6K ratingsBill Nye is on a mission to change the world — one voicemail at a time. Bill and science writer Corey S. Powell take your burning questions and put them to the world's leading experts on just about every topic in the universe. Should you stop eating cheeseburgers to combat climate change? Could alien life be swimming inside the moons of Jupiter and Saturn? Does your pet parakeet learn to sing the way that you learned to speak? Bill, Corey, and their special guests will answer those questions and convince you that... science rules!
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Episodes
Introducing Sound Detectives from LeVar Burton
November 01, 2023 04:05 - 7 minutes - 7.2 MBLeVar Burton presents SOUND DETECTIVES – a funny, engaging, and thought-provoking podcast that invites elementary school-aged kids to explore the magic and mystery of sound. Breaking News – Across the globe, sounds are mysteriously going missing! Waves aren’t crashing, crickets aren’t chirping, and the familiar jingle of the ice cream truck is a distant memory. Follow Detective Hunch (Vinny Thomas) and his new sidekick Audie the Ear (Jess McKenna) as they solve sound mysteries and track dow...
Bill Nye, The FOOD Science Guy!
April 10, 2023 09:55 - 29 minutes - 26.7 MBGreetings, Science Rules! listeners! Have you ever wondered about the future of lab grown meat? Or what the deal is with GMOs? What about the science behind salting your pasta water? Today, we are sharing a special episode of the food podcast The Sporkful where Bill Nye and Corey S. Powell tackle your food science questions, and talk about their own food quirks. It turns out that Bill is very particular about his Peanut Butter and Jelly sandwich, and there’s one thing he won’t tolerate in PB...
An Update From Bill and Corey
June 24, 2021 04:00 - 5 minutes - 5.23 MBMore on where this show is going — and when it will come back!
Planetary Radio: Amateur Astronomers Saving the World
June 17, 2021 04:00 - 1 hour - 62.3 MBScience Rules! Presents is a series of science-focused episodes from some of our favorite shows. This week we’re featuring Planetary Radio from the Planetary Society. The Planetary Society has awarded more than 60 Shoemaker near-Earth object grants to astronomers around the world, enabling them to discover, track, and characterize thousands of asteroids. We’ll hear from two of these dedicated observers. The Society’s Rae Paoletta takes us to Venus where three new spacecraft will help answer...
Coronavirus: What Do the CDC and a Garden of Fake Flowers Have in Common?
June 15, 2021 04:00 - 29 minutes - 27.8 MBThe author of Moneyball, The Blind Side, and The Big Short explains why a country with so many experts was so unprepared for this pandemic. (This interview was recorded May 24.)
This Podcast Will Kill You: Coccidioidomycosis
June 10, 2021 04:00 - 1 hour - 75.2 MBScience Rules! Presents is a series of science-focused episodes from some of our favorite shows. This week we’re featuring This Podcast Might Kill You’s episode on Coccidioidomycosis, also known as Valley fever.
Flash Forward: What If You Could Be Immune to Everything?
June 03, 2021 04:00 - 54 minutes - 51 MBScience Rules! Presents is a series of science-focused episodes from some of our favorite shows. Today Flash Forward takes us to a future where we become immune to every poison, venom, and toxin in the world. What happens next?
Coronavirus: Using Science to Fight Vaccine Hesitancy
June 01, 2021 04:00 - 30 minutes - 28.4 MBBehavioral scientist Katy Milkman explains how simple nudges can make people want to get vaccinated. Also: is this the biggest “fresh start” of all time?
Hidden Brain: Humor Us
May 27, 2021 04:00 - 53 minutes - 49.8 MBScience Rules! Presents is a series of science-focused episodes from some of our favorite shows. This week we’re featuring Hidden Brain's “Humor Us.” Hahaha! The average four-year-old child laughs 300 times a day. By contrast, it takes more than two months for the average 40-year-old adult to laugh that many times. This week, we talk with behavioral scientist Jennifer Aaker of Stanford University about why so many of us fall off a “humor cliff” as we become adults. Plus, how we can inject m...
The Skeptics’ Guide to the Universe
May 20, 2021 04:00 - 1 hour - 92.4 MBScience Rules! Presents is a series of science-focused episodes from some of our favorite shows. This week we’re featuring Episode #827 of The Skeptics’ Guide to the Universe from May 15, 2021.
Coronavirus: A Vaccine for the Economy?
May 18, 2021 04:00 - 21 minutes - 20.3 MBWe ask Brian Deese — head of the White House National Economic Council — to survey the economic impact of the pandemic and explain how President Biden can make good on his promise to Build Back Better.
99% Invisible: Their Dark Materials
May 13, 2021 04:00 - 40 minutes - 37.9 MBScience Rules! Presents is a series of science-focused episodes from some of our favorite shows. This week we’re featuring 99% Invisible’s “Their Dark Materials.” Vantablack is a pigment that reaches a level of darkness that’s so intense, it’s kind of upsetting. It’s so black it’s like looking at a hole cut out of the universe. If it looks unreal, it’s because Vantablack isn’t actually a color, it’s a form of nanotechnology. It was created by the tech industry for the tech industry, but this...
A String Theorist Helps Superheroes Time Travel
May 06, 2021 04:00 - 57 minutes - 53.3 MBBy day, Clifford Johnson is a mild-mannered physicist searching for a Theory of Everything. But in his secret life, he helps slip real science into movies like Avengers: Endgame.
Coronavirus: W.H.O. Can Prevent COVID-21?
May 04, 2021 04:00 - 22 minutes - 21.1 MBThe World Health Organization has a long to-do list: address outbreaks in India and South America, distribute vaccines around the globe, and prevent the emergence of the next pandemic. Dr. Bruce Aylward explains how they intend to do it all.
The World’s Most Top-to-Bottom Explorer
April 29, 2021 04:00 - 47 minutes - 44.3 MBFrom the depths of the ocean to the voids of outer space, maps matter. That's the motto of Kathryn Sullivan — astronaut, oceanographer, and former head of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Jack Dangermond, founder of the mapping software company Esri, joins her to explain the science of “where.”
Coronavirus: An Announcement
April 27, 2021 04:00 - 1 minute - 2.29 MBA brief update from your friends at Science Rules! Coronavirus Edition.
The Blunt Truth About Weed
April 20, 2021 04:00 - 54 minutes - 50.2 MBIt’s a 4/20 special! The head of one of the few labs doing placebo-controlled research on cannabis joins us to blow up everything you thought you knew about weed withdrawal, medical marijuana, the munchies, and why there will never be a breathalyzer for bud.
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Gets Students to Camp Skyhook
April 15, 2021 04:00 - 35 minutes - 33.5 MBThe basketball legend is teaching kids from all over Los Angeles a different kind of hook-then-look shot. He wants students to get hooked on science, then come to camp and observe their environment both in the forest and in the sky.
Coronavirus: Do Cry Over Spillovers
April 13, 2021 04:00 - 25 minutes - 23.7 MBThe head veterinarian of the Wildlife Conservation Society explains how animals infect humans — and vice versa.
“Meat” the Man Who Wants to Destroy the Beef Industry
April 08, 2021 04:00 - 47 minutes - 44.1 MBThe food industry is a wasteland for innovation, or so says Pat Brown. The founder of Impossible Foods explains how animal agriculture wrecks our environment, how chemistry can trick our taste buds, and when we might see Impossible Bacon on our breakfast tables.
What Do You Need to Hunt for Life on Mars? Perseverance!
April 01, 2021 04:00 - 43 minutes - 40.9 MBA leader of NASA's Mars Perseverance rover team explains what we've learned about the red planet since the rover landed and lays out the mission to find — and return — evidence of life. Plus, acronyms galore!
Coronavirus: Piercing the “Brain Fog” of Long-Haul Covid
March 30, 2021 04:00 - 27 minutes - 25.6 MBDr. Igor Koralnik explains his research on the neurological impacts of Covid-19, especially with non-severe cases.
The Science of Smell: New Cars, Old People, and the Stink of the Moon
March 25, 2021 04:00 - 47 minutes - 44.2 MBHarold McGee changed the culinary world in the ’80s with his book on the science of cooking. His new book moves up the face to the nose, breaking down the molecules that make up all the smells around us. He explains why some scents echo each other, how dogs can sniff out cancer, and what happens when a coronavirus takes away your sense of smell.
SOS: Save Our Sperm
March 18, 2021 04:00 - 51 minutes - 47.8 MBThe chemicals we rely on for practically everything are slowly threatening our health, happiness, and the future of our species. Dr. Shanna Swan walks us through the evidence.
Coronavirus: Why It Hits High-Income Countries Hardest
March 16, 2021 04:00 - 24 minutes - 22.9 MBDr. Siddhartha Mukherjee takes us through his investigation into why low-income countries seem to have largely escaped the pandemic’s wrath — and why they still need to get vaccines.
Everything You Always Wanted To Know About Neanderthal Sex *
March 11, 2021 05:00 - 58 minutes - 54.2 MB* But didn't know to ask. Rebecca Wragg Sykes will also tell us about the art, language, and mysterious extinction of our brawny cousins.
Meet the Woman Tasked With Keeping Joe Biden's Climate Promises
March 04, 2021 05:00 - 35 minutes - 33.2 MBAs the first National Climate Advisor, Gina McCarthy may have the most important — and toughest — unelected job in America. So ... how’s that going?
Coronavirus: Panic Over Variants, and Other Media Mistakes
March 02, 2021 05:00 - 29 minutes - 27.1 MBSociologist Zeynep Tufekci takes news outlets to task for how our coverage has hindered the response to COVID-19 and explains why no matter what variant is going around your community, you should still get a vaccine — any of them — as soon as you are eligible.
Acting Is Like Learning Science Backwards
February 25, 2021 05:00 - 44 minutes - 41.5 MBGillian Jacobs (Community, Love) and Diona Reasonover (NCIS) get back in touch with their science roots and turn the tables on us in a new segment, Grill Bill and Query Corey! Check out Gillian and Diona's new podcast Periodic Talks and subscribe here: https://link.chtbl.com/PeriodicTalks
How to Outrun a Horse: Surprising Insights From an Exercise Scientist
February 18, 2021 05:00 - 59 minutes - 55.2 MBHow does exercise work? Should all runners go barefoot? And is sitting really the new smoking? Daniel Lieberman shines some science on common exercise myths.
Coronavirus: President Biden’s Report Card
February 16, 2021 05:00 - 24 minutes - 23.3 MBWe grade the new White House administration's pandemic response thus far with New York Times science and global health reporter Apoorva Mandavilli.
Cooking with Science: Why Eggs Turn White, Pickles Crunch, and Popcorn Sets Off Your Smoke Detectors
February 11, 2021 05:00 - 46 minutes - 42.9 MBPia Sorensen has a kitchen laboratory where she demonstrates how pans of denatured proteins and hot fats can create a delicious meal — or a big ol’ mess.
NFL Meets MIT: Science Tackles the Super Bowl
February 04, 2021 05:00 - 49 minutes - 45.9 MBFormer NFL lineman (and current math whiz) John Urschel and materials scientist Ainissa Ramirez highlight all the science you can see on display at the Super Bowl, from the mechanics of blocking to the psychology of play-calling.
Coronavirus: Did COVID Escape From a Lab?
February 02, 2021 05:00 - 26 minutes - 24.5 MBIt’s a highly controversial and unlikely hypothesis. But, as Dr. David Relman explains, we can't rule it out, because we still don't know the original source of the SARS-CoV-2 virus.
It's a Parasite's World. We Just Live in It.
January 28, 2021 05:00 - 57 minutes - 53.2 MBWhen it comes to things that give us the heebie-jeebies, parasites reign supreme. But according to this week's guest, ecosystems couldn't exist without them. Chelsea Wood explains what makes them so creepy, how to prevent them from killing us, and why she keeps digging around in decades-old cans of salmon.
The Greatest Invention of All Time Is ... TIME!
January 21, 2021 05:00 - 55 minutes - 51.3 MBWe talk to master watchmaker Rebecca Struthers about how people learned to measure time and the twisted way that clocks came to control the way we eat, sleep, work, and relax (if we relax at all).
Coronavirus: 100 Days, 100 Million Shots
January 19, 2021 05:00 - 28 minutes - 26.5 MBDr. Celine Gounder — a member of President-Elect Joe Biden’s COVID-19 Advisory Board — answers all of your questions about the Moderna and Pfizer vaccines and details an ambitious plan to vaccinate a third of America.
The True Limit to Space Exploration: Our Sanity
January 14, 2021 05:00 - 50 minutes - 46.8 MBIf humans want to explore the solar system (and beyond), we'll have to learn to do something inconceivable for most of us pre-pandemic — exist with each other in tiny quarters for months. Kim Binsted's HI-SEAS program is trying to teach us how to do just that.
Mayim Bialik’s Contract With the Universe
January 07, 2021 05:00 - 56 minutes - 52.6 MBThe star of The Big Bang Theory, Blossom, and the new show Call Me Kat explains how she balances her love of science with her career in acting, and we put her neuroscience Ph.D. to use answering your questions about cognitive disabilities and disorders.
How To (Still) Be Happy
December 31, 2020 05:00 - 48 minutes - 44.7 MBIt turns out being happy, or becoming happier is possible with a bit of effort. We’re joined by happiness expert and host of The Happiness Lab, Dr. Laurie Santos to talk about her research into human happiness and to take your calls, including one from Mike from Colorado who asks, “Is there a genetic component to happiness?”
Save the Oceans: Recycling Is Not Enough
December 24, 2020 05:00 - 45 minutes - 42 MBEvery year, another 11 million tons of plastic trash ends up in the ocean. Winnie Lau, senior manager of the “Preventing Ocean Plastics” project, explains why recycling isn't helping — and what we should be doing instead.
“Eat My Bubbles!”
December 17, 2020 05:00 - 44 minutes - 61.2 MBWho better to answer all your swimming questions than Olympic gold-medalist Simone Manuel? See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Meet the Olympic Swimmer Making Ripples Out of the Pool
December 17, 2020 05:00 - 44 minutes - 41.4 MBWho better to answer your science-swimming questions than gold-medalist Simone Manuel?
The Sound of Stonehenge (and Other Aural Mysteries)
December 10, 2020 05:00 - 57 minutes - 52.9 MBTrevor Cox leads us through a wonderland of sound featuring sonic booms, Stonehenge, and pseudoscientific phenomena.
The Science of Sound
December 10, 2020 05:00 - 57 minutes - 78.4 MBTrevor Cox leads us through an aural wonderland featuring sonic booms, Stonehenge, and pseudoscientific phenomena. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Coronavirus: America’s King of Health Is Skipping Christmas … and So Should You
December 08, 2020 05:00 - 37 minutes - 34.9 MBFrancis Collins is the director of the National Institutes of Health. He gives us a prognosis for the next few months and diagnoses the future of health research in the U.S.
What Happens if You Fall Into a Black Hole?
December 03, 2020 05:00 - 51 minutes - 48 MBDr. Priyamvada Natarajan is an expert on the strangest things in physics: warped space, dark matter, dark energy, and even questions from our listeners.
Our Fishy Ancestors Grew a Pair (of Legs)
November 26, 2020 05:00 - 55 minutes - 51.3 MBNeil Shubin reveals how he discovered Tiktaalik — a long-sought fossil link between swimming fish and walking land animals — and shares other remarkable tales about life's evolution.
Coronavirus: With 4 Million Currently Infected, How to Give Safe Thanks
November 24, 2020 05:00 - 32 minutes - 30.1 MBAtul Gawande is a member of President-elect Joe Biden’s COVID task force. He helps us dig through the latest coronavirus news including vaccine trial results, mask mandates, and how to manage risks over the holidays.
The Science of Bond — James Bond
November 19, 2020 05:00 - 54 minutes - 50.3 MBCan any part of the long-running film franchise stand up to scientific scrutiny? Matt Gourley — co-host of the James Bonding podcast, among much else — joins to answer all your questions about the coolest gadgets, the craziest stunts, and the glaringest plot holes.