Startalk Radio

How do we know what we know? The brain is an amazing product of evolutionary engineering, but many influences can play with our perceptions. Subscribe to SiriusXM Podcasts+ on Apple Podcasts to listen to new episodes ad-free and a whole week early.

Japan was recently hit by a triple punch: a powerful 9.0 magnitude earthquake generated a huge tsunami, which then critically damaged a nuclear power plant. Subscribe to SiriusXM Podcasts+ on Apple Podcasts to listen to new episodes ad-free and a whole week early.

What ingredients provide "The Right Stuff" for an astronaut's dinner? From BBQ to ice cream, we feast on food fit for the stars. Subscribe to SiriusXM Podcasts+ on Apple Podcasts to listen to new episodes ad-free and a whole week early.

Paleontologist Peter Ward explains how life's tendency toward self-destruction has led to massive extinction events in Earth's history. What does the past -- and the smell of rotten eggs -- have to teach us about the fate of humanity? Subscribe to SiriusXM Podcasts+ on Apple Podcasts to listen to new episodes ad-free and a whole week early.

Expert-in-everything John Hodgman addresses a range of topics, from the possibility of alien or robot invasion, to what lobsters have in common with Star Trek's Spock. Subscribe to SiriusXM Podcasts+ on Apple Podcasts to listen to new episodes ad-free and a whole week early.

Take a tour of the solar system with Mars Exploration Rover scientist Steve Squyres and planetary scientist Heidi Hammel. Subscribe to SiriusXM Podcasts+ on Apple Podcasts to listen to new episodes ad-free and a whole week early.

From Aristotle's misguided meanderings to modern open heart surgery. Subscribe to SiriusXM Podcasts+ on Apple Podcasts to listen to new episodes ad-free and a whole week early.

In this episode, we highlight a few star moments from our constellation of past shows. Subscribe to SiriusXM Podcasts+ on Apple Podcasts to listen to new episodes ad-free and a whole week early.

How are the universal laws of matter, energy and motion expressed on the football field? Subscribe to SiriusXM Podcasts+ on Apple Podcasts to listen to new episodes ad-free and a whole week early.

Have you ever seen mysterious lights in the sky, or glimpsed an alien spacecraft? This show provides a probing yet playful discussion about Unidentified Flying Objects. Subscribe to SiriusXM Podcasts+ on Apple Podcasts to listen to new episodes ad-free and a whole week early.

When tasting the first sparkling champagne, Benedictine monk Dom Perignon supposedly said, "Come quickly, I am drinking the stars!" It's more likely the quote originates from a late 19th century advertisement, but the sentiment is universally appealing. Subscribe to SiriusXM Podcasts+ on Apple Podcasts to listen to new episodes ad-free and a whole week early.

While cathedrals give people a place to contemplate Heaven from our place here on Earth, astronauts on the ISS can view Earth from "the heavens" above. This show highlights the many ways the ISS is like a modern-day cathedral. Subscribe to SiriusXM Podcasts+ on Apple Podcasts to listen to new episodes ad-free and a whole week early.

For our holiday show, Neil and his comedian co-hosts discuss the constellations of the winter sky, the star of Bethlehem, and the physics of Santa. Seth MacFarlane and other special guests call in to comment on the science of the season. Subscribe to SiriusXM Podcasts+ on Apple Podcasts to listen to new episodes ad-free and a whole week early.

Do sci-fi classics like Star Trek provide a glimpse into future trends and styles? Neil chats with stylist James Aguiar about the science fiction and facts of fashion. Subscribe to SiriusXM Podcasts+ on Apple Podcasts to listen to new episodes ad-free and a whole week early.

Jon Stewart is the first guest of the new season. He and Neil discuss the Daily Show book, Earth: A Visitor's Guide to the Human Race. Subscribe to SiriusXM Podcasts+ on Apple Podcasts to listen to new episodes ad-free and a whole week early.

Our season finale features the incomparable comedian Joan Rivers. In this episode, she provides color commentary for a Red Carpet parade of previous show topics, including space tourism, the anniversary of Apollo 11, and the search for alien life (both in space and in Hollywood!).NOTE: All-Access subscribers can listen to this entire episode commercial-free here: https://www.startalkradio.net/all-access/whats-funny-space/ Subscribe to SiriusXM Podcasts+ on Apple Podcasts to listen to new episodes ad-free and a whole week early.

When the economy takes a downturn, should we still go up into space? NASA missions aren’t cheap—sending astronauts into low Earth orbit or to the Moon, sending robotic spacecraft to explore the planets, and launching telescopes into space can cost millions or even billions of dollars. Lou Friedman, director of the Planetary Society, argues that even when the dollar is dear, the quest to explore our universe is priceless.NOTE: All-Access subscribers can listen to this entire episode commercial-free here: https://www.startalkradio.net/all-access/whats-exploration-worth/?_sf_s=what%27s+exploration+worth Subscribe to SiriusXM Podcasts+ on Apple Podcasts to listen to new episodes ad-free and a whole week early.

Geometry, physics and the other sciences describe the world we live in, and artists often play with these properties in their own imaginative investigations. From the drawings of Leonardo Da Vinci to high tech computer graphics, Neil and Lynne paint a picture of how science has inspired art through the ages.NOTE: All-Access subscribers can listen to this entire episode commercial-free here: https://www.startalkradio.net/all-access/a-universe-of-inspiration/ Subscribe to SiriusXM Podcasts+ on Apple Podcasts to listen to new episodes ad-free and a whole week early.

In our quest to understand the universe, how can we be sure our conclusions are correct? Human beings have evolved to find meaningful patterns in nature, but sometimes the patterns we see are just figments of our imagination—or perhaps the result of wishful thinking. Join Neil and guest co-host Leighann Lord as they investigate the weird and wacky world of pseudoscience.NOTE: All-Access subscribers can listen to this entire episode commercial-free here: https://www.startalkradio.net/all-access/cosmic-quackery/ Subscribe to SiriusXM Podcasts+ on Apple Podcasts to listen to new episodes ad-free and a whole week early.

That’s one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind. Neil Armstrong spoke these words after placing his foot down onto lunar soil, and throughout the course of the Apollo program eleven other astronauts also walked on the Moon. In this show, Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin, and many others share their memories of Apollo, and say what they think should be NASA’s next step in space.NOTE: All-Access subscribers can listen to this entire episode commercial-free here: https://www.startalkradio.net/all-access/anniversary-apollo-11/?_sf_s=anniversary+of+apollo+11 Subscribe to SiriusXM Podcasts+ on Apple Podcasts to listen to new episodes ad-free and a whole week early.