Science, Actually Presents : The Nerd and the Scientist

Dr. Zoe Xirocostas joins Kovi and Benjamin to talk about peer reviews, getting grants for research, the effort behind getting a Discovery Early Career Researcher Award (DECRA), and creating mutant super plants that can survive any habitat.

How do we explain this one? It's the 'Part Two' of Kovi and Benjamin's previous episode where they were waiting for their guest, Daniel Orvomaa of the Talking Ass podcast, who never showed up. It's 'Part Two' of a double episode done with the Talking Ass - 'Part One' of which is available on the Talking Ass right now. It's also Daniel's third time on the show but only his second time rapid-firing through the Questions & Quibbles at the end. Kovi kicks us off talking about islands and atoms, and then the gang discusses what's going on with our moon missions?

Hot Dogs and Toilet Paper and Action Figures, OH MY! All studied up and ready to record a double episode with the Talking Ass' very own Daniel Orvomaa - Daniel had a scheduling mix up, didn't make it, and that left Kovi and Benjamin just riffing. Well, we didn't get all dressed up for nothing! The boys talk about Vegas shows and try out some new Questions & Quibbles questions for future guests.

There are 1.5 million freshly minted engineers in India every year. One of them, this week's guest Naman Bajaj, said, "well, I guess they've got enough of those," changed course, became an astronomer, scored an insane amount of time on JWST (that, in itself, is amazing - which totally rocked Kovi's and Benjamin's minds), and found that protoplanetary disks - baby solar systems - lose 85-90% of their original mass by the time they're done forming. They do so in tremendous, huge jets - some of which, in turn, spark the beginnings of other baby solar systems.

Kovi and Benjamin were getting their questions and notes in order, preparing for another amazing episode with another amazing guest - when there was a sudden reschedule that left the boys alone, unprepared, and unsupervised. Join the gents as they just talk... well... they way they usually talk - NERD TALK. From NORAD, to data science, to something that goes great with maple, strawberry or blueberry syrup - Zel’Dovich Pancakes!

In this episode, Kovi and Benjamin dive headfirst into the Ig Nobel Prize, science’s annual celebration of research that makes you laugh first and think later. The lads cover everything from the prize’s origins and its wonderfully weird traditions to the unforgettable “winners” themselves, all while celebrating the curious, human side of scientific discovery. It is a reminder that science is not just serious. Sometimes it is very, very funny.And because the Ig Nobels deserve a little swagger:Iggy Iggy Iggy, can’t you seeSometimes your prize entertains meThank you, Biggie.

Everybody look busy! Our boss is back. For those of you who don't know, Kovi and Benjamin first nerded together as co-hosts on the Space Case Sarah Show, hosted by our return guest - the space case herself - Sarah Treadwell. Tune in to hear about her PhD journey, being a professional science communicator, what her son's favorite planet name is (nope, not what we thought either), and what does one actually do with a space inflatable planetarium?

Do you think about databases? Do you think like a databse? This week's guest David Ezrakhovich does. Listen to Kovi and Benjamin's 70th episode (holy moly 70!) as David shares with us how his journey and his mindset led him to becoming a multi-disciplinary engineer. ...and all that happens somewhere in the middle of three nerds being nerds.

Where do 'nearby stars' end and 'distant stars' begin? Learn the answer to that question from UC Berkeley astronomer Howard Isaacson! Kovi and Benjamin swoon as Howard gets romantic about astronomy, his love of exoplanets, black holes, and the search for life in the universe.

Dr. Helen Maynard Casley, (one of) THE principal scientists at ANSTO (Australia's Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation), sets Kovi's and Benjamin's brains alight as she talks about working on the Wombat (not an acronym - Australians just like naming things after animals). Wombat is a high intensity neutron diffractometer that Dr. Helen uses to just scoop some neutrons out of a working nuclear reactor. You know, for kicks! You'd think that line of work would make someone glow, but not so! The reason she glows - or glowed - was when she helped set the Guinness World Record for longest glow necklace!

Dr. Blitz, Kovi and Benjamin showed up in matching shirts, glasses and microphones to talk about all things Star Trek, the path Dr. Blitz took from a young age to become the scientist he is today, science communication, the expansion of the universe, spacetime, and a bunch of things black holes do that you probably didn't know they did. So sit back, relax, and enjoy our sixty-seventh episode.

Multidisciplinary biologist and bee expert Sarah Aamidor returns for part two - or should we say Part Bee - of her deep dive conversation with Kovi and Benjamin about some of the weirdest things bees do. Yes, in order to conduct her studies on bees she had to kill a few bees - but she didn't kill nearly as many bees as bees kill. Nor did she torture any bees - unlike bees who regularly torture bees. And she definitely didn't rip off many bees'... um... bits and pieces... The point is the queen bee rips off some bees' bits but Sarah didn't, is what we're saying.

Zap! Zorp! Zew! This week's guest is Cameron Jones! Boom! Fweet! Bzzzt! Join us as he explains his work in free space optics communicaton! Zzzzap! Vreeee! Pew! Pew! Which means he uses lasers to talk to spacecraft! Choonk! Fwom! Thoom! We talk about kinds of lasers, wavelengths, and the difference between communication lasers and military lasers! K-shoom! Shzzak! And Kovi and Benjamin really test Cameron's laser-knowledge as they put him through the show's first ever laser game! Fzaaap! Krzzzzzzt!

Just in case you missed her wildly popular TikToks, or you missed her YouTube channel, or you missed her TED Talks, or you missed her creating a space telescope from scratch, or you didn't get your hands on her new book, Weird universe, now you can listen Dr. Erika Hamden chatting with Kovi and Benjamin about all things astrophysics and radio-astronomy! ...and, seriously, get that book!

This week, Kovi and Benjamin take a breather before drinking from the firehose of science guests lining up to chat with them. Tune in as they dive into spacecraft, telescopes, and observatories named after scientists. “Hubble the satellite. Hubble the telescope. Hubble the flamethrower! …the kids love this one.”

Our favorite talking ass, Daniel Orvomaa, is back for round two! He joins Kovi and Benjamin in a very unstructured conversation about bad science, bad science reporting, pseudo science, and superpesis - Finland's version of baseball. It's a long one this time, so grab some snacks and settle in for some science-fueled randomness.