Goggles Optional

Goggles Optional


Latest Episodes

Safety Goggles #3: Ancient Goggles
May 02, 2020

This week, Katie, Adam and Rebecca take us back in time to discuss the history of sword fighting, fossilized feces, and an ancient blue dye.

Episode 312: Safety Goggles – Plants, pregnancy, and model organisms
April 24, 2020

Carmen, Katie and Nicole discuss immunity in both plants and pregnant organisms and the importance of animal models in scientific research.

Episode 311: Safety Goggles #1 Antarctic Tropics, Seismic Calm, and Neural Mind-Reading
April 17, 2020

Amanda, Kristen, and Nora tell us about Antarctica's tropical past, a COVID-19-related reduction in seismic activity, and translating brain activity into language

Episode 310: Recap – Dancing parrots, Snowball Earth, and limoncello
March 30, 2020

Katie gathers some of our favorite stories about a dancing parrot named Snowball, the time known as Snowball Earth, and a unique chemical property of limoncello

Episode 309: Facial Recognition in Babies, Foot Arches, and Alzheimer’s Detection
March 17, 2020

Nora, Kristen, and Carmen discuss facial recognition in babies, the importance of the transverse arch in foot stability, and the various detection methods currently in development for Alzheimer's disease.

Episode 308: Dogs That “See” Heat, New York Rats, and a Coronavirus Update
March 10, 2020

Rebecca, Adam, and David discuss dogs that can sense thermal radiation, the evolution of rats in New York City, and an update on what we know about the SARS-CoV-2 virus.

Episode 307: Suspended animation fish, whale migration, and a pioneering mathematician
March 03, 2020

Kristen, Courtney, and Nicole discuss the short-lived killifish, how whale migrations can be disturbed, and how the late NASA mathematician Katherine Johnson broke barriers.

Episode 306: Cancer-Fighting Vaccines, Retiring Telescopes, and Health Care Costs
February 24, 2020

Katie, Abhijit, and Nora discuss the positive impact of flu vaccines on cancer patients, the retirement of NASA's Spitzer space telescope, and the costs and benefits of Medicare-for-All in the US.

Episode 305: Dating, Mutations, and Weird Viruses
February 21, 2020

Carmen, Kristen, and David talk about dating human artifacts, mutations in lung cells, and unusual viruses.

Episode 304: Pheromones, Sign Languages, and Un-BEE-lievable Honeybee Helpers
February 11, 2020

Adam, Rebecca, and Amanda talk about mice's reaction to pheromones, how sign languages evolved all around the world, and new methods of preserving the honey bee population.