Science on the airwaves: eight podcasts you shouldn't miss

  Science podcasts to listen to later. Credit: Amoraleda

The scientific journal Nature recently posed the question, “What’s the future of science journalism?” Although print media outlets seem to be reducing their science news, radio broadcasting (or podcasting) of scientific ideas appears to be thriving.

I love listening to science news on the radio or via a podcast, because just like "on-demand" television, you can listen to your favorite show whenever you like. What's more, podcasts can be as long or as short as they need to be to convey the message. Some are just a minute long and are great to listen to from your computer while waiting on hold on the phone. Others may be an hour or more and can make the time on a treadmill or a long car ride fly by.

You might think scientific concepts would be hard to convey in an audio format, without photos or figures to illustrate the idea. In my experience, quite the opposite is true. In much the same way as an author helps a reader conjure an image when reading a book, presenters of science podcasts or radio shows are skilled in describing the science for their listeners and eliciting responses from their interviewees that evoke mental images comparable to any artistic interpretation.

I tend to listen to science radio shows directly from my computer while I am working on tasks that don't require much mental input, such as folding laundry or doing the dishes. Or, I download my favorites to my mp3 player to take on the road. I've searched the Internet for some of the best shows on science that I could find. I found many, but only a few have made the cut for this list.

These broadcasts/podcasts have not been ranked. What you may find entertaining and informative could be the exact opposite of what I find entertaining and informative. Some podcasters deliver their stories and interviews with a kind of chatty banter common among many radio deejays. Others take a newsier question-and-answer approach. A few of them fall more on the academic side, while others are more commentary on broader scientific concepts or trends. There's no telling which ones will ultimately draw you back for more, and it may depend on how much you already know about science and whether or not you appreciate more casual presenters or a more matter-of-fact hosts.

I've sorted the list in order of what day the show is updated or originally broadcast. I have also included broadcasts from across the globe. I really like to cast a broad net when looking for news coverage of  science because, as with other types of news, our friends across the pond and across the world may have a completely different take on the exact same scientific research. It fascinates me to see what is similar and what is different on the scientific agendas of different countries. Please share your favorite science radio shows or podcast not on this list in the comments. Happy listening.

Monday

The week begins with Science Weekly podcasts hosted by Alok Jha, the Guardian's science and green technology correspondent. Jha presents a friendly and upbeat round-up of the best in science news from the UK and beyond. Jha typically features one main interview and then is joined by other Guardian science correspondents who cover additional science news items in a shorter format. The show runs just under 40 minutes--a nice choice for the morning commute.

Tuesday

There's a lot of science news on Tuesday for some reason. The New York Times still runs Science Times each week on this day, which includes a podcast hosted by David Corcoran that is meant to enhance the content on the newspaper pages. But for Tuesday, I suggest you try This Week in Science. The show's host is Dr. Kirsten Sanford (a.k.a. @DrKiKi on Twitter), a research scientist at the University of California Davis who studies neurophysiology. Her chatty co-host Justin Jackson,  possesses "no verifiable science education" according to the show's website. Even so, the pair has interviewed famous scientists from every discipline. Sometimes they sound like a couple of chatty Top-40 deejays. This show may not be everyone's cup of tea, but it has been broadcasting weekly from KDVS radio at UC Davis since 2000, so someone must be listening.

Kirsten Sanford wants to put a new face on science with This Week in Science.

Wednesday

Two really great shows can be heard mid-week. The first, Armed with Science, originates from the Pentagon and is hosted by John Ohab, an emerging media strategist for the Department of Defense and a PhD in neuroscience. Ohab interviews scientists who work with the military on everything from nantechnology to medicine to psychology. The focus is how scientific disciplines apply to military applications, but the content of this well-produced show ought to interest practically anyone. The approach is straight news and the format is short, just 30 minutes. If you listen to the live webcast (2 p.m. ET), you can email or tweet your questions and they will be answered live by Ohab's guest. The show is archived so you can listen whenever you like.

Armed with Science host John Ohab is also a AAAS Science and Technology Policy Fellow.

On the other end of the listening spectrum is a new show called Short Science originating from Imperial College in London. Hosted by scientists-turned-radio-presenters Georgie Gould and Elizabeth Hauke, this fun and funny show features the lively banter of two highly educated but really engaging young women. They share science news headlines and discuss trends and generally have a good time talking as enthusiastically about science in much the same way that you might hear other young people discussing any subject of pop culture. Between science stories and interviews they play 1980's music. I don't know how long the show is going to last, because Hauke tells me they will not have use of the studio after the fall, so listen now while you can. This show is not to be missed if you enjoy a little Spandau Ballet or Ultravox with your physics and biology.

Georgie Gould, left and Elizabeth Hauke, right, host Short Science.
 

Thursday

You might think that a podcast originating from a peer-reviewed scientific journal might be a little dry or too academic. Nature's podcast is neither. The podcasts hosts, Adam Rutherford and Kerri Smith, do essentially what you might do given the chance: they ask the authors of recently published papers "why should we care" questions about their work, which allows the authors to explain their research in an extremely accessible way. The result is that listeners gain a deeper understanding and better appreciation for the relevance of published work than they probably ever would have had they just read the article alone. The content is in no way "dumbed-down;" it is rather, enhanced so that both the listener with the PhD and the listener without one will both come away more well informed about the important scientific findings of the day.

Friday

National Public Radio junkies will tell you that there's no point in listening to any other radio show or podcast on science except Talk of the Nation’s: Science Friday with Ira Flatow. This two-hour show explores science news from a fresh perspective. Flatow, a veteran science journalist and author, also takes questions from callers, turning each episode of the show into a kind of Science Cafe of the airwaves. Flatow (who according to this author sounds a little like Groucho Marx) is inquisitive and thoughtful with his questions, which helps direct the interviewee to expound on more complex subjects so that listeners never feel talked down to or that information is sailing over their heads. Listening to Flatow is so pleasant and the conversations with his guests flow so naturally that you won't even realize how much you will learn from this show. Listeners come away with a greater appreciation for the role that science plays in every aspect of our daily lives.

Ira Flatow from NPR's Science Friday.

Saturday

One of the most comprehensive and longest running science news shows that you will find on the airwaves originates from Australia. The Science Show hosted by science journalist and author Robyn Williams is broadcast weekly on Australia's Radio National. Not just a show about new research, Williams is willing to introduce  a little debate, highlight some quirky personalities of science, investigate something offbeat or weird, and even expose scientific fraud where it rears its ugly head. The show is recorded in chunks of about 12 minutes so you can find exactly which portion of the show you would like to listen to. The program's website says the show has been in production since 1975, which means it is probably the longest running science show ever created. Thanks to podcasting, you can now listen shows from the past few years from anywhere in the world.

Robyn Williams of The Science Show.

Sunday

The Naked Scientists are not really naked, at least I don't think so except for this photo below. The title of this show really implies that the content is stripped of its pomp and jargon so that any listener can be drawn into the discussion of science  Or perhaps, the producers just thought putting the word "naked" in the title would trick some people who were conducting Internet searches for other naked things into accidentally finding them. Naked or not, the hosts of this UK show seem very excited to be telling you just about everything. A nice feature of the program is that each show is indexed so that you can just listen to the parts you want to. The show is hosted by Chris Smith, a medical doctor and lecturer at Cambridge University. The British like a good dose of humor with their science, and this show is no exception.

Chris Smith, center, and his fellow Naked Scientists.