Podcasts by Big Biology
The biggest biology podcast for the biggest science and biology fans. Featuring in-depth discussions with scientists tackling the biggest questions in evolution, genetics, ecology, climate, neuroscience, diseases, the origins of life, psychology and more!! If it's biological, groundbreaking, philosophical or mysterious you'll find it here.
Further podcasts by Art Woods and Marty Martin
Podcast on the topic Biowissenschaften
All episodes
Evolution of the Invaders (Ep 111) from 2023-11-30T20:00
How do small, founding populations establish and thrive in new places? What is biocontrol, and how is it carried out responsibly?
In this episode, we talk with Listen
Tempest in a barcode: how rapidly can we (and should we) identify new species? (Ep 110) from 2023-11-30T07:04:33
How do biologists categorize species? What’s the best and quickest way to describe millions of unknown species?
On this episode, we talk with Listen
Tempest in a barcode: how rapidly can we (and should we) identify new species? from 2023-11-16T20:00
How do biologists categorize species? What’s the best and quickest way to describe millions of unknown species?
On this episode, we talk with Listen
Nothing in biology makes sense except through time (Ep 109) from 2023-11-02T19:00
How do living things exert agency in a world of strict physical and chemical laws? Do humans have free will?
In this episode, we talk with Listen
The dialectical biologists: challenges of studying evolution in nature (Ep 108) from 2023-10-19T19:00
How has evolutionary biology evolved over time? What does it take to study evolution in natural populations?
On this episode, we talk with Listen
Cooperation versus conflict and the path to multicellularity (Ep 107) from 2023-10-05T19:00
How can we reconcile the evolutionary problem of cooperation? What can social amoebae tell us about the origins of multicellularity?
In this episode, we talk to Listen
Long-term experimental evolution in the wild (Ep 106) from 2023-09-21T19:00
Can we predict evolutionary outcomes if we know starting conditions? Do the products of evolution in nature differ from those studied in well-controlled lab experiments?
On this episode, ...
Listen
Follow the data: the search for COVID’s origin (Ep 105) from 2023-09-07T19:00
On this episode, we talk with Alina Chan, postdoc at the Broad Institute of MIT and ...
Listen
Big Bio Bonus Episode: We’re Hiring! from 2023-08-15T19:00
Season 6 of Big Biology will kick off at the beginning of September - woohoo! Before then, we have a quick message to share:
We’re looking for a new producer to join the Big Biology t...
Little Biology: Why can’t I regrow my arm? from 2023-06-29T19:00:44
Why can some animals regrow limbs while others can’t? Will understanding regeneration in other vertebrates help us regrow arms one day?
Our intern team has taken over the channel to talk ...
Listen
Sleeping beauties: the mystery of dormant innovations in nature and culture (Ep 104) from 2023-06-15T19:00:31
Where does biological innovation come from? Why do some innovations wait millions of years for their spotlight?
Life must constantly innovate for evolution to occur, but many forms of bio...
Listen
Pest-o, change-o: how culture shapes our view of animal commensals (Ep 103) from 2023-06-01T19:00:01
What makes a pest? Why are some animals revered in one culture and vilified in another? How do our ways of life bring us into conflict versus companionship, and what do these interactions mean f...
Listen
Inherency in evolution (Ep 102) from 2023-05-18T19:00:17
What is inherency? What are the potential flaws with our understanding of biological function?
On this episode, we talk with Listen
NEON: The promises and challenges of large-scale ecological research (Ep 101) from 2023-05-04T19:00:46
What is NEON? What hopes and concerns do we have for large-scale research projects in ecology?
On this episode of Big Biology, we talk about the challenges of doing…big biology! Listen
A retrospective on agency (Ep 100) from 2023-04-20T19:00:53
Big Biology celebrates its 100th episode!
You’re only 100 once, and though we hope there will be many more episodes to come, we wanted to celebrate this milestone with something special....
Listen
Creativity and passion in science communication (Ep 99) from 2023-04-06T19:00:57
On this episode, we take a break from the regular format to talk with Itai Yanai and Martin Lercher of Listen
There’s a thousand genes for that! (Ep 98) from 2023-03-23T19:00
What is the “infinitesimal model”? How has our understanding of complex traits changed recently?
On this episode, we talk with Listen
Mutation bias in evolution: climbing Mount Probable (Ep 97) from 2023-03-09T20:00:25
What is mutation bias? How does it affect evolution?
In this episode, we talk with Arlin Stoltzfus, ...
Listen
The network motifs that run the world (Ep 96) from 2023-02-16T20:00:18
What are network motifs, and how and why do they matter to biological networks?
On this episode, we talk with Uri Alon...
Listen
Why are we like this? (Ep 95) from 2023-01-12T20:00:44
Why do humans look so different from one another? Why do we have different types of hair and different skin colors? And what do these traits have to do with the concept of race?
On this e...
Listen
Introducing: The Science of Everything from 2022-12-29T20:00:40
Happy holidays from the Big Biology team! As a bonus episode this week, we are sharing Art's recent interview with James Fodor on Listen
Synthesizing life on the planet (Ep 94) from 2022-12-15T20:00:19
What’s the smallest number of genes that cells need to grow and reproduce? Is it possible to synthesize minimal genomes and insert them into cells? What do minimal genomes teach us about life? Listen
Assembling life in the universe (Ep 93) from 2022-12-01T20:00:07
How will we find life beyond Earth? Can we use a molecule's complexity to distinguish life from non-life?
A common way to search for extraterrestrial life is to look for signs of complex ...
Listen
A journey into the brilliant abyss (Ep 92) from 2022-11-17T20:00:04
What hidden life lies at the bottom of the deep ocean? How do so many species survive and even thrive with so little light and food and at such pressure?
In this episode, we talk to Listen
How stealth organs make super soldier ants (Ep 91) from 2022-11-03T19:00:56
What is eco-evo-devo? How can ants help us understand the evolution of development?
There are 20 quadrillion ants in the world, and they come in lots of different shapes and sizes. We eve...
Listen
Fabricated images threaten the integrity of Alzheimer’s research (Ep 90) from 2022-10-20T19:00:54
What happens when potential fraud is detected in research papers on major medical issues?
In this episode, we talk to Listen
How one gene determines the fate of a food web (Ep 89) from 2022-10-06T19:00:38
Can genes in single species act as keystones in ecosystems? What is AOP2, and how does it affect community composition and persistence?
In this episode, we talk to Listen
How I learned to stop worrying and follow the data (Ep 88) from 2022-09-22T19:00:17
How much coffee should we drink? Is there a scientific way to have a healthy, happy life? And how do we distinguish scientific sense from nonsense?
In this episode, we talk with ...
Listen
Big Biology Trailer from 2022-09-19T08:39:17
The biggest and best biology and science podcast!! If you enjoy science podcasts featuring in-depth conversations with scientists subscribe now.
Big Biology c...
Life in the lab, are model organisms an asset or impediment to biology? (Ep 87) from 2022-09-08T19:00:25
What are model organisms? Why have they been so important to biology?
Much of biological research over the past 50 years has relied on model organisms. These species – which include mice,...
Listen
Introducing Genetics Unzipped from 2022-09-01T19:00:53
Season 5 of Big Biology starts next week, so this week we are thrilled to highlight Genetics Unzipped, another one of the great science podcasts out there. Genetics Unzipped is the official podc...
Listen
Replaying the MP3 of Life (Episode 21 Re-release) from 2022-08-18T19:00:55
Why do some rove beetles look like ants? Why do living things evolve similar solutions to common problems? Is there predictability within the evolutionary process?
On this episode, Art an...
Listen
Containing Cancer with Squirrel Ecology (Ep 12 Re-release) from 2022-08-04T19:00:15
Will cancer ever become just another chronic but manageable disease? What can a squirrel biologist teach us about treating cancer?
In this episode, Marty and Art talk with Listen
Shrimp Fight Clubs and Basic Science (Ep 6 Re-release) from 2022-07-21T19:00:46
How do mantis shrimp punch as fast as a bullet… underwater? How do they break open one of the toughest materials on earth?
Tune into this podcast to hear Art and Marty talk to Listen
Bioelectric Computation (Ep 39 Re-release) from 2022-07-07T19:00:33
How do animals construct tissues, organs, and limbs in the right places during development? How do some animals manage to regenerate missing body parts?
On this episode of Big Biology, we...
Listen
What the flux? The evolution of oxygen cascades (Ep 86) from 2022-06-23T19:00:39
How do we properly study complex traits? How does organismal function relate to how organisms evolve?
All animals use oxygen to convert sugars and other substrates into energy using a mul...
Listen
Little Biology: Zombie Parasites from 2022-06-16T19:00:51
What’s behind the infamous zombie ant story? How does a fungus take control of an insect? Are zombies common in nature? How do biologists study the phenomenon of adaptive manipulation?
In...
Listen
The rise of the mammals and fall of the dinosaurs (Ep 85) from 2022-06-09T19:00:30
What makes a mammal a mammal? How did mammals survive the KT event when dinosaurs mostly went extinct? And why did mammals become so dominant?
When we think of the Cretaceous, or the Jura...
Listen
Immune System: Make Love not War (Ep 8 Re-release) from 2022-05-26T19:00:31
Is there a constant battle between our immune system and pathogens? Does the fighting ever end? Does the immune system do more than just provide defense against pathogens?
On this e...
Listen
Fractals in the Foliage (Ep 84) from 2022-05-12T19:00:02
What do plants, animals and even river systems have in common?
Branching networks are a universal element of life on Earth. Networks of veins, roots, xylem, phloem, and nerves – they all ...
Listen
The Amazon in us (Ep 83) from 2022-04-28T19:00:27
How does one of the most diverse groups on the planet, the ants, interact with the extremely diverse group of microbes that live on and inside them?
On this episode, we talk to Listen
Survival of the systems: The power of persistence (Ep 63 Re-release) from 2022-04-22T19:00:37
Can selection act on ecosystems, societies, or planets such that some persist and others disappear? Must such systems reproduce to evolve?
On this episode of Big Biology, we talk to Listen
Organisms are not machines (Ep 82) from 2022-04-14T19:00
Why shouldn’t we think of living things as machines? What is and what isn’t an organism?
In this episode, we talk to Listen
How staying cool blunts evolution (Ep 81) from 2022-03-31T19:00
Why are tropical mountain passes ‘higher’ than temperate ones? Why do some organisms regulate their temperature better than others, and what effect does this have on evolution?
On this ep...
Listen
Human-wildlife conflict in a changing world (Ep 80) from 2022-03-17T19:00
What is the link between climate change, declining wildlife populations and conflict between animals and humans? And how should scientists, governments and individuals manage declining pop...
Listen
How the genetic lottery affects complex human traits (Ep 79) from 2022-03-03T20:00
Does our DNA matter for our life outcomes? Can and should we use it for better social policy? And why have these questions caused such a stir?
On this episode of Big Biology, we talk with...
Listen
The amphibian omnivore’s dilemma: Plasticity-led evolution in spadefoot tadpoles (Ep 78) from 2022-02-17T20:00
What roles does plasticity play in evolution? Where does novelty come from, and how does it become widespread in populations?
On this episode, we talk all things plasticity with Listen
A (Very) Short Interview with Henry Gee: 4 Billion Years in 30 Minutes (Ep 77) from 2022-02-03T20:00
How did life on Earth get from its humble beginnings to the dazzling array of forms we see now and in the fossil record?
On this episode, we talk with paleontologist Listen
Beasty beats: The origins of musicality (Ep 76) from 2022-01-20T20:00
Do animals dance to the beat? When is birdsong music for a bird? Humans hear music in everything, but what about other species?
On this episode we talk withListen
Hidden network: The evolutionary relationship between arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi and plants (Ep 75) from 2022-01-06T20:00
What rules dictate trade in symbiosis? How did the complex relationship between plants and arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi evolve? What’s really going on in the world beneath our feet?
On th...
Listen
Big Biology Year End Wrap-Up from 2021-12-30T20:00
Happy Holidays from Big Biology! In our year end wrap-up episode, meet the team behind the podcast and hear our picks for favorite episodes and moments from the last year of the show. We also lo...
Listen
Food for thought: Plant domestication and the promise of green super rice (Ep 74) from 2021-12-16T20:00
How and when did early humans domesticate the plants that we use today? Did these ancient farmers purposefully select traits, or did they domesticate unconsciously? In the future, can breeders a...
Listen
A gene’s-eye view: Useful tool or narrow lens? (Ep 73) from 2021-12-02T20:00
Are genes the primary units of selection and main drivers of adaptation? How does a gene’s-eye view of evolution fit into modern biology?
On this episode, we talk withListen
Stability and change: Lessons from the Serengeti (Ep 72) from 2021-11-11T20:00
Why is the Serengeti such a special ecosystem? Why does it support so many different species, and what ecological processes regulate the enormous population sizes of its dominant large-bodied he...
Listen
Please don't kill the bats! (Ep 5 Re-release) from 2021-10-28T19:00
How do diseases spread from animals to humans? Is it possible to forecast where disease outbreaks will occur and when they will blow up into major health crises? In one of the earliest episodes ...
Listen
A tattoo on the brain: The neurobiology of Alzheimer's disease (Ep 71) from 2021-10-14T19:00
What causes Alzheimer’s disease? Why are some people more at risk than others? What are the prospects for a cure and the best options for slowing the onset of symptoms?
On this episode of...
Listen
The virus and the vegan: How the brain gains inference (Ep 70) from 2021-09-30T19:00
What is the free energy principle? How do our brains use active inference to manage uncertainty and stress?
Butterfl-eyes: The evolution and function of insect vision (Ep 69) from 2021-09-16T19:00
What does the world look like through insect eyes? What biological mechanisms make their vision different from our own? And how might those differences influence their evolution?
On this ...
Listen
Performance anxiety: How coastal invertebrates cope with changing climate extremes (Ep 68) from 2021-09-02T19:00
What do we mean by ‘extreme ecological events’? What’s more important to a population, more frequent extremes or changes to average conditions? How should we link the performance of individuals ...
Listen
Season 4 Preview (and more) from 2021-07-27T21:23:44
Season 4 of Big Biology will kick off at the end of August. Before then, Art and Marty have a few updates to share:
We're looking for new interns to join our team and help produce the sho...
Listen
Foiling the flashy: How artificial light dims insect behavior (Ep 67) from 2021-07-01T18:55:53
Is artificial light at night partly responsible for insect declines? How does it affect nocturnal insects, especially fireflies and other species that need darkness to thrive? Listen
Old vaccines for new pandemics (Ep 66) from 2021-06-17T19:00
What has COVID-19 taught us about preparing for future epidemics? Can we trigger innate immune responses – our first lines of defense - to mitigate novel infections? Can we use live-attenuated v...
Listen
Mouse on a hill: The structure and function of agency (Ep 65) from 2021-06-03T19:00
What is agency? How does it evolve? Do non-living things have agency?
On this episode of Big Biology, we talk with Tufts University professor Listen
The stall protocol: Diapause in the annual killifish (Ep 64) from 2021-05-20T19:00
How do organisms cope with long periods of tough conditions where regular life is impossible? How do some animals turn down their metabolism to levels so low that they can appear dead?&nbs...
Listen
Survival of the Systems: The power of persistence (Ep 63) from 2021-05-06T19:00
Can selection act on ecosystems, societies, or planets such that some persist and others disappear? Must such systems reproduce to evolve?
On this episode of Big Biology, we talk to <...
Listen
Situated Darwinism: Organism-centered evolution (Ep 62) from 2021-04-22T19:00
Are genes the prime movers in evolution, or is causality distributed across multiple levels of organization? What role do organisms play in evolution? Could organismal agency Listen
Decoding CRISPR: Jennifer Doudna and the future of gene editing (Ep 61) from 2021-04-08T19:00
What is CRISPR? Who are the key players behind its discovery? And what does it mean for science both now and in the future?
On this episode of Big Biology, we talk to renowned author Walt...
Listen
Human-assisted evolution: Conserving coral diversity (Ep 60) from 2021-03-25T19:00
Why are some corals more resilient to bleaching than others? How should we leverage genetic and epigenetic information to conserve coral diversity?
On this episode of Big Bi...
Feel the burn: The limits of human energy expenditure and endurance (Ep 59) from 2021-03-11T21:00
What can modern hunter-gatherer societies teach us about human energy budgets? What misconceptions do we have about weight loss and weight management? Are there limits to human endurance...
Listen
Finding our voice: The neurobiology of vocal learning (Ep 58) from 2021-02-25T20:00
How did vocal learning evolve? What is special about human language? What brain structures are associated with speech and the many components of spoken language?
On this episode...
Georgia O'Keeffe and the Red Queen: Ecosystem services via coevolution (Ep 57) from 2021-02-11T20:00
What is coevolution? How has coevolution between insects and plants shaped human history and culture?
In this episode of Big Biology, we talk with Listen
Bee kind: the buzz on global insect declines (Ep 56) from 2021-01-28T20:00
Why are bee populations declining? How can we reliably monitor insect populations when many are so cryptic? And what steps can we take to ensure that populations remain viable?<...
Listen
New content on Patreon, social media and our website. from 2021-01-19T23:00
We are jumping into the podcast feed with a few quick updates. We’re revamping our Patreon tier system to give you more Big Biology content. We also created a Facebook group where you can discus...
Listen
Hot wings: How birds stay cool under the Australian sun (Ep 55) from 2021-01-14T22:00
On this episode of Big Biology we talk to Christine Cooper (@CECooperEcophys), a vertebrate ecophysiologist and professor at Listen
And the Oskar goes to: Germ-soma differentiation in insects (Ep 54) from 2020-12-17T23:00
What is a germ cell and why do animals separate germ and soma (body) cells at all? What molecules determine whether cells become germ or soma, and are some such mechanisms products of horizontal...
Listen
Turn down the lights: The ecological effects of bright nights (Ep 53) from 2020-12-03T23:00
How has the amount of artificial light changed over the last 150 years? In what ways does artificial light affect human health and wildlife? And how can new lighting technologies ameliorate the ...
Listen
Coronavirus III: Town Hall (Ep 52) from 2020-11-19T23:00
How can local and state governments repair the damage done by COVID-19? Is there a vaccine on its way to a pharmacy near you? And what should you expect about lockdowns, facemasks, and new COVID...
Listen
A Series of Fortunate Events: Chance and Contingency (Ep 51) from 2020-11-05T22:00
What is the role of chance in explaining variation in biology? How has it shaped the history of life on Earth? And how do scientists incorporate chance into their performing experiments?
...
Listen
Big Blue: How whales evolved to become ocean titans (Ep 50) from 2020-10-22T19:00
Are whales the biggest animals to have ever lived? Why have they evolved to become so gigantic? What key adaptations support their immense size?
On this episode of Big Biology, we talk to...
Listen
The Vital Question: The Chemistry of Early Life (Ep 49) from 2020-10-08T23:33:06
How did life originate on Earth? Why is it that eukaryotes but not bacteria or archaea evolved large size and complicated body forms? How likely is that life has arisen independently elsewhere i...
Listen
An 8-legged Bite: The Evolution of Venom in Spiders and Beyond (Ep 48) from 2020-09-24T21:08:32
How did the Brown Recluse get its powerful bite? How widespread is venom across the tree of life? How do spiders use their venoms?
On this episode of Big Biology, we talk with spide...
Listen
The Origin of Us: Human evolution (Ep 47) from 2020-09-10T22:01:41
Where, when, and how did Homo sapiens appear? What do we know about the complex set of ancestral hominins that preceded us? How recently did other hominin lineages live and what happene...
Listen
Smarthropods: Cognition in Insects (Ep 46) from 2020-08-27T23:00
Which animals are conscious, and how can we tell? Does it matter? Although many people think of insects as simple organisms that react in preprogrammed ways to their environments, scientists kno...
Listen
CROSSOVER: On Coronavirus, Crisis, and Creative Opportunity with David Krakauer (Complexity podcast from the Santa Fe Institute) from 2020-08-26T16:34:46
This podcast was originally broadcast by Complexity, a podcast from the Santa Fe Institute on April, 20 2020.
Big Biology has featured several scientists connected to the Santa Fe Institu...
Listen
Season 3 Preview from 2020-08-24T21:00:57
The first episode of season three is coming out later this week. Here's a taste of what's coming up.
Right now, we're looking for a few interns to join our team. If you love Big Biology a...
Listen
RE-RUN: Tangling the Tree of Life from 2020-08-06T20:07:43
Today we’re replaying of our discussion with science writer David Quammen.
We Listen
RE-RUN: Information, Aliens and the Origin of Life from 2020-07-23T22:56:34
This episode was originally published in 2018. It's one of our most popular episodes of all time, so we decided to run it again while we're in between seasons. Look for new Big Bio episodes in A...
Listen
Ep 45: Student Spotlight from 2020-06-25T19:49:29
How are early stage scientists pushing biology forward? What’s it like to be a graduate student during a global pandemic?
Over the last several months, we’ve been collecting short a...
Listen
Ep 44: The Science of Slime from 2020-06-12T21:28:16
What’s the slimiest fish on Earth? Why are they so slimy? And can we leverage our understanding of slime to make better bioengineered materials?
In this episode we talk with Doug...
Listen
Ep 43: Project ICARUS from 2020-05-28T15:23:42
What can we learn from animals by constantly tracking their movements with transmitters? How can we use information from collectives of animals to study and predict disease spread, earthquakes, ...
Listen
Ep 42: Fatal Fungus from 2020-05-15T22:54:05
Why are amphibians across the world dying from a fungal infection? Where did the fungus come from? How does it kill and are populations adapting?
On this episode of Big Biology, we talk w...
Listen
Ep 41: Coronavirus II from 2020-04-30T22:51:35
Where did the new coronavirus come from? How can we be on the lookout for new diseases emerging from animals? Now that the coronavirus has infected humans, what’s the best path forward? In this ...
Listen
We need your help to make season three! from 2020-04-21T22:10:58
We’re getting ready for season three next fall. We already have a bunch of great guests lined up to talk about the evolution of venom, insect intelligence and human evolution. Listen
Ep 40: Songbird Scents from 2020-04-16T21:24:46
How do hormones like testosterone coordinate important activities in an animal’s life, and how might those activities tradeoff with one another? How do the microbial communities living on birds ...
Listen
Ep 39: Bioelectric Computation from 2020-04-02T21:45:59
How do animals construct tissues, organs, and limbs in the right places during development? How do some animals manage to regenerate missing body parts? On this episode of Big Biology, we talk w...
Listen
Ep 38: Coronavirus from 2020-03-17T02:35:09
How is COVID-19 transmitted and how broad will the pandemic become? What can mathematical models of infectious disease tell us? What are steps we can take now to slow the spread? On this episode o...
Listen
Ep 37: Loading the Dice from 2020-03-13T16:52:32
What forms of consciousness exist in the natural world? What roles did associative learning and episodic like memory play in its origins? Does consciousness have a function, and is it an a...
Listen
Ep 36: Intentional Evolution from 2020-02-27T17:37:29
Is there a role for agency in evolution? Do organismal efforts to maintain homeostasis represent a form of biological intentionality? On this episode of Big Biology, we talk with Scott Turner, a...
Listen
Ep 35: PruittData from 2020-02-17T22:25:42
What led to a recent series of research paper retractions in behavioral ecology? How do scientists trust the data their collaborators share? Earlier this year, several journals retracted papers ...
Listen
Ep 34: Matrix Matters from 2020-02-13T21:43:45
What is sensory drive, and how has it affected the evolution of communication? How do surf perch and other animals sense and signal in noisy environments? On this episode of Big Biology, in fron...
Listen
Ep 33: Magic Puzzle Box from 2020-01-30T21:18:25
What is Maxwell's demon, and what is its role in biology? How do molecular demons underpin life? Does life really defy entropy? On this episode of Big Biology, we talk with Paul Davies, a cosmologi...
Listen
Ep 32: Diluting Disease from 2020-01-16T18:47:41
How is declining biodiversity affecting the occurrence and spread of Lyme disease? Is there a way to reduce the transmission of tick-borne diseases using ecological approaches? On this episode of B...
Listen
Ep 31: Methusalicious from 2019-12-30T14:24:10
If natural selection is constantly ridding lineages of detrimental traits, why do all organisms wear down with age? Why does restricting the diet slow down the aging process? On this episode of Bi...
Listen
Happy Holidays! from 2019-12-14T01:15:01
Make a donation to Big Biology through Patreon at Patreon.com/bigbio or at bigbiology.org --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/bigbiology/message
Listen
Ep 30: Know Your 'Ome from 2019-12-06T02:35:27
What can direct-to-consumer genetic companies tell us about our health and ancestry? How do scientists figure out which genes affect particular traits? Is Art related to a Nigerian prince? Is Marty...
Listen
Ep 29: Lick Your Kids from 2019-11-22T02:42:37
How important are pathways other than DNA for transmitting traits from one generation to the next? On this episode of Big Biology, we talk to neuroscientist Frances Champagne from the University of...
Listen
Ep 28: Evolution Now from 2019-11-08T14:51:59
How do new species form? How long does it take for evolution to happen? What can hybrids tell us about the process of speciation? On this episode we talk with Peter and Rosemary Grant, two Princet...
Listen
Ep 27: Flight of the Ur-Sect from 2019-10-24T19:38:21
Why did conventional thinking in aerodynamics fail to explain how insects fly? What can robots teach us about how insects do it? How do insect brains direct their incredible aerial feats and get ar...
Listen
Ep 26: The Long Road to Mexico from 2019-10-10T18:14:42
How does a tiny insect migrate thousands of miles from Canada to Mexico each year? What does the decline of monarch butterflies tell us about the ecological health of our continent? How are scienti...
Listen
Ep 25: Dopamine Unto Others from 2019-09-26T17:00
What does neuroscience have to say about morality, politics, and cross-cultural communication? How are neurobiology and philosophy connected? Pat Churchland is a neurobiologist and philosopher at U...
Listen
Ep 24: Mental Smoke Detectors from 2019-09-13T00:17:53
Why hasn’t natural selection eliminated human diseases? Are bad feelings like anxiety and depression adaptive? Can we use evolutionary biology to improve medicine? Randy Nesse is a doctor and a sci...
Listen
Ep 23: Beauty of the Beasts from 2019-08-29T21:32:30
Why are animals loud and conspicuous when that increases their risk from predators? How does noise pollution affect mating behaviors? How can robots help biologists study complex topics such as sex...
Listen
Season 2 Preview from 2019-08-15T17:00
Season two of Big Biology starts on August 29. On this preview, Art and Marty talk about some of the guests they’ll be interviewing and some of the topics they’re most excited to discuss. This seas...
Listen
Ep 22: Whale Aware from 2019-05-30T12:30
Is intelligence similar in humans and dolphins? Do dolphins and whales have their own culture and language? How do they perceive the world around them? Janet Mann is a biologist at Georgetown Unive...
Listen
Ep 21: Replaying the MP3 of Life from 2019-05-09T19:12:55
Why do some rove beetles look like ants? Why do living things evolve similar solutions to common problems? Is there predictability within the evolutionary process? On this episode, Art and Marty ta...
Listen
Ep 20: Ask Us Anything from 2019-04-19T21:42:27
In this episode, we've taken a break from our regular format to answer some of your questions such as what's the chance of human-like intelligence on another planet and if we had the technology, wh...
Listen
Ep 19: Microbial Garden of Eden from 2019-04-04T23:11:38
How does our indoor, modern lifestyle affect our microbiome? How does this novel microbiome affect our health? On this episode, Marty and Art talk with Rob Dunn, an applied ecologist at North Caro...
Listen
Ep 18: Bug in the system from 2019-03-21T16:36:26
How can cicadas eat nothing but tree sap for 17 years? How do endosymbiotic relationships evolve? What do bacteria-insect symbioses teach us about the evolution of mitochondria and chloroplasts? On...
Listen
Ep 17: 1000 ways to make a baby from 2019-03-07T16:58:55
How did sex evolve? Why are there sexes at all? what are the evolutionary costs and benefits of sex? On this episode, Art and Marty talk with Hanna Kokko, an evolutionary ecologist at the Universit...
Listen
Ep 16: Rules of Life from 2019-02-21T21:49:14
What role does one part of the federal government, the National Science Foundation, play in biological research in the US? How will their new funding initiative help us discover Rules of Life? On t...
Listen
Ep 15: Climate change: should they stay or should they go? from 2019-02-01T00:30:19
How is climate change affecting the distribution of animals? How will these changes in species distribution affect us? Tune in to hear Marty and Art talk with physiological ecologist Jenn Sunday ab...
Listen
Ep 14: Plasticity? Sounds fishy. from 2019-01-17T22:28:28
Does plasticity always help organisms adapt? What happens if it doesn't? Could it speed up evolution Tune in to hear Art and Marty talk with evolutionary ecologist Cameron Ghalambor about the role ...
Listen
Ep 13: Unraveling Genetic Knots from 2018-12-20T23:21:59
Do single genes cause variation in traits or are gene effects more complex than that? How do genes interact with one another, and how do those interactions alter the pace and direction of evolution...
Listen
Ep 12: Containing Cancer with Squirrel Ecology from 2018-12-06T14:10:25
Will cancer ever become just another chronic but manageable disease? What can a squirrel biologist teach us about treating cancer? In this episode, Marty and Art talk with Joel Brown about how to c...
Listen
Ep 11: The Vagina Research Institute (Full Conversation) from 2018-11-15T16:12:36
Why do some animals have weird genitalia? Why is there conflict between males and females when it comes to producing offspring? Tune into this podcast to hear Art and Marty talk with Patty Brennan ...
Listen
Ep 11: The Vagina Research Institute from 2018-11-15T16:10:05
Why do some animals have weird genitalia? Why is there conflict between males and females when it comes to producing offspring? Tune into this podcast to hear Art and Marty talk with Patty Brennan ...
Listen
Ep 10: Tangling the Tree of Life from 2018-10-18T22:17:30
How has the Tree of Life changed since Darwin? How do genes jump from one species to another? Why do we have viral genes in our DNA? Tune into this podcast to hear Art and Marty talk with David Qua...
Listen
Ep 9: Information, Aliens, and the Origin of Life (Full Conversation) from 2018-09-22T01:18:17
What is life? How did life arise from non-life? What did life look like at its origin? Tune into this podcast to hear Art and Marty talk with Sara Walker, an expert in astrobiology and theoretical ...
Listen
Ep 9: Information, Aliens, and the Origin of Life from 2018-09-22T01:13:31
What is life? How did life arise from non-life? What did life look like at its origin? Tune into this podcast to hear Art and Marty talk with Sara Walker, an expert in astrobiology and theoretical ...
Listen
Ep 8: Immune System: Make Love not War (Full Conversation) from 2018-08-19T13:11:06
Is there a constant battle between our immune system and pathogens? Does the fighting ever end? Does the immune system do more than just provide defense against pathogens? Tune into this podcast t...
Listen
Ep 8: Immune System: Make Love not War from 2018-08-19T13:06:47
Is there a constant battle between our immune system and pathogens? Does the fighting ever end? Does the immune system do more than just provide defense against pathogens? Tune into this podcast t...
Listen
Ep 7: Genes Don't Do Crap (Full Conversation) from 2018-07-20T12:32:27
What is the connection between an organism's genes and its environment? Can the environment alter an organism's characteristics without altering its genetics? Can an organism alter its environment ...
Listen
Ep 7: Genes Don't Do Crap from 2018-07-20T12:30:39
What is the connection between an organism's genes and its environment? Can the environment alter an organism's characteristics without altering its genetics? Can an organism alter its environment ...
Listen
Ep 6: Shrimp Fight Clubs and Basic Science (Extra) from 2018-06-29T15:23:26
How do mantis shrimp punch as fast as a bullet… underwater? How do they break open one of the toughest materials on earth? Tune into this podcast to hear Art and Marty talk to Sheila Patek about h...
Listen
Ep 6: Shrimp Fight Clubs and Basic Science (Full Conversation) from 2018-05-17T18:10:30
How do mantis shrimp punch as fast as a bullet… underwater? How do they break open one of the toughest materials on earth? Tune into this podcast to hear Art and Marty talk to Sheila Patek about h...
Listen
Ep 6: Shrimp Fight Clubs and Basic Science from 2018-05-17T18:08:22
How do mantis shrimp punch as fast as a bullet… underwater? How do they break open one of the toughest materials on earth? Tune into this podcast to hear Art and Marty talk to Sheila Patek about h...
Listen
Ep 5: Please Don't Kill the Bats (Full Conversation) from 2018-03-28T01:17:14
How do diseases spread from animals to humans? Is it possible to forecast where disease outbreaks will occur and when they will blow up into major health crises? Tune into this podcast to hear Mar...
Listen
Ep 5: Please Don't Kill the Bats from 2018-03-28T01:12:50
How do diseases spread from animals to humans? Is it possible to forecast where disease outbreaks will occur and when they will blow up into major health crises? Tune into this podcast to hear Mar...
Listen
Ep 4: The Science and Politics of Basic Biology (Full Conversation) from 2018-02-14T17:16:55
Is there a role for basic research in our society? Do scientists studying animals waste tax-payer money? How does learning about evolutionary biology benefit humans? Tune in to this episode to hear...
Listen
Ep 4: The Science and Politics of Basic Biology from 2018-02-14T17:12:26
Is there a role for basic research in our society? Do scientists studying animals waste tax-payer money? How does learning about evolutionary biology benefit humans? Tune in to this episode to hear...
Listen
Ep 3: Animal Size and Godzilla's Breakfast (Full Conversation) from 2018-01-05T21:35:39
Is there a limit to animal size? Could Godzilla actually exist? Tune into this episode to hear Art and Marty talk to Jon Harrison and Jim Brown. ???????Jon Harrison (Arizona State University) studi...
Listen
Ep 3: Animal Size and Godzilla's Breakfast from 2018-01-03T10:21:15
Is there a limit to animal size? Could Godzilla actually exist? Tune into this episode to hear Art and Marty talk to Jon Harrison and Jim Brown. ???????Jon Harrison (Arizona State University) studi...
Listen
Ep 2: Harnessing Randomness (Full Conversation) from 2017-12-07T22:01:52
What is the role of random, stochastic events in biology? How does our body react to such events? Does the presence of random events in our brains give us the illusion of freewill? Tune into this e...
Listen
Ep 2: Harnessing Randomness from 2017-12-07T21:41:06
What is the role of random, stochastic events in biology? How does our body react to such events? Does the presence of random events in our brains give us the illusion of freewill? Tune into this e...
Listen
Ep 1: The Drunken Monkey (Full Conversation) from 2017-12-06T17:26:40
Why do we drink alcohol? Are we just primates looking for a fix? Tune in to this podcast to hear Art and Marty talk to Robert Dudley about the evolutionary origins of drinking alcohol. --- Send ...
Listen
Ep 1: The Drunken Monkey from 2017-12-06T17:23:14
Why do we drink alcohol? Are we just primates looking for a fix? Tune in to this episode to hear Art and Marty talk to Robert Dudley (not to be confused with the First Earl of Leicester of the same...
Listen
What is Big Biology? from 2017-12-06T17:14:18
Big Biology is a podcast that tells the stories of scientists tackling some of the biggest unanswered questions in biology. --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/bigbiology/message
Listen