Podcasts by Direct Current - An Energy.gov Podcast
Direct Current is a podcast about energy -- the kind that lights our homes, powers our lives and shapes our world. From the U.S. Department of Energy's digital team in Washington, D.C., Direct Current brings you fresh, insightful stories of how we generate and use electricity, what that means for the planet, and the cutting-edge science that's driving a global energy revolution.
Further podcasts by Energy.gov Digital Team
Podcast on the topic Regierung
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S4 E4: 70 Years of Atoms for Peace from 2023-12-08T11:53:50
70 years ago, President Dwight D. Eisenhower went before the United Nations and delivered a speech unlike anything the world had ever heard. The president spoke in sweeping terms about the terri...
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S4 E3: Fully Charged: How Batteries Are Combating the Climate Crisis, Part 1 from 2023-10-17T10:52:42
The first of two episodes, we’re going under the hood to take a look at something these EVs all share in common — a battery. Where do they come from? How do they work? And how the U.S. is workin...
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The Manhattan Project, Part 2 (REBROADCAST) from 2023-07-20T16:41:56
The conclusion of our two part story on the Manhattan Project. We take you to the Trinity site where the first bomb was tested and then follow the Airmen as they drop the first ever atomic bombs...
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The Manhattan Project, Part 1 (REBROADCAST) from 2023-07-20T16:41:44
The first of two episodes that tell the story of an unprecedented, U.S. government effort to beat Nazi Germany in the race to construct a nuclear weapon, the dawn of the atomic age, and how that...
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S4 E2: The Extremes of Weather in a Changing Climate from 2023-07-06T13:12:45
In this second episode of season 4 of Direct Current, we dive into a topic that’s been in the news a lot lately: extreme weather. While intense storms have splashed across headlines throughout h...
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S4 E1: Keeping the Lights on in Ukraine from 2023-05-03T15:02:11
Season 4 of Direct Current opens with a race against the clock, as the Department of Energy and National Labs join forces with industry and international partners to get emergency shipments of e...
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Who Cares About Quantum? (Season 4 Teaser) from 2023-02-22T00:25:42
"Quantum" is everywhere these days — in the news, on TV, in the titles of blockbuster action films — but what even is it? Why is it important to understand it? Basically... who cares about quant...
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People Powered: Chris Castro, Director of Sustainability from 2022-08-04T12:10:13
For years, Chris Castro worked tirelessly to bring a brighter future to the city of Orlando, Florida. We heard from the (now-former) director of sustainability about how he got his start, his passi...
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SPECIAL FEATURE: The Name Change Initiative from 2022-06-17T11:35:13
From Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory's podcast "A Day in the Half-Life" comes this episode about the challenges facing scientists who transition to a new identity — and efforts to get transge...
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People Powered: Conrad Flowers, Lead Interconnection Engineer from 2022-04-13T15:31:23
Conrad Flowers wanted a more fulfilling career, so he followed his passion and took a job in solar energy. Now he’s connecting solar farms to the electric grid and helping train the next generation...
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People Powered: AlexAnna Salmon, Village Council President from 2022-02-17T16:50:57
AlexAnna Salmon is a fierce advocate for her home, a remote Alaskan town called Igiugig. As village council president, she's working to preserve her tribe's traditional way of life amid a warming c...
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People Powered: Gaby Ibarra, Building Energy Analyst from 2022-01-21T15:00:08
Our series highlighting workers in clean energy continues! Gaby Ibarra, a first-generation college student and daughter of immigrants, shares her journey into a new career helping modernize heating...
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People Powered: Michael Flores, Wind Technician from 2021-12-21T16:57:31
In the latest episode of "People Powered," our new series on clean energy careers, wind technician Michael Flores shares what it's like to travel the country and scale 300-foot wind turbines for a ...
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People Powered: Kaly Moore, Solar Construction Manager from 2021-11-29T18:11:59
Presenting "People Powered," a new series on clean energy careers! There are millions of good-paying jobs in energy, and we'll be introducing you to the folks who do them — starting with Kaly Moore...
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Brewing Up Energy Savings from 2021-09-30T12:23:05
Contained within a single glass of beer is hundreds of hours of labor and vast amounts of resources. Join us as we go inside a popular craft brewery and learn how DOE programs are helping reduce co...
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LCLS-II: Brighter, Faster, Smaller from 2021-07-09T04:10:33
Stretching nearly two miles under a freeway in Palo Alto, CA, the Linac Coherent Light Source (LCLS) is a huge X-ray laser with the power to capture images of molecules in motion. Now, a big upgrad...
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LPO's New Look: A Conversation with Jigar Shah from 2021-06-14T12:40:33
With $40 billion in lending authority, the Loan Programs Office is one of the Energy Department's most powerful clean energy investment tools. We sat down with Director Jigar Shah to talk about how...
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Getting to Know Secretary Granholm from 2021-04-21T13:29:41
The nation's 16th Secretary of Energy, Jennifer Granholm, sat down with Direct Current to talk clean energy, climate, her "obsession" with creating millions of good-paying union jobs, and her visio...
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Mars 2020, Part 2: SuperCam Does It All from 2020-07-30T09:18:03
Developed by Los Alamos National Lab, SuperCam is the scientific “Swiss Army Knife” for NASA's Mars Perseverance Rover. In this episode, we hear from the SuperCam team what it's like shooting rocks...
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Mars 2020, Part 1: Powered by Plutonium from 2020-07-24T14:16:40
NASA's Mars Perseverance Rover is loaded with technology developed by the Department of Energy, including a nuclear battery fueled by plutonium-238. Listen as we follow the rover’s power source on ...
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AI: Safer, Smarter, More Secure (Live at AAAS) from 2020-04-22T11:24:37
Artificial intelligence is all around us — even if we don’t realize it — and the rapid spread of AI technologies into our lives raises big questions about security. Our guests in this episode study...
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The Future of Water&Wildfire (Live at AAAS) from 2020-03-31T21:48:42
COVID-19 is dominating the headlines, but the pandemic isn’t the only threat to human health. Water is an essential part of life, but changes in the water cycle can have disastrous results. The Nat...
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National Labs Respond to COVID-19 from 2020-03-14T14:45:15
An interview with Dr. Chris Fall, Director of the Department of Energy Office of Science, about the agency’s response to COVID-19.
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Tribal Energy: Powering Self-Determination from 2019-12-10T20:06:28
For hundreds of Indian tribes and native communities across the United States, energy represents many things: a lifeline, a source of income, a path to sovereignty. Learn how the Office of Indian E...
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AI: This Is Just the Beginning from 2019-10-09T20:24:09
Artificial intelligence is all over the news, but what's all the hype really about? We travel to Oak Ridge National Lab in Tennessee to find out how AI is going to revolutionize science, and welcom...
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S3 E8: KRUSTY in Spaaace! from 2019-07-16T08:12:02
50 years after Apollo 11 made history, NASA is getting ready to send astronauts back to the Moon, then on to Mars. We're going to need a power supply that can keep humans alive in space for years a...
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S3 E7: DUNE: The Neutrinos Must Flow from 2019-05-07T18:50:21
Join Direct Current on a subatomic sojourn into the Deep Underground Neutrino Experiment (DUNE), a massive international research project aiming to unlock the secrets of the neutrino and answer the...
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S3 E6: Women in Power: The C3E Story from 2019-03-20T17:35:44
Direct Current - An Energy.gov Podcast talks to the women who are leading a clean energy revolution, with a little help from C3E. It's part support network, part annual gathering, part awards show ...
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S3 E5: Microbiomes! Live at AAAS from 2019-03-01T05:40:43
There's an invisible world of microbes living all around us that we're only just beginning to understand. We talked to two DOE scientists at the 2019 AAAS Meeting in D.C. to learn how genetic resea...
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S3 E4: This Episode Stinks from 2018-11-21T17:19:50
Grease. Gunk. Sludge. Where most people see a nasty nuisance, these scientists see powerful potential. Join us as we wade into the world of bioenergy and learn about the folks working to turn waste...
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S3 E3: Nuclear Energy: Fact, Fiction, Future from 2018-09-13T18:07:26
Nuclear energy gets a bad rap on "The Simpsons," but there's a lot more to the story. In this episode of Direct Current, we separate fact from fiction and and explore how splitting atoms could play...
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S3 E2: Makers from 2018-07-31T18:28:56
This episode of Direct Current is dedicated to the makers at the Energy Department — the engineers, researchers and artisans whose creations are pushing science and technology to exciting new places.
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S3 E1: Sitting Down with Secretary Perry from 2018-06-20T16:00:50
You know Rick Perry as the current Secretary of Energy and former Texas governor, but did you know he once played drums with ZZ Top? On the Direct Current season 3 premiere, hear from Perry on ever...
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S2 E9: Power Couple from 2018-02-05T19:55:03
A pair of energy detectives is hunting down waste and saving money at two big U.S. manufacturing companies. Hear their story, and learn how our Better Plants program is helping partners across the ...
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S2 E8: Holiday Lights, Redux from 2017-12-19T21:17:05
We're keeping the season merry and bright with a show about data and holiday lights!
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SHORT CIRCUIT | History of the Light Bulb from 2017-11-14T22:46:49
One of the most ubiquitous items in the world is an item you can probably see from wherever you’re listening… the light bulb. The story of how the light bulb came to light is a fascinating one that...
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S2 E7: Energy Secrets from 2017-10-27T10:16:11
From the real science behind the Upside Down in Netflix's "Stranger Things" to the mysterious death of a U.S. president, Direct Current is pulling back the curtain on some of our deepest, darkest #...
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SHORT CIRCUIT | Energy @ 40 from 2017-10-04T12:31:28
Energy is 40 and we're celebrating with a look back at four decades of #ScienceForThePeople. We talk to the Department's longest-serving employee (53 years!), revisit the agency's origins, and look...
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S2 E6: A Shot in the Dark from 2017-09-13T10:00
Earth, the cosmos, everything we can see with our eyes and our instruments is made up of normal matter. But all that doesn’t add up to a whole lot. It's just 15% of the mass of the universe.
<...
SHORT CIRCUIT | Solar, Meet Eclipse from 2017-08-17T14:55:45
Solar power is booming in the U.S. So what happens when the sun disappears during the total solar eclipse on August 21, 2017? We talk to the energy experts.
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S2 E5: Hyper Drive Time from 2017-08-09T08:00
And now, for something completely different… Take a drive with Direct Current as we mash up three slightly off-kilter energy stories. It might get weird, but it won’t be boring. It’s Hyper Drive Time!
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S2 E4: 17 Labs in 17 Minutes from 2017-07-24T11:00
The Department of Energy’s National Labs are the crown jewels of science in America. But their work is so diverse that it’s hard to cover all 17 of them in one podcast episode. So naturally, Direct...
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This Lab Is Your Lab from 2017-06-30T15:42:06
As we head into July 4, enjoy "This Lab Is Your Lab." A song meant to highlight some of the amazing work being done across the Energy Department's system of 17 National Labs, the crown jewels of sc...
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S2 E3: The Manhattan Project, Part 2 from 2017-06-21T16:51:55
The conclusion to our two part series on the Manhattan Project -- an unprecedented, U.S. government effort to beat Nazi Germany in the race to construct a nuclear weapon, the dawn of the atomic age...
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SHORT CIRCUIT | Ruth's Story from 2017-06-05T16:23:05
Ruth Huddleston was 18 when she took a job at a secret Army facility in Oak Ridge, Tennessee, during World War II. It was so highly classified that no one could even tell her what she was working o...
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S2 E2: The Manhattan Project, Part 1 from 2017-05-18T17:57:02
The first of two episodes that tell the story of an unprecedented, U.S. government effort to beat Nazi Germany in the race to construct a nuclear weapon, the dawn of the atomic age, and how that le...
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SHORT CIRCUIT | How to Soak Up an Oil Spill from 2017-04-20T18:08:11
It's been seven years since the Deepwater Horizon disaster. Could a sponge developed by Argonne National Lab help stop the next big oil spill from becoming a catastrophe?
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S2 E1: The Hype Trailer from 2017-04-13T19:28:56
Direct Current returns next week! LISTEN TO OUR NEW TRAILER to get a little taste of what's in store for season 2. We also want to say a quick thank you to everyone who listened to the first season...
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Episode 10: The Exit Interview from 2017-01-17T05:01:19
With the current presidential administration coming to a close, we asked a very special guest to share some thoughts on his time here at the Energy Department. It’s our boss, nuclear physicist and ...
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Episode 9: What Happened to Acid Rain? from 2017-01-05T22:18:50
Acid rain was one of the biggest environmental problems of the 20th century. We investigate why it’s a thing of the past -- and what it can teach us for tackling climate change.
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Episode 8: Ho-Ho-How Holiday Lights Work from 2016-12-01T20:15:33
Why do holiday lights burn out all the time? We find out the answer, and do it in rhyme.
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Episode 7: From Water to Wattage from 2016-11-03T18:31:50
Hydropower is America's oldest and largest source of clean, renewable energy. But can it grow to meet our changing needs? Follow our hosts on a journey from hydropower's origins to the new wave of ...
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Episode 6: Energy Ghostbusters from 2016-10-20T17:57:46
Spooked by the goblins of energy inefficiency? In this episode, we talk with Josh Olsen, an “Energy Ghostbuster" from our Weatherization Program. Learn how to keep from being haunted by your energy...
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Episode 5: The Future of Cool from 2016-09-14T14:12:52
Paul and Simon lead the way to the future of cooling, where new technologies like magnet-based air conditioning and personalized robots will transform how we fight climate change, save on energy co...
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Episode 4: Backronyms from 2016-08-10T17:44:01
Not all acronyms are created equal. Join us on a journey into the colorful world of government "backronyms," where there's more to a name than just a jumble of letters.
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Episode 3: Power To The People from 2016-07-11T22:41:52
How does power get to the people who use it? We explore that question and talk about the electric grid -- what it is, how it works, and what happens when the power goes out.
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Episode 2: The Clean Energy Geek Squad from 2016-06-25T13:25:21
We call a "help desk" that provides clean energy policy assistance to governments worldwide, talk to Nicky Phear, who cycles across Montana teaching students about climate change, and propose a few...
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Episode 1.5: Direct Current Teaser from 2016-06-25T13:25:21
A word of thanks, and a sneak preview of what’s coming up on future episodes of Direct Current.
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Episode 1: Tackling the Hidden Costs of Rooftop Solar from 2016-05-03T15:23:22
We investigate the sneaky "soft costs" driving up the price of rooftop solar, delve into the archives for a look at the turbulent times around the Energy Department's creation, and contemplate some...
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