Discover Science

The top of Mount Everest is a cold, unforgiving place to conduct scientific research. So are the mangrove jungles deep in the Amazon, accessible only by boat. But for scientists, those regions can be some of the most important sources of data when it comes to the climate crisis. Nevada State Climatologist and geography professor Baker Perry and his colleague, fellow geography professor Julie Loisel, share some of their insights into extreme fieldwork locations and why the science there is too important to ignore. This episode is hosted by Hitchcock Project for Visualizing Science student Ali Dickson.

To its disciples, science can seem like an infallible tool to determine fundamental truths about the world that we live in. But the truth is, science can fall victim to misinformation, disinformation and fraud, like many other institutions. Some scientists have turned the proverbial microscope on science itself. Jevin West, an associate professor in the Information School at the University of Washington, and co-founder and inaugural director of the Center for an Informed Public at UW, visited the University of Nevada, Reno for a Discover Science lecture and was hosted on the Discover Science podcast by associate professor of statistics Paul Hurtado, and Madeleine Lohman, master's and doctoral student in the Department of Statistics and Data Science and the Ecology, Evolution and Conservation Biology program. The three discuss issues related to trust in science, education about how to identify trustworthy information for people as young as kindergarteners to the elderly and how taking an interdisciplinary approach is critical to making progress in the information sciences.

Colorado River water allocation policy is an extremely complicated field to navigate. That, in part, is why the Colorado River is known as the most litigated river in the world. But researchers, policymakers and water managers have taken a more collaborative approach in recent years. Those collaborations are made more critical by the increasing risk drought poses to the Lower Basin.Colby Pellegrino is the Deputy General Manager of Resources for the Southern Nevada Water Authority and the Las Vegas Valley Water District. In her current capacity, she is responsible for the management of the Water Authority's water resource portfolio, which includes protecting Nevada's interests and rights to Colorado River water through interstate negotiations, developing regional water conservation programs, managing groundwater resources, and water resource planning. Colby Pellegrino speaks with Associate Professor Elizabeth Koebele.

The advent of the internet has benefitted humanity in many ways. It has also caused some chaos, as people try to discern fact from fiction and sense from nonsense shared online. Many scientists have recently taken a more active role in helping society to understand how science works. One of those scientists is Dr. Joe Schwarcz. Dr. Schwarcz is a professor of chemistry at McGill University and the director of the Office for Science and Society. He has spent over four decades trying to combat misinformation, especially misinformation related to science. Dr. Schwarcz also hosts a radio show, “The Dr. Joe Show,” writes a newspaper column and has written 19 best-selling books. Dr. Schwarcz speaks with chemistry undergraduate student Jesus Diaz Sanchez and Associate Professor Brian Frost.

Titan is Saturn's largest moon and is the subject of distinguished atmospheric chemist Sarah Hörst's research. The distant moon is considered to be one of the most Earth-like worlds in the solar system, and its potential to host life is the topic of conversation in this episode of Discover Science. Dr. Hörst is an associate professor at Johns Hopkins University in the Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences and an adjunct astronomer at the Space Telescope Science Institute. Dr. Hörst is also part of the team leading NASA's Dragonfly mission – a rotorcraft-lander expedition to Titan's surface. Dr. Hörst speaks with alumna Donna dePolo and Associate Professor Carlos Mariscal. DePolo graduated with her degree in astronomy and physics in 2021 from the University of Nevada, Reno, and was also a successful Wolf Pack athlete as a member of the swim team. As an undergraduate, dePolo published research titled "The flickering radio jet from the quiescent black hole X-ray binary A0620-00" with Assistant Professor of Physics Richard Plotkin. Dr. Mariscal is an associate professor of philosophy at the University of Nevada, Reno interested in understanding the origin of life, the nature of extreme organisms, and what we can know about life in the universe. Dr. Mariscal is faculty in the Ecology, Evolution and Conservation Biology graduate program where he works in areas related to the evolution, origin, and distribution of life in the universe, a field known as astrobiology.

An aware society is one of the best weapons against climate change. Sustainable solutions can only advance if voters and policy makers understand what's at stake. From vanishing biodiversity to the widespread intensification of destructive weather patterns, that's where environmental journalists play a decisive role acting as the bridge between scientists and the general public. Andrew Revkin is a renowned science journalist, author, and educator. He's covered a variety of environmental topics, including the destruction of the Amazon rainforest, the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami, and the changing climate of the North Pole. Revkin is also the founding director of the Initiative on Communication and Sustainability at the Columbia Climate School. On this episode of Discover Science, hosted by graduate student Shelby Herbert of the UNR Reynolds School of Journalism's Hitchcock Project for Visualizing Science, Andrew Revkin speaks with NatGeo Monster Fish host Zeb Hogan and Professor of limnology Sudeep Chandra about the media's coverage of climate impacts around the world, Revkin's 35+ years of experience in the field, even how music has influenced his perspective as a journalist and climate defender.

Apollo 17 astronaut Harrison Schmitt discusses his three days on the lunar surface, the exciting geological discoveries that he made as the only true scientist to have set foot on the Moon, and his thoughts on the future of space exploration.

Scientific lead in the development of the COVID-19 mRNA vaccine Kizzmekia Corbett discusses the early days of the vaccine's development, the importance of good mentorship, and how to find your place in science.

Renowned number theorist Dr. Ken Ono shares his deep connection to the life and work of Srinivasa Ramanujan. Dr. Ono served as the mathematical consultant and producer of the film "The Man Who Knew Infinity" about Ramanujan's life. This episode was co-produced with the Reynold's School of Journalism and the Hitchcock Project for Visualizing Science.

Members of the Department of Microbiology and Immunology at the University of Nevada, Reno discuss the COVID-19 vaccine technology, hesitancy, distribution and more.

According to Tobler's first law of geography, “Everything is related to everything else, but near things are more related than distant things.” On this episode of the Discover Science podcast, an offshoot of the lecture series by the same name, Dr. William F. Tate IV sits down with former College of Science Director of Advising, Recruitment and Retention Blane Harding as well as 2020 physics graduate Ohidul Mojumder to illustrates the complex relationship between place, race and STEM attainment and the uneven contours of the education pipeline.

More than 100 years after Albert Einstein predicted gravitational waves – ripples in space-time caused by violent cosmic collisions – LIGO team scientists confirmed their existence using large, extremely precise detectors. Listen as LIGO team physicist Dr. Gabriela González speaks with Physics professors Dr. Richard Plotkin and Thomas White about the discovery of gravitational waves, lasers in space, and the value of science communication. Dr. González was born in Córdoba, Argentina, studied physics at the University of Córdoba, and received her Ph.D. from Syracuse University. She is currently a professor of physics and astronomy at Louisiana State University. She has received awards from the American Physical Society, the American Astronomical Society and the National Academy of Sciences. To view the full transcript of this episode, visit unr.edu/dsls.

Listen in on a conversation between bee researchers Anne Leonard of the Leonard Lab and postdoctoral scholar at the time Felicity Muth as they discuss bugs as friends, their research and what it is like being a woman in science.