Weekly Show – Science Update

INSECTS & SPIDERS (Encore Edition) - Could spider venom be the next insecticide? Why mosquitoes smell you better at night. And debunking the myth of extracting dinosaur DNA from insects preserved in amber. Also, insect legs that bear an uncanny resemblance to modern machinery.

HUMANS AND ANIMALS - Encore Edition - The origins of ancient house cats in China. Crows that hold grudges. And, how global warming is creating a new breed of Arctic explorers - of the avian variety. Also: the lengths squirrels will go to to hide their nuts.

ENCORE PRESENTATION: OCEAN SCIENCE IN THE 21st CENTURY - Old warships become new habitats. An ocean quadcopter gives researchers a sky-high view of the stormy North Atlantic. And, autonomous underwater vehicles that search for sunken treasure. Also, behind the untimely death of the octopus.

BATS & DOLPHINS (Encore Presentation): Dolphins that heal themselves, and dolphins that use electroreception in addition to echolocation. Also, How vampire bats find their prey, and how a Cuban plant takes advantage of a bat's ability to echolocate.

ANCIENT ANATOMY (Encore Presentation) - What dental records from the Mesozoic era can tell us about the lives of dinosaurs. How humans are uniquely adapted to throw baseballs. Also: an automated nature recording system that's monitoring environmental change. And, could vaccinating children protect the elderly as well?

LIFE ON THE EDGE (Encore Presentation) - The challenges facing endangered California Condors when they return to the wild. Could armadillos help end blindness? How scientists can tell that sharks really are what they eat. Fuel from the sea. And, unraveling the mysteries of glowing blue slime.

SURVIVAL (Encore Presentation) - Why female Komodo dragons die young, a whale that sounded like a person, and algae that flee their predators. Also: how the brain's insulation differs between us and chimpanzees, and why that insulation is so important to social development.

ENCORE PRESENTATION - From the Science Update archives: Science confronts alternative medicine and vaccine myths. Also: Can we learn anything from violent video games?

OCEAN SCIENCE (Encore Presentation) - Old warships become new habitats. An ocean quadcopter gives researchers a sky-high view of the stormy North Atlantic. And, autonomous underwater vehicles that search for sunken treasure. Also, behind the untimely death of the octopus.

LESSONS FROM THE DEAD (Encore Presentation) - Scientists attempt to bring back an extinct frog. Mummies showing signs of heart disease make researchers rethink assumptions about lifestyle and diet. The mysterious death zone within African "fairy circles" explained. Also: a miniature laboratory under the skin monitors blood chemistry.