Podcast Transcript On December 29, 1940, a year before the United States entered the Second World War, President Franklin Roosevelt declared the United States to be an arsenal of democracy. When the US did finally enter the war, they faced a serious problem. The population of men who would normally be called upon to work …
Right now, as you are listening to the sound of my voice, you are breathing air. Air is all around you all the time. When humans go into space or beneath the surface of the ocean, the one thing you absolutely have to take with you is air. But what exactly makes up air? How …
Podcast Transcript Imagine a device that could supply an unlimited amount of energy. It would solve many of the world’s problems in one fell swoop. Unfortunately, such a device is impossible to build, but that hasn’t stopped people throughout history from trying. In fact, to this very day, people still claim that they have created …
Podcast Transcript The cold war was the defining event of the second half of the 20th century. When exactly it ended has been subject to debate. Was it the fall of the Berlin Wall? Was the day the Soviet Union was dissolved? There is an argument to be made that end might have actually occurred …
Podcast Transcript The movie The Purge depicts a fictitious world where one night a year, there is a war of all against all. If you look back in history, you will find a time when something similar happened. Except it wasn’t a case of everyone against everyone, it was a case of everyone against a …
Podcast Transcript In Greek, the word for dwarf is “nanos.” The International Bureau of Weights and Measures adopted the prefix ‘nano’ to mean one billionth. A nanometer is one billionth of a meter, and it is the scale at which some of the most groundbreaking work is being done in technology and materials science. Learn …
Podcast Transcript Located on the banks of the River Seine lies the city of Paris. Paris has a long history dating back over 2000 years. During its long history, it has seen wars, plagues, and kings and emperors. Today it is the most visited city on Earth, home to some of the world’s greatest works …
Podcast Transcript One of the most fascinating areas of mathematics and economics is game theory. Game theory involves analyzing competitive situations where multiple participants make interdependent decisions. In other words, the result will depend not just on what you decide but on what someone else decides as well. Game theory has applications not just in …
Podcast Transcript On January 28, 1986, an event occurred that would be remembered by almost everyone alive at the time. Seventy-three seconds into its flight, the Space Shuttle Challenger was destroyed by a violent explosion, killing all seven astronauts on board. In addition to being seared into the minds of those who witnessed the tragedy, …