Curiosity Weekly

If sitting down to solve a math problem is your personal nightmare, you’re not alone. On this episode, host Dr. Samantha Yammine is joined by drag queen and math communicator Kyne Santos to talk all things math and how it fuels our everyday lives. Sam also digs into how caffeine can make us persist in impossible tasks and, thanks to listener submissions, she follows up on a previous story about micropl...

We all know that science shapes science fiction, but what happens when the opposite is also true? This episode, senior producer Teresa Carey speaks with legendary science fiction author Kim Stanley Robinson about the intersection of science and science fiction and how the latter allows us to think about the effects of scientific advancement. Host, Dr. Samantha Yammine also digs into what happens in the brain in the moments after de...

Humans and nature have always coexisted. But, human intervention makes our modern world look very different than it once did. This episode, host Dr. Samantha Yammine digs into how humans are reshaping the wild. Sam speaks to Dr. Harland Patch about the decline of insect populations around the world and how we can provide better environments for pollinators. She also dives into the world of CRISPR gene editing among Argentinian polo...

GPS runs our world, but the system is far from perfect and much more fragile than people believe. This episode, GPS expert Logan Scott speaks with senior producer Teresa Carey about the past, present, and future of GPS and how to avoid catastrophe when something goes wrong. Host, Dr. Samantha Yammine also explores the first new potential treatment for Huntington’s disease and how queen ants are creating clones of other species.&nbs...

As the climate shifts into a new normal, plenty of questions are being asked about the state of urban planning around the world. Mainly: how can we better adapt our cities to climate change? What does it mean to create a climate-resilient city? This episode, Senior Producer Teresa Carey is joined by Jesse M. Keenan, an expert in climate adaptation and sustainable urban development, to discuss how we can adjust the current systems i...

Whether you call it citizen science, participatory science, or community science, research conducted by everyday people has led to major discoveries across a wide range of fields. This episode, host Dr. Samantha Yammine is joined by Dr. Caren Cooper to discuss the benefits and mechanics when it comes to public participation in science. Dr. Cooper is an expert in the field and the author of Citizen Science: How Ordinary People are C...

Some of society’s greatest scientific achievements were made based on research that might sound silly or bizarre to the average person. But curiosity-driven exploration is just as important to science as research that starts out with clear-cut applications in mind.  

So, this episode, host Dr. Samantha Yammine is joined by Dr. Carly Anne York. Dr. York wrote The Salmon Cannon and the Levitating Frog: And Other Seriou...

Understanding exactly how the billions of neurons and trillions of connections in our brains could be one of the greatest scientific breakthroughs in history. And, surprisingly, we’re not as far off from that as you might think. In episode 2 of our brain series, host Dr. Samantha Yammine is joined by Dr. Forrest Collman who helped create the most detailed brain diagram ever made. Sam also digs into how much microplastic is really i...

Neuroscience is tricky… to say the least. Dedicated scientists have been exploring the organ since ancient times but there is still so much we don’t know about what goes on between our ears. In part 1 of our brain series, host Dr. Samantha Yammine speaks with neuroscientist Dr. Daniel Toker about his research on consciousness through experimenting with lab-grown organoids. He explains what we can learn about the brain from better u...

There’s no real replacement for traditional medicine, but what if there was an intuitive way to prevent the effects of things like depression, anxiety, and chronic pain? Social prescription is the act of being prescribed activities that center around connection with community, art, and nature. And it’s backed by science! Dr. Samantha Yammine is joined by author Julia Hotz to talk about the ins and outs of social prescription and ho...

Our attention spans are… not doing so great these days. With copious amounts of technology, apps, news articles, and social media posts at our fingertips, it makes sense that a lot of people are noticing how much more difficult it is to get into a state of deep reading. On part two of our literacy series, editorial correspondent Teresa Carey speaks with two experts on the subject: Dr. Maryanne Wolf and Dr. Daniel Willingham. They d...

Literacy is murkier than we think. This episode, as a part one of our literacy series, we explore recent research related to one of the most important milestones in our academic lives: learning to read. Host Dr. Samantha Yammine is joined by Emily Wood, a speech language pathologist who studies the methods we use for testing literacy in kids. She speaks with Sam about how we can better address gaps in reading among children and wha...

Every parent has wondered if their baby’s crying is normal at some point or another. While there is no “normal,” evidence shows that genetics might actually have a part to play in how long babies cry for. And another universal experience, harking back to “the good old days” in pop culture and our personal lives. Senior Producer, Teresa Carey, speaks with Dr. Clay Routledge about the good feelings - and sometimes sad memories - that...

Los Angeles is home to the only place in the world where ancient fossils are being actively excavated in the middle of the city: The La Brea Tar Pits. Today, host Dr. Samantha Yammine speaks to the deputy director and assistant curator of the La Brea Tar Pits and Museum, Dr. Regan Dunn. They talk about what makes this site so fascinating and what we can learn from what we find hidden in the tar. Sam also explores a recent study on ...

 Ozempic and other GLP-1 medications are everywhere. But with so much information available about this category of drug, it can be hard to know what to trust. Today, host Dr. Samantha Yammine speaks with Dr. Emma Beckett, a food and nutrition scientist, to unpack the facts and fictions behind GLP-1s and how we talk about them. Sam also talks with a research team who uncovered a brand new color using cutting-edge technology: Ol...

Forensic DNA is supposed to be the end all be all when it comes to solving crime, so why are there so many false convictions when it comes to using DNA evidence? Today, Senior Producer Teresa Carey talks to Dr. Gregory Hampikian about forensic DNA, fingerprints, AI, and the limitations of scientific evidence in criminal investigations. Host, Dr. Samantha Yammine also explores the Effort Paradox (aka why doing things that are hard c...

Sharks are vanishing from South Africa’s coast and Alison Towner knows why. One of the world’s top great white experts and a leading woman in STEM, Alison joins Dr. Samantha Yammine to break down her new Shark Week specials: Air Jaws: Return of Colossus and Great White Assassins and reveal what’s really happening to these iconic predators. Then, Sam dives into new findings about hammerhead shark migration and why that little blue s...

Shark Week returns July 20 on Discovery!  

This episode is the Shark Week audio companion Part 1! Dr. Samantha Yammine dives into the most surprising shark science of 2025, from sharks that make noise to the nano-scale ‘sharkitecture’ inside their skeletons. Sam also interviews Forrest Galante, wildlife biologist and featured Shark Week expert in Alien Sharks. Plus, Luke Tipple, an underwater face on this year’s Shar...

The skincare industry is riddled with false advertising, misleading labels, and supposed “miracle cures.” So, as a consumer, how are you meant to know what’s fact and what’s fiction? Today, host Dr. Samantha Yammine explores the science behind skincare, from how the collagen industry is causing deforestation in the Amazon for a product that might not actually work to why it’s important to get enough vitamin D. Then, Sam is joined b...