Whimsical Wavelengths - A Science Podcast
Whimsical Wavelengths is a science podcast hosted by volcanologist and geophysicist Dr. Jeffrey Zurek, exploring how science actually works—messy data, imperfect models, human personalities, and all. The show spans topics across the physical sciences, including volcanology, astronomy, geophysics, planetary science, physics, food science, and the history of scientific discovery. Most episodes feature conversations with working scientists and researches discussing their research, methods, and career paths. Others are solo, narrative-driven explorations that trace how we came to understand the natural world. Episode topics vary from wandering stars and volcanoes to black holes, ice cream, and the occasional scientific paradox. Throughout, the focus is less on headlines and more on process: how evidence is gathered, how ideas change, and why uncertainty is a feature of science rather than a flaw. Whimsical Wavelengths is rooted in science communication and teaching, with an emphasis on clarity without oversimplification. Mathematical rigor, historical context, and real-world field experience are woven together to show how different scientific disciplines intersect and inform one another. Along the way, there are reflections on mentorship, belonging in science, and what it means to pursue curiosity as a career. The tone is thoughtful, curious, and occasionally irreverent—expect the odd terrible science dad joke, but never at the expense of the science itself. This is a podcast for listeners who enjoy learning how we know what we know, whether they come from a scientific background or simply want a deeper, more honest look at the process of discovery. New episodes are released every two weeks.
Episodes
Canada has volcanoes — and one of the most hazardous sits just 150 kilometres north of Vancouver.
In this episode of Whimsical Wavelengths, host Jeffrey Zurek is joined by volcanologist Dr. Glynn Williams-Jones, Professor of Earth Sciences at Simon Fraser University, for an in-depth look at Mount Meager, one of Canada’s most active — and least understood — volcanic systems.
Mount Meager is part of the Cascade Volcanic Arc, the same t...
Nikola Tesla has been credited with large leaps forward like AC current and wireless transmission. Including things that are conspiratorial or not feasible like a death ray and limitless free power. Ya his legacy is complicated. So fire up the device and lets get going with this episode!
Here is a demo for a Tesla Coil by me! :https://youtu.be/DQK1zZ87Gko?si=yw4C0AABspUCNTYs
Some of the stuff I read to gather information. There was m...
This is a reflective, end-of-year historical deviation. From wandering stars and stubborn philosophers to lost planets, national rivalries, and Pluto’s demotion, this episode explores how we learned what the planets are and why the process matters as much as the answer.
You see every once in a while, Whimsical Wavelengths takes a historical deviation. This is one of those episodes.
Instead of cutting-edge research, this solo episode ...
Who Becomes a Scientist? Exploring STEM Pathways and Identity in Astronomy with Dr. Zachary Richards
If we want a thriving future scientific community, we first need to understand why people choose — or don’t choose — careers in STEM.
This week on Whimsical Wavelengths, we turn the telescope around and look not at stars, but at the people who choose to study them. What shapes a scientist’s identity? Why do some students pursue STEM — and astronomy in particular — while others drift away? And how do mentorship, representation, and c...
In this episode of Whimsical Wavelengths, we explore how machine learning is opening new possibilities in geophysical imaging and inversion workflows. Like image segmentation! We look at how modern computational tools can help interpret what we cannot observe directly beneath the surface.
Our guest, Johnathan Kutti, joins us to break down how machine learning approaches can assist with geophysical inversion, improve subsurface model...
We’re heading back through deep time on Whimsical Wavelengths — but this time, we’re not walking with dinosaurs, we’re flying with them! Flight has evolved at least four separate times in Earth’s history, and today’s episode focuses on one of the earliest masters of the skies: pterosaurs.
Host Jeffrey Zurek is joined by Dr. Adele Pentland, palaeontologist and lead author of the paper describing Haliskia peterseni, a newly discovered...
Plastic and the environment and what you think you know. A discussion about science which honestly misses the mark but a useful discussion. Understanding the good is just as important to the bad
The first fully synthetic plastic was developed in 1907. What they needed was an electrical insulator. Thanks to alternating current (covered in season 1 too with Nikola tesla!) electricity was being wired to new places creating a problem of...
Diving straight into the deep end of the universe: supermassive black holes!
An episode with enough gravitational pull that you can’t help but get sucked in.
Host Dr. Jeffrey Zurek welcomes Dr. James Chan, a postdoctoral researcher at the American Museum of Natural History and City University of New York, to explore the strange physics and luminous surroundings of the darkest objects in the cosmos.
At the center of the conversation is...
I scream you scream we all scream for Ice cream.
Time for some sweet delicious science delivered right here on whimsical wavelengths. Food science! Love the breath we get to explore here. This discussion is going to investigate some of the science that goes into perfecting and understanding the greatest frozen dessert that comes in so many different flavours. Yes, ice cream!
Ice cream like other materials, like magma, melt, freeze an...
Its the start of Season 2!! Time for Basaltic plinian eruptions, melt inclusions, viscosity and more. Today we going to head into one of my papers!
Because it’s one of my papers that means heading back to volcanology. Like other historical scientists covered here on Whimsical wavelengths I will follow where the data is pointing. Follow the path.
When I was planning my PhD, yes I was in the envious position of basically picking my pr...
Today the pod shows its fitness with im-peck-able wordplay. That's right, today's episode is for the birds. At least those which have a raven-ous appetite for knowledge.
Our guest, PhD candidate Miranda Zammarelli (Dartmouth College) has research that takes place in what I guess can be best described as the closest we can get for lab conditions in the natural world. The site for her work is the Hubbard Brook Experimental Forest - lo...
Part2 jumps in where part 1 left off so more about Theropods! specifically about one of Dr François Therrien's recent studies about a Gorgosaurus and what was found inside its stomach!!!!
incase you missed it from the notes of the last episode:
Dr François Therrien - The Curator of Dinosaur Palaeoecology at the Royal Tyrrell Museum in Drumheller Alberta https://tyrrellmuseum.com/
Dr François Therrien's Professional Highlights (lifted ...
This time we take a deep dive into an hypothesis The longevity bottleneck hypothesis: Could dinosaurs have shaped ageing in present-day mammals?” by João Pedro de Magalhães
https://doi.org/10.1002/bies.202300098
See our branch of the animal kingdom, mammals, first evolved around 200 million years ago. During the age of dinosaurs. To quote the paper “long evolutionary pressure on early mammals for rapid reproduction led to the loss or...
Time for someone who some have called the greatest scientist you have not heard of. Likely the reason average IQ's have no fallen (even if it feels like they have - idiocracy)!
This is the sibling episode to the last one. The rise of Leaded Gas. This time the story starts with Dr. Clair Patterson a geochemist. Before the PhD and discovering the age of the Earth, Clair Patterson and his wife Laurie (also a chemist) became civilians w...
Today we are going to start to cover a real scientific disaster story. No it isn’t the hollywood variety although maybe it should be. We have the movie Oppenheimer although to tell the whole story here requires multiple main characters. Perhaps a TV series then. I have known I wanted to tell this story for some time but have struggled on the best way.
It starts at the gas pump and the question: Ever wondered why all pumps say “unlea...
Deformation and gravity go hand in hand in volcano monitoring like hot apple pie and icecream. They fit together great. as these two techniques tell us so much more together than separately.
This time I reached out to a friend to share her research!
Remember volcanic eruptions are dynamic. The amount of force and material involved in an eruption … Even if the eruption is small the changes can be significant to the overall system.
Vol...
This time it is all about insects and their respiratory systems?! They represent so much of the biomass on earth.
Depending on the study and methods used there is more weight on earth within insects than humans. With over 8 billion humans and each of us weighs a lot more than an insect…… There are a lot of them. They form the backbone of many ecosystems.
Today though we will specifically focus on their respiratory system. How do they...
There is so much we don’t understand about the early universe. Or any part of the universe not nearby. Part of the reason for this is time and distance. The universe as we understand/see it today started ~13.8 billion years ago.
So how do we test something that we cannot view or experience? The evolution of galaxies takes place over billions of years. We cannot track its changes over the eons because human history is in the thousan...
The Earth is dynamic. All of it. Plate tectonics, weather, ocean currents, biosphere, cryosphere, extraterrestrial like solar events, meteorites, nearby supernovae
And on and on and on
But the seas are constant right? I mean that they exist. They have almost always existed. No I am not going back to Porto oceans some 4 billion years ago! I am referring to the mediterranean! I hope you are up for a salty tale of disappearing sea.
This ...
Welcome back to Part 2 of Gravitational lenses on Whimsical Wavelengths. In part 2 we finally get to the real star of the show, strong gravitational lensing and the paper that was underlying the topic.
“Euclid: A complete Einstein ring in NGC 6505 “
A lot less to setup this time. No need to stretch this out like gravity stretches time.
But.....
How did gravity stop the reckless driver?
It pulled some strings… mainly the ones holding th...
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