Biosphere 2 Podcast

Each episode we feature in depth interviews with scientists, authors, engineers, entrepreneurs, artists and policy makers exploring the threads between Earth, its living systems, and our place in the Universe.

enBiosphere 2 Aaron Bugaj24 Episodes

Episodes (24)

#004: Biospherians - Jane Poynter & Taber MacCallum

In this episode we are joined by former Biospherians turned Space Industry Entrepreneurs Jane Poynter and Taber MacCallum. Jane and Taber are the Founders and co-CEO's of Space Perspective, a company developing balloon powered human-spaceflight to the Earths stratosphere. Jane & Taber were both members of the Biosphere 2 design team and members of the original Biosphere 2 crew who lived for two years inside the sealed, self-sustaining habitat.

Before Space Perspective, Jane & Taber co-founded World View Enterprises, the Silicon Valley-backed stratosphere balloon technology company. They also co-founded Paragon Space Development Corporation, the Human Life Support Systems company that has produced patented technologies on most human spacecraft today. Jane is the author of The Human Experiment: Two Years and Twenty Minutes Inside Biosphere 2. Taber served as Chief Technology & Safety Officer for StratEx, a project that launched Google Executive Alan Eustace to the edge of space under a balloon, breaking the Red Bull Stratos Spacedive record in 2014.

In this episode we explore Jane & Taber's experiences as Biospherians and how there experiences inside, paved the way for careers focused on space technologies and shifting human perspectives on our place in the Universe. If you want to hear more about Jane & Taber's Biosphere 2 Experience check out their Biosphere 2 Earth Day Webinar

enAugust 07, 2020

#003: Hidden Water - Ben Johnson & Dr. Ben Wilder

In this episode, we are joined by Ben Johnson and Dr. Ben Wilder. Ben Johnson is a Tucson based visual artist and curator whose photo-realistic paintings have been featured in galleries worldwide. Dr. Ben Wilder is a Tucson based botanist & desert ecologist. He is the director of the Tumamoc Hill Desert Laboratory & the Director of the Next Generation Sonoran Desert Researchers.

Ben Johnson and Dr. Ben Wilder have spent the last several years traveling to Sonora, Mexico to study and catalogue one of the Sonoran Desert's most intriguing phenomenon, the Pozos of the Grand Desierto. The pozos are ancient fresh water springs sprinkled mysteriously along the largest expanse of sand dunes in North America. In this conversation, we explore the new scientific findings of the pozos and the artwork that resulted from several seasons of collaboration between our two guests. As the conversation unfolds, we find ourselves unraveling deeper truths about these sites as confluence points of culture, biology, and larger earth systems.

Dr. Ben Wilder and Ben Johnson Pozos project website:

https://ngen6and6.com/ben-and-ben

Link to Hidden Water artwork:

https://www.benjohnsonart.com/artwork/hidden-water-pozos-of-the-gran-desierto/

Link to Geoscience Paper:

https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3263/9/9/378

enJuly 21, 2020

#002: Disease, Climate, & Covid-19 - Dr. Kacey Ernst

Today we are joined by infectious disease epidemiologist Dr. Kacey Ernst. In this conversation we cover the spread, prevention, and treatment of infectious diseases like COVID 19. Dr. Ernst is an associate professor in the Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics at the University of Arizona. Her primary projects examine how ecological and social changes impact the transmission of infectious diseases like dengue, malaria, and now COVID-19. Local AZ Covid-19 Response App designed by Kacey & team: azcovidtxt.org/

enJuly 06, 2020

#001: Legacy of Biosphere 2 - Deputy Director John Adams

In this interview, John Adams, Deputy Director of Biosphere 2, speaks on the legacy of the Biosphere 2 facility as both an unparalleled Earth Systems research facility and as a stand alone feat in architecture and engineering.

enJuly 06, 2020

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Biosphere 2 Podcast

Episodes (24)

#004: Biospherians - Jane Poynter & Taber MacCallum

#003: Hidden Water - Ben Johnson & Dr. Ben Wilder

#002: Disease, Climate, & Covid-19 - Dr. Kacey Ernst

#001: Legacy of Biosphere 2 - Deputy Director John Adams