Brains Matter

With the release of IMAX’s “Pandas 3D” recently, I talk to Dr Jake Owens, an American conservational biologist based at the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding in Sichuan, China, and the project work he has been doing in terms of Panda re-introduction to the wild and conservation work that the documentary is based on.

I spoke to Jake about:
– His background and journey into the world of conservation
– His previous projects and conservation work
– The work being done in China to reintroduce the Giant Panda to the wild
– His involvement with the “Pandas 3D” IMAX documentary

Download MP3 of Ep 186

A big thank you to Kate Piasecka and IMAX Melbourne for making this episode happen.

In today’s episode, I talk to Kirsten Banks, a young female physics and astronomy student at the University of New South Wales.

Topics we cover include:

– How Kirsten got into physics and astronomy
– Her interest in archeaoastronomy
– Australian Aboriginal astronomy
– Research interests
– Females in science and physics

Download MP3 of Ep 185

In today’s episode I speak to Dr Zara Dennis, who has appeared on the podcast previously. We catch up on what she’s been up to since we last spoke, and I talked to her after she

Topics we cover include:

– Mixing Zara’s interest in flying with education
– What sparked her interest in flying
– Her piloting career
– The Growing Teacher Tall Poppies Award
– The Amazing Spaghetti Machine contest
– Her collaboration with PrimeSci in providing holiday programmes to children
– Taking her classes out to remote and rural communities
– Women in Aviation International’s involvement in the programme
– Future extensions to the Sci Fly programme
– The need to encourage females into STEM subjects

Download MP3 of Ep 184

The web page of Sci Fly STEM Outreach is:

http://www.sciflystemoutreach.com.au/

Hi all,

The winner of the online tutoring competition that was mentioned in episode 183 has been announced. The winner is:

Giuliana De Bellis

Congratulations Giuliana! Please contact the folks out at MyWebTutor to collect your prize.

In today’s episode, I talk to Anant Tanna once again. This time we talk about his interest in science outreach, why it’s important, and the fun of learning science.
Topics we cover include:

– Why is outreach important?
– Why is science outreach, in particular, important?
– How should outreach be approached?
– Why does science need outreach compared to other industries?
– The need to do more outreach now than in the past
– Understanding the need for fundamental research and indirect outcomes of science
– Techniques to communicate science
– Why science is fun
– Science for the right audience
– What inspired Anant to get into science

And make sure you listen right to the end! High school students have a chance to win a scholarship for one semester’s free tuition from MyWebTutor. So listen in for details on how to enter, and put your entry in for the chance to win. Entries close on the 20th of July, 2017.

Download MP3 of Ep 183

In today’s episode, I speak to Joanna Corby, who was visiting the University of New South Wales from the University of Virginia, while doing research into Large Organic Molecules in High Mass Star Forming Regions in our galaxy.

We spoke about

– What region of our galaxy is being looked at?
– What are the major chemically distinct regions in this area?
– Are these chemical compounds restricted to these areas?
– How complex are these molecules?
– What is the relationship between this and life in space?
– How dense are these regions
– What does it mean in terms of the process of star formation?

Download MP3 of Ep 182

In today’s episode I speak to Anant Tanna from the University of New South Wales School of Physics, about his research on looking for invisible galaxies. During our conversation, we cover:

– What are invisible galaxies?
– How do we find distant galaxies that we can’t see via their own light?
– What are redshift distances?
– How does looking at neutral hydrogen emissions help show distances of galaxies?
– How are multiple galaxies detected along the same line of sight?

Download MP3 of Ep 181

This Episode of Brains Matter celebrates the 10 year anniversary of the show. Yes, Brains Matter has hit the double figure mark. Starting out on the 16th of October 2006, the show has covered a wide range of topics and amazing guests.

In today’s show, I speak to Clive Weeks, who has been involved with the podcast for some time, and reminisce about the past ten years. The show is also a little bit of fun and turns things around a little bit – listen in to find out!

Also featured on today’s show are:

Richard Ogley
Karen Lewis
Allie Ford
Rob Lloyd

And a special thank you to Victoria from Russia for your contribution.

Download MP3 of Ep 180

In today’s episode I speak to Dr Michael Childress from the Australian National University. He talks to me about his research into supernovae. During our conversations, we cover:

– His research into the progenitors of supernovae
– The techniques used to determine what type of stars they were before going supernovae
– The difference between the types of supernovae
– At what point would a star blow up?

Listen in!

Download MP3 of Ep 179

In this episode I speak to Dr Roland Crocker from the Australian National University on the topic of Fermi Bubbles – what are they and how do they form?

Listen in to find out!

Download MP3 of Ep 178

I speak to Angus Wright from ICRAR who speaks to us about the GAMA project and radio astronomy, and the work he is doing as part of his PhD in the GAMA collaboration.

Download MP3 of Ep 177

This episode is supported by the Monash Centre for Astrophysics

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Do you or someone you know dislike getting the needle? Well in today’s episode, I speak to Dr Anushi Rajapaksa from the Murdoch Children’s Institute on her research into delivering vaccinations via a spray.

We also talk about DNA vaccines and personalised medicine. Sounds intriguing!

To find out more, listen into the episode!

Download MP3 of Ep 176

Listen to today’s episode as I talk to Assoc Prof Charley Lineweaver from the Australian National University on his thoughts about whether the Solar System is unique or special!

Download MP3 of Ep 175

Listen in as Dr Zara Dennis talks to us about her journey from sports science to teaching high school physics. In particular, Zara talks to us about:

– Her interest in geophysics and outer space
– Working with lasers
– What led to doing her PhD
– PhD that looked at electromagnetic to find gold mineralisation
– An explanation of the experiments Zara used for her research
– What other uses could these techniques be used for?
– Life as a teacher
– How cool science is!

Download MP3 of Ep 174

Hi listeners!

As you would have noticed, the Brains Matter podcast has been on a bit of a hiatus over the past year and you haven’t heard much from the show. If you’ve wondered why, well there’s been a combination of factors, from technical issues to funding issues, and in amongst this all was a dispute with a Chinese company who tried to hijack my domain name and a few other wrangles.

The Ordinary Guy in February

But perhaps the main factor has been several health related events – I’ve had to rush (or be rushed myself) to the Emergency Department four times in the past year for family members and as you can all appreciate, these things have taken precedence.

Hopefully I haven’t lost too many listeners, but I do plan on getting back to my regular output soon. I look forward to hearing from you all and thank you for your support.

OG

In today’s episode, I speak to Associate Professor Brad Carter from the University of Southern Queensland about Space Weather. What is it? How do we measure it? And what does it mean for the formation of life?

Download MP3 of Ep 173

This episode is supported by the Monash Centre for Astrophysics

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In today’s episode, I speak to Dr Lisa Harvey-Smith from the CSIRO, about the Square Kilometre Array project.

– What is the the Square Kilometre Array Project?
– The results of the decision on where to host the project
– What are the different parts of he SKA project
– The Murchison Widefield Array

Download MP3 of Ep 172

This episode is supported by the Monash Centre for Astrophysics

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During the Astronomical Society of Australia conference, I went and visited the Poster Sessions where students showcased their research. In today’s episode, I speak to Sarah Bruzzese, one of the poster session presenters.

Download MP3 of Ep 171

This episode is supported by the Monash Centre for Astrophysics

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During the Astronomical Society of Australia conference, I went and visited the Poster Sessions where students showcased their research. In today’s episode, I speak to Sarah Sweet, one of the poster session presenters.

Download MP3 of Ep 170

This episode is supported by the Monash Centre for Astrophysics

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The following recording is of the 2013 Astronomical Society of Australia’s Harley Wood Lecture, hosted by the Monash Centre for Astrophysics.

People, planets, stars, and even universes are born, they live for a while, and then die. Associate Professor Charles Lineweaver reviews what we now about the origin of the Earth and the origin of the life on it – the coming extinction of this life and the death of the Earth and Sun. The second law of thermodynamics is relevant to the birth and death of the universe.

Download MP3 of Ep 169

This episode is supported by the Monash Centre for Astrophysics

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