Side of Science

WTF is the cloud?

In this final episode for Season 2, Stacey and Clinton journey from the darkness of space to the deepest parts of the sea to untangle the science of cloud computing. Launching with a tale that connects Genghis Khan, the International Space Station, and Steve Jobs, it's not just about servers in the sky; it's a deep dive into Sputnik, submarine cables, and the surprising energy required to stream your favorite shows. From the garden hoses on the ocean floor and power consumption of AI to finding the coolest places on Earth to house our data and to how the cloud is accelerating science endeavours around the world. It’s a mission like no other to answer WTF is the cloud. Curriculum Links: Science as a Human endeavour: Technological advancements in computing and internet infrastructure, ethical considerations of energy consumption and environmental impact of data centres, the role of international collaboration in large-scale science projects. Physics: Electromagnetic waves and their use in data transfer, the principles of light transmission through fibre optic cables, energy transfers and transformations in computing systems, and the relationship between electricity, resistance, and heat generation. Technology: How data is stored and protected, the basics of binary code and electromagnetic memory, and future technologies such as liquid cooling, quantum computing, and DNA data storage. Space technology: The history of space exploration and its influence on the development of internet and cloud computing, and the use of cloud computing in modern space research and data analysis.See omnystudio.com/listener [https://omnystudio.com/listener] for privacy information.

How does blood do its job?

It’s all about good humour and not a drop of bad blood as Stacey and Clinton pour out the science of the red and white cells pumping through our bodies. They pass on the Cheerios and head straight into a heart pumping oxygenated orchestra of transportation, regulation, communication and protection. From how blood moves through our veins, arteries, and capillaries, the process of plasma leakage, tissue fluid exchange, and the effects of the scent of blood. Plus what happens when you hack your blood and the evolutionary adaptations of blood for peak performance in some populations. Leave the buff coat at home and channel your inner Buffy instead for all things crimson, yellow, black and blue. Curriculum Links: Biology: Body systems (circulatory system's role in transporting oxygen, nutrients, hormones, and waste products), cells (components and functions) and genetics and evolution (evolutionary adaptations related to blood, such as the adaptations of Sherpas living at high altitudes). Chemistry: Components of blood including plasma, red blood cells, white blood cells, platelets.  Health and Physical Education: Performance enhancement and doping in sport including the physiological effects and potential risks of blood doping and other blood-related performance-enhancing substances. Ethics: Ethical considerations of blood doping and genetic manipulation including the ethical issues surrounding the use of blood manipulation techniques in sports and potential future applications of genetic manipulation related to blood.See omnystudio.com/listener [https://omnystudio.com/listener] for privacy information.

What is it like to live with Huntington's disease?

Stacey brings in a special guest to dive into the human side of science. Ali isn’t just living with Huntington’s, he grew up in a Huntington’s family, watching the disease echo through generations. Ali shares the moment a DNA test turned 'maybe' into certainty and the tight-rope walk between hope and honesty when a partner asks, “Do we try for kids?”.  It’s human, nuanced, and a powerful insight into scientific ethics: autonomy, privacy, reproductive choice, and the right to not know. Because science isn’t just Petri dishes, it’s people, futures, and the fork-in-the-road decisions that keep your mind racing at night. Curriculum Links: Biology: Genetics and heredity including DNA structure and function, inheritance (transmission of genetic information), genetic variation and diversity (mutations, epigenetics) and developmental biology including embryonic development (cellular differentiation, role of genes). Physics: Technological applications of physics in genetic research (e.g., imaging techniques) and principles of measurement and data analysis in biological contexts.See omnystudio.com/listener [https://omnystudio.com/listener] for privacy information.

What is the DNA we share?

Talk about twisted deoxyribose family drama! The story of Lydia Fairchild and her mysteriously non-DNA related children gives Stacey cause for a double take on some unique science. The chimera chaos leads the team to wander the streets of DNA snips and ancestral alleles that makes us unique. From coding and non-coding DNA to epigenetics, nuclear tides and cloning. Plus, the influence of Sonic the Hedgehog on our own human uniqueness and tracing ancestry through the Viking Finger. Curriculum Links Biology: Genetics and heredity including DNA structure and function (chemical basis of heredity), inheritance (transmission of genetic information) and genetic variation and diversity (mutations, epigenetics). Developmental biology including embryonic development (cellular differentiation, role of genes), stem cells (biological potential) and chimerism and conjoined twins (biological anomalies). Chemistry: DNA Structure and function including chemical components of DNA (bases, sugar, phosphate), chemical bonds holding DNA together and basic principles of molecular structure and function. Forensic science (Applied Biology/Chemistry): DNA profiling including chemical analysis of STRs for identification and application of biological principles to legal contexts. Biotechnology (Applied Biology/Chemistry): Ancestry testing and genetic engineering and cloning technologies. Ethics: Ethics of cloning (societal and moral considerations of a biological technology) and implications of genetic testing (social, psychological, and ethical impacts of biological information). Science as a Human Endeavour: Scientific naming and discovery (historical and cultural context of biological terms).See omnystudio.com/listener [https://omnystudio.com/listener] for privacy information.

How and why do we see colour?

The ancient Egyptians, Sistine Chapel, Van Gogh’ s Starry night and Dr Frankenstein have some eye-opening chemistry in common, and it all has to do with colour. Starting from lapis skies and cerulean waves, Stacey and Clinton shine a light on how and why we see colour, the visible light spectrum, additive and subtractive colour and changes to colour underwater. The science of colour is never black and white, from Monet's ultraviolet vision, colour blind male monkeys, to pigments, peacocks and pyrotechnics, it’s the full science spectrum of biology, chemistry and physics all in one. Curriculum Links Chemistry: Chemical reactions, elements, compounds, and properties of substances including exploring the chemical composition of pigments like Prussian blue and the reactions involved in their synthesis or investigating the combustion process and the flame test's role in identifying elements. Physics: Light, the electromagnetic spectrum, and energy transfer. Including analysing the wavelengths of light and their relationship to color perception and understanding how light behaves in different mediums (e.g., water) and how this affects colour. Biology: Human and animal vision, genetics, and evolution.For example, examining the structure of the eye and how it perceives colour and discussing the genetic basis of colour vision and how it has evolved in different species. History of Science: Scientific discoveries and methods including tracing the history of pigment discovery and the development of synthetic colours and investigating the evolution of theories about light and colour, from Newton to modern understanding. Earth and Space Science: Sunlight and light's properties in different environments. Exploring how sunlight interacts with the atmosphere and affects the colours we see and understanding how light behaves underwater and the implications for marine life and colour perception.See omnystudio.com/listener [https://omnystudio.com/listener] for privacy information.