Lab Out Loud

As professor of Environmental Studies and Geosciences at Lawrence University, Marcia Bjornerud knows a lot about rocks. In her new book, Turning to Stone: Discovering the Subtle Wisdom of Rocks, Marcia emphasizes the connection between human experiences and the physical earth, encouraging everyone to learn from the dynamic landscape around us. Marcia joins us to tell us about Turning to Stone and how the book is mapped to her own life, provides suggestions for how schools can improve teaching geosciences, and explains why we are living in a golden age of geoscience. Show notes at: https://laboutloud.com/2025/04/episode-284-turning-to-stone/ [https://laboutloud.com/?p=6090]

Ever feel lost in the world of wellness advice online? Our guest, Dr. Jonathan Stea, has a new book called "Mind the Science" that helps cut through the noise of the wellness industry, exposing pseudoscience and mental health misinformation. As a promoter of science communication, Dr. Stea seeks to empower people to make informed decisions about mental well-being. His new book is a must-read for anyone who wants to understand the real science behind mental health and protect themselves from misinformation lurking in healthcare, pop culture, and social media. Show notes at: https://laboutloud.com/2024/11/episode-283-mind-the-science/ [https://laboutloud.com/?p=6062]

Science comedy writer Sarah Rose Siskind has some ideas. We met Sarah at SXSWedu in the spring of 2024 where she delivered a keynote titled Science Comedy: Why it's a Thing and How to Do It. Of course we had to have her on the show. To open our 18th season, Sarah joins Lab Out Loud to share insights from her work with Hello SciCom, emphasize the link between humor and empathy, and give some tips for using comedy to communicate science in your classroom. Show notes at: https://laboutloud.com/2024/09/episode-282-teach-science-with-humor/ [https://laboutloud.com/?p=6052]

It's spring, and it's a great time to get students outside to do some science. Need some ideas? Science teacher Brian Kaestner (St. Mary's Hall in San Antonio) and Vernier Educational Technology Specialist Colleen McDaniel join us to discuss how they use Vernier sensors so students can locally measure the effects of climate change. Show notes at: https://laboutloud.com/2024/05/episode-281-vernier-climate-change/ [https://laboutloud.com/?p=5910]

Video version at: https://youtu.be/7zvYh4XvFVk [https://youtu.be/7zvYh4XvFVk] In 2017, Sam Cornwell launched a successful Kickstarter campaign to make a pinhole camera called the Solarcan. Now a successful company with the same name, the Solarcan is a simple camera that takes extremely long time exposures capable of capturing the path of the sun. Sam joins us for this special video episode of Lab Out Loud to tell us how the Solarcan combines art and astronomy for the citizen scientist in all of us. Show notes at: https://laboutloud.com/2024/03/episode-280-solarcam [https://laboutloud.com/2024/03/episode-280-solarcam]