Set Phasers to Stun

Episode 9: How to Regrow an Arm

Tue, 19 Mar 2024 14:30:43 GMT

Regenerative medicine is a hot topic – not just in modern medicine, but in the science of the future as well. But how does it really work? What can we do with cells and DNA… and what’s still firmly in the realms of the impossible? In this episode of Set Phasers to Stun, we explore the limits of regenerative medicine, discuss how Wolverine and Deadpool heal themselves, and investigate why super-healing isn’t all it’s cracked up to be.

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Minisode: Oceans, Moons, and Megalodon

Tue, 27 Feb 2024 14:30:06 GMT

When it comes to bad science, creature features are the absolute pinnacle. In this minisode, we talk about what the ocean floor has in common with distant moons, whether or not there really could be a surviving Megalodon in the deep, and our favourite pseudoscience from The Meg.

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Minisode: This Is Your Brain on Digital

Tue, 20 Feb 2024 14:30:51 GMT

Can you upload your consciousness into a digital storage medium? Can you convert yourself into a cyber-person, save yourself to a backup hard drive, or edit your code to remove the bits you’d rather not have? In this minisode, we talk about the reality of brain-computer interfaces and why that’s unlikely anytime in the near future – no matter how much fans of these interfaces may yearn for a digital existence.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Episode 6: Science... or Magic?

Tue, 30 Jan 2024 16:16:57 GMT

Insect-like predators on ice-bound planets… forests that spring up overnight… a moon that’s really an egg… are these science fiction stories really scientific? Or is it all just magic dressed up in a science costume? In this episode of Set Phasers to Stun, we ask where the boundary between science and magic really lies in sci-fi and look at some of the good, bad, and ugly “science” we’ve seen featured over the years.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Minisode 2: Y2K38

Thu, 04 Jan 2024 16:40:25 GMT

To kick off the New Year, our latest minisode explores what the Y2K bug actually was, how it managed to frighten computer experts around the world, and why it ended up not being such a big deal after all. Then, we talk about the 2038 problem – an issue that could be as big as Y2K was forecast to, be but one that we can prevent if we take the right steps before it’s too late…

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Minisode 1: Reindeer Games

Tue, 26 Dec 2023 17:48:23 GMT

In this five-minute holiday minisode, we learn about which reindeer have antlers in winter, how they see in the dark, what makes a reindeer’s nose red, and more. If you’ve ever wondered just how realistic a tale of flying reindeer, glowing noses, and North Pole hijinks can be, now’s your chance to find out!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Episode 3: Wibbly-Wobbly, Timey-Wimey Stuff

Tue, 19 Dec 2023 14:00:23 GMT

In this episode of Set Phasers to Stun, we look at time travel, multiverses, super speed, theories (plural) of relativity, and more. We cover Stephen King’s “The Jaunt” and forget to cover Stephen Hawking’s champagne party (for time travelers only!). And we leave ourselves with plenty of questions for next time…

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Episode 2: Stayin' Alive

Tue, 12 Dec 2023 14:00:39 GMT

In this episode of Set Phasers to Stun, we talk about survival skills on Earth and on foreign worlds: building shelter, gathering water, finding food… and how not to end up at the bottom of the food chain. (Complete with real-world book recommendations!) So if you’re heading out into the final frontier… make sure you preload this episode into your shuttlecraft’s survival kit.

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Episode 1: A Plant-Based You

Tue, 05 Dec 2023 14:00:11 GMT

In this episode of Set Phasers to Stun, we explore the possibilities of lab-grown meat (and insect burgers), artificially created human organs (with credit to the humble leaf as a scaffold for new tissue growth), and even xenotransplantation – donating and receiving organs from alien species. Is any of this possible in the real world? Absolutely… as long as the aliens are friendly.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.