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Fried Hollandaise Sauce: Achievable With Science
August 28, 2009 Chef Wylie Dufresne, the owner of New York City restaurant wd-50, experiments with food, literally. He has lab notebooks detailing what certain chemicals do to certain dishes. Science Friday stopped in to see him prepare his scientific spin on eggs Benedict.
Science Roundup: Worms, Snorkels, Cell Battles
August 21, 2009 Science Friday highlights science news from the week, including: sea worms that drop bioluminescent bombs, how deepwater rice avoids drowning and what happens when bacteria and fruit fly immune cells meet.
Lasers And Glowing Dye Illuminate Ocean Processes
August 14, 2009 John Dabiri, bioengineer at Caltech, has developed new techniques for studying the motion of aquatic animals. In a recent study in the journal Nature, Dabiri and colleagues explain how swimming animals contribute to ocean mixing — the process that distributes heat, nutrients and gasses throughout the sea.
Engineering A Band-Aid Of Beating Heart Cells
July 24, 2009 Jordan Lancaster and Steven Goldman, of the Southern Arizona Veterans Administration and the University of Arizona, put rat heart cells on a piece of synthetic mesh and within a few days, the mesh started beating. The hope is that the patch could be used to treat damaged hearts.
Some Moths Escape Bats By Jamming Sonar
July 17, 2009 For over 50 million years, bats and moths have been engaged in an evolutionary arms race. A study in the journal Science identifies another weapon in the moth arsenal: the ability to jam bat sonar. Aaron Corcoran, of Wake Forest University, explains the research.
Want To Cut Grass Out Of Your Life? Try Moss
July 10, 2009 Summertime doesn't have to mean hours behind the lawn mower, at least for shade-dwellers. Forty years ago, David Benner, horticulturist and moss enthusiast, killed all the grass on his property and cultivated moss in its place. Benner has 25 different moss species growing in his garden near New Hope, Pa.
Fireworks Are Packed With Chemistry
July 3, 2009 Why do some fireworks shoot golden flaming balls while others produce green sparks? It's just chemistry. Bassam Shakhashiri, chemistry professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, explains the science of fireworks.
Video Pick: An Airplane That Flies Itself
June 26, 2009 Meet the V-Bat: it's about 70 pounds, eight feet tall, equipped with computers and flies without a pilot. Engineer Stephen Morris, the president and CEO of MLB Co., describes how the plane works and what it might be good for.
Fluke Footage Shows How Sperm Whales Steal
June 19, 2009 For years, long-line fishermen in Alaska have complained that whales have been stealing their sablefish catch. A team of researchers mounted a video camera to a fishing line and caught a sperm whale in the act, providing new insight into whale behavior.
Secret To Slithering Is In The Scales
June 12, 2009 How do snakes slither on smooth surfaces? Mechanical engineer David Hu, of Georgia Tech, filmed snakes slithering up inclines, outfitted them in jackets and photographed them through jello to better understand snake locomotion.
Manhattanhenge: Crowds Gather To See A Star Align
June 5, 2009 Twice a year, the sunset lines up with New York City's street grid — making for spectacular views. Neil deGrasse Tyson, director of the Hayden Planetarium in New York, identified the cosmic event over a decade ago and coined the name Manhattanhenge.
Happy Birthday, Telescope
May 29, 2009 This year is the 400th anniversary of the invention of the telescope. To celebrate its birthday, Science Friday producers hit the streets of New York City to find out what people know about the telescope and its history. Can you explain how a telescope works?
Belting Out A Musical Physics Lesson
May 22, 2009 High school science teacher Sam Terfa wanted to demonstrate a fundamental physics principle: resonant frequency. To do so, he found the best singer at Minnehaha Academy and had him serenade a wine glass. It did not turn out well for the glass.
Pick Of The Week: Arizona's Ancient Agaves
May 15, 2009 Perhaps best known as the source of tequila, agaves were an important crop long before the invention of the margarita. Botanist Wendy Hodgson says pre-Columbian farmers cultivated agaves for food as far back as 800 A.D.
This Cockatoo Can Shake His Tail Feathers
May 1, 2009 Irena Schulz filmed her sulphur-crested cockatoo, Snowball, dancing to the Backstreet Boys. It was a YouTube sensation. A couple of neuroscientists, including John Iversen of the Neurosciences Institute, saw the video and decided to look into it.
