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A Biology Podcast for Everyone
You have been reading about the biologists behind the Ask A Biologist website. Now you can listen to them in our popular biology podcast show. Dr. Biology has been speaking with many of the biologists that are discovering new worlds and exploring new frontiers in biology. There are over 100 episodes and we continue to add more interviews. Each show includes a full written transcript and content log. Be sure to subscribe using your streaming service of choice. The Ask A Biologist Podcast can be found on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, Youtube, and most podcast apps.
Check out our YouTube channel!
If you missed it, we have our own YouTube channel where we have a large collection of videos that you can watch. We list some of them under our watch section on this website, but there are many more. Be sure to check them out and just like our podcast, don't forget to subscribe!
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Glowing Vomit, Cricket Serenades, and the Evolution of Animal Communication
Ask A Biologist Podcast, Vol. 109
Guest: Niko Hensley
The life of a biologist may not be what you expect. It is not all white lab coats and microscopes. There are remote islands, makeshift shacks that serve both for sleeping and a field laboratory. For this guest, it also includes cricket serenades and nighttime scuba dives in the ocean filled with glowing displays for shrimp vomit. Really, vomit! Dr. Biology sits down with biologist Niko Hensley to learn about his research into the world of animal communication. This is the first episode in a series of podcasts recorded at the Society of Integrative and Comparative Biology conference– also
The Last Stand for Ice
Ask A Biologist Podcast, Vol. 108
Guest: Stephanie Pfirman
Summer ice. Besides being cold and hard, it turns out to be critical for life on Earth. But what is it about this ice that makes it more important than other ice? Dr. Biology sits down with scientist Stephanie Pfirman to talk about summer ice and how the amount we see is shrinking rapidly. This ice is important to more than the animals and native people who depend on it to survive. It turns out it has an impact far beyond its cold edges.
Shark Tales
Ask A Biologist Podcast, Vol. 107
Guest: James Sulikowski
There is something about sharks that bring out our inner fears that sends chills down our back. But these animals have an important role in the health of our oceans. There are over 500 species of sharks, which means there is a lot to be learned about them. Like, did you know some sharks do not have any teeth. Dr. Biology catches up with James Sulikowski, a biologist and shark expert. The two talk about what we know and don’t know about these amazing animals.
Tiny Versus Mighty
Ask A Biologist Podcast, Vol. 106
Guest: Beth Pringle
It's tiny versus the mighty and a battle for an acacia tree. Dr. Biology catches up with Beth Pringle a biologist exploring the savanna of Kenya. The two talk about two animals that seem mismatched for battle that has a surprise ending. Beth is also the biologist who took us along on one of her research trips to Kenya. You can go along too in our virtual savanna trip.
What Makes You, You?
Ask A Biologist Podcast, Vol. 105
Guest: Irene Gallego Romero
It's time to jump into the topic of us, or what makes you, you. Dr. Biology connects with Irene Gallego Romero via Zoom to talk about nature versus nurture and some of the amazing things our genome does for us. If you are wondering what a genome is, no worries, they cover that in this fun discussion that takes place with the two of them over 8,000 miles apart.
Living in Extreme Worlds
Ask A Biologist Podcast, Vol. 104
Guest: Mallika Sarma
Going where no one has gone before sounds exciting, but are we ready to go to Mars? Traveling long distances, and living on another planet is going to be a challenge. You could say an extreme challenge because of the conditions in which we will have to live. Dr. Biology learns a bit about the challenges from anthropologist, Mallika Sarma, who is looking into what it will take to travel to and live on distant planets. Do you have the right stuff?
Biology Explained by Cats
Ask A Biologist Podcast, Vol. 103
Guest: Fiona Naughton
Beyond viral cat videos and the millions of cute pictures of our feline friends found on various social media channels, these four-legged animals might help us to better understand science. At least my guest thinks they can give us some insights into the world of bile acids, digestion, cholesterol, and drug therapies. Listen in as Dr. Biology learns how computational biochemist Fiona Naughton's artistic side has introduced some fun and instructive insights using cute cat illustrations.
A Tasty Bite of Science
Ask A Biologist Podcast, Vol. 102
Guest: Christy Spackman
Dr. Biology takes a bite into the world of food science with scientist Christy Spackman from the School for the Future of Innovation in Society and the Herberger Institute for Design and the Arts. The two venture into the realms of taste, smell, and texture. There is talk of burgers, some of them impossible. The two also talk about how we have been working towards what Christy calls “making nothing”, which by itself is really something.
Exploring the Dark Side of the Earth
Ask A Biologist Podcast, Vol. 101
Guest: Bruce Strickrott
Dr. Biology is out of the studio again and this time with his shoes off and inside the tiny, but powerful submarine named Alvin. He’s there to talk with the chief pilot of Alvin, Bruce Strickrott, about what it is like to explore the deep ocean. Listen in as we explore the living world, including the one that remains mostly unknown and ready for the next generation of scientists to take their shoes off and dive into dark side of the Earth.
Superoxide, a Superhero or Supervillain?
Ask A Biologist Podcast, Vol. 100
Guest: Colleen Hansel
Diving deep into the ocean is likely the most extreme place someone can set out to collect data, but sometimes that is what scientists need to do. In this show, Dr. Biology finds himself on board the research ship Atlantis in the floating laboratory of Colleen Hansel who is teaming up with the deep sea submarine called Alvin to track down and capture an elusive molecule that might help us understand how corals are, or are not adjusting to the rising ocean temperature.
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Ugly Bug Contest 2013 winner
The 2013 Ugly Bug Contest has come to an end and all the clues point to a single suspect.
Ugly Bug Contest 2014
As the town faces unspeakable forces of nature, who will save the day?
Ugly Bug Contest 2014 Winner
A city saved and thanks to a last minute 100 Ugly Bug Contest votes, an amazing win for the Astonishing Treehopper.
Ugly Bug Contest 2016
2016 Ugly Bug video
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