Safeguarding Sound Science

Star Trek Meets Evolutionary Biology (And Good Things Happen)

Star Trek is one of the greatest science fiction universes ever created, spawning 12 main television series and 13 movies over the last 60 years. Who among us hasn't trie

Teaching Evolution: Challenges, Progress, and the Road Ahead

The understanding of evolution has had a profound positive effect on human existence, from medical advancements to conservation biology, as we have heard from so many of

Darwin's Reach: How Evolution Shapes Our World Today

Invasive cancers. Antibiotic resistance. Agricultural biodiversity. To better understand these and many other pressing issues of our times, we need to better understand e

Are We Ready for the Next Pandemic?

Maybe not, according to Todd Disotell, a biological anthropologist and science communicator from the University of Massachusetts. Among his many research interests, Disot

Let's Talk About Sex (Scientifically)

Everything in our lives is related to sex, in one way or another. So says Carin Bondar, one of today's guests. Bondar, a biologist, author, and philosopher who teaches at

Baked, Steamed, and Frozen: Human Body Evolution in Changing Environments

In the flop of a movie, Waterworld, Kevin Costner's character (spoiler alert!) develops gills as an adaptation to a flooded planet altered by climate change. This plays i

What Darwin Got Wrong ... and Very Right!

Charles Darwin is one of the most recognizable names in science. His On the Origin of Species is considered to be the foundation of evolutionary biology. In this episode

Human Evolution: Uncovering our Origins

You know the t-shirt, right? The one that shows the progression from a monkey to a human? In this episode of Safeguarding Sound Science, we talk with two renowned paleoan

Peter Hotez on Vaccines, Evolution, and Your Health

Vaccine skepticism and efforts to curb vaccine access are in the news almost daily. This despite the fact that for decades, vaccines have saved millions of lives and redu

Safeguarding Sound Science Season 2: Evolution Edition

The second season of Safeguarding Sound Science from The National Center for Science Education examines the everyday impacts of evolution, the grand theory that informs o

The New Face of Climate Denial: Online Influencers

Like nearly everything ever created by humans, social media can be used for good or evil.  The same goes for podcasting and other streaming media shows.  We’ll talk with

Hope in the Face of the Climate Crisis: Youth Activism and Leadership

Though climate change represents a clear and present danger for all of us, it is young people who will suffer the most if we don't mitigate global warming. And they under

Making Every Classroom a Climate Classroom

What do teachers want and need to know about teaching climate change? And how can they best be prepared to tackle this critical topic, even in places where climate change

Today's Forecast: Climate Change, Trusted Sources, and a Sprinkling of Local Relevance

In a warming world, poison ivy is becoming bigger and itchier. That's the kind of personally relevant message that resonates with everyone, and helps make the impacts of

Zombie Theories Must Die! A Conversation with Climate Communicator Marshall Shepherd

Nationally recognized meteorologist, scientist, and author J. Marshall Shepherd describes zombie climate theories as those that live on, no matter how much the science re

Miseducation in the USA: How Our Kids Are Too Often Denied Climate Facts

Award-winning journalist Katie Worth spent time in schools around the country talking to teachers and students as she attempted to understand the landscape of climate cha

A Century of Disinformation: Naomi Oreskes and the Merchants of Doubt

In her critically acclaimed books, Merchants of Doubt and The Big Myth, Harvard historian Naomi Oreskes argues that well-funded interest groups have purposely sowed doubt

What Climate Change? Michael Mann and Glenn Branch on the Climate Deniers

Scientists nearly unanimously agree that the planet is warming at an unprecedented rate, and that humans are the cause. We see evidence of climate change in the increased