Whimsical Wavelengths - A Science Podcast

Instagram: @whimsical.wavelengths

Research Paper: Haliskia peterseni in Scientific Reports

A New Species of Pterosaur Unearthed in Australia with Adele Pentland

Mon, 10 Nov 2025 17:28:37 GMT

We’re heading back through deep time on Whimsical Wavelengths — but this time, we’re not walking with dinosaurs, we’re flying with them! Flight has evolved at least four separate times in Earth’s history, and today’s episode focuses on one of the earliest masters of the skies: pterosaurs.

Host Jeffrey Zurek is joined by Dr. Adele Pentland, palaeontologist and lead author of the paper describing Haliskia peterseni, a newly discovered anhanguerian pterosaur from the Early Cretaceous of Australia. The research, published in Nature’s Scientific Reports, sheds new light on prehistoric ecosystems and the diversity of Australia’s flying reptiles.

Adele discusses the discovery process, what makes Haliskia special, and how Australia fits into the global pterosaur record. We also touch on the art of science communication — from museum exhibits to fossil-inspired stamps and children’s books.

Links from the episode:

Adele Pentland’s Website

Book Mentioned Nature People by Cesar Puechmarin

Whimsical Wavelengths Links

Instagram: @whimsical.wavelengths

The Science of Plastic: Environmental Trade-Offs and Sustainability with an Industrial Scientist

Mon, 27 Oct 2025 16:00:14 GMT

Plastic and the environment and what you think you know. A discussion about science which honestly misses the mark but a useful discussion. Understanding the good is just as important to the bad

The first fully synthetic plastic was developed in 1907. What they needed was an electrical insulator. Thanks to alternating current (covered in season 1 too with Nikola tesla!) electricity was being wired to new places creating a problem of how to insulate these wires. With that success companies began to research and explore what other plastics could be made. WW II created more demand for synthetic substitutes. Resources were scarce. Needed things at scale. Plastic could do that.

Shortly after WWII, some thought of plastic and created an almost utopian vision of a future with abundant material wealth thanks to an inexpensive, safe, sanitary substance that could be shaped into anything. How disappointed they would be with today… The 1960’s brought about environmentalism with plastic debris starting to collect on beaches, the sea and the environment. The 70’s saw the leaded gasoline come to final phase out plan, CFC’s were next. But plastic stayed. There has been some regulatory push particularly more recently.

Outside of the intro and outro, I feel I failed at digging into more nuance in the discussion. But it is definitely an interesting discussion. Today's guest has published a book and has made the podcast circuit to bring to light that plastic is not necessarily an enemy.

One of Dr Chirs DeArmett's book can be found for free here :https://plasticsparadox.com/

Links for Whimsical Wavelengths:

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Modeling Supermassive Black Holes and Accretion Disks with Dr James Chan – New Research Insights

Mon, 13 Oct 2025 16:00:25 GMT

Diving straight into the deep end of the universe: supermassive black holes!

An episode with enough gravitational pull that you can’t help but get sucked in.

Host Dr. Jeffrey Zurek welcomes Dr. James Chan, a postdoctoral researcher at the American Museum of Natural History and City University of New York, to explore the strange physics and luminous surroundings of the darkest objects in the cosmos.

At the center of the conversation is Dr. Chan’s recent paper in The Astrophysical Journal:

“Reverberation Mapping of Lamp-post and Wind Structures in Accretion Thin Disk.”

Together, they discuss how light echoes and flickers around black holes can reveal their inner geometry — from the “lamp-post” models of X-ray emission to the chaotic winds that shape accretion disks. It’s a look into how we can study what can’t be seen, using timing, modeling, and a dash of cosmic detective work.

Paper at the center of the episode: https://arxiv.org/pdf/2409.15669

Links for Whimsical Wavelengths:

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https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0377027318303470

The Science of Ice Cream - fat networks, sugar, temperature, air and temperature with Dr. Abigail Thiel!

Mon, 29 Sep 2025 16:00:28 GMT

I scream you scream we all scream for Ice cream.

Time for some sweet delicious science delivered right here on whimsical wavelengths. Food science! Love the breath we get to explore here. This discussion is going to investigate some of the science that goes into perfecting and understanding the greatest frozen dessert that comes in so many different flavours. Yes, ice cream!

Ice cream like other materials, like magma, melt, freeze and deform in complex ways depending on structures within the material. In past episodes I have talked about eruption dynamics and how the viscosity or resistance to flow changes eruption style. Well viscosity or more broadly Rheology (how a substance flows under a force over time) is important here too!

The crossover between scientific disciplines is real! So be ready to chill here on Whimsical Wavelengths as we scoop into the coolest science around! This week's guest is no soft serve when it comes to sweet science— So grab your spoons and prepare for the brain freeze.

Today's guest studied how fat networks within dairy foods like ice cream can alter sensorial and rheological properties. Today she applies that science background as an industry consultant and science communicator. Dr. Abigail Thiel!

Here is Dr. Abigail Thiel's

Youtube: http://www.youtube.com/@AbbeytheFoodScientist

Blog:https://abbeythefoodscientist.com/

Also she has a kids Colouring book out!

Amazon.ca: https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B0FGJWXGHD?ref_=litb_stb_nodl

Amazon.com: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FGJWXGHD

Understanding Masaya Volcano – The Science Behind Its Basaltic Plinian Eruptions

Mon, 15 Sep 2025 16:00:21 GMT

Its the start of Season 2!! Time for Basaltic plinian eruptions, melt inclusions, viscosity and more. Today we going to head into one of my papers!

Because it’s one of my papers that means heading back to volcanology. Like other historical scientists covered here on Whimsical wavelengths I will follow where the data is pointing. Follow the path.

When I was planning my PhD, yes I was in the envious position of basically picking my projects, I knew I wanted to do more at Masaya Volcano. Masaya is however complicated. It is a unique volcano in many ways.

Here I'll focus on two things:

Masaya is persistently active. It has been in a perpetual state of unrest for 100’s of years. The last eruption of any significant amount was 1772 where it produced a lava flow from the central cone. Since that time there have been degassing, occasional lava lakes, and small vent clearing explosions. There is not many volcanoes on earth able to claim constant activity for 100’s of years.
It can have basaltic Plinian eruptions……

Basaltic plinian eruptions. For those who know a bit about volcanoes this may seem like an oxymoron.

Join the pod to find out all this apparent oxymoron!

Paper at the center of the episode:

example Basaltic plinian eruptions at Masaya (there are lots but here is one):

https://www.nature.com/articles/s43247-022-00585-5#:~:text=Las%20Sierras%2DMasaya%20volcanic%20system,%2DTIL)13%2C20.

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How the work of one researcher, Dr Clair Patterson, brought the fall of leaded gasoline and discovered the age of the Earth!

Mon, 21 Jul 2025 16:00:39 GMT

Time for someone who some have called the greatest scientist you have not heard of. Likely the reason average IQ's have no fallen (even if it feels like they have - idiocracy)!

This is the sibling episode to the last one. The rise of Leaded Gas. This time the story starts with Dr. Clair Patterson a geochemist. Before the PhD and discovering the age of the Earth, Clair Patterson and his wife Laurie (also a chemist) became civilians working on the Manhattan project. No not in New Mexico designing the bomb like depicted in the movie Oppenheimer. Instead they got to work on the problem of concentrating Uranium. A 235U electromagnetic separation plant (figure in the post!) in Oak Ridge, Tennessee.

From there on to a PhD. The following of the data lead to lead being everywhere. Before advocating for the elimination of lead he developed the first clean room and found the age of the earth by dating a meteorite (fragment of which is picture with the post). His work brought about the downfall of leaded gasoline. His story has been told many times before but probably not like this. Even if you already know the story I bet there is new nuggets here. Whimsical even....

So with the release of this episode, season 1 is done! Time to reflect on what worked and what didn’t.

Special thanks to those who did give me feedback throughout the year. It was needed. Embrace the terrible puns and jokes, don’t apologize for them! Was just one piece of advice I got.

And of course thanks to all the guests that agreed to come on the podcast! Some without any tie to someone I know and they took a chance to share their work. A unknown podcast showing up in an email or call out ask.

The next 3 eps will be encore additions. Some of my favourites from this inaugural season and then on September 15 season 2 will start!

Links for Whimsical Wavelengths:

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https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/2025/07/01/flint-lead-pipes-replacement/

Scientific and Historical look at The rise Leaded Gasoline - When industry poisoned the world

Mon, 07 Jul 2025 16:00:13 GMT

Today we are going to start to cover a real scientific disaster story. No it isn’t the hollywood variety although maybe it should be. We have the movie Oppenheimer although to tell the whole story here requires multiple main characters. Perhaps a TV series then. I have known I wanted to tell this story for some time but have struggled on the best way.

It starts at the gas pump and the question: Ever wondered why all pumps say “unleaded gas”? Or perhaps asked the question why would they need to? This is a story about scientific discovery, advocacy, environmentalism and corporate greed. The next sibling episode (they can stand alone) has direct ties to the manhattan project and the age of the Earth.

Covering a bit about the history of lead Flint, Michigan came up. Here are some links to see how that is still playing out however if you want to do a deep dive don't stop at just these two links!

https://eos.org/articles/flint-10-years-later

Links for Whimsical Wavelengths:

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Sierra Negra volcano's internal dynamics through gravity and deformation with Dr Antonina Calahorrano-Di Patre

Mon, 23 Jun 2025 16:00:14 GMT

Deformation and gravity go hand in hand in volcano monitoring like hot apple pie and icecream. They fit together great. as these two techniques tell us so much more together than separately.

This time I reached out to a friend to share her research!

Remember volcanic eruptions are dynamic. The amount of force and material involved in an eruption … Even if the eruption is small the changes can be significant to the overall system.

Volcanologists can see or image magma chambers that are close to the surface through a number of different monitoring techniques. Today we will focus on gravity and deformation. Mass flux and how the earth's surface moves in response to changes at depth!

Using what keeps us all attached to the ground's surface to monitor what is moving up towards us. This episode is full of hot material!

Insects breathe?! An inside look at insect evolution through respiration with Dr Hollister Herhold

Mon, 09 Jun 2025 16:00:18 GMT

This time it is all about insects and their respiratory systems?! They represent so much of the biomass on earth.

Depending on the study and methods used there is more weight on earth within insects than humans. With over 8 billion humans and each of us weighs a lot more than an insect…… There are a lot of them. They form the backbone of many ecosystems.

Today though we will specifically focus on their respiratory system. How do they breathe? It is not like they have lungs like we do. Or gills like fish. I vaguely remember grade school biology and going over the number of legs and like.

You know what? I have never given it much thought. But now that I have …… I am intrigued!

Stealing the words from todays guest “With over 1 million identified species of insects, they’re a great vehicle for studying evolution There are all kinds of new things coming out of it, probably the most significant of which is flight”

So lets get into it! Time to follow the buzz to see if the Ant-ticipation i am chirping about is going to fly over our heads.

Please welcome Dr Hollister Herhold a Research Associate in the Division of Invertebrate Zoology, and Research Scientist in the Department of Astrophysics at the American Museum of Natural History in New York City!

Links for Whimsical Wavelengths:

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Modeling dwarf galaxies to probe the early universe with Dr. Eric Andersson

Mon, 26 May 2025 16:00:18 GMT

There is so much we don’t understand about the early universe. Or any part of the universe not nearby. Part of the reason for this is time and distance. The universe as we understand/see it today started ~13.8 billion years ago.

So how do we test something that we cannot view or experience? The evolution of galaxies takes place over billions of years. We cannot track its changes over the eons because human history is in the thousands of years and observations of the deep cosmos can be measured in decades. Yes we can see many snapshots of different galaxies at different points on their evolution but how to connect them on their journey?

One way is to model physics or physical processes. Put everything in as we understand into a mathematical framework. Run the code or the “model” and see if it matches what we see in our observations. We do this type of exercise with many many different scientific disciplines including my own (geophysics).

Links for Whimsical Wavelengths:

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A tale of disappearing Seas, The Mediterranean sea basically drys up! - The Messinian Salinity Crisis

Mon, 12 May 2025 16:00:26 GMT

The Earth is dynamic. All of it. Plate tectonics, weather, ocean currents, biosphere, cryosphere, extraterrestrial like solar events, meteorites, nearby supernovae

And on and on and on

But the seas are constant right? I mean that they exist. They have almost always existed. No I am not going back to Porto oceans some 4 billion years ago! I am referring to the mediterranean! I hope you are up for a salty tale of disappearing sea.

This episode is all me. Because I like this topic, I have enough background to tell the story after digging through the literature, and wanted to spin this whimsical yarn in a different way than an interview.

Why is the Mediterranean Sea so confident?

Because it’s always making waves!

But there was a time where nearly the whole mediterranean basin dried up! Called Messinian salinity crisis.

Links for Whimsical Wavelengths:

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https://www.aanda.org/articles/aa/full_html/2025/02/aa53014-24/aa53014-24.html

Gravitational Lensing Part 2! Strong Lensing, modeling and so much more!

Mon, 28 Apr 2025 16:00:30 GMT

Welcome back to Part 2 of Gravitational lenses on Whimsical Wavelengths. In part 2 we finally get to the real star of the show, strong gravitational lensing and the paper that was underlying the topic.

“Euclid: A complete Einstein ring in NGC 6505 “

A lot less to setup this time. No need to stretch this out like gravity stretches time.

But.....

How did gravity stop the reckless driver?

It pulled some strings… mainly the ones holding the car to the road.

Before everything gets pulled downhill, time to jump in Please welcome back Dr Georgios Vernardos!

Paper at the center the this episode:

Links for Whimsical Wavelengths:

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https://www.aanda.org/articles/aa/full_html/2025/02/aa53014-24/aa53014-24.html

Gravitational Lensing - Micro, weak, and Strong Oh MY! with Dr Georgios Vernardos

Mon, 14 Apr 2025 16:00:43 GMT

Whimsical wavelengths is here again to show that it is useless to fight gravity.

Every time I have, it has brought me down.

To begin I'll mention Newtonian mechanics of gravity here in the show notes as it works really well for nearly all things within our solar system. But there are things that does not fit. Mercury’s orbit is one famous example. It gave the wrong prediction for the precession of Mercury's closest point to the sun.

Then Einstein developed a theory about space…

And it was about time!

It was a leap forward changing how we viewed the universe and how we would measure it.

It can be argued that this seminal work together with observations from Hubble on Galaxies existing outside of the Milky Way and expanding universe was the beginning of the modern age of cosmology .

Today we are going to get into one topic from relativity directly, gravitational lensing. To be fair to history, the idea that light traveling close to massive objects bends was actually first postulated by Newtonian mechanics of gravity.

And to get out from that enormous weight Dr Georgios Vernardos (Assistant Professor in Physics & Astronomy at Lehman College) has volunteered to come on the podcast. To get from relativity to gravitational lens and to tell the story correctly is hard to do in one episode. So I have planned this one as a pair! So no it is not time dilation due to the weighty subject

Paper at the center the this and the next episode:

Links for Whimsical Wavelengths:

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Umami, taste and Kitchen Chemistry of food ingredients! Delicious with guest Dr Bryan Le

Mon, 31 Mar 2025 16:00:14 GMT

Today the topic should do more then whimsically tickle your ears, Today I have a guest to get the slobbering sensor in your mouth working. Yup buckle in for a flavorful ride!

So I guess definitions first. Food Science is a discipline that investigates food chemistry, food microbiology, physical, sensory, and nutritional properties of food. The discipline also gets into the process of making the food with respect to the manufacture, preservation, quality assurance, and development of food products.

If your favourite snack food is ummmm bet you can’t eat just one? It is practically guaranteed that a food scientist has been involved at some point of the process.

Dr Bryan Le joins the podcast to help us on this falvourful ride of whimsical wavelengths.

The papers discussed talking about Unami and how to get ingredient to be Kitchen Chemistry ready:

1. Hartl, Daniela M., Oliver Frank, Victoria S. Hänel, Vinzenz Heigl, Corinna Dawid, and Thomas F. Hofmann. "Isolation and Identification of Novel Taste-Modulating N 2-Guanosine 5′-Monophosphate Derivatives Generated by Maillard-Type Reactions." Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry 72, no. 25 (2024): 14284-14293.

2. Suess, Barbara, et al. "Human taste and umami receptor responses to chemosensorica generated by Maillard-type N 2-alkyl-and N 2-arylthiomethylation of guanosine 5′-monophosphates." Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry 62.47 (2014): 11429-11440.

There is lots you can do in science!! Including food science!

Dr Bryan Le's website: https://www.mendocinofoodconsulting.com/

Also check out his Book!:

150 Food Science Questions Answered Cook Smarter, Cook Better

By Bryan Le · 2020 ISBN:9781646118342, 1646118340

Thanks again Bryan for sending one to me! It's a good read (wish I had it before the episode!)

Links for Whimsical Wavelengths:

instagram: @whimsical.wavelengths

(https://www.birdcount.org/)

The whimsical sounds of the Birds, Ornithology and why birds sing, territory and more with Miranda Zammarelli

Mon, 17 Mar 2025 16:00:51 GMT

Today the pod shows its fitness with im-peck-able wordplay. That's right, today's episode is for the birds. At least those which have a raven-ous appetite for knowledge.

Our guest, PhD candidate Miranda Zammarelli (Dartmouth College) has research that takes place in what I guess can be best described as the closest we can get for lab conditions in the natural world. The site for her work is the Hubbard Brook Experimental Forest - located in New Hampshire.

The forest is her laboratory and this discussion does its best to get at how and why it happens!

For thoses that want to get involved in Citizen Science (PLEASE DO!) check out these apps for your smartphone

Merlin: https://merlin.allaboutbirds.org/

ebird: https://ebird.org/home

Also don't forget about the future when its time for the Christmas Bird Count (https://www.audubon.org/community-science/christmas-bird-count)

Or the Great Backyard Bird Count !

Links for Whimsical Wavelengths:

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https://www.goodreads.com/en/book/show/56379758-saving-us

Climate Change - weather, climate & science communications. Frank discussion with Research Meteorologist Jared Rennie

Mon, 03 Mar 2025 17:00:22 GMT

Welcome back where everyone comes to hear sunny quips and cloudy cuckles! Yes we at Whimsical wavelengths are amazing at precipitating a good story.

Today the pod gets into climate vs weather and the increasing extremes. It might feel odd that a general science podcast would take soooooo long to get around to a climate episode. Well it is because the data is overwhelming, humans have changed the chemistry of our atmosphere which is causing it to change.

That is an observable fact. No political beliefs or anything else in that. What to do about it? That is political. Generally (there will be caveats) I plan to NOT get into politics but perhaps I would have a lot more listeners if I did. This is one of those science topics that for some reason crosses the political line.

To show how we know what we know about our changing climate and weather extremes Jared Rennie a Research Meteorologist with NOAA's National Centers for Environmental Information joins us!

Useful links from the discussion

A book that came up and well worth a read: Saving Us: A Climate Scientist's Case for Hope and Healing in a Divided World by Dr Katharine Hayhoe

Organizations that also calculate Earth temperature from data separately (not exhaustive):

https://www.copernicus.eu/en

https://berkeleyearth.org/data/

https://wmo.int/

https://www.metoffice.gov.uk/

https://www.csiro.au/en/

https://www.jma.go.jp/jma/indexe.html

https://www.nasa.gov/

Links for Whimsical Wavelengths:

instagram: @whimsical.wavelengths

https://www.sfu.ca/volcanology.html

Investigating the Southwest Rift Zone of Mauna Loa Volcano using gravity: what created the Ninole Hills?

Mon, 17 Feb 2025 17:00:21 GMT

Today I am picking my favourite paper that I wrote. The origin of Mauna Loa's Ninole Hills - Evidence of rift zone reorganization. In geophysical research letters in 2015. It is already nearly 10 years old!

Well then a 10 year anniversary tour then?

In the past 4000 years lava has repaved 90% of Mauna Loa’s surface! Mauna Loa is huge. It is a very dynamic place. The Ninole Hills are 100,000 to 200,000 years old. Something special must have allowed for these rocks to be at the surface and not buried beneath newer lava flows. Today we are going to dive into one of my papers to figure out the the most likely candidates to explain this enigmatic feature on the slopes of Mauna Loa volcano.

Some useful show links

Hawaiian Volcano Observatory for all of your volcano updates!: https://www.usgs.gov/observatories/hvo

Where I was when I wrote the paper:

The paper itself (using the link above go to Journal articles and look for the citation if you want the paper without the paywall):

Zurek, J.M., Williams-Jones, G., Trusdell, F., Martin, S. (2015) The origin of Mauna Loa's Ninole Hills - Evidence of rift zone reorganization. Geophysical Research Letters, 42, doi: 10.1002/2015GL065863.

Links for Whimsical Wavelengths:

instagram: @whimsical.wavelengths

Paleontology & Theropods PART2! Soooo good it needed a sequel - With Dr François Therrien

Mon, 03 Feb 2025 17:00:48 GMT

Part2 jumps in where part 1 left off so more about Theropods! specifically about one of Dr François Therrien's recent studies about a Gorgosaurus and what was found inside its stomach!!!!

did I forget to mention T-shirt giveaway?

incase you missed it from the notes of the last episode:

Dr François Therrien - The Curator of Dinosaur Palaeoecology at the Royal Tyrrell Museum in Drumheller Alberta https://tyrrellmuseum.com/

Dr François Therrien's Professional Highlights (lifted from the museum's website)

Discovered the first feathered dinosaurs from North America.
Researched Cryodrakon boreas, a new species of pterosaur that was among the largest and oldest in North America.
Published on a theropod site from Mongolia that reveals that colonial nesting behaviour first evolved in the dinosaurian ancestors of birds.
Researched Thanatotheristes degrootorum

Links for Whimsical Wavelengths:

instagram: @whimsical.wavelengths

Jurassic Park 30 years of Paleontology & T-Rex (Theropods) - With Dr François Therrien

Mon, 20 Jan 2025 17:00:37 GMT

Great discussion! Soooooooo good I split it into two parts! In Part 1 we start retro!

It's hard for me to think of 1993 as retro. But yes that is where we are going, Jurassic Park. Honestly, what a movie! It was how you say DINO -might!. Dinosaurs brought to life on the big screen in ways that had not been done previously. Not only was the movie good (the book too btw), I think it was pretty accurate to what we understood at the time. We will find out in a moment but I suspect it was like Dante’s peak which definitely had some problems but the most accurate volcano disaster movie made for hollywood?

So Today we are going to explore what we knew when Jurassic Park was created and how it has changed since! We will also talk a lot more about an evolutionary cousin to the famed T-rex the And again I have brought in a guest to get it done! Great discussion! soo good I split it into two parts!

Dr François Therrien - The Curator of Dinosaur Palaeoecology at the Royal Tyrrell Museum in Drumheller Alberta https://tyrrellmuseum.com/

Dr François Therrien's Professional Highlights (lifted from the museum's website)

Discovered the first feathered dinosaurs from North America.
Researched Cryodrakon boreas, a new species of pterosaur that was among the largest and oldest in North America.
Published on a theropod site from Mongolia that reveals that colonial nesting behaviour first evolved in the dinosaurian ancestors of birds.
Researched Thanatotheristes degrootorum

Links for Whimsical Wavelengths:

instagram: @whimsical.wavelengths

Nikola Tesla - Pt2, Free Energy, and the Physics of Conspiracy

Mon, 06 Jan 2025 17:00:52 GMT

Last time in part 1 we covered Nikola Tesla's backstory and some of his accomplishments. In part 2 we cover things that are conspiratorial or not feasible like a death ray, limitless free power and electric universe......... ie crazy stuff

Ya his legacy is complicated. ... need more proof take a listen.

Epic Rap Battles of History Nikola Tesla vs Thomas Edison: https://youtu.be/gJ1Mz7kGVf0?si=HczKueWG7xXFwmry

In case you missed it from last ep. I really need to get better at making videos as this goes on.

Demo for a Tesla Coil by me! :https://youtu.be/DQK1zZ87Gko?si=yw4C0AABspUCNTYs

Links for Whimsical Wavelengths:

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https://www.pbs.org/tesla/ll/ll_early.html

Nikola Tesla- The man, the myth, the legend Pt1 - Back story and accomplishments

Mon, 23 Dec 2024 17:00:19 GMT

Nikola Tesla has been credited with large leaps forward like AC current and wireless transmission. Including things that are conspiratorial or not feasible like a death ray and limitless free power. Ya his legacy is complicated. So fire up the device and lets get going with this episode!

Here is a demo for a Tesla Coil by me! :https://youtu.be/DQK1zZ87Gko?si=yw4C0AABspUCNTYs

Some of the stuff I read to gather information. There was more but I forgot to write it down while doing my normal life.

Books

My inventions by Nikola Tesla

Wizard, the Life and Times of Nikola Tesla is a biography of Nikola Tesla by Marc J. Seifer published in 1996.

Websites and Newspapers

https://www.nytimes.com/1915/10/03/archives/nikola-tesla-sees-a-wireless-vision-thinks-his-world-system-will.html https://www.nytimes.com/1934/07/11/archives/tesla-at-78-bares-new-deathbeam-invention-powerful-enough-to.html

Links for Whimsical Wavelengths:

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https://doi.org/10.1002/bies.202300098

Dinosaurs and the mammal longevity gap, Evolutionary Biology - Guest Associate Professor Molly Burke

Mon, 09 Dec 2024 17:00:33 GMT

This time we take a deep dive into an hypothesis The longevity bottleneck hypothesis: Could dinosaurs have shaped ageing in present-day mammals?” by João Pedro de Magalhães

See our branch of the animal kingdom, mammals, first evolved around 200 million years ago. During the age of dinosaurs. To quote the paper “long evolutionary pressure on early mammals for rapid reproduction led to the loss or inactivation of genes and pathways associated with long life”

To talk about this and look at the evolution of aging, the wonderful and fantastic Dr Molly Burke agreed to talk about her research and the science of aging more generally! Her lab at the Oregon State university uses model organisms to experimentally study evolution. (https://ib.oregonstate.edu/directory/molly-k-burke).

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NASA's Lucky Peanuts - Interview with JPL's Dr Morgan Cable

Mon, 25 Nov 2024 17:00:22 GMT

This episode cracks open the history and traditions of NASA (ie. Lucky peanuts) to get to the nutty goodness, which includes hard science and looking towards future missions! To explore this Dr. Morgan Cable joins the pod! Dr. Morgan Cable is a research scientist at the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. The Science Lead for the Exobiology Extant Life Surveyor concept and Co-Deputy PI of the Planetary Instrument for X-ray Lithochemistry (PIXL) Instrument aboard the Mars 2020 (Perseverance) rover, also apart of the Cassini, Dragonfly and the Europa Clipper missions in various ways. Links and descriptions of things mentioned in the episode supplied by Dr Morgan Cable lightly edited:

Cassini virtual singers: https://www.sciencefriday.com/segments/a-farewell-to-cassini-our-friend-at-saturn/

Curiosity leaving ‘JPL’ in Morse code on Mars: https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/rover-leaves-tracks-in-morse-code

Perseverance parachute hidden code: https://www.nytimes.com/2021/02/24/science/nasa-mars-parachute-code.html

Monoliths for Europa Clipper, represent the team mascot, inspired by the monolith on Jupiter’s moon Europa in 2001: A Space Odyssey. It’s ironic because in the novel and the film we were told to “attempt no landing” at Europa, but in our first PSG meeting the author (Arthur C. Clarke) actually dialed in and gave us permission, which is really cool! You can hear more about that in an interview with Steve Vance (a fellow JPLer and scientist on Europa Clipper) here. So we make one Monolith and bring it to each Project Science Group (PSG) meeting. Here it is in one of our team photos, and we also have a team award called the Monolith Award and here is a twitter post about a recipient.

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https://backyardbrains.com/products/roboroach

What is High-Frequency Active Auroral Research Program (HAARP) and it's conspiracies?

Mon, 11 Nov 2024 18:54:14 GMT

There are just some research programs that some people find scary. Some make sense. Playing with radioactive material or pathogens can be risky! What about the High-Frequency Active Auroral Research Program (HAARP)?

HAARP is located in Gakona, Alaska a joint project between government agencies and the University of Alaska. It studies the ionosphere and its potential to improve radio communications and surveillance technology.

Government involvement? Surveillance? seems like a ripe topic for conspiracy theorists who do not trust institutions and don't have a firm grasp science and technology. So let's explore what some "think" this equipment can do! (with what it actually does)

As promised here is where you can get a kit to mind control a cockroach.... I didn't buy it! I am not sponsored etc. Just proof you can find it.

Links for Whimsical Wavelengths:

instagram: @whimsical.wavelengths

https://rss.com/podcasts/whimsical-wavelengths/

The predicted impending Nova from T Coronae Borealis! An interview with Dr David Zurek

Mon, 28 Oct 2024 16:00:50 GMT

Today I interview a researcher from the American Museum of Natural History, my uncle, Dr David Zurek about Novea. Yes the same institution where the famous Neil deGrasse Tyson resides.

What brought this episode about? Well ~3000 light years away from Earth, a white dwarf star named T Coronae Borealis known to astronomers simply as “T CrB,” is about to have a brief but powerful runaway nuclear reaction! Only issue is it's late! Join Whimsical Wavelengths and the discussion of two Dr Zurek's with respect to the Hubble Space Telescope, Novea (the correct plural) and runaway nuclear reactions!

Dr David Zurek's stated research intrests on American Museum of Natural History's website states: Photometric studies of stellar populations; variable stars; cataclysmic binaries; nova shells

American Museum of Natural History: https://www.amnh.org/

Hubble Space Telescope - Space Telescope Science institute https://www.stsci.edu/home

Links for Whimsical Wavelengths:

www.facebook.com/WhimsicalWavelengths

instagram: @whimsical.wavelengths

Dante's Peak Pt2 - ballistics, lava and earthquakes Oh my! with SFU's Volcanology Group

Mon, 14 Oct 2024 16:00:21 GMT

Welcome back to the podcast that talks scientifically about disaster movies? Yes it has been two weeks so here is the next installment of Whimsical Wavelengths!

This time we join some colleagues, from Simon Fraser University's Volcanology Group, to watch the best(?) volcano movie ever made by "Hollywood". Dante's Peak. James bond becomes a volcanologist.

We tackle the science and the volcanic activity over beers. Learn about volcanic activity, a few stories from the field and a bit more about how decisions are made in a crisis. We use our own examples from volcanoes around world. There is even a Monty Python reference. What more could you want in an episode!

Simon Fraser University's Volcanology Group: https://www.sfu.ca/volcanology.html

IDBD for Dante's Peak: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0118928/

Links for Whimsical Wavelengths:

instagram: @whimsical.wavelengths

Dante's Peak Part 1 a Primer

Mon, 30 Sep 2024 16:00:36 GMT

Episode 2 is here! Setting up some background for hopefully understanding the discussion when a handful of fellow volcanologists watch Dante's Peak together!

Yes that's right this is Whimsical Wavelengths where we over explain disaster movies! And attempt to show you igneous is bliss!

Where Mt St Helens gets it's magma? What are the signs of a long dormant volcano becoming active? Ever wonder how a stereotypical volcanic crisis unfolds? Then you are in the right place!

Links for Whimsical Wavelengths: www.facebook.com/WhimsicalWavelengths

instagram: @whimsical.wavelengths

Introduction and a short history of wavelengths

Mon, 16 Sep 2024 22:26:13 GMT

The first episode! An introduction to the podcast and looking at the history of wavelengths. Kind of like a long trailer. Full of bad science "dad" jokes and puns while weaving a tale through history.

Future episodes will include guests from NASA, my previous research group, American Museum of natural History and other academics who are experts on the topics focused on, Sometimes the host, like this first episode, will be on his own looking at topics like volcanic eruptions or tackling modern-day scientific conspiracy theories.

(https://www.birdcount.org/)

instagram: @whimsical.wavelengths

Email: whimsical.wavelengths@gmail.com

Encore: The whimsical sounds of the Birds, Ornithology and why birds sing, territory and more with Miranda Zammarelli

Mon, 01 Sep 2025 16:00:25 GMT

Today the pod shows its fitness with im-peck-able wordplay. That's right, today's episode is for the birds. At least those which have a raven-ous appetite for knowledge.

The forest is her laboratory and this discussion does its best to get at how and why it happens!

For thoses that want to get involved in Citizen Science (PLEASE DO!) check out these apps for your smartphone

Merlin: https://merlin.allaboutbirds.org/

ebird: https://ebird.org/home

Also don't forget about the future when its time for the Christmas Bird Count (https://www.audubon.org/community-science/christmas-bird-count)

Or the Great Backyard Bird Count !

Links for Whimsical Wavelengths:

Instagram: @whimsical.wavelengths

Encore: Paleontology & Theropods PT2! Dinosaur behaviour from fossils - With Dr François Therrien

Mon, 18 Aug 2025 16:00:17 GMT

Part2 jumps in where part 1 left off so more about Theropods! specifically about one of Dr François Therrien's recent studies about a Gorgosaurus and what was found inside its stomach!!!!

incase you missed it from the notes of the last episode:

Dr François Therrien - The Curator of Dinosaur Palaeoecology at the Royal Tyrrell Museum in Drumheller Alberta https://tyrrellmuseum.com/

Dr François Therrien's Professional Highlights (lifted from the museum's website)

Discovered the first feathered dinosaurs from North America.
Researched Cryodrakon boreas, a new species of pterosaur that was among the largest and oldest in North America.
Published on a theropod site from Mongolia that reveals that colonial nesting behaviour first evolved in the dinosaurian ancestors of birds.
Researched Thanatotheristes degrootorum

Links for Whimsical Wavelengths:

instagram: @whimsical.wavelengths

https://doi.org/10.1002/bies.202300098

Encore: Dinosaurs and the mammal longevity gap, Evolutionary Biology - with Associate Professor Molly Burke

Mon, 04 Aug 2025 16:00:25 GMT

This time we take a deep dive into an hypothesis The longevity bottleneck hypothesis: Could dinosaurs have shaped ageing in present-day mammals?” by João Pedro de Magalhães

Links for Whimsical Wavelengths:

instagram: @whimsical.wavelengths

https://www.pbs.org/tesla/ll/ll_early.html

ENCORE Nikola Tesla- The man, the myth, the legend Pt1 - Back story and accomplishments

Mon, 05 Jan 2026 17:00:00 GMT

Here is a demo for a Tesla Coil by me! :https://youtu.be/DQK1zZ87Gko?si=yw4C0AABspUCNTYs

Some of the stuff I read to gather information. There was more but I forgot to write it down while doing my normal life.

Books

My inventions by Nikola Tesla

Wizard, the Life and Times of Nikola Tesla is a biography of Nikola Tesla by Marc J. Seifer published in 1996.

Websites and Newspapers

Links for Whimsical Wavelengths:

instagram: @whimsical.wavelengths