Ever Wonder? from the California Science Center
At the California Science Center, we love to wonder and be curious about the world around us. In each new episode, join host Perry Roth-Johnson as he chats with scientists, engineers, museum professionals, and others to find answers to questions you might have wondered. New episodes every other Wednesday.
Episodes
104 episodes
REBROADCAST...why it's important to study monarch butterflies? (with Isis Howard)
As we reach the end of the year, the fall migration of monarchs brings ecological and cultural significance to the people of California and Mexico. Butterflies are a common symbol for life and death in many places and it is believed that ...
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Season 5
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Episode 19
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22:34
...what divers do at the California Science Center? (with Andrew Solomon)
Here at the California Science Center in our Ecosystems gallery lies our kelp forest, holding 188,000-gallon tank with over 800 species! This kelp forest represents the type of ecosystem that you will find off the California coast and who bette...
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Season 5
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Episode 18
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22:42
REBROADCAST... why California has so many wildfires? (with Jared Dahl Aldern)
Last fall, we opened a brand-new exhibit called Fire! Science & Safety, which invites our guests to explore Casa Del Fuego, Apartment 911 as a fire dang...
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Season 5
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Episode 17
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35:21
REBROADCAST ...how doctors keep people healthy during pregnancy and childbirth? (with Dr. Kimberly Gregory)
This summer, we opened a brand-new exhibit called Life! Beginnings in our World of Life gallery. Life! Beginnings invites our guests to discover how humans and all living creatures reproduce, develop, and pass on their genes i...
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Season 5
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Episode 16
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19:05
REBROADCAST...how keepers form relationships with animals? (with Josh Hestermann)
Folks often say that dogs are a human's best friend. The Science Center doesn't have any dogs on display (well at least not since our temporary Dogs! exhibit closed), but we sure do have lots of other terrestrial animals to take care of. And ou...
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Season 5
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Episode 15
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12:53
REBROADCAST...who drives a Mars rover? (with Hallie Abarca)
When this episode airs, NASA will be just one day away from landing another rover on Mars. On February 18, the Perseverance rover will reach the surface of the Red Planet, capping off a journey that...
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Season 5
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Episode 14
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23:29
...what creatures live in the deep sea? (with Brittany Munson)
The deep sea is a mysterious place full of many different life forms! Some that may seem strange yet incredibly amazing to us. But how can we learn more about these creatures if the deep sea can be so hard to explore!?
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Season 5
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Episode 13
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20:25
REBROADCAST...who writes the stuff you read in an exhibit? (with Jennifer Lawrence)
For the first few episodes of this podcast, we'll take you behind the scenes of the California Science Center to meet some of the people who design and develop exhibits.Imagine for a minute that you're visiting a science center or a mus...
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Season 5
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Episode 12
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13:48
REBROADCAST:......if robots can be biased? (with Ayanna Howard)
The field of robotics has advanced a LOT over the past couple of decades, and part of that has to do with advances in the fields of computer science and artificial intelligence. Algorithms that help robots function and interact with the world a...
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Season 5
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Episode 11
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25:11
REBROADCAST...why our galaxy is a spiral? (bonus episode with Devin Waller)
Before we go on break for the holidays, we’re releasing another bonus episode. We introduce Devin Waller, who will be joinin...
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Season 5
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Episode 10
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13:06
REBROADCAST......who takes care of animals when they get sick? (with Brittany Stevens)
Giant sea bass. Desert tortoise. Leopard shark. These are all examples of creatures you can see on display when you visit the California Science Center. And just like you or me or any of the pets you might have at home, these critters can get s...
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Season 5
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Episode 9
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15:53
REBROADCAST......how can robots work together? (with Kirstin Petersen)
We are starting a new series on robots! We've seen some pretty amazing advances in robotics in just the past few years. Maybe you've seen videos of humanoid robots that do backflips or robot hummingbirds that can hover in midair. Now, a video o...
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Season 5
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Episode 8
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19:40
...how some Monarch butterflies live longer than others? (with Isis Howard)
In an earlier episode, we chatted with Isis Howard, who works at the Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation. She told us about the multi-generational migration of Monarchs across 3 different countries. Here she further explains why ...
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Season 5
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Episode 7
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5:32
REBROADCAST...what goes on at the JPL Mars Yard? (with Hallie Abarca)
It’s been a year since NASA JPL’s Perseverance rover and Ingenuity helicopter
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Season 5
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Episode 6
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6:05
REBROADCAST ...how your favorite exhibit got made? (with Kathy Marsailes)
For the last three episodes of this podcast, we’ve been taking you behind-the-scenes of the California Science Center to meet some of the people who design and develop exhibits. Many of you probably already love visiting science cen...
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Season 5
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Episode 5
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13:17
REBROADCAST...if our kelp tank fish eat... other fish? (with Erin Shusterman)
If you ever visit the kelp tank at the Science Center, you might notice that we have a complete ecosystem on display, including both predators and prey. So, naturally, people often ask our staff if the fish eat each other.Eve...
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Season 5
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Episode 4
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5:08
...how the fossilized past uncovers the dynamic present of Ecosystems? (with Lucy Chang)
On this first Ever Wonder? episode of the year, we would like to introduce you to California Science Center’s Curator of Life Science and Paleobiologist Lucy Chang. In today’s episode, Lucy takes us on an exploration in...
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Season 5
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Episode 3
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22:20
REBROADCAST ...if YOU could go to space one day? (with Sian Proctor, PhD)
Today—September 15th, 2021—is an exciting day in the history of space travel. Today is the day SpaceX’s Inspiration4 is scheduled to launch. If successful, Inspiration4 will be the world’s first all-civil...
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Season 5
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Episode 2
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27:12
REBROADCAST... what it felt like to fly Endeavour? (with Chris Ferguson)
The Science Center has proudly displayed Space Shuttle Endeavour to our guests for the past ten years. Seeing the shuttle is amazin...
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Season 5
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Episode 1
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24:58
...why it's important to study monarch butterflies? (with Isis Howard)
As we reach the end of the year, the fall migration of monarchs brings ecological and cultural significance to the people of California and Mexico. Butterflies are a common symbol for life and death in many places and it is believed that ...
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Season 4
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Episode 22
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22:35
REBROADCAST ...why we keep going back to the Moon? (with Kelsey Young)
We are kicking off a new series on space exploration, which is particularly relevant this month because a new Mars rover named Perseverance is hurtling towards The Red Planet for its landin...
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Season 4
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Episode 21
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24:44
REBROADCAST...what we can learn from poop? (with Ryan Rampersaud)
Earlier this year we spoke with Dr. Ryan Rampersaud, a professor of psychiatry at UC San Francisco to figure out if your gut can really talk to your brain. He told us about the microorganisms that live in your gastrointestinal tract, collective...
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Season 4
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Episode 20
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6:40
REBROADCAST...if our sharks go to the doctor? (with Brittany Stevens)
We’re digging into our archives again to bring you more unaired vet stories from our past interview with Dr. Brittany Stevens, a veterin...
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Season 4
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Episode 19
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5:54