Curious Minds Podcast

The universe we live in is really big: It's vastness is difficult to even comprehend. That vastness is why, even if our universe is teeming with life, it is unlikely that we will ever meet other intelligent life forms. Let's take a closer look at the scales of distances, speeds and volumes in our universe. The post Astronomy Shorts 1: The Scale of the Universe | Curious Minds appeared first on Curious Minds Podcast.

How a single navigation error cost the Royal Navy Four battle ships and 1,505 men - and led a humble carpenter to solve one of the most difficult & important engineering challenges of the last 300 years. The post The Longitude Problem (Maritime History) | Curious Minds appeared first on Curious Minds Podcast.

Dr. Timothy Leary help kickstart the LSD's involvement in the Hippie movement of the 1960's - and was imprisoned for it. But what really makes LSD so dangerous? We'll delve deep into the effects of LSD on the human brain. The post LSD History, Pt.2: Timothy Leary | Curious Minds appeared first on Curious Minds Podcast.

A 2-parts series on LSD history: it's discovery, it's initial uses by psychologists and the CIA and it's role in the 'hippie revolution' of the 1960's. Also, how does LSD affects the brain? The post LSD History | Curious Minds appeared first on Curious Minds Podcast.

The Black Death that swept across Europe in the 14th century wasn't the first time nor the last that the Bubonic Plague decimate large cities and brought empires to their knees. For many thousands of years, its cause and way of spreading was totally unknown - until two brave (and some might say - insanely brave) French physicians took to the streets of Hong Kong and Bombay, and risked their own lives in the name of ridding Mankind - and the fleas - from their worst nightmare: The Plague. The post The Bubonic Plague | Curious Minds appeared first on Curious Minds Podcast.

The male Y Chromosome holds tantalizing clues about our own, personal past - but that past can turn out to be very troubling. Tatiana Zerjal's research on DNA samples brought by Spencer Wells from central asia revealed uncomfortable truths, such as the extend of rape and murder in Genghis Khan's Mongol empire. Dr. Karl Skorecki's interest in his priestly Jewish origins has the potential to sow division and strife amongst jews. Do we really want to know the secrets our DNA holds? The post Molecular Clock, Pt. 2: Y Chromosome | Curious Minds appeared first on Curious Minds Podcast.

In the 1970s and 80s, an interesting academic dispute rose between two rival camps of scientists in the field of Paleoanthropology, the study of human evolution. The main question dealt with the theories of when and where the modern human, the Homo-Sapiens, appeared. The post Molecular Clock, Pt.1: Mitochondrial DNA | Curious Minds appeared first on Curious Minds Podcast.

Arsenic Poisoning was the weapon of choice for many women over the centuries. Find out Arsenic's deadly history - and how it kills. The post Arsenic Poisoning – A History | Curious Minds appeared first on Curious Minds Podcast.

What can we learn from the BBC's failed Domesday Project about the digital preservation of the wealth of information we produce each year? The post Digital Preservation & The Domesday Project | Curious Minds appeared first on Curious Minds Podcast.

A 2-part series, exploring the role of technology in the Battle of the Atlantic in WW2. How did technical innovations by German, American and British engineers determine the ebbs and flows of the naval battles and the ultimate fate of the German U-Boats fleet? Read the Full Text or Listen to the Podcast Subscribe: iTunes … Continue reading U Boats in WWII, Pt. II: Wolf Packs and Floating Coffins | Curious Minds → The post U Boats in WWII, Pt. II: Wolf Packs and Floating Coffins | Curious Minds appeared first on Curious Minds Podcast.

How did the small, outgunned German fleet manage to strike painful blows to the Great British Navy? The credit for this success belongs to the German flotilla of submarines: the Unterseeboots, or U-Boats. The post U Boats in WWII, Pt. I: The Battle of the Atlantic | Curious Minds appeared first on Curious Minds Podcast.

In 1895, Wilhelm Röntgen was an honored and admired physics professor. But reputation aside, Röntgen was 50 years old - and at that age, it is rare for a scientist to make a significant contribution to his or her field. The post Medical History: Rontgen, Hounsfield & Radiology | Curious Minds appeared first on Curious Minds Podcast.