Science Friction
ABC Australia
In humanity's next giant leap, astronauts are heading back to the Moon for the first time in more than 50 years.
We'll bring you daily Artemis II mission updates, from lift-off to splashdown, and answer your questions about life as an astronaut, the science of spaceflight, and plans to venture beyond the Moon.
The Challenger Legacy (Season 5)
In January 1986, the Challenger space shuttle disintegrated 73 seconds after lift-off. This is the story of how the tragedy unfolded, the engineers who tried to stop it — and the enduring consequences for humanity's exploration of space.
Artificial Evolution (Season 4): Three decades ago, Dolly the Sheep became the first ever cloned mammal. Nearly 30 years later, genetic technology has reshaped the world around us. Environment reporter Peter de Kruijff explores what's changed, where we are headed, and whether we're okay with it.
Brain Rot (Season 3): How does being chronically online affect our brains? Technology reporter Ange Lavoipierre explores the wildest ways people are using tech — from falling in love with AI companions to data-dumping a life into a language model — and the big questions about our own screen use.
Cooked (Season 2): Why do some studies show ice cream is good for you? Why do some people say they feel good going carnivore, and do we really need as many electrolytes as the internet tells us? Food and nutrition scientist Dr Emma Beckett cuts through these confusing findings to explain how nutrition science works.
AI Overlords (Season 1): AI didn't come from nowhere, and its development hasn't been a smooth, straight line — it's been rife with drama, conflict and disagreement. Technology reporter James Purtill looks at where AI came from, who controls it and where it's heading.
We'll bring you daily Artemis II mission updates, from lift-off to splashdown, and answer your questions about life as an astronaut, the science of spaceflight, and plans to venture beyond the Moon.
The Challenger Legacy (Season 5)
In January 1986, the Challenger space shuttle disintegrated 73 seconds after lift-off. This is the story of how the tragedy unfolded, the engineers who tried to stop it — and the enduring consequences for humanity's exploration of space.
Artificial Evolution (Season 4): Three decades ago, Dolly the Sheep became the first ever cloned mammal. Nearly 30 years later, genetic technology has reshaped the world around us. Environment reporter Peter de Kruijff explores what's changed, where we are headed, and whether we're okay with it.
Brain Rot (Season 3): How does being chronically online affect our brains? Technology reporter Ange Lavoipierre explores the wildest ways people are using tech — from falling in love with AI companions to data-dumping a life into a language model — and the big questions about our own screen use.
Cooked (Season 2): Why do some studies show ice cream is good for you? Why do some people say they feel good going carnivore, and do we really need as many electrolytes as the internet tells us? Food and nutrition scientist Dr Emma Beckett cuts through these confusing findings to explain how nutrition science works.
AI Overlords (Season 1): AI didn't come from nowhere, and its development hasn't been a smooth, straight line — it's been rife with drama, conflict and disagreement. Technology reporter James Purtill looks at where AI came from, who controls it and where it's heading.
Episodes
Mentioned books
Apr 19, 2020 • 38min
Science, Interrupted Part 1 - lives, loves, labs upended by COVID19
Extraordinary scientists doing extraordinary things. Then came the pandemic.
Apr 12, 2020 • 36min
If we can mobilise around a pandemic, what next? Meet two revolutionaries already flouting the rules
After the pandemic, what else can we make work better? Here are some dumb things to start with. We flush fresh water down our toilets. We throw out perfectly edible food by the tonne.
Apr 5, 2020 • 31min
COVID-19, China’s wild wet markets, pangolins, and bats - is it US not THEM?
Why do deadly viruses love bats so much, why don’t bats get crook, and what’s with China’s wild wet markets? The curious making of a pandemic.
Mar 29, 2020 • 31min
Rules of contagion - meet a mathematician at the frontline of the COVID-19 fight
At the frontline of the COVID-19 fight right now, Adam Kucharski is author of The Rules of Contagion: Why Things Spread - and Why They Stop. He sees patterns of contagion everywhere – in viruses, memes, markets.
Mar 22, 2020 • 31min
Acclaimed Beasts of No Nation author Uzodinma Iweala - on science, power, and race
The stories we construct about biology, viruses, and beyond can reshape the course of our lives. When the world suddenly feels very small, connected by a virus that’s porous to people and borders, let's consider the power and porosity of science.
Mar 15, 2020 • 31min
Your 3D printed body
If you could 3D print a new body part, what would it be? For marine scientist Pia Winberg that question was about to become intensely real. The science and the ethics of a wild frontier for medicine.
Mar 8, 2020 • 34min
School gate racism, education reclaimed, and family found (Part 2)
Three generations with powerful, personal stories of family lost and found, racism, and the right to education reclaimed. This is not your average Science Summer School.
Mar 1, 2020 • 30min
How to be Two Ways strong: Dreamtime science and finding yourself (Part 1)
Pack your pyjamas, we’re heading to camp! From Arnhem Land to Adelaide, Caboolture to Coffs – let's gather from far and wide to meet on Kaurna country. A scientific and cultural odyssey in two parts.
Feb 23, 2020 • 26min
EVACUATE NOW - wildfires and why Will stayed in bed
How would you react if you received this SMS? BUSHFIRE WARNING. LEAVE NOW.When we evacuate from a bushfire, we fall into one of seven types of evacuee; from Threat Deniers, to Worried Waverers, to Experienced Independents. This is the story of a bad evacuee turned good.
Feb 16, 2020 • 26min
Wildfires with wild numbers: fact checking a catastrophe
This Summer's overwhelming bushfires have produced overwhelming numbers - hectares burnt, animals killed, carbon dioxide emitted. But who's fact checking the numbers? We are.
