How does what we’re learning about the great apes teach us about our humanity and hopes for survival on planet earth? Our guest on this week’s Planet Watch is Michelle Merrill. She is currently an independent consultant (perplexedprimate.org) and the founder of Novasutras.org. She taught anthropology and sustainability courses at Cabrillo College from 2006 to 2013. She • Read More »
On the podcast we hear an interview with deep sea researcher Linda Snook whose work takes her 1500 feet down underwater in a tiny submersible. The creatures she sees few people lay eyes on in a lifetime; giant sea bass, strange worms, and lantern fish are some of the surprises she finds on old oil • Read More »
David Clague is our guest on Planet Watch. He is a senior scientist and volcanologist at MBARI, the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute. He talks about how Kilauea and other large active volcanoes help us learn more about our planet. Dave’s research interests are nearly all related to the formation and degradation of oceanic volcanoes, • Read More »
At the University of California, students and faculty are engaged in a campaign to get one of the country’s largest public university systems to divest their financial interests in fossil fuel companies on moral grounds and with the argument supporting polluting industries that contribute to global warming is contrary to the values of the institution.They • Read More »
An interview with NASA scientist Carol Stoker, an expert on Mars, the Red Planet. Carol Stoker is a staff planetary scientist at NASA Ames Research Center. Her most recent work is focused on developing instruments and robotic systems for space exploration and testing them in terrestrial analog environments. She has led field experiments in the Antarctic, • Read More »
Stan Sokolow trained and practiced as an orthodontist most of his life. But his interest in solving the world’s transportation problems became an obsession when he got inspired by reading about successes in other countries with this innovative solution. Find out which cities are already using this method of people moving and which are about • Read More »
Ever thought of making your own electricity in a nearby stream? We’ll talk with Don Harris, world-class guru on micro-hydropower and inventor of the Harris Hydroelectric Permanent Magnet Turbine about his experiences with these low-cost, high-return devices. Don lives up in the hills in the off-grid community of “Last Chance”, north of Santa Cruz, but • Read More »
A conversation with David Orr, writer and professor emeritus of environmental studies and political science from Oberlin College about the future of American democracy. What do we do to repair the damage being done to our basic institutions by the current administration? What happens after 2018, 2020, and next week if there is a constitutional • Read More »
Jonathan Fortney is a planet hunter. His job as head of UC Santa Cruz’s Astronomy Department is to look for exoplanets, planets orbiting other solar systems. He talks about what it would mean to find life, any life, elsewhere and how that ties in to our own stewardship of our own living planet.
What’s so green about skyscrapers? What are the top three best ways to “green them up”? How long until owners recoup their investment in green retrofits? Find out with green building guru, Barry Giles, CEO of BREEAMUSA. Barry is the CEO of BREEAM USA and BuildingWise, as well as a LEED Fellow and a BREEAM • Read More »
