TrueSciPhi

Podcast Profile: Quirks and Quarks

Site • RSS • Apple Podcasts
23 episodes
2025 to 2026
Median: 54 minutes
Collection: Science

Description (podcaster-provided):

Themes and summary (AI-generated based on podcaster-provided show and episode descriptions):

This podcast is a weekly science magazine that ranges across astronomy, Earth science, biology, medicine, technology, and the social dimensions of research. Episodes typically bundle several short segments, each built around a recent study, a field expedition, a notable discovery, or a conversation with a working scientist. The tone is curious and explanatory, moving from “big picture” questions about the universe to close-up looks at organisms, bodies, and materials.

A major throughline is how living things behave and adapt. Many segments focus on animal ecology and evolution—from polar bears, reindeer, moose, whales, and grizzlies to chimps, ants, dogs, birds, fish, and deep-ocean species—often tying observations to climate change, habitat shifts, food webs, or human impacts. The show also revisits deep time through paleontology and ancient DNA/RNA, using fossils and genetic evidence to reconstruct extinct animals, evolutionary transitions, and past environments.

Human biology and health appear frequently, including immune regulation, infectious disease, microbiomes and fecal transplants, memory and perception, sleep and circadian rhythms, heat and sweating, toxins and industrial chemicals, and the ways subtle environmental exposures (such as tire-wear particles or plastics) may affect ecosystems and people. The podcast also highlights methods and tools that enable modern science, such as AI and machine learning for identifying wildlife or detecting traces of ancient life, brain imaging for decoding perception, seismometers for unexpected monitoring tasks, and engineered materials and designs.

Space and planetary science is another recurring focus, touching on black holes, gravitational waves, space debris, and questions about Mars and the origins of the Moon, alongside interviews that connect space exploration with practical preparation and scientific goals. Beyond research results, the program sometimes steps back to examine how science works in society—addressing topics like geoengineering trade-offs, scientific fraud, social media dynamics, and efforts to teach scientific thinking in prisons—while also featuring Q&A and book-focused formats that explore scientific ideas through listener curiosity and nonfiction writing.