Learning Science, Finding Joy at Home with Plants

Our guest this week is India Carlson, a botany and environmental horticulture teacher at Ballard High School in Seattle, Washington. In a typical year, India’s students spend a significant portion of time working in the school garden and greenhouse. Faced with the unique challenges of learning science at home this year, India decided to clone a plant for every one […]

Read more

Questions and Answers about Christmas Trees

To answer some of our questions about Christmas trees, we decided to connect with some experts. Tree farmers Neil Krueger (from Kreuger’s Christmas Tree Farm) and Shawn Schottler (from St. Croix Valley Trees and the Science Museum of Minnesota) join us to discuss growing and maintaining Christmas Trees, the sustainability of the industry, and even how to keep your Christmas […]

Read more

Learning With Your Feet and Other Ways to Improve Your Timefulness

This week we talk to our guest about time. Extensive time. Time that grounds geologic thinking as a way to unlock the earth’s past. Marcia Bjornerud, Professor of Environmental Studies and Geology at Lawrence University in Wisconsin (and Brian’s neighbor!), joins us to talk about her recent book Timefulness: How Thinking Like a Geologist Can Help Save the World. Listen […]

Read more

Place-Based Education: An Ecology Unit

For the third episode in a three-part series on place-based education in science, we welcome Chris Wyland to the show. Chris is a middle school math and science teacher at the Cottonwood School of Civics and Science in Portland, where the focus of the entire school is encouraging exploration of the natural world and involvement in the local community through […]

Read more

Exploring Place Based Education in Science

Lab Out Loud is proud to present a three-part series on place-based education in science. To kickoff this series, we welcome Ethan Lowenstein, Ph.D. (Professor of Curriculum and Instruction at Eastern Michigan University and Director of the Southeast Michigan Stewardship Coalition) and Greg Smith (emeritus professor of education from the Lewis & Clark College Graduate School of Education and Counseling) […]

Read more

A Breath of Fresh Science Writing from Sam Kean

Making his third appearance on Lab Out Loud, we welcome science storyteller Sam Kean back to the show.  As author of The Disappearing Spoon and The Violinist’s Thumb, Sam has a new book out called Caesar’s Last Breath: Decoding the Secrets of the Air Around Us.  Sam joins us to talk about how a chemistry thought problem lead to the title of […]

Read more

Learning the Rules with Sean B. Carroll

To close season 10, we welcome back Dr. Sean B. Carroll – award-winning scientist, writer, and educator.  Dr. Carroll’s new book, The Serengeti Rules, examines the fundamental question of how life works as he uncovers the rules that determine the what controls the number of species in an environment and the diversity within that community.  What this molecular biologist learns […]

Read more

STEM and Modern Agriculture

Valerie Bayes joins Lab Out Loud this week to talk about modern agriculture.  As the K-12 STEM Outreach Lead for Monsanto, Valerie is busy engaging educators in modern agriculture where cross-cutting concepts like engineering, math, and biology are used to solve important problems in our world today.  Through Monsanto’s STEM page, Valerie assists educators in finding powerful classroom resources and even helps teachers […]

Read more

Be Climate Smart with the @NCSE’s Mark McCaffrey

Season eight of of Lab Out Loud starts with our thoughts turning towards climate science.  As Programs and Policy Director for the National Center for Science Education, Mark McCaffrey boasts an impressive resume in climate and environmental science.  Mark helped lead the development of the Climate Literacy & Energy Awareness Network (CLEAN) and has testified before the House Subcommittee on Research about climate […]

Read more

Episode 107 – The Snowy Owl Irruption

This week we talk with Ryan Brady – a research scientist with the Wisconsin DNR, where he serves as the Wisconsin Bird Conservation Initiative Bird Monitoring Coordinator.  Ryan talks to us about this winter’s snowy owl irruption, how to connect with other birders, and how you might be able to find snowy owls in your own region. Links: eBird Bird-Watchers Revel in […]

Read more

Episode 73 – NCSE Now Defending Climate Change Education

http://traffic.libsyn.com/wsst/LOL73.mp3 As science educators are increasingly reporting attacks on climate change education, the National Center for Science Education (NCSE) is announcing that they will also be defending climate change science in public school science education.  Join us as Dr. Eugenie Scott explains this new initiative for NCSE by adding climate change to their portfolio in defending good science education. Links: […]

Read more

Episode 54 – The Encyclopedia of Life

http://traffic.libsyn.com/wsst/LOL54.mp3   Originally imagined by Harvard biologist E.O. Wilson as “…an electronic page for each species of organism on Earth…”, The Encyclopedia of Life is a free, online, collaborative encyclopedia intended to document every living species known to science. It is compiled from existing databases and from contributions by experts and non-experts throughout the world. This week we talk with […]

Read more

Episode 31 – The AMS Education Program

http://media.libsyn.com/media/wsst/LOL31.mp3   Our guest this week is Jim Brey, Director of the Education Program at the American Meteorological Society.  Jim talks to us about the AMS Education Program, which promotes the teaching of atmospheric, oceanographic, and hydrologic sciences through pre-college teacher training and instructional resource material development. Links: AMS Education Program DataStreme Atmosphere – Links to weather maps and other items […]

Read more

Episode 20 – Ed Begley Jr. on Science and the Environment

http://media.libsyn.com/media/wsst/LOL20.mp3   In this episode, we talked with Ed Begley Jr.  Ed talks to us about science, the environment and his show Living with Ed. Preview from the Show: I think when people are armed with good knowledge about science, I think we’ve really got a shot.  It’s amazing to me when I talk to people – adults, people my […]

Read more

Episode 14 – Bill Nye Talks About Energy and More

http://media.libsyn.com/media/wsst/nstalol14.mp3   For our contribution to Earth Day, we had the opportunity to chat with Bill Nye about his new show on the new Planet Green channel called Stuff Happens. Preview from the Show: I’m doing this other thing called “Stuff Happens? for the Discovery Channel. It’s strictly for a new channel Discovery is re-purposing – they’re calling it “Planet […]

Read more