Podcasting

There are a number of interesting science and engineering-related podcasts available these days. I find these a great way to stay connected with the world outside my work. A few that I have been listening to:

• The Smithsonian Institution's Prototype Online: Inventive Voices
• This show features interviews with inventors and engineers. Past shows have featured Deanne Bell & Nate Ball, the hosts of PBS' Design Squad, and Chuck Hoberman the inventor of the Hoberman sphere and other collapsible structures.
• NPR: Health & Science (weekly)
• Features the highlights of NPR's science & medicine reporting for the week. Often includes reports on new inventions, breakthrough studies, and environmental issues. Highly informative, thorough reporting.
  
• WNYC's Radio Lab
• Funny, informative & innovative look at "One Big Idea". Recent shows have included: Stress, Sleep, Time, Space, The Wright Brothers, & Laughter
• This Week in Science
• Hosted by a neuroscience Ph.D and an amateur physicist at UC - Berkeley, this show covers a wide array of science news in a weekly one hour show.

To find these and more, I recommend going to the iTunes store (although for most you can go directly to their website as well) clicking on Podcasts and going to the "Science and Medicine" category. Note that all of these podcasts are free and you can download past episodes individually as well as subscribing to new ones.