Best Space Slugs Podcasts (2026)

1
Your Cells Are Always Building A Whole New You 18:04

Play Pause

14h ago18:04

18:04

In the last year, you’ve basically replaced your body weight in new cells. So yes, it’s a new year, new you. To ring in 2026, we’re talking about starting anew, and drawing inspiration from tiny worms that embody the ultimate growth mindset—they can regrow a whole body from just a tiny piece of their tail. In this festive episode, Host Flora Lichtm…

1
A Look Back At 2025 In Science, From Federal Cuts To Space Junk 15:51

1d ago15:51

15:51

This has been a busy year in science, from government budget cuts and policy changes affecting research, to the record rise of renewables, to the surge in AI, and everything in between. Science journalists Sophie Bushwick and Maggie Koerth join Host Ira Flatow to unpack some of the year’s top stories, and some you might have missed. Guests: Sophie …

1
Attention-Deficit Neuropsychology (ADHD) Part 2 Encore with How to ADHD, Black Girl Lost Keys, Jahla Osborne + more 1:37:09

2d ago1:37:09

1:37:09

Did Part 1 leave you informed and now you need a pep talk? Get ready for an absolute banger of an encore episode with 5 experts: René Brooks of BlackGirlLostKeys.com, TEDTalk speaker and How to ADHD YouTuber Jessica McCabe and neuroscientist Dr. Jahla Osborne of University of Michigan. What is it like to get diagnosed? How do you know which medicat…

51
How Death Metal Singers Make Their Extreme Vocalizations 13:42

3d ago13:42

13:42

Being able to belt out a tune like Adele or Pavarotti is not just about raw talent. The best singers in the world have to work on their technique—like how to control their breath and develop the stamina to hit note after note for a two-hour concert. But pop stars and opera singers aren’t the only vocalists who have figured out how to harness their …

1
What The Sigma Is Algospeak? 18:48

3d ago18:48

18:48

Gen Alpha slang can seem unintelligible to adults, but linguist and TikToker Adam Aleksic argues language development in the internet age is worth legitimate study. In a conversation from July, Adam talks to Host Flora Lichtman about how algorithms and social media are changing the way we speak, and discusses his new book, Algospeak: How Social Med…

1
Tangling With Entanglement And Other Big Ideas In Physics 35:55

7d ago35:55

35:55

What have we learned in recent years about black holes? Can entangled quantum particles really communicate faster than light? What’s the story behind Schrödinger’s Cat? And, in this weird liminal space between the holidays, what even IS time, really? Physicist Sean Carroll and Host Ira Flatow tackled those big questions and more at a recent event a…

1
The Science Of Thriving In Winter—By Embracing It 17:34

8d ago17:34

17:34

Health psychologist Dr. Kari Leibowitz traveled to some of the coldest, darkest places on earth to learn how people there don’t just survive, but thrive in winter. She says that one of the key ingredients is adopting a positive wintertime mindset by focusing on and celebrating the good parts of winter. In a conversation from January, Flora Lichtman…

1
A Neurologist Investigates His Own Musical Hallucinations 10:50

9d ago10:50

10:50

Imagine sitting at home and then all of a sudden you hear a men’s choir belting out “The Star Spangled Banner.” You check your phone, computer, radio. Nothing’s playing. You look outside, no one’s there. That’s what happened to neurologist Bruce Dobkin after he received a cochlear implant. He set out to learn everything he could about the condition…

1
Attention-Deficit Neuropsychology (ADHD) Part 1 Encore with Russell Barkley 1:40:25

9d ago1:40:25

1:40:25

Focus. Productivity. Relationships. Distraction. Neurodiversity. How do you know if you have ADHD? How can you get others to understand your ADHD brain? What are your treatment options and how can they help? In this encore of our wildly popular Part 1 episode, we talk racing thoughts, brilliant brains and the causes and effects of Attention-Deficit…

101
‘Prehistoric Planet’ Defrosts Strange Animals Of The Ice Age 17:56

10d ago17:56

17:56

Koalas with the bodies of lions. Elephants the size of your dog. Gigantic, 8-foot-tall sloths. These aren’t creatures found in science fiction: They walked our planet a million years ago, during the Ice Age. That’s the focus of the third season of the Apple TV series “Prehistoric Planet,” which uses the latest paleontology research and photorealist…

1
How Did Vaccine Policies Actually Change In 2025? 12:21

11d ago12:21

12:21

Since 1955, when Congress passed the Polio Vaccination Assistance Act, the federal government has been in the business of expanding access to vaccines. That is, until this year. 2025 has been filled with almost daily news stories about federal agencies, under the direction of Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., casting doubts about vaccine safe…

1
Why Astronomers Are Excited About Comet 3I/ATLAS’ Close Approach 18:33

14d ago18:33

18:33

This year, comet 3I/Atlas broke into our solar system, but also the zeitgeist. This dirty snowball is a visitor from another solar system, and it’s only the third interstellar object we’ve ever spotted. And today, it's closer to us than ever before—just 170 million miles away. Astronomy experts Stefanie Milam and Hakeem Oluseyi join Host Flora Lich…

1
‘Fire Amoeba’ Likes It Hot, And A Faraway Lava Planet 18:08

14d ago18:08

18:08

While on a sampling trip in California’s Lassen Volcanic National Park, researchers stopped to sample a rather boring stream on their hike to Boiling Springs Lake. But when they incubated that water sample back in the lab, they discovered an amoeba that could still move and divide at 145 F, a new record for a eukaryotic cell. Microbiologist Angela …

1
Birthday Special 2025 1:53:06

7d ago1:53:06

1:53:06

Another year, another Birthday Special... our sixth! It's Mike's birthday... it's Phil's birthday... it's the podcast's official state birthday... so what better than a silly, hastily assembled drunken quiz? No ? required... that was a rhe A chance for Loz to close the gap on Phil's epic quiz streak as well as to introduce a wild card in the shape …

1
Ornithorhynchology (PLATYPUSES) with Tahneal Hawke 1:09:28

15d ago1:09:28

1:09:28

Duck bills. Beaver tails. Underground lairs. Eggs. Milk. Venom? A platypus has it all. Scholar, conservationist, and Ornithorhynchologist Dr. Tahneal Hawke is here to run through the baffling anatomy and answer all of our WHAT’S THE DEAL, WHAT EVEN *ARE* THEY questions, and chat about field work, evolution, how to spot a platypus, why you can’t hav…

1
What’s The Reality Behind The Humanoid Robot Hype? 12:19

16d ago12:19

12:19

Videos of humanoid robots dancing, doing cartwheels, putting clothes in a washing machine, and serving drinks are all over social media. And tech CEOs are telling us to prepare for the forthcoming humanoid army that’s going to totally change our lives for the better. But what’s real? Where are we with this technology? Are these humanoids robots rea…

1
'Just' A Blue Jay? Don't Overlook These Magnificent Common Birds 17:55

17d ago17:55

17:55

It’s that time of year: the Christmas Bird Count, when birders go out in flocks to record all the birds they see in a single day. The data collected during this annual tradition gets compiled by the National Audubon Society, and helps scientists understand bird population trends across the Americas. If you participate in the bird count, chances are…

1
Bonus Episode: Nutritional Microbiology (GUT HEALTH & DIET) with Miguel Freitas and Elaine Hsiao 48:21

17d ago48:21

48:21

The microbiome is back! In 2018, we chatted with Dr. Elaine Hsiao - a UCLA microbiome researcher– and learned all about the hot cauldron of your guts. In this 2025 update bonus, we chat again with Dr. Hsiao to get updates on the last 7 years of her research. We also stop by White Plains, New York to hang out with Dr. Miguel Freitas, lead nutritiona…

1
Can We Just Throw Our Plastic Garbage Into A Volcano? 17:16

18d ago17:16

17:16

It’s winter, and the SciFri team is already dreaming of warmer weather. How about a mind vacation to one of the hottest places on earth, an erupting volcano? Tamsin Mather has trekked to volcanoes in Chile, Guatemala, Italy, and beyond to learn their secrets. She joins Host Flora Lichtman to field your burning volcano questions, like what’s the dea…

1
How Did Ancient Humans Use The Acoustics Of Spaces Like Caves? 18:55

21d ago18:55

18:55

The sound of a choir performing in a cathedral is iconic for a reason. It’s this beautiful human experience: being side-by-side with other people, feeling the sound vibrate through you, reverberating around the space. But how long has that been a part of our culture? And what role did sound play in the lives of people who lived during the Ice Age o…

1
What The Sounds Of Melting Glaciers Can Tell Us 18:26

22d ago18:26

18:26

As the planet warms, the world’s glaciers are melting faster than snow can replenish the ice. That has implications for sea level rise, ocean currents, and global weather patterns. But collecting data at the edge of a melting glacier can be risky. Glaciologist Erin Pettit and her colleagues are listening to the sounds melting glaciers make—from the…

1
How A Fringe Idea Led To Lifesaving Cancer Treatments 30:08

23d ago30:08

30:08

In cancer research, the “seed and soil” hypothesis posits that the tumor is like a seed of misbehaving cells taking root in the body. Whether it grows—and where it grows—depends on the conditions, or soil. Since this hypothesis was proposed more than 100 years ago, most research and treatments have focused on the seed, or tumor. For nearly 50 years…

1
Astrobromatology (SPACE FOOD) with Maggie Coblentz 1:11:05

23d ago1:11:05

1:11:05

Dehydrated eggs. Airborne tortillas. Pouches of chicken. Tang. Work up an appetite for space food with artist, designer and Astrobromatologist, Maggie Coblentz. She shares how the intersection of design and science led her skyward, doing experiments on zero G flights, and shipping miso into space. We also talk Martian gardening, stinky roommates, b…

Space Slugs Podcasts

1
Space Slugs: A Star Wars Shatterpoint Podcast

The Space Slugs

1
Ologies with Alie Ward

Alie Ward

1
Science Friday

Science Friday and WNYC Studios

1
Breakfast in the Ruins

STIMBOT5000

1
Ms BJ Martin’s Snails With No Shells

Ms BJ Martin

1
RPG Lessons Learned

RPGLLPodcast

1
Table Flipping with Alyssa and Taylor

The Podglomerate

1
Your Cells Are Always Building A Whole New You 18:04

1
A Look Back At 2025 In Science, From Federal Cuts To Space Junk 15:51

1
Attention-Deficit Neuropsychology (ADHD) Part 2 Encore with How to ADHD, Black Girl Lost Keys, Jahla Osborne + more 1:37:09

51
How Death Metal Singers Make Their Extreme Vocalizations 13:42

1
What The Sigma Is Algospeak? 18:48

1
Tangling With Entanglement And Other Big Ideas In Physics 35:55

1
The Science Of Thriving In Winter—By Embracing It 17:34

1
A Neurologist Investigates His Own Musical Hallucinations 10:50

1
Attention-Deficit Neuropsychology (ADHD) Part 1 Encore with Russell Barkley 1:40:25

101
‘Prehistoric Planet’ Defrosts Strange Animals Of The Ice Age 17:56

1
How Did Vaccine Policies Actually Change In 2025? 12:21

1
Why Astronomers Are Excited About Comet 3I/ATLAS’ Close Approach 18:33

1
‘Fire Amoeba’ Likes It Hot, And A Faraway Lava Planet 18:08

1
Birthday Special 2025 1:53:06

1
Ornithorhynchology (PLATYPUSES) with Tahneal Hawke 1:09:28

1
What’s The Reality Behind The Humanoid Robot Hype? 12:19

1
'Just' A Blue Jay? Don't Overlook These Magnificent Common Birds 17:55

1
Bonus Episode: Nutritional Microbiology (GUT HEALTH & DIET) with Miguel Freitas and Elaine Hsiao 48:21

1
Can We Just Throw Our Plastic Garbage Into A Volcano? 17:16

1
How Did Ancient Humans Use The Acoustics Of Spaces Like Caves? 18:55

1
What The Sounds Of Melting Glaciers Can Tell Us 18:26

1
How A Fringe Idea Led To Lifesaving Cancer Treatments 30:08

1
Astrobromatology (SPACE FOOD) with Maggie Coblentz 1:11:05