Best The Helyx Initiative Podcasts (2025)

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Saha and Bose in The Golden Age of Indian Science 36:22

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3+ y ago36:22

36:22

In 1905, India’s air was filled with the throbbing pulse of rebellion, the cobblestone streets of Bengal dreaming of freedom and enlightenment. Science was no longer reserved for those brilliant white men in stiff wigs and a few titles in front of their name - through science it was possible to do things and improve them. At the forefront of this f…

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Newton's Year of Wonders: Pandemics and Productivity 27:16

4y ago27:16

27:16

In 1665, The Great Plague of London ravaged England, killing around 100,000 people - a quarter of London's population - in eighteen months. It spread through rat-infested alleys in the bites of fleas with the Yersinia pestis bacterium all the way to the walls of the great burgeoning city. When the bubonic plague spread throughout the city, one soon…

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Tygers and Lambs - What can Evolution tell us? 27:51

4y ago27:51

27:51

In 1794, William Blake asked one of the most famous questions in all of poetry - "Did he who make the lamb make thee?". In this episode, Chris dives into the question of what makes ferocious tigers and innocent lambs so different from each other from an evolutionary view, and what that means for humans today with one of the species verging on extin…

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Colleen Golja: Can we engineer our way out of climate change? 52:06

4y ago52:06

52:06

In the 2013 film Snowpiercer, directed by Bong Joon Ho, humanity has been reduced to a segmented caste system on a single train that travels through the unhabitable, icy world. In order to combat global warming, scientists in the movie launched a compound called CW7 into the atmosphere. The intention of CW7 was to reflect the sun's heat and reverse…

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Trivia, Teaching, and Talent with (Jeopardy) Jason Zuffranieri + September Giveaway 51:53

4y ago51:53

51:53

Math teacher Jason Zuffranieri broke headlines when he won $532,496 in a 19-Game Winning Streak on Jeopardy! in 2019. He joins host Chris Jung to tell his story competing in the show and his thoughts as a Quizbowl, Science Bowl, and Math Team coach, as well as being a math teacher and a competitive puzzle solver. Youtube Link: (Needed to enter the …

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Analyzing Pseudoscience with Dr. James and Alison Kaufman 59:02

4y ago59:02

59:02

Who can we trust when it comes to scientific integrity in a headline-chasing, "fake news" world? Dr. James and Alison Kaufman, esteemed psychology professors at the University of Connecticut and authors of Pseudoscience: The Conspiracy Against Science, join host Chris Jung for a conversation about pseudoscience in the history of science, social med…

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Science Goes to the Movies with Dr. David A. Kirby 1:03:24

4y ago1:03:24

1:03:24

Science media expert Professor David A. Kirby discusses the history of science in films, the changing representation of scientists in media, and how science and entertainment industries both can both help and harm each other through science consulting and public attention with host Chris Jung on The Helyx Show. Professor Kirby's Cal Poly site: http…

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Haley Wahl: Pulsars, Physics, and Pressures in Academia 51:17

4y ago51:17

51:17

Haley Wahl, a PhD student studying pulsars and astrophysics at West Virginia University, joins us today on The Helyx Show. Haley's main topic of research is pulsar polarization and emission, and she is an active advocate for mental health and science communication. She talks with Chris about her path in astrophysics, unhealthy pressures in academia…

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Gary Siuzdak: Mass Spectrometry, Metabolomics, and Memories 1:08:39

4y ago1:08:39

1:08:39

Dr. Gary Siuzdak is a Professor of Chemistry, Molecular and Computational Biology and Director of the Center for Metabolomics at The Scripps Research Institute in La Jolla, California, where he and his team are leading researchers in developing mass spectrometry-based technologies for understanding metabolism. In this interview, Dr. Siuzdak talks a…

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Episode 4: Offshore Wind Farms - Our Best Bet 23:45

4y ago23:45

23:45

In 1991, eleven fully constructed turbines were lifted into the waters between 1.5 and 3km from the southeast shores of Denmark. Compared to today’s standards, these turbines were elementary structures mounted on concrete, and yet DONG Energy’s construction of the very first offshore wind farm, called Vindeby, revolutionized renewable energy for th…

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Aashika Jagadeesh: Machine Learning vs. Social Media Bias 35:23

4+ y ago35:23

35:23

Aashika Jagadeesh is a rising junior at Fair Lawn High School and student researcher passionate about AI Ethics and revealing the impact of social media algorithms on mental health. She joins our host, Chris Jung, for a conversation about her research project and FreeFeed website designed to reduce the damaging effects of social media for all its u…

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Siya Goel: Science Fairs and Student Research 43:26

4+ y ago43:26

43:26

Siya Goel is a junior at West Lafayette Jr/Sr High School, three-time ISEF finalist, and has notable experience in research and will attend the Research Science Institute this summer. She joins our host, Chris Jung, for a conversation about her experiences in research and gives invaluable advice for students enamored by research and searching for o…

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Episode 0: Scientist - What’s in a word? 20:21

4+ y ago20:21

20:21

In 1833, William Whewell (1888-1965) Cambridge University historian and philosopher, coined the term “scientist” to describe someone who studies the structure and behavior of the physical and natural world through observation and experiment. What does it mean to be a scientist and what role does science play in our lives? Join Chris Jung, a wildly …