As Science Friday’s video producer, Luke is tasked with writing, filming, directing, editing, animating, narrating, and promoting many of the short films you’ll find on this here website. Every other week, he becomes obsessed with the research he films until his video is complete or his colleagues show him a shiny new study to play with. Luke also wrangles a stable of equally enthusiastic freelance filmmakers, helping them to produce and promote their own stories.
Prior to being domesticated by Science Friday, Luke worked at the Wildlife Conservation Society, where he profiled a wide cast of characters, both two- and four-legged. The experience provided hands-on training in storytelling, as well as some invaluable lessons in wildlife filmmaking, such as “Lemurs enjoy scent marking. Everything.” And, “Never let a baby walrus sit on you.”
Despite his snobby film school education at SUNY Purchase and his devotion to Werner Herzog, his favorite film remains The Bear. He doesn’t care that it is a “kiddie film” that anthropomorphizes animals—he cries every time and isn’t ashamed of it.
6:38
The Science of Tuvan Throat Singing
Tuvan throat singers have developed a technique that allows them to produce two notes at one time.
The Highs And Lows Of Tuvan Throat Singing
The Tuvan throat-singing band Alash Ensemble can sing low and high notes simultaneously, inspiring wonder and a deep appreciation for their craft.
Reverse Engineering Europa
By conducting experiments in ultra-chilled vacuum chambers, astrobiologist Kevin Hand hopes to inform how future NASA missions search for life on icy moons.
8:11
Where Do Baby Seahorses Come From?
Seahorses are one of the few vertebrates where males become pregnant and give birth to offspring.
What To Expect From An Expecting Seahorse
Seahorses and their cousins the pipefish are the only vertebrates where males become pregnant. Here’s how it works!
Breakthrough: Snapshots from Afar
In the second episode of Science Friday and HHMI’s series “Breakthrough: Portraits of Women in Science,” three scientists share stories about India’s first interplanetary mission—a mission to Mars.
The Fungi in Your Future
From bricks, to furniture, to leather, mushrooms can be made into a wide variety of materials.
A Chair Fit for Dancing
Equipped with omnidirectional movement, a rotating seat, and a hands-free control, Merry Lynn Morris’ rolling dance chair enables dancers to explore new movement techniques, and may one day provide greater mobility in everyday life, too.
Grabbing the Horns From the Bull
Alison Van Eenennaam and colleagues at UC Davis, along with researchers at the biotech company Recombinetics, aim to develop a genetically hornless cattle that might one day replace cows whose horns must be physical removed through expensive and painful methods.
7:09
Constructing Eye-Popping Pop-Up Books
Pop-up designer Matthew Reinhart engineers paper cut-outs that move and extend, sometimes reaching nearly two-feet tall.