Desktop Diaries: Jill Tarter
As the SETI (Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence) Institute’s first employee, Tarter has accumulated E.T.-themed office ornaments for the last 30 years—including a bottle of wine to be opened “only upon detection of Extraterrestrial signal.”
Lock Luster
The evolution of safe and vault lock technology is on view in midtown Manhattan.
Tiny Living
The nuts and bolts of designing, building and living in a 140-square-foot home.
Coffee’s Natural Creamer
Coffee beans are filled with oils that emerge from coffee grounds under high pressure. These oils form the crema—the frothy stuff on top of an espresso.
Bamboo Bicycles Roll Out
To be bike-ready, the bamboo must be cooked in an oven, stripped, and sealed. We visited the workshop of Valid Cycles in Woodinville, Washington, to see how the bikes are made.
Al Gore: Studio Session
Former vice president Al Gore joins Ira Flatow in the studio to talk about ‘The Future.’
Comet’s Tail Shines Light on Sun
In 2011, comet Lovejoy traveled through the sun’s corona and lived to tell the tale. But its tail was the most telling.
Teacher Feature: Ethnobotanist Tom Carlson
Science Friday pays tribute to a great science teacher. “Office hours are some of my favorite hours of the week,” says Tom Carlson, a medical doctor, ethnobotanist, and instructor of 1700 students annually at the University of California, Berkeley.
Desktop Diaries: Daniel Kahneman
“I have always emphasized the willingness to discard,” says psychologist and Nobel Laureate Daniel Kahneman. That philosophy works on two levels—forget desk trinkets, Kahneman doesn’t have a desk—and he doesn’t hoard ideas either he says.
Gear for Your Coffee Grounds
Coffee experts percolate over how to get the most from your grounds. From the chemex to the wood neck, the brewmasters filter out reasons to choose one brewing device over another.