Quirks and Quarks

IDEAS, hosted by Nahlah Ayed is a weekday podcast that explores how ideas shape our world.

“One of your tribe is enough.” That’s what Margaret Rossiter was told when she said she wanted to study female scientists in the ‘70s. Nevertheless, Rossiter persisted. She found and documented hundreds of women whose contributions to science had been overlooked, under-credited and misappropriated. Then she made history herself by coining the term “The Matilda Effect” to describe why those women failed to get the credit they deserved.

Who is Matilda? Matilda Joslyn Gage was a suffragist erased from history. She was known as being too radical for Susan B. Anthony. This episode of IDEAS shares her story.

You can find more episodes of IDEAS wherever you get your podcasts, and here: https://link.mgln.ai/IDEASxQQ

Seabird poop plays a surprising role in bringing life to barren islands, spreading nutrients throughout the ocean, and even creating wealth for an ancient human empire.

PLUS:

The precursors of written language go back a lot earlier than we thought
Dolphins exposed to the Deepwater Horizon oil spill also more likely to be hit by boats
From the archives: Canadian astronomer spots a supernova visible to the naked eye
Quirks Question: How do beavers choose their trees?
Mapping the universe in three dimensions

We tend to think of animals like snakes, rats and even cockroaches as pests, but in her new book, biologist Marlene Zuk says there's a lot we can learn from these less than desirable creatures, if we just give them a chance.

PLUS:
A case of mistaken identity: The truth about the world's 'oldest' octopus fossil
From the archives: Carl Sagan on the worlds beyond our solar system
The evolutionary cost of our relationship with fire
We're not speaking as much as we used to — and scientists are concerned

There's been a growing movement to develop new technologies to replace at least some of the animals used in scientific research. Researchers across Canada are working to create these tools, to usher in a new animal-free era for medical science.

PLUS:
Harbor seals can 'talk' thanks to their parrot-like brains
'Flaming hot' water ice may explain Neptune and Uranus' strange magnetism
A thigh bone that could represent the oldest evidence of our human lineage
The ravens of Yellowstone remember where wolves typically kill their prey

On their mission around the moon, Jeremy Hansen and his crewmates will become the only four people on Earth to ever lay eyes on the entire far side of the moon. Since joining the space program, the Artemis astronauts have been undergoing intensive geological training to help train their eyes to look for lunar features that satellites can't pick up.

PLUS:

How Neanderthals skillfully hunted and butchered a giant elephant
Filming fish over their lifetime reveals behaviours that lead to longevity
How our food environment shapes our tastes — and health