Wednesday 15 January 2014

Podcasts: Star Talk



I've been suffering with insomnia for about 15 years. I used to go to bed at about 12 o'clock and lie there for hours just looking at the ceiling, hoping I would get some shut-eye. The nights would drag on and on, never ending (and actually still do!). A few years ago I decided, to ease the loneliness, I would listen to the BBC World Service. I soon fell in love with it as they had everything from Science to World Music! Last year while chatting to a friend about it, he recommended I listen to a few different podcasts that might interest me. So, while searching for science-y stuff, I came across Star Talk by Neil deGrasse Tyson. I had seen Neil interviewed for many a science programme on Discovery Science Channel and found him very interesting, so I was excited to get stuck in to his podcast.

Star Talk is a 40-50 minute podcast by Neil deGrasse Tyson the director of the Hayden Planetarium, New York. The podcast, which was launched in 2009, covers subjects from dark matter to the science of sex and has a range of co-hosts from comedian Chuck Nice to chef Anthony Bourdain (Swoon) It is hilarious and very informative and they have an episode that they do every once in a while called Cosmic Queries (My favourite!). This episode allows listeners to mail in and ask questions about the universe and other things science related and Neil has to answer them as fast as he can, with help from his comedian co-hosts. I would definitely recommend this podcast to amateur astronomers and anyone with an interest in science.


Do you have any podcasts that you recommend?