While Ant-Man floats in the endless expanse of the Marvel Universe Quantum Realm, scientists like Professor Nadya Mason at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign work diligently to discover what the rules of quantum mechanics really are.
Professor Mason’s January 13 Science Sundays talk at Ohio State is titled “Going Through the Quantum Tunnel” and she “was inspired by several things in this talk.”
“One is that my own research is on quantum mechanical properties of materials and devices: how do electronics change when you consider quantum mechanics?” Mason explained. “The other proximate inspiration from my talk is that I saw the most recent Ant Man movie. In the movie, quantum mechanics plays a huge part. There’s a quantum tunnel, and they go into the quantum realm, and they can’t get back out. I thought it was really interesting.”
Join us for a discussion of what quantum mechanics is, how it can be used, and the mind-blowing relationships between atoms separated by large distances.
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Dino Tripodis started gracing Columbus radio nearly 25 years ago as part of the Dino and Stacy duo, and he’s transitioned to podcasting with 
The universe is endlessly vast and can seem incomprehensible. However, it’s not as incomprehensible as you might think. In his book Your Place in the Universe: Understanding Our Big, Messy Existence, astrophysicist Paul M. Sutter explains a lot about what we know of the universe. In my interview with him, we discuss the Big Bang, the Singularity, the Cosmic Web, dark matter and dark energy, and what the end of the universe might be like. So take a listen, and I hope your mind will be as blown as mine was.
I find dystopian novels one of the most interesting forms of science fiction. From 1984 to Fahrenheit 451, authors have created futures that we fear may come to pass (if they haven’t already). Margaret Peterson Haddix is known for her juvenile and young adult series. In the Children of Exile series, she envisions a dystopian future that is still suitable for children. Join us for a discussion of Children of Jubilee, the final book in the series; her inspirations and writing process in making believable child characters; and why even children are interested in dystopian fiction. Just make sure that Big Brother isn’t listening as well.
Ohio author Celeste Ng is the 2018 Ohioana Fiction Award winner for her book Little Fires Everywhere. Listen in as we discuss what it’s like to win an Ohioana award; how she ensured that she got the details right about the setting for her novel, Shaker Heights, Ohio; and how she deals with seeing her own books or those of her friends in a bookstore.
