Robert Krulwich

Wildlife That Isn't Wild And Isn't Alive

Robert Krulwich — Wed, 08 May 2013 18:01:42 +0000

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hNUeSUXOc-w

Our Very Normal Solar System Isn't Normal Anymore

Robert Krulwich — Tue, 07 May 2013 13:23:16 +0000

Some things you just count on. Like if we ever meet a space alien, it should have eyes (and maybe a head). Like somewhere out there, there are planets like ours. Like we have an ordinary solar system — "ordinary" because you know what it looks like ...

It's got a sun in the middle, little planets on the inside, bigger ones farther out. That's what most of them should look like, no?

We thought they should.

The Boomerang Rocket Ship: Shoot It Up, Back It Comes

Robert Krulwich — Tue, 30 Apr 2013 15:45:00 +0000

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NoxiK7K28PU

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=orUjSkc2pG0

A Wet Towel In Space Is Not Like A Wet Towel On Earth

Robert Krulwich — Sun, 21 Apr 2013 12:44:04 +0000

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o8TssbmY-GM

A 'Who Do You Hang With?' Map of America

Robert Krulwich — Wed, 17 Apr 2013 15:55:00 +0000

Look at the center of this map, at the little red dot that marks Kansas City. Technically, Kansas City is at the edge of Missouri, but here on this map it's in the upper middle section of a bigger space with strong blue borders. We don't have a name for this bigger space yet, but soon we will.

I would call it, for the moment, "The Part Of America Kansas City Hangs With" because that's what this map is saying. It's a new, intriguing way to see our country. This one was built by tracking dollar bill circulation. There've been similar maps built from phone call data.

The Big Squeeze: Can Cities Save The Earth?

Robert Krulwich — Mon, 08 Apr 2013 17:18:00 +0000

Let's get dense. If we take all the atoms inside you, all roughly 70,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000 of them, and squeeze away all the space inside, then, says physicist Brian Greene:

That's a very tight fit. So tight that in real life, it couldn't happen. It's not physically possible. Atoms won't crunch that close. But people, it seems, are willing to try.

Socrates (In The Form Of A 9-Year-Old) Shows Up In A Suburban Backyard In Washington

Robert Krulwich — Thu, 28 Mar 2013 10:39:58 +0000

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SvMiXk2gGSk

What Happened When Humans Met An Alien Intelligence? Sex Happened

Robert Krulwich — Fri, 08 Mar 2013 16:16:00 +0000

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9i_oJn-9d_0

A Crazy But Rational Solution To Our Electoral College Problem

Robert Krulwich — Fri, 15 Feb 2013 17:46:57 +0000

Let's pretend. Let's pretend that politics doesn't matter, politicians don't matter, history doesn't matter, nostalgia doesn't matter, emotion doesn't matter, habit doesn't matter, romance doesn't matter, prejudice doesn't matter — all that matters is good old rational, mathematical, look-at-the-numbers common sense.

And now let's look at the Electoral College.

We know what its problems are. Simply stated, by mathematician and fellow Obie (Oberlin College, producer of odd ducks) Neil Freeman, some states have lots of electoral power.

Yes, Cats Know How To Fall On Their Feet. But These Guys Do It Better

Robert Krulwich — Sat, 09 Feb 2013 13:52:59 +0000

The champ has met its challenger.

Drop a cat and it will swing its head to a horizontal, rearrange its rear, arch its back, splay its legs, and — amazingly often — land on its feet.

This is what cats do. They're famous for it. But now they have a rival.

This is an aphid.

Aphids spend their days sucking sap from leaves. Those leaves can be high off the ground. "High" of course, being a relative term, but think of it this way: Five feet high up is 381 aphids tall.