Why would anyone want to cut the toenails of a snapping turtle?  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Snapping turtles are teaching us invaluable lessons about the effects of toxins on the environment.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Microorganisms are part of the "recipe" for making rain, and rain not only cleans the atmosphere of microbes and airborne particles, it serves as a prime mover in stimulating microbial growth.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy ...

Why would bacteria evolve the ability to freeze cloud water at higher than normal temperatures?  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Most scientists refrain from eating anything in their labs, and for good reason. But when it comes to flavor science, tasting chemicals is madatory.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

They're the largest antlered animal in the world and a lot faster that you'd expect them to be.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

On Isle Royale in Lake Superior, wolves and moose lead an interdependent existence.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

You might not expect the wolf population to effect the number of trees in an ecosystem - but it does.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

What does it take to handle a four-story high balloon?  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

For many New Yorkers, watching the giant parade balloons being filled on the day before Thanksgiving, has become part of their holiday celebration.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

An innovative way is being developed to create nanomaterials - tiny bits of matter - using microscopic organisms called diatoms.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Diatoms are among the world's oldest and most ubiquitous creatures, and they may soon be an important part of one of the newest branches of science and technology.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Farming practices in the mid-west have an impact on the environmental conditions in the Gulf of Mexico.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Off the coast of Louisiana there's a region of ocean the size of the state of New Jersey that's virtually devoid of life.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Off the coast of Louisiana there's about 6000 square miles of ocean that're virtually devoid of life.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Statisticians compile the hard evidence that forms the backbone of much scientific research.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

What are the factors that will cause a family to accept a new technology or not?  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Should hand pumps be installed in remote villages in Africa? That's the kind of question statisticians are called upon to answer.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The Hindu goddess of good fortune is worshipped during a ceremony of light and chanting, for blessings of spiritual wealth and enlightenment.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Divine statues are bathed with milk, honey, and other symbolic offerings during the Hindu celebration of Diwali.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Diwali is a luminous celebration of enlightenment.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

A bat can change the shape of its ear in about one-tenth of a second!  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Many bats emit sounds through a "nose-leaf", which is like a little megaphone that surrounds the nostrils.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.