STARTALKER NEWSLETTER: ISSUE 72, MARCH 27, 2014

NEWSLETTER

Issue 72, March 27, 2014

This Week's Classic Podcast Cosmic Queries: Viruses, Outbreaks and Pandemics     March 30, 2014, 7:00pm ET/4:00pm PT   With the Ebola outbreak spreading through West African nations, our classic Cosmic Queries episode about viruses, outbreaks and pandemics couldn’t be more timely and relevant. Recorded during two recent outbreaks - H7N9 influenza, which killed 25% of its victims in China, and the MERS outbreak in the Middle East - the show features Infectious disease expert Laurie Garrett answering your questions about viruses. Laurie explains how viruses like Ebola and HIV jump from bats and primates to humans through “zoonosis” and why they’re so lethal when they do. She also describes a fungus that turns ants into zombies, pathogens that spread via rain, the dangers of the anti-vaccine movement and, unfortunately, so much more. Join us this Sunday, March 30 at 7:00 PM ET on our website, iTunes, Stitcher and SoundCloud. Photo Credit: MGVP/UC Davis. All rights reserved.

Catch Up on Last Week's Podcast A Conversation with Laurence Fishburne  March 23, 2014   Red pill or blue pill? You get both when Neil deGrasse Tyson interviews Morpheus himself, actor Laurence Fishburne. They sat down while Neil was in New Mexico filming COSMOS and Laurence was filming The Signal, a new indie sci-fi film. You’ll get a healthy dose of reality, as they talk about Fishburne’s roles in The Matrix,Searching for Bobby Fischer, and CSI. And you’ll dive into the world of the imagination as the two sci-fi fans discuss why style can be more important than substance in sci-fi and geek out over Star Trek, Superman andWatchmen. They also talk about chess, planetariums and using math and science to explore the world. Laurence tells Neil how and why he became an actor at age 10, and discusses his future plans to produce, direct, write plays and return to Broadway. Listen now. Photo Credit: Gregory Haynes. All rights reserved.

Best of the Blog Anything interesting happen today? Posted March 26, 2014   “So, anything interesting happen today?” “Well, they announced the discovery of a new dwarf planet, 2012 VP113, that’s further away from the Sun than Pluto.” “Wow. That must be the most exciting day for you space nuts in quite a while.” "Not really. Last week they announced they discovered..." Read More. Photo Credit: Scott Sheppard/Carnegie Institution for Science.

Have You Seen Our New "Behind the Scenes" Video? Neil deGrasse Tyson: Best Planetary Destruction in a Movie   A fan wants to know what was the most scientifically accurate destruction of a planet on the big screen. To answer this Cosmic Query, astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson and comic co-host Eugene Mirman compare three of the most spectacular cinematic obliterations: the destruction of Alderaan by the Death Star in “Star Wars IV – A New Hope,” the destruction of Vulcan by a planet-eating black hole created from “red matter” in J.J. Abrams’ “Star Trek” reboot, and the destruction of Krypton from over-mining in the Superman reboot, “Man of Steel.” And the winner is… Watch now. Don't miss any of our StarTalk Radio videos on YouTube. Subscribe to our YouTube Channel now. The StarTalk Team StarTalkTeam@startalkradio.net