NSF’s Discovery Files Podcast

Light From Cosmic Dawn

U.S. National Science Foundation-supported observatories allow researchers to advance and expand humanity’s understanding of the early universe. Tobias Marriage, a professor at Johns Hopkins University, and Yunyang Li, a postdoctoral researcher at The University of Chicago, discuss how they used the NSF Cosmology Large Angular Scale Surveyor to see the cosmic microwave background, light from the beginning of the universe.

Smart Manufacturing

U.S. National Science Foundation-supported researchers are developing a multimodal system that combines image analysis and natural language processing to help manufacturers detect problems, suggest improvements and communicate with machines in real-time. Bingbing Li, a professor at California State University, Northridge, discusses his group's work with vision language models for use in smart manufacturing.
 

Lipocartilage and Regenerative Medicine

U.S. National Science Foundation-supported researchers are investigating the mechanisms of cell regeneration for medical treatments. Maksim Plikus, a professor at the University of California, Irvine, discusses lipocartilage, how his lab found it and its potential for advancing tissue engineering and regenerative medicine.

Critical Minerals and Rare Earth Elements

Critical minerals are crucial to both the economy and national security. Rachel Teasdale, a professor at California State University, Chico, and program director in the U.S. National Science Foundation Division of Earth Sciences, discusses how critical minerals and rare earth elements form and how we use them.

Breakthrough Copper Alloy

As innovation transforms the aerospace, energy and defense industries, new materials with advanced properties are needed to meet the moment. Kiran Solanki, a professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering at Arizona State University, discusses designing new materials and enhancing existing ones for extreme condition applications.

Biomedical Security

Implantable medical devices are creating new therapeutic and monitoring solutions for many complex health conditions. However, wireless medical devices are susceptible to malicious attacks. Kaiyuan Yang, associate professor of electrical and computer engineering at Rice University, discusses biomedical security and developing hacker-resistant implants.

QR Code Security

QR codes are scanned every day for restaurant menus, parking payments or flight boarding passes, but malicious users can take advantage of the technology for phishing and other criminal activities. Gaurav Sharma and Irving Barron, professors at the University of Rochester, discuss QR code technology and how their research makes it safer.

Built Environment Materials

Concrete is the most widely used construction material in the world. Sabbie Miller, an Associate Professor at the University of California, Davis, discusses the built environment and optimizing infrastructure materials.

Translational Research

Fundamental science can have a profound impact when discoveries and research are developed into tangible solutions that benefit the public. Ximena Bernal and Pablo Zavattieri, professors at Purdue University, discuss how their research into mosquitoes may translate into bio-inspired sensors that could help save lives.

The Role of Artificial Intelligence with Dr. Sethuraman Panchanathan

While artificial intelligence-driven technology is promising practical solutions to global challenges, AI-driven research advances the frontiers of knowledge and propels American ingenuity. Sethuraman Panchanathan, the 15th director of the U.S. National Science Foundation, discusses the current state of AI and the many ways it may be used in the future.