Point of Discovery
Behind every scientific discovery is a scientist (or 12) and a story. “Point of Discovery” takes you on a journey beyond WHAT we know to HOW we know it. Listeners will meet the sometimes quirky, always passionate people whose curiosity unlocks hidden worlds.
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Brain Activity Decoder Can Reveal Stories in People’s Minds
The work relies in part on a transformer model, similar to the ones that power ChatGPT.
Alex Huth (left), Shailee Jain (center) and Jerry Tang (right) prepare to collect brain activity data in the Biomedical Imaging Center at The University of Texas at Austin. The researchers trained their semantic decoder on dozens of hours of brain activity data from participants, collected in an fMRI scanner. Photo Credit: Nolan Zunk/University of Texas at Austin.
The Mighty Copepod
These teeny shrimp-like critters at the bottom of the ocean food web seem totally unimportant.
Evolution Inspires Anthrax Cure
Scientists borrowed tricks from evolution to develop the world's first treatment for late stage inhalation anthrax.
The Last First Planetary Mission
University of Texas at Austin alumnus Alan Stern describes the challenges, and the joys, of the last first mission to a planet.
Some Bacteria Have Lived in the Human Gut Since Before We Were Human
New study suggests that evolution plays a larger role than previously known in people's intestinal-microbe makeup.
Looking Forward ... and Back: Podcast Updates
In case you missed it, here are some Point of Discovery podcast highlights from the past year, plus a preview of new episodes coming soon
Why is CGI in the Movies Still So Hard?
A computer scientist talks about the challenges of CGI in the movies.
Here's What Research Did for Me, Student Stories
Students and scientists discuss the importance of getting involved in research early.
Jekyll and Hyde Bacteria
What do you do when the bacteria you study that's deadly in the real world acts all mild and gentle in the lab?
Saving the Bees, Two Perspectives
How do you move 100,000 honeybees—a living laboratory for research on the gut microbiome—half way across the country?
Pyramid Probe
How particle physics can help explore the insides of ancient Mayan pyramids without digging
About the Podcast
Behind every scientific discovery is a scientist (or 12) and a story. “Point of Discovery” takes you on a journey beyond WHAT we know to HOW we know it. Listeners will meet the sometimes quirky, always passionate people whose curiosity unlocks hidden worlds.
Hosted by Marc Airhart
Marc Airhart is the Communications Coordinator for the College of Natural Sciences. A long time member of the National Association of Science Writers, he has written for national publications including Scientific American, Mercury, The Earth Scientist, Environmental Engineer & Scientist, and StarDate Magazine.
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Disclaimer
Point of Discovery is part of the Texas Podcast Network, brought to you by The University of Texas at Austin. Podcasts are produced by faculty members and staffers at UT Austin who work with University Communications to craft content that adheres to journalistic best practices. The University of Texas at Austin offers these podcasts at no charge. Podcasts appearing on the network and this webpage represent the views of the hosts, not of The University of Texas at Austin.