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Curious by Nature

Newswise Inc.

Welcome to Curious by Nature, presented by Newswise. The podcast for curious people.

In each episode, listeners can travel briefly into the fascinating world that comes with years of dedication to one field of study. Be inspired by the many amazing things that are going on right now, some may have a major effect on our lives.

Enjoy this concentrated knowledge from experts. We hope you can take inspiration from glimpses of innovation, dedication, and discovery.

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  • 27 episodes
  • weekly
  • Avg 21 min
  • English

Episodes 27

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  • Friday · 17 min

    Dr. Joselyn Del Pilar Albaladejo – Tiny Changes, Big Impact

    What if changing just a few atoms inside a material could completely change what that material can do? Something far too small to see could have enormous consequences for the way we produce chemicals, treat water, and build cleaner energy technologies. Dr. Joselyn Del Pilar Albaladejo is a professor of chemistry at the University of Puerto Rico at Mayagüez, where she studies materials at the atomic and crystal level.

  • September 11 · 25 min

    Dr. Chipo Dendere – Engaging the Diaspora Votes

    Leaving your country doesn’t need to mean leaving its politics behind. Often when people leave, their voice is lost as well, and for mass drains of a country this can have serious effects on the political environment. Dr. Chipo Dendere is a professor of political science in the Africana Studies Department at Wellesley College and the author of ‘How to Stay After Leaving’. We explore the surprising political consequences of migration, why people who leave may still have a powerful connection to their home countries, and how the loss of voters, professionals, and entire communities can actually strengthen the political systems they hoped to escape.

  • September 4 · 10 min

    Professor Romain Glèlè Kakaï – Can We Predict the Next Epidemic?

    Every day, diseases like cholera and malaria affect millions of people around the world. But what if we could predict how these diseases spread before outbreaks get worse? Professor Romain Glèlè Kakaï is a Professor of Biostatistics at the Université d’Abomey-Calavi, where he studies how diseases spread through people, animals, and the environment. His mathematical models help researchers understand outbreaks of diseases like cholera and malaria, and are used by organizations like the World Health Organization and GAVI, the Vaccine Alliance.

  • August 28 · 27 min

    Neal Piper – The Life-Changing Solution for Feeding Tubes

    Imagine needing a feeding tube just to get the nutrition your body needs, but having to be connected to bulky equipment that limits where you can go and what you can do. For thousands of families, that’s part of everyday life. But what if tube feeding could be as simple as carrying a smartphone? Neal Piper is the Founder and CEO of Luminoah, a medical technology company developing a wearable feeding system designed to give patients more freedom while helping caregivers and doctors better track their nutrition. Inspired by his own son’s battle with cancer, Neil set out to make tube feeding easier, safer, and more personal.

  • August 21 · 24 min

    Newswise – Benefits of Single-Port Robotic Mitral Valve Repair

    Today, we’re sharing a special Newswise event hosted by our COO, Thom Canalichio, with Dr. Rakesh Suri, Regional Director of Cardiac Surgical Robotics and Innovation at Corewell Health, along with his patient, Patrick O’Brien. Together, they discuss a breakthrough in robotic heart surgery that could make repairing damaged heart valves less invasive, helping patients recover faster and get back to their everyday lives sooner. You’ll also hear Patrick’s firsthand experience of becoming the first patient to undergo this innovative procedure and how it gave him a new outlook on life.

  • August 14 · 23 min

    Karsten Eastman – Why So Many Peptides Won’t Work

    You’ve probably heard people talking about peptides lately. They’re everywhere on social media, promising everything from anti-aging to better fitness. But what are peptides really, and could they become one of the biggest breakthroughs in medicine? Karsten Eastman is the Co-founder and CEO of Sethera Therapeutics, a biotechnology company developing new ways to build peptide-based medicines. By using enzymes to reshape these tiny proteins, his team hopes to create treatments that last longer, work better, and one day help tackle diseases that have been difficult to treat.

  • August 7 · 19 min

    Newswise – Are You Talking to ME? | Part 2

    Joining the panel are Ella McCarthy, Co-founder of Sci_Burst and former Communication Specialist at the Australian National University; Dr. Will Grant, Associate Professor at the Australian National Centre for the Public Awareness of Science; Dr. Isabel Freiling, Assistant Professor of Communication at the University of Utah and Responsible AI Fellow; and Shelley Wunder-Smith, Director of Research Communications at Georgia Tech. Together, they answer audience questions, share practical tips for communicating science more effectively, and discuss how researchers can better connect with the people they want to reach.

  • July 31 · 28 min

    Newswise – Are You Talking to ME? | Part 1

    At Newswise, we host a monthly webinar series, and this month’s webinar is titled “Are You Talking to Me?” Today, we’re bringing together science communication researchers and professionals to share the latest research on communicating science more effectively and, most importantly, how those ideas can be put into practice. We’re featuring presentations from Ella McCarthy, Co-founder of Sci_Burst and former Communication Specialist at the Australian National University. Dr. Will Grant, Associate Professor at the Australian National Centre for the Public Awareness of Science. And Dr. Isabelle Freiling, Assistant Professor of Communication at the University of Utah and Responsible AI Fellow. They’ll discuss why understanding your audience is one of the most important parts of science communication, how researchers define and think about audiences, and how today’s online world, from social media algorithms to AI generated content, is changing the way people discover, understand, and trust science. Tune in next week for part two with Shelley Wunder-Smith, Director of Research Communications at Georgia Tech, joining the panel for a discussion of practical strategies based on the research presentations. You’ll hear a lively discussion about best practices for communicating science in today’s ever changing media landscape.

  • July 24 · 17 min

    Dr. Kelly Swanson – Does My Pet Have a Healthy Microbiome?

    Every pet owner wants to know the absolute best food to put in their dog or cat's bowl, but the endless rows of grocery store options have turned feeding time into a total guessing game. From raw diets and sous vide to traditional kibble, picking the right option isn't just about what looks delicious, it's about protecting an invisible internal ecosystem. Dr. Kelly Swanson is a professor of animal sciences and the director of the Division of Nutritional Sciences at the University of Illinois, where he has spent over twenty years studying pet health. His lab is uncovering the deep connection between what our pets eat and how their gut microbiome regulates everything from their immune systems to their weight.

  • July 17 · 24 min

    Dr. Siniša Hrvatin – What Can Humans Gain from Hibernation Research

    Dr. Siniša Hrvatin is an assistant professor of biology at MIT and a member of the Whitehead Institute. His lab is uncovering the biological secrets of hibernation and frozen stasis, not just to understand these animals, but to discover how we can copy their tricks to save human lives.

  • July 10 · 18 min

    Dr. Kouros Emami – Most People Don’t Know Concussions Are Fully Treatable

    For decades, the standard medical advice for treating a concussion was to go sit in a dark room, turn off your phone, and do absolutely nothing until you felt better. But modern science has completely flipped the script, revealing that hiding out in the dark might actually make your brain recover slower. Dr. Kouros Emami is a clinical and sports neuropsychologist at the Hospital for Special Surgery, where he works on the cutting edge of head injury recovery. He treats everyone from elite athletes to everyday people, using active movement and specialized exercises to help the brain heal itself.

  • June 26 · 21 min

    Professor Michael Schutz – Please Stop the Hospital Beeping

    Michael Schutz is a Professor of Music, Cognition, and Percussion at McMaster University, where he researches how auditory alerting systems in healthcare can be vastly improved. By applying centuries of musical composition insight and psychophysical research, he is exploring how healthcare sounds can be re-engineered to cut through critical room noise without being unnecessarily jarring.

  • June 19 · 14 min

    Dr. Raihan Khan & Madalynn Nofplot – Does Music Help or Harm Your Studying?

    Dr. Raihan Khan is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Health Sciences at James Madison University, and Madalynn Nofplot is a JMU Honors College alumna and nursing student. They launched a fascinating study to look into how different music genres affect the academic performance and GPAs of college students with and without attention deficit disorder.

  • June 12 · 18 min

    Dr. Iain Boyd – Hypersonics and the Iran War

    Hypersonic vehicles travel a whole mile of sky in just one second. They can be missiles or aircraft, where the friction gets so ridiculously hot that the air around the vehicle literally turns into a blinding shield of electricity. Dr. Ian Boyd is the Director of the Center for National Security Initiatives at the University of Colorado Boulder, where he researches multiple aspects of these hypersonic vehicles.

  • June 5 · 20 min

    Dr. John Cooke & Dr. Shuang Li – Delivering mRNA to Reverse Aging

    Dr. John Cooke, Chair of the Department of Cardiovascular Sciences at Houston Methodist Hospital, and Research Fellow Dr. Shuang Li are using mRNA technology to heal this process from the inside out. By delivering a temporary molecular recipe, they prompt cells to produce telomerase, which rapidly accelerates DNA repair and restores telomeres.

  • May 29 · 13 min

    Dr. Mohammad Moghimi – Detecting Skin Cancer from Home

    Dr. Mohammad Moghimi is an Assistant Professor of Biomedical Engineering at the Wake Forest University School of Medicine. His team has developed a "chipless patch" that can sense the tiny electrical differences between healthy tissue and a tumor.

  • May 22 · 18 min

    Dr. Josh Currie – Will Humans Ever Be Able to Regrow Limbs?

    If a salamander loses a leg, it doesn't just heal, it grows a perfect new one. Humans, however, have seemingly lost this "instruction manual" for regeneration over millions of years of evolution. Dr. Josh Currie is an Assistant Professor of Biology at Wake Forest University. He studies axolotls and zebrafish to understand why these animals can regrow limbs and tails while we can't.

  • May 15 · 14 min

    Dean Sandro Galea – Health Is More Than Doctors, Food, and Exercise

    Sandro Galea is the Margaret Ryan Dean and the Kahn Professor of Public Health at the Washington University School of Public Health. He shares his unique path and perspective on public health and shares ways that WashU is focusing on improving the health for many people locally and globally.

  • May 8 · 31 min

    Dr. George Goshua – Iron Deficiency is Common and Detrimental

    Iron deficiency affects millions of people, especially women, yet many go years without knowing it, even though it’s one of the most treatable conditions. Dr. George Goshua is a physician-scientist and assistant professor at Yale School of Medicine, where he studies how gaps in diagnosis and access to care can leave patients untreated. His work highlights how something as simple as iron levels can have long-term effects on energy, pregnancy, and even the next generation. The episode has also been shared with leadership at the American Society of Hematology (ASH), which is leading national efforts to improve awareness, diagnosis, and treatment of iron deficiency. Learn more through the ASH Iron Deficiency Initiative.

Showing 1–20 of 27 episodes