Advertise on podcast: Strange New Worlds: A Science & Star Trek Podcast

Guest: Dr. Seven Rasmussen Explore the Drake equation with Dr. Seven Rasmussen, author of "Cloudy with a Chance of Starships: How the Drake Equation Reveals the Odds of Life in the Cosmos." Cloudy with a Chance of Starships: How the Drake Equation Reveals the Odds of Life in the Cosmos: https://press.princeton.edu/books/hardcover/9780691246222/cloudy-with-a-chance-of-starships?srsltid=AU7gw4XH-sKOIvsZaplRZgKFyMmvE9hkRyvBSVQ1GGap9tY_iGuKM-Hk Follow us on Bluesky! Mike: https://bsky.app/profile/miquai.bsky.social Seven: https://bsky.app/profile/toomanyspectra.bsky.social

On this solo episode, Mike reads his essay, originally published in Sequencer Magazine, titled "Pluto Isn't a Planet for the Same Reason Whales Aren't Fish." Read the essay: https://www.sequencermag.com/pluto-isnt-a-planet-for-the-same-reason-whales-arent-fish/ Watch "Strange New Worlds: The Science of Star Trek": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tcy42zkS8s0

Guests: Abigail Alling & Amelia Lee We check in with Abigail Alling and Amelia Lee on the second-to-last day of their summer internship at Carnegie Science. What have they learned about exploring strange new worlds and seeking out new life and new civilizations over the past 10 weeks? And what do they think of the most recent episodes of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds? Register now for Carnegie Science's next Neighborhood Lecture, "Strange New Worlds: The Science of Star Trek," on September 9, 2026: https://carnegiescience.edu/strange-new-worlds-science-star-trek Learn more about the EPIIC internship at Carnegie Science: carnegiescience.edu/about/working/i…terns/epiic-reu

Guest: Professor Tyler Perez Come for the laser experiments, stay for the lens flares. Prof. Tyler Perez—who studies the material properties of rock at high pressures and temperatures, and who delves into movie visual effects as a hobby—beams aboard to discuss his research on planetary interiors and the visual style of Star Trek.

Guests: Abigail Alling & Amelia Lee How do you introduce Star Trek to a new fan? How is Star Trek continuing to inspire young scientists? How are Carnegie Science interns exploring strange new worlds and seeking out new life and new civilizations? Abigail Alling and Amelia Lee beam aboard to chat about how they've added Star Trek to their educational experience in Carnegie Science's 2026 EPIIC summer internship program! Learn more about the EPIIC internship at Carnegie Science: carnegiescience.edu/about/working/i…terns/epiic-reu

Guest: Em Dobberfuhl Mike's former Carnegie Science intern Em Dobberfuhl beams aboard to share how Project Hail Mary inspired them to pursue astrobiology. "Are we alone in the universe? Five times we thought we found extraterrestrial life" by Em Dobberfuhl: https://www.sequencermag.com/are-we-alone-in-the-universe-five-times-we-thought-we-found-extraterrestrial-life/ Learn more about the EPIIC internship at Carnegie Science: https://carnegiescience.edu/about/working/interns/epiic-reu

Mike speaks with Jason Kaufman and Bradley Browne on the Dice in Mind podcast about his paper "How to Chart a Moral Future for Space Exploration" (featured on Episode 200 of Strange New Worlds). How does an astrobiologist get inspired to write about space ethics? How did the paper originate and evolve into its published form? And what does recognizing many kinds of moral value in the universe mean for our present era of space exploration? Mike's space ethics paper "How to Chart a Moral Future for Space Exploration": https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-025-02070-3 Check out the Dice in Mind podcast: https://diceinmind.podbean.com/ Follow us on Bluesky! Mike: https://bsky.app/profile/miquai.bsky.social Dice in Mind: https://bsky.app/profile/diceinmind.bsky.social

On Episode 200 of Strange New Worlds, Mike Wong reads "How to Chart a Moral Future for Space Exploration," an article he published last year in the journal Nature with Chelsea Haramia, Emilie Lafleche, and Julia DeMarines. Read the paper: https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-025-02070-3

Guest: Gabriel Santos Paleontologist and science communicator Gabriel Santos beams aboard to share how Cosplay for Science, an initiative he co-founded, brings science education to Comic-Cons and other pop culture conventions. Then, he and Mike discuss the paleontology of the Star Trek: Voyager episode "Distant Origin." Learn more about Cosplay for Science: https://www.cosplayforscience.com/

Guests: Kayla Smith & Prof. Patrick Anderson Astrobiology Kayla Smith and philosopher Patrick Anderson beam aboard to celebrate the diversity of scientific thought that goes into astrobiology, and how astrobiology can continue to grow by pulling on threads from outside of science too. They co-authored a paper called "Epistemic Pluralism & Astrobiology" with host Mike Wong. Kayla, Patrick, and Mike's paper "Epistemic Pluralism & Astrobiology": https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10838-025-09760-6 Follow us on Bluesky! Mike: https://bsky.app/profile/miquai.bsky.social Kayla: https://bsky.app/profile/astrokayla.bsky.social

Guest: Dr. Katie Mack Cosmologist Katie Mack beams aboard to discuss how the universe will end. Using the Star Trek: Deep Space Nine episode "Chrysalis" as a launchpad, Katie and Mike go through various scenarios for the fate of everything: Will there be a "big crunch," a "big rip," or will it all simmer away into "heat death"? And is there anything we can do about it? "The End of Everything (Astrophysically Speaking)" by Katie Mack: https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/The-End-of-Everything/Katie-Mack/9781982103552 Follow us on Bluesky! Mike: https://bsky.app/profile/miquai.bsky.social Katie: https://bsky.app/profile/astrokatie.com

Guests: Joe Praska & Nicole Praska The hosts of Deep Space Love podcast, Joe & Nicole Praska, beam aboard to tell us about their "Antifascist Star Trek Watch List," a compilation of at least one episode from every major Star Trek series that contains themes of resistance to authoritarianism. "15 Episodes for Your Antifascist Star Trek Watch List" by Joe Praska: https://twincitiesgeek.com/2026/01/15-episodes-for-your-antifascist-star-trek-watch-list/ Join Mike & colleagues on April 13 for a free virtual event called "Envisioning Joint Futures in Art & Astronomy": https://forms.gle/k8Y5xd3NyAcNLqxN9 Follow us on Bluesky! Mike: https://bsky.app/profile/miquai.bsky.social Joe: https://bsky.app/profile/joepraska.bsky.social Deep Space Love: https://bsky.app/profile/dslovepod.bsky.social

Guest: Dr. Bob Hazen Mike is joined by his Carnegie Science colleague Dr. Bob Hazen. Together, they have written a new popular science book titled "Time's Second Arrow: Evolution, Order, and a New Law of Nature," which launches on February 10, 2026. This book describes how the marvelously complex constituents of our universe came to be. Evolution, they boldly propose, is a universal phenomenon—not only in biology, but in the entire atomic, chemical, mineral, and physical universe. Showing how a natural process of selection for increasing function has shaped the universe since its inception, they explore how a new law of nature could possibly help us identify life on other planets and—perhaps—even understand the purpose and meaning of life on Earth in a new way. "Time's Second Arrow: Evolution, Order, and a New Law of Nature" by Robert M. Hazen & Michael L. Wong: https://wwnorton.com/books/9781324105480 Bob & Mike's scientific papers that "Time's Second Arrow" is based on: 1. https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2310223120 2. https://academic.oup.com/pnasnexus/advance-article/doi/10.1093/pnasnexus/pgae248/7698354 3. https://royalsocietypublishing.org/rsfs/article/15/6/20250009/366157/Selective-funnelling-and-state-space-expansion-a

Guest: Dr. Caleb Scharf Becoming a spacefaring civilization is a major transition in the story of life on Earth. Senior scientist for astrobiology at NASA Ames Dr. Caleb Scharf beams aboard to discuss the themes in his latest book, "The Giant Leap: Why Space Is the Next Frontier in the Evolution of Life," and what it all means for achieving a Star Trek future. "The Giant Leap: Why Space Is the Next Frontier in the Evolution of Life" by Caleb Scharf: https://www.hachettebookgroup.com/titles/caleb-scharf/the-giant-leap/9781541604186/?lens=basic-books "Teaching A.I. to Detect Life: Carnegie Scientist Co-Leads NASA-Funded Effort": https://carnegiescience.edu/news/teaching-ai-detect-life-carnegie-scientist-co-leads-nasa-funded-effort Follow us on Bluesky! Mike: https://bsky.app/profile/miquai.bsky.social Caleb: https://bsky.app/profile/calebscharf.bsky.social

Guest: Dr. Kristina Šekrst Philosopher, linguist, and AI researcher Kristina Šekrst beams aboard to discuss the TNG episode "Darmok," where Picard and crew encounter the Tamarians, a species who only speak in metaphor. Why do we use metaphors? How would you lie in Tamarian? And can the universal translator ever exist? Follow us on Bluesky! Mike: https://bsky.app/profile/miquai.bsky.social Kristina: https://bsky.app/profile/epiphenomenal.bsky.social