Blue Dot

Blue Dot, named after Carl Sagan's famous speech about our place in the universe, features interviews with guests from all over the regional, national and worldwide scientific communities. Host Dave Schlom leads discussions about the issues science is helping us address with experts who shed light on climate change, space exploration, astronomy, technology and much more. Dave asks us to remember: from deep space, we all live on a pale, blue dot.

Blue Dot: California's landscapes: human and natural history with artist and author Obi Kaufmann

Artist and writer Obi Kaufmann joins host Dave Schlom to discuss his documentation of California's wild and scenic places.

11-14
51:37

Best of Blue Dot: Exploring California's Native Trees with Matt Ritter and Michael Kauffmann

Host Dave Schlom is joined by Backcountry Press Publisher Michael Kauffmann along with Cal Poly San Luis Obispo botany professor Matt Ritter. Both combined to author the superb new book, California Trees: A Field Guide to the Native Species.

11-07
51:38

Blue Dot: New MacArthur Fellow Kareem El-Badry from Caltech on black holes, binary and hypervelocity stars

Host Dave Schlom visits with brand new MacArthur Fellowship award winner Kareem El-Badry, an astrophysicist at the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena.

10-31
51:36

Best of Blue Dot: Celebrating three years of astronomy with the James Webb Space Telescope

Blue Dot marks three years of operation of the magnificent James Webb Space Telescope. NASA Webb Project Manager Mike Davis joins host Dave Schlom for an overview of the telescope's operation and unique capabilities that have surpassed the expectations of the astronomical community.

10-24
51:38

Blue Dot: Understanding the earthquake and tsunami hazards of California's North Coast with Lori Dengler

Geology Professor Emeritus Lori Dengler joins host Dave Schlom from Cal Poly Humboldt for an in-depth look at the tectonic forces that have shaped California's North Coast.

10-17
51:35

Blue Dot: The anatomy of a disaster: inside the Titan submersible implosion

Gordon Telepun joins host Dave Schlom to discuss the Titan submersible implosion that killed five people, including Ocean Gate CEO and pilot Stockton Rush, in 2023.

10-10
51:35

Blue Dot: SETI Institute: it's role in the Disney/Pixar animated film Elio and The Fermi Paradox

Host Dave Schlom is joined by two guests from the SETI Institute in Mountain View, California, for a fun and thought-provoking program. Simon Steel, Deputy Director of the Carl Sagan Center for Research, joins us for an inside look at the Institute's role as a science advisor for the Disney/Pixar film Elio.

10-03
51:37

Best of Blue Dot: Restoring an ancient and important salmon habitat: Big Chico Creek in Northern California

Host Dave Schlom and Producer Matt Fidler go out in the field and in the studio to learn about the story of a major restoration on Big Chico Creek in Chico, California's historic and precious Bidwell Park.

09-28
51:37

Blue Dot: Bill Nelson: Congressman, astronaut and NASA Director

Bill Nelson joins host Dave Schlom for a special conversation about his life in public service at NASA. Nelson served representing the people of his home state of Florida for 30 years, first in the House of Representatives and then the Senate.

09-19
51:37

Blue Dot: Permaculture; A Permanent Culture for People and all the inhabitants of the Planet

Host Dave Schlom is joined by Producer Matt Fidler for a special look at the world of permaculture. If you are like Dave and have never heard of permaculture before, this show is for you

09-12
51:37

Blue Dot: The art and science of fly fishing with Hall of Famer Mike Mercer

Host Dave Schlom gets to delve into his favorite pastime, fly fishing, with two of his heroes -- Mike Mercer and Bryan Quick from The Fly Shop in Redding, California.

09-05
54:59

Blue Dot: The Roosevelt brothers quest to find the Giant Panda: a conversation with author Nathalia Holt

Host Dave Schlom visits with one of his favorite authors, Nathalia Holt, to talk about her new book The Beast in the Clouds: The Roosevelt Brothers Deadly Quest to Find the Mythical Giant Panda.

08-29
51:38

Best of Blue Dot: Protecting invertebrate pollinators and endangered species with the Xerces Society

Executive Director Scott Black joins host Dave Schlom for a brief history and overview of the Xerces Society.

08-22
51:37

Blue Dot: Going nuclear? A conversation about atomic power with British scientist and author Tim Gregory

Host Dave Schlom visits with Tim Gregory, a senior nuclear chemist at the United Kingdom National Nuclear Laboratory at Sellafield, Cumbria. Gregory is the author of Going Nuclear: How Atomic Energy Will Save the World, published in the US by Pegasus Books.

08-15
51:36

Blue Dot: On the frontiers of philosophy and physics: a conversation with Caltech's Chip Sebens

Host Dave Schlom is joined by California Institute of Technology Philosophy Professor Chip Sebens for an engaging look at how philosophical thought and methodology can help unravel the mysteries of modern Physics.

08-08
51:37

Best of Blue Dot: Ocean science at UC San Diego's Scripps Institution of Oceanography

Host Dave Schlom is joined by guests from the Scripps Institution of Oceanography at the University of San Diego to profile the ocean science being done at one of the world's most important and historic places to study our blue planet.

08-01
51:37

Best of Blue Dot: The challenge of California's growing wolf population

Host Dave Schlom is joined by two University of California at Davis researchers and the state's gray wolf coordinator to learn more about how California's steadily growing wolf population is affecting cattle ranchers and communities in rural Northern California.

07-25
51:31

Blue Dot: Climate change through Earth history: UC Davis paleoclimatologist Isabel Montañez

Host Dave Schlom visits with Isabel Montañez, Distinguished Professor in the Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences at UC Davis.

07-18
51:37

Best of Blue Dot: New Sáttítla Highlands National Monument overview with Sam Davidson and Brandy McDaniels

Host Dave Schlom is joined by Sam Davidson from Trout Unlimited and Brandy McDaniels from the Pit River Nation for an in-depth look at the newly designated Sáttítla Highlands National Monument.

07-11
51:37

Blue Dot: Exploring California's Native Trees with Matt Ritter and Michael Kauffmann

Host Dave Schlom is joined by Backcountry Press Publisher Michael Kauffmann along with Cal Poly San Luis Obispo botany professor Matt Ritter. Both combined to author the superb new book, California Trees: A Field Guide to the Native Species.

07-04
51:38

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