Thermodynamics podcasts

Alexia Auffèves and Pascale Senellart-Mardon explain quantum energetics and the energy costs of quantum technologies. Alexandra Delbot asks how researchers can measure exchanges of energy, entropy and information, develop useful efficiency metrics, and incorporate energy constraints while quantum computers are still being designed.

Hosted by Alexandra Delbot

Fraser Cain and Pamela L. Gay examine possible futures of the universe across vastly different timescales. Topics include the Milky Way and Andromeda, cosmic isolation as expansion continues, the fading microwave background, the end of star formation and the era of stellar remnants. They discuss uncertain processes such as proton decay, black-hole evaporation through Hawking radiation, entropy and heat death, alongside alternative outcomes if dark energy evolves. These are model-dependent projections. Pamela Gay is a senior scientist at the Planetary Science Institute. Published on 21 September 2026, the episode appears in the feed as The Beginning and End of Everything, Part 2. Its original duration is 37 minutes 7 seconds.

Hosted by Fraser Cain, Pamela L. Gay

Melissa and Jam explain how evaporating water can cool a building and why the same approach works much better in dry climates than humid ones. They connect swamp coolers to older cooling techniques and examine newer ideas, including ice-based systems intended to reduce pressure on electricity grids.

Hosted by Melissa, Jam

Melissa and Jam unpack the chemistry inside an air conditioner. They explain how refrigerants, pressure changes and transitions between liquid and gas move heat out of a room, why the outdoor unit releases warmth, and what frozen coils reveal about the cooling process.

Hosted by Melissa, Jam

Melissa and Jam explore reverse osmosis through molecular motion, pressure and membrane separation. They also discuss limits and waste in water purification, questions about aluminium foil in dishwashers and sacrificial metals, and how mixtures of differently sized solid particles can separate through the Brazil-nut effect.

Hosted by Melissa, Jam

Melissa and Jam investigate why ice is slippery. They compare proposed explanations involving surface water, pressure and melting with experimental findings on ice surfaces, and discuss water’s unusual properties, amorphous structures and what these imply for skating and everyday slipping.

Hosted by Melissa, Jam

Steven Strogatz speaks with physicist Frank Wilczek about what clocks measure and why the passage of time seems directional. They discuss different arrows of time, irreversibility, and the relationship between physical time and human experience. Wilczek explains how Einstein changed the definition of time and considers whether time could be emergent or illusory. The conversation also explores connections between time, symmetry and ideas about dark matter.

Hosted by Steven Strogatz