Materialism: A Materials Science Podcast

Latest Episodes:

Episode 32: μ: The Elixir of Civilization Jan 16, 2021

Show notes

A review of the book "Scientific Freedom: The Elixir of Civilization" by Donald Braben. Taylor and Andrew dive into the radical ideas Braben implemented in his role as Director of Venture Research at BP. They examine the principles behind Venture Research and the potential for this approach to revolutionize scientific discovery by increasing freedom and creativity. Who knows? Maybe this approach would discover this century's Einsteins, Plancks, Rutherfords and more!

This episode is sponsored by Matmatch. Check out how they can help you find the perfect material for your next engineering project! This episode is also sponsored by Materials Today, an Elsevier community dedicated to the creation and sharing of materials science knowledge and experience through their peer-reviewed journals, academic conferences, educational webinars, and more.

Thanks to Kolobyte and Alphabot for letting us use their music in the show!

If you have questions or feedback please send us emails at materialism.podcast@gmail.com or connect with us on social media: Instagram, Twitter.

Materialism Team: Taylor Sparks (co-creator, co-host, production), Andrew Falkowski (co-creator, co-host, production), Jared Duffy (production, marketing, and editing), Ramsey Issa (co-host and production).

Keywords: scientific freedom elixir civilization book review braben

Support Materialism: A Materials Science Podcast by contributing to their tip jar: https://tips.pinecast.com/jar/materialism

Episode 31: Ionic Conduction Jan 04, 2021

Show notes

Diffusion is when atoms move through a material in response to a concentration gradient. However, some ions can move through a material in response to an electric field and can do so very quickly! Even more remarkable, the motion of ions can be restricted to ions of a certain type such as O2-, H+, Na+, Li+ etc. What is required of a material in order for it to be an ionic conductor? What technologies do ionic conductors make possible? Why are they necessary for batteries, fuel cells, sensors, electrolyzer, and more? We answer these questions and dive into the exciting recent news of solid-state batteries in this episode. We cover some of the key fast ion conductors like YSZ, BASE, LSGM, Nafion, LLZO, and NaSiCON.

Thanks to Kolobyte and Alphabot for letting us use their music in the show!

If you have questions or feedback please send us emails at materialism.podcast@gmail.com or connect with us on social media: Instagram, Twitter.

Materialism Team: Taylor Sparks (co-host, co-creator), Andrew Falkowski (co-creator), Jared Duffy (production and editing), Ramsey Issa (co-host and editing assistance).

Keywords: ionic ions conductor electrical current electron electrolytes fuel cells holes conductivity batteries solid-state

Support Materialism: A Materials Science Podcast by contributing to their tip jar: https://tips.pinecast.com/jar/materialism

Episode 30: μ: Engineering a Better Skateboard Dec 18, 2020

Show notes

Skateboards have some cutting edge polymers, ceramics, metals, & composites. Wood vs carbon-fiber composite lay-ups? Silicon nitride vs steel ball bearings? Titanium vs magnesium light-weight metal alloy trucks? High hardness vs soft & grippy urethane wheels? In this episode, we chat with Norman Woods, a professional skateboarder who helps us figure out if all the advanced materials translate to dramatically improved performance.

Thanks to Kolobyte and Alphabot for letting us use their music in the show!

If you have questions or feedback please send us emails at materialism.podcast@gmail.com or connect with us on social media: Instagram, Twitter.

Materialism Team: Taylor Sparks (co-creator, co-host, production), Ramsey Issa (co-host, production), Andrew Falkowski (co-creator, co-host, production), Jared Duffy (production, marketing, and editing)

Keywords: skateboard materials decks wheels trucks composites bearings professional sports equipment

Support Materialism: A Materials Science Podcast by contributing to their tip jar: https://tips.pinecast.com/jar/materialism

Episode 29: Superconducting Materials Dec 07, 2020

Show notes

Few topics have captivated the imagination of scientists like superconductivity. In this episode, we cover the history of superconductors starting with the Gentleman of Zero Kelvin himself. We discuss applications of superconductors for high-speed trains and more and even chat about the recent discovery of the first-ever room-temperature superconductor!

Articles Discussed:

2007, April 1911: Onnes Begins work on Superconductivity [LINK]
22010 van Delft, The discovery of superconductivity [LINK]

Thanks to Kolobyte and Alphabot for letting us use their music in the show!

If you have questions or feedback please send us emails at materialism.podcast@gmail.com or connect with us on social media: Instagram, Twitter.

Keywords: superconductor ceramic oxide discovery

Support Materialism: A Materials Science Podcast by contributing to their tip jar: https://tips.pinecast.com/jar/materialism

Episode 28: μ: Investing in Materials Startups Nov 23, 2020

Show notes

Every new startup requires capital, but most venture capital groups are very cautious about investing in materials companies due to the typically long timeframe for development. In this episode we talk to a Matt Cohen, Director of Technology at Pangaea Ventures. Matt talks about why their company dares to invest primarily in materials companies. We discuss how you can launch your own startup and recommend some books to get you started.

Articles Discussed:

2014 Thiel and Masters, Zero to One: Notes on Startups, or How to Build the Future [LINK]
2011 Ries, The Lean Startup: How Today's Entrepreneurs Use Continuous Innovation to Create Radically Successful Businesses [LINK]

Thanks to Kolobyte and Alphabot for letting us use their music in the show!

If you have questions or feedback please send us emails at materialism.podcast@gmail.com or connect with us on social media: Instagram, Twitter.

Materialism Team: Taylor Sparks (co-creator, co-host, production), Andrew Falkowski (co-creator, co-host, production), Jared Duffy (production, marketing, and editing)

Keywords: startup materials entrepreneur commercialization Pangaea ventures

Support Materialism: A Materials Science Podcast by contributing to their tip jar: https://tips.pinecast.com/jar/materialism

Episode 27: The Materials of Cosplay Oct 29, 2020

Show notes

Halloween is right around the corner and like many of you, we’ve been hard at work on our spooky costumes! If you’ve ever been to Comic-Con you’ve seen the incredible costumes that cosplay artists can create. Giant suits of armor and weapons crafted out of EVA foam, Mandalorian suits with Worbla or Sintra armor plates, life-like silicone and latex masks, monsters built from Papier-mâché, Styrofoam, Plastidip, and PVC. This episode is dedicated to all the incredible material science & engineering that goes into Cosplay materials. On this episode, we’re joined by artist Cara Krebs who is a fantastic artist who specializes in using many different materials in unique and creative ways. Check out her art on her Instagram page

Articles Discussed:

1994 Stone, High wet-friction elastomeric coatings including a thermoplastic rubber and petrolatum [LINK]
What is silicone rubber? [LINK]

Thanks to Kolobyte and Alphabot for letting us use their music in the show!

If you have questions or feedback please send us emails at materialism.podcast@gmail.com or connect with us on social media: Instagram, Twitter.

Materialism Team: Taylor Sparks (co-creator, co-host, production), Andrew Falkowski (co-creator, co-host, production), Jared Duffy (production, marketing, and editing)

Keywords: cosplay costume design foam halloween Halloween Comic-Con EVA Worbla Sintra silicone latex masks Papier-mâché styrofoam plastidip PVC.

Support Materialism: A Materials Science Podcast by contributing to their tip jar: https://tips.pinecast.com/jar/materialism

Episode 26: μ: When Materials Failure Leads to Wildfire Oct 19, 2020

Show notes

When you hear of massive wildfires you probably think of the usual suspects: lightning, a campfire carelessly left unattended, maybe a cigarette butt thrown from a vehicle? What you probably don't think of is materials fatigue of a steel hook. This micro episode centers on the story of the Camp Fire in Butte County, California that took 85 lives, decimated the land, and was the biggest insured disaster that year. A look at what mistakes PG&E made ranging from their lack of records keeping to materials incompatibility and testing methods that led to the deadliest fire in California's recorded history.

Articles Discussed:

2020 @TubeTimeUS Twitter documentary [LINK]
2016 Daware, Insulators Used In Overhead Power Lines [LINK]
2004 Iacovello and coworkers, Analysis of stress ratio effects on fatigue propagation in a sintered duplex steel by experimentation and artificial neural network approaches [LINK]

Thanks to Kolobyte and Alphabot for letting us use their music in the show!

If you have questions or feedback please send us emails at materialism.podcast@gmail.com or connect with us on social media: Instagram, Twitter.

Materialism Team: Taylor Sparks (co-creator, co-host, production), Andrew Falkowski (co-creator, co-host, production), Jared Duffy (production, marketing, and editing)

Keywords: wildfire failure fatigue camp fire PG&E

Support Materialism: A Materials Science Podcast by contributing to their tip jar: https://tips.pinecast.com/jar/materialism

Episode 25: The Materials of Art Oct 05, 2020

Show notes

Can art make you a better scientist? Can an understanding of materials science make you a better artist? We think so! So does Darryl Butt, dean of the College of Mines at the University of Utah. We interview him for this episode and discuss tons of interesting aspects of materials science and art. For example, he explains how ancient artists like Da Vinci had an understanding of atmospheric light and used it in their art. We also discuss how modern materials science characterization tools like microscopy, X-ray diffraction and more can be used to inspect art, determine its provenance, and even find out if a piece is a forgery!

Articles Discussed:

2017 Bacon, The Ten Most Notorious Art Forgers Of All Time [LINK]
Detecting Art Forgeries: What Scientific Methods Can We Use? [LINK]
2015 Archuleta and coworkers, Ressurecting the poor mans purple [LINK]
2015 Alanko, A Transdisciplinary Approach to Determine the Provenience of a Distorted, Pre-Columbian Skull Recovered in Rural Idaho [LINK]

Thanks to Kolobyte and Alphabot for letting us use their music in the show!

If you have questions or feedback please send us emails at materialism.podcast@gmail.com or connect with us on social media: Instagram, Twitter.

Materialism Team: Taylor Sparks (co-creator, co-host, production), Andrew Falkowski (co-creator, co-host, production), Jared Duffy (production, marketing, and editing)

Keywords: art science pigment forgery ceramic characterization mummy DaVinci painting artist

Support Materialism: A Materials Science Podcast by contributing to their tip jar: https://tips.pinecast.com/jar/materialism

Episode 24: μ: Bio-Inspired Materials Sep 18, 2020

Show notes

In our pursuit of materials design, who better to imitate than Mother Nature? Biomimetic, or bioinspired materials are making huge strides in materials design! In this episode, Andrew chats with Dr. Steven Naleway from the University of Utah to talk about his research in this exciting field.

Thanks to Kolobyte and Alphabot for letting us use their music in the show!

If you have questions or feedback please send us emails at materialism.podcast@gmail.com or connect with us on social media: Instagram, Twitter.

Materialism Team: Taylor Sparks (co-creator, co-host, production), Andrew Falkowski (co-creator, co-host, production), Jared Duffy (production, marketing, and editing)

Keywords: biomimetic bio-inspired materials design nature

Support Materialism: A Materials Science Podcast by contributing to their tip jar: https://tips.pinecast.com/jar/materialism

Episode 23: μ: Bioprinting Aug 21, 2020

Show notes

Printing human organs? Replacing worn-out body parts with fresh, newly printed ones? This sounds like science fiction but in some ways, it's already here! From kidneys to bladders and even more complex organs the bizarre future of 3D-bioprinting is here! In this micro-materialism episode, we introduce a new producer, Ramsey Issa, to help separate fact from fiction when it comes to the materials science of bioprinting.

Articles Discussed:

2014 Chua and Yeong, Bioprinting: Principles and Applications [LINK]
2015 Ozbolat, Scaffold-Based or Scaffold-Free Bioprinting: Competing or Complementing Approaches?[LINK]
2013 Atala, Printing a human kidney, TED-Ed [LINK]
2020 Ward, How to build a body from scratch, altered carbon-style [LINK]
2017 Mohamed, 3D printing human tissue: where engineering meets biology, TEDxStanleyPark [LINK]