Bioethics: Should We Strive To Be Better Than Human?

Dr. Buchanan Better than Human

Do you think it is ethical for medical science to do more than simply treat illnesses and try to make us “better than human?” Are the things we are doing today such as cognitive enhancement drugs and genetic modification unprecedented? Join Bioethicist Dr. Allen Buchanan at Chesterfield County Public School’s Visiting Author Program on October 23rd at 6:30 p.m as he explores the promise and perils of our current medical revolution.

Turning Crime-solving Into A Precise Science

NOVA Forensics on Trial

There is a startling gap between the glamorous television world of “CSI” and the gritty reality of the forensic crime lab. With few established scientific standards, no central oversight, and poor regulation of examiners, forensics in the U.S. is in a state of crisis.

Guitars and Science Rock

Kids and Interactive Guitar Display

If you love guitars - either as a musician or a listener - you have to go to the Science Museum of Virginia between October 13 and January 6th to see the new exhibition opening this weekend, “Guitar: The Instrument that Rocked the World.” This exhibition is your opportunity to learn all about the history and evolution of the instrument and explore science - that of the acoustic and electric guitars and delve into the science of sound.

WCVE Public Radio’s John Ogle interviews Harvey P. Newquist, Executive Director and Founder of the National Guitar Museum in the Science Matters report below.

Draconid Meteor Shower Peaks October 7th

Draconid Meteors - photo: NASA/Juan Carlos Casado

This weekend I'm hoping for clear skies and an amazing light show delivered by Draco the Dragon - the Draconid Meteor Shower.  Grab your lawn chair and start watching for shooting stars especially at nightfall on Sunday, October 7.  The Draconid Meteors are unpredictable in intensity, but last year European observers were treated to somewhere around 600 meteors per hour during the peak. Draconids are among the slowest of all meteors which makes them stunning visually.

Get Ready to Rumble! Robot Rumble 2012

Calling all robotics enthusiasts!  Join us on Saturday, October 6th at the Science Museum of Virginia for an exciting competition and hands-on family fun at VirginiaFIRST's Robot Rumble. The Rumble is Free and open to the public, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.at SMVA, 2500 West Broad Street, Richmond.

Teens Help Harvest 10,000 lbs of Fresh Vegetables for Local Food Bank

Green Kids Feed More Garden Harvest

I met an incredible group of young people this summer. Area middle and high school students and students from The Faison School for Autism who were toiling in the summer heat at Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden. They were helping to plant and harvest almost 10,000 lbs of fresh vegetables to feed children and the elderly.

Science Pub RVA and "What Research Reveals About Why We Vote"

Science Pub RVA

Have you ever wondered why people do or don't vote?  A lot of political scientists certainly have.  And what is even more intriguing are the methods they use to uncover the answers to the question.  Join other curious minds at Science Pub RVA on October 2nd to discuss the topic of voting and explore your own motivations.

New Era Begins for Virginia’s Commercial Aerospace Industry

Antares Rocket on Launch Pad

The Virginia Commercial Space Flight Authority and a Northern Virginia company have finalized a plan to launch rockets from the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport (MARS). Governor Bob McDonnell recently announced the agreement with Dulles-based Orbital Sciences Corporation regarding the launch site on Virginia’s Eastern Shore.

Local Student Becomes Davidson Fellow

Saumil

Saumil Bandyopadhyay, a senior at Maggie L. Walker Governor’s School has been named a Davidson Fellow by the Davidson Institute. The Davidson Fellowship is rated one of the seven most prestigious undergraduate scholarships by the US News and World Report. Each year, the Institute selects twenty students nationwide in areas of science, technology, engineering, literature, mathematics, music and philosophy, and awards them college scholarships in recognition of their achievements. WCVE Public Radio’s John Ogle has more in this Science Matters report below.

NOVA: Making Stuff Stronger, Smaller

NOVA Making Stuff

What is the strongest material in the world? Is it steel, Kevlar, carbon nanotubes, or something entirely new? NOVA kicks off the four-part series “Making Stuff” with a quest for the world’s strongest substances. Host David Pogue takes a look at what defines strength, examining everything from steel cables to mollusk shells to a toucan’s beak. Pogue travels from the deck of a U.S.