BROADCASTS.com

The Life and Contributions of the Smithsonian Founder
Guest:\xa0Steven Turner, Historian of Science and Curator Emeritus of Physical Sciences at the Smithsonian National Museum of American History, and\xa0author of "The Science of James Smithson: Discoveries from the Smithsonian Founder"
You\u2019ve heard of the Smithsonian, but you probably don\u2019t know much about the man who funded the museum. James Smithson was a brilliant scientist, but even the institution named after him downplayed his achievements. Steven Turner wants to set the record straight, and he has even replicated many of Smithson\u2019s experiments to prove the value of his contributions.
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The Science Behind the First Science-Fiction Novel
Guest: Kathryn Harkup, chemist and author of \u201cMaking the Monster: The Science Behind Mary Shelley\u2019s Frankenstein"
The years before Mary Shelley published "Frankenstein" saw huge leaps in our understanding of natural sciences, and many of the most popular experiments, lecturers, and science gossip made its way into Shelley\u2019s famous novel. Kathryn Harkup, a chemist herself, talks about the science fact behind the science fiction.