Could permafrost under Martian soil be the key to finding life on the red planet? Chris McKay, a planetary scientist for NASA, thinks there's a good chance we'll see evidence of ancient microbes if we just follow the ice. Podcast produced by David Levin. Interview by Anna Lee Strachan. NOVA is produced by WGBH in Boston. Funding for NOVA is provided by ExxonMobil, David H. Koch, the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, and public television viewers. For more fun science stories, visit our website at pbs.org/nova/mars

Simon Schaffer is a historian of science at the University of Cambridge, England. In this podcast, he discusses the search for absolute zero and its impact on science and technology. Podcast produced by David Levin. Interview by David Dugan. Funding for NOVA is provided by ExxonMobil, David H. Koch, the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, and public television viewers. To learn more about the race to conquer cold, visit our Web site at pbs.org/nova/zero

Thousands of things could go wrong at any stage of the Mars Phoenix Lander's mission. But Peter Smith, the mission's Principal Investigator, says that the most nerve-wracking parts are getting Phoenix safely into space and back down again on Mars. Podcast produced by David Levin. Interview by Jonathan Grupper. NOVA is produced by WGBH in Boston. Funding for NOVA is provided by ExxonMobil, David H. Koch, the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, and public television viewers. For more fun science stories, visit our website at pbs.org/nova/mars

Did a massive asteroid kill off the dinosaurs? Maybe not. Entomologist George Poinar thinks something much smaller might have done the job. Podcast produced by David Levin. Interview by Terri Randall. NOVA is produced by WGBH in Boston. Funding for NOVA is provided by ExxonMobil, David H. Koch, the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, and public television viewers. Major funding for NOVA scienceNOW is provided by Pfizer, the National Science Foundation, and the Howard Hughes Medical Institute. Additional funding is provided by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation. This material is based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation under Grant No. 0229297. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation. For more fun science stories, visit our website at pbs.org/nova/sciencenow

For Chief Anne “Little Fawn” Richardson, Pocahontas is more than a legendary historical figure. Richardson can trace her own ancestry back to the 17th century, when her tribe, the Rappahannocks, were part of a vast domain ruled by Pocahontas's father. In this podcast, Richardson reflects on the clash of cultures between Pocahontas's people and the English settlers of Jamestown. Podcast produced and edited by Susan K. Lewis. Interview by Kirk Wolfinger. NOVA is produced by WGBH in Boston. Funding for NOVA is provided by ExxonMobil, David H. Koch, the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, and public television viewers. To learn more, visit http://www.pbs.org/nova/pocahontas

In this podcast, hear about about Sue Savage-Rumbaugh's language studies with bonobos, a primate closely related to humans. Interview conducted by Rima Chaddha. Podcast produced and edited by David Levin. NOVA is produced by WGBH in Boston. Funding for NOVA is provided by ExxonMobil, David H. Koch, the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, and public television viewers. For more on bonobos and what they might teach us about ourselves, visit www.pbs.org/nova/bonobos

Dr. Peter Hackett is the Executive Director of the Institute for Altitude Medicine in Telluride, Colorado. In this podcast, he discusses the effects that altitude can have on the body. Podcast produced by David Levin. Funding for NOVA is provided by ExxonMobil, David H. Koch, the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, and public television viewers. To learn more about the dangers of climbing tall peaks and what it takes to survive, visit our Web site at pbs.org/nova/denali

The Kepler Space Telescope, which is scheduled to launch in 2009, may help astronomers find other earth-like planets for the first time. Podcast produced by David Levin. Interviews by Julia Cort. NOVA is produced by WGBH in Boston. Funding for NOVA is provided by ExxonMobil, David H. Koch, the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, and public television viewers. Major funding for NOVA scienceNOW is provided by Pfizer, the National Science Foundation, and the Howard Hughes Medical Institute. Additional funding is provided by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation. This material is based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation under Grant No. 0229297. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation. For more fun science stories, visit our Web site at pbs.org/nova/sciencenow

Archeologist Bill Dever says that in addition to the Hebrew god Yahweh, ancient Israelites may have worshipped a Canaanite female goddess called Asherah. This podcast was produced by David Levin and Susan Lewis. Interview by Gary Glassman. NOVA is produced by WGBH in Boston. Funding for NOVA is provided by ExxonMobil, David H. Koch, the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, and public television viewers. Major funding for "The Bible's Buried Secrets" is provided by The Arthur Vining Davis Foundations, the Richard and Rhoda Goldman Fund, and the Righteous Persons Foundation. For more on what archeology is revealing about biblical times, visit www.pbs.org/nova/bible

This podcast was produced by David Levin. Interview by Arun Rath. NOVA is produced by WGBH in Boston. Funding for NOVA is provided by ExxonMobil, David H. Koch, the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, and public television viewers. For more on Space Shuttle Disaster, visit www.pbs.org/nova/columbia

Some parrots can talk-but can they really understand what they're saying? In this podcast, researcher Irene Pepperberg describes her cognitive experiments with African grey parrots, and discusses why the line between human and animal intelligence is sometimes blurry. Produced by David Levin. NOVA is produced by WGBH in Boston. Major funding for NOVA scienceNOW is provided by Pfizer, the National Science Foundation, the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, and public television viewers. This material is based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation under Grant No. 0229297. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation. For more fun science stories, visit our Web site at http://www.pbs.org/nova/sciencenow

CERN's massive particle collider in Geneva, Switzerland, may create tiny black holes when it goes online-hopefully-in 2008. Not to worry, though: In this podcast, physicist Dave Wark explains that there's no way these can destroy the world. This podcast was produced by David Levin. Interview with Dave Wark by Rima Chaddha. NOVA is produced by WGBH in Boston. Major funding for NOVA is provided by The DOW Chemical Company, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, and public television viewers. Major funding for NOVA scienceNOW is provided by the National Science Foundation and the Howard Hughes Medical Institute. Additional funding is provided by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation. To learn more, visit www.pbs.org/nova/sciencenow

Astrophysicist Andrea Ghez of the University of California, Los Angeles describes her discovery of a supermassive black hole at the center of the Milky Way. This podcast was produced by Susan K. Lewis and edited by David Levin. Interview by Susan K. Lewis. Music courtesy www.animalhospitalmusic.com. NOVA is produced by WGBH in Boston. Funding for NOVA is provided by ExxonMobil, David H. Koch, the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, and public television viewers. Major funding for "Monster of the Milky Way" is provided by the National Science Foundation and by NASA's Gamma Ray Large Area Space Telescope (GLAST). To learn more, visit www.pbs.org/nova/blackhole

Physicist Frank Wilczek of MIT offers his take on Einstein's famous equation. This podcast was produced by David Levin and Lexi Krock. Audio editing by David Levin. Music courtesy www.animalhospitalmusic.com. NOVA is produced by WGBH in Boston. Funding for NOVA is provided by ExxonMobil, David H. Koch, the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, and public television viewers. For more on E = mc2, visit www.pbs.org/nova/einstein

Astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson from the American Museum of Natural History offers his take on Einstein's famous equation. This podcast was produced by David Levin and Lexi Krock. Audio editing by David Levin. Music courtesy www.animalhospitalmusic.com. NOVA is produced by WGBH in Boston. Funding for NOVA is provided by ExxonMobil, David H. Koch, the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, and public television viewers. For more on E = mc2, visit www.pbs.org/nova/einstein

Physicist Janet Conrad of Columbia University offers her take on Einstein's famous equation. This podcast was produced by David Levin and Lexi Krock. Audio editing by David Levin. Music courtesy www.animalhospitalmusic.com. NOVA is produced by WGBH in Boston. Funding for NOVA is provided by ExxonMobil, David H. Koch, the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, and public television viewers. For more on E = mc2, visit www.pbs.org/nova/einstein

Physicist Sheldon Glashow of Boston University offers his take on Einstein's famous equation. This podcast was produced by David Levin and Lexi Krock. Audio editing by David Levin. Music courtesy www.animalhospitalmusic.com. NOVA is produced by WGBH in Boston. Funding for NOVA is provided by ExxonMobil, David H. Koch, the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, and public television viewers. For more on E = mc2, visit www.pbs.org/nova/einstein

Physicist Alan Guth of MIT offers his take on Einstein's famous equation. This podcast was produced by David Levin and Lexi Krock. Audio editing by David Levin. Music courtesy www.animalhospitalmusic.com. NOVA is produced by WGBH in Boston. Funding for NOVA is provided by ExxonMobil, David H. Koch, the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, and public television viewers. For more on E = mc2, visit www.pbs.org/nova/einstein

Physicist Brian Greene of Columbia University offers his take on Einstein's famous equation. This podcast was produced by David Levin and Lexi Krock. Audio editing by David Levin. Music courtesy www.animalhospitalmusic.com. NOVA is produced by WGBH in Boston. Funding for NOVA is provided by ExxonMobil, David H. Koch, the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, and public television viewers. For more on E = mc2, visit www.pbs.org/nova/einstein

Mark Siddall, a.k.a. Dr. Leech, says that while searching for the giant Amazonian leech, bloodsucking creatures were the least of his problems. Produced by David Levin. Interview conducted by Peter Tyson. NOVA is produced by WGBH in Boston. Major funding for NOVA scienceNOW is provided by Pfizer, the National Science Foundation, the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, and public television viewers. This material is based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation under Grant No. 0229297. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation. For more fun science stories, visit our Web site at http://www.pbs.org/nova/sciencenow

Engineer Karl Iagnemma of MIT talks to NOVA scienceNOW's Susan Lewis about his dual life as a roboticist and award-winning fiction author. Produced by Susan K. Lewis. Audio editing by David Levin. Interview conducted by Susan Lewis. NOVA is produced by WGBH in Boston. Major funding for NOVA scienceNOW is provided by Pfizer, the National Science Foundation, the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, and public television viewers. This material is based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation under Grant No. 0229297. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation. For more fun science stories, visit our Web site at http://www.pbs.org/nova/sciencenow

In this podcast, NOVA scienceNOW correspondent David Duncan talks to Dr. Jeffrey Friedman of Rockefeller University about the connection between genetics and obesity. Audio editing by David Levin. Produced by Dean Irwin. Interview conducted by David Duncan. NOVA is produced by WGBH in Boston. Major funding for NOVA scienceNOW is provided by Pfizer, the National Science Foundation, the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, and public television viewers. This material is based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation under Grant No. 0229297. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation. For more fun science stories, visit our Web site at http://www.pbs.org/nova/sciencenow

NOVA scienceNOW producer Joe McMaster asks our series host, Neil deGrasse Tyson, why everyone should know about the Permian extinction. Produced by Susan K. Lewis. Audio editing by David Levin. Interview conducted by Joe McMaster. NOVA is produced by WGBH in Boston. Major funding for NOVA scienceNOW is provided by Pfizer, the National Science Foundation, the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, and public television viewers. This material is based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation under Grant No. 0229297. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation. For more fun science stories, visit our Web site at http://www.pbs.org/nova/sciencenow