Sci Fi / Sci Fact

Kryptonite is a green crystal-like material found on Superman's home planet - Krypton. The radiation from the rock weakens Superman. Professor Bill Williams tells us if there are any real life equivalents to Kryptonite.

Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Scarlett Johansson's character in Black Widow has to fight pheromones in order to beat the evil villain. Anindita Sen explains how pheromones work and whether they could control humans.

Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

MacGyver was an 80s icon, with his mullet and ability to turn anything into a tool to save the day. Karen Thorn looks at one episode where the action hero turns some historical artifacts into a laser.

Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

The Philosopher's Stone in the Harry Potter books can change metal into gold and create an elixir of life. Erin Leitao tells Bryan Crump whether either ability is within our reach.

Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

In Total Recall Arnold Schwarzenegger plays a construction worker who recovers memories as life as secret agent trying to stop the mining of Turbinium on the planet Mars.

Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

The Ghostbusters would never have caught their prey without proton packs. Emily Kendall talks to Bryan Crump about how they worked in the movies and whether they could work in real life.

Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Kate Andrew tackles Terry Pratchett's Discworld series of books in this episode, with a particular focus on the Octiron, the element of magic which makes up the disc's hub.

Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Spiderman swings from the top of New York's high-rises, fighting crime and beating super-villains. But could spider silk really hold up a full-grown man? Dr Paul Hume and Bryan Crump discuss the super qualities of spiderwebs.

Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Arnold Schwarzenegger's Terminator is a cyborg sent back in time to change the future. Duncan McGillvray discusses the metal that makes up the murderous robotic endoskeleton.

Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Wonder Woman can stop bullets with her Feminum bracelets but, apart from needing the reflexes to achieve this, could any material that's light enough to wear on your wrists do that?

Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Elizabeth Holmes is serving prison time for fraud after convincing the world she had developed a simple blood test that could diagnose a range of diseases. Professor Duncan McGillivray looks at whether the fiction could one day be a reality.

Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Colm Healy chats about the magic of material science and possible real life equivalents to Harry Potter's invisibility cloak.

Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Spoiler Alert: In the Christopher Nolan movie Interstellar, an astronaut gets sucked into a black hole but manages to communicate with his daughter and find his way out. Richard Easther tells us the realities of being sucked into a black hole.

Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Greedy corporations seeking Unobtainium are the bad guys in James Cameron's Avatar movie franchise. Associate Professor Nicola Gaston discusses the parallels between the fictional mineral and solid hydrogen.

Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Rodrigo Martinez Gazoni chats with Bryan Crump about the scientific plausibility of Batman's cape and some of his other gadgets.

Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

The Starship Enterprise crew's tricorders have a multitude of uses, from scanning a new planet's surface to staff health checks. Dr Michel Nieuwoudt chats about whether we could even construct such a device.

Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

In Larry Niven's 1970 science fiction novel, Louis Wu and his companions crash land on a rotating ring world constructed by aliens. Dr Chris Bumby and Bryan Crump discuss whether we might one day build our own space Ringworld.

Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Symbiotes are extraterrestrial parasites that appear in the Marvel Comics Spiderverse. In particular, Venom is a symbiote who attaches to journalist Eddie Brock. Dr Paul Hume chats with Bryan Crump about the feasibility of coming across a symbiote in real life.

Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Dr Krista Steenbergen takes a look at 'A New Element' as invented by Tony Stark and used in Ironman 2.

Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Many of the planets that feature in sci fi storylines end up sounding and looking a bit like Earth. Associate Professor Jan Eldridge chats about the chances of that.

Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

In Christopher Nolan's Tenet a CIA operative is tracing the origin of objects that are travelling back through time. Professor Bill Williams talks about the realities of time travel.

Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Mutants feature heavily in many sci fi stories, from X-men to Godzilla. Chemistry expert Bill Jia talks Corrodium, a mutant-making material from the Ben 10 cartoon series.

Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Tony Stark's arc reactor fuels his flying Ironman suit. James Rice joins Bryan Crump to discuss the real life equivalents to this palladium core fusion power source.

Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

The subtle knife slices through the fabric of reality to different worlds. Dr Mike Price discusses the science behind alternate universes and implements that might helps us get to them.

Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

We know a lot of work goes into getting plants to grow bigger and produce more. But what are the chances of getting a beanstalk to reach the clouds? Dr Nate Davis gives it some thought in this episode of Sci Fi / Sci Fact.

Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Wildfire is a liquid so flammable, unstable and explosive it doesn't stop burning until you put sand on it. UK science communicator Kit Chapman discusses this Game of Thrones substance.

Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Black Panther's suit and Captain America's shield are both made of Vibranium, but realistically could any metal absorb, store and release kinetic energy?

Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Dr Matt Cowan, from the McDiarmid Institute and Engineering department of Canterbury University, talks about Cuendillar - a substance from the Wheel of Time series - which gets tougher, the more you bash it.

Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

It would at first appear to a solution to all laundry woes, but the White Suit from the 1950's movie The Man in the White Suit is not without its issues. Associate Professor Geoff Willmott discusses this and much more.

Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Baakonite is a metal used heavily in Klingon weaponry and communications equipment in the world of Star Trek. Associate Professor Duncan McGillivary tells us about its particular properties and what we have in real life that might compare.

Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

This episode we look at a villain's secret weapon - Zero Point Energy. In The Incredibles Syndrome uses Zero Point Energy to freeze the heroes and get away with his crimes against humanity.

Professor Cather Simpson is an Emeritus Investigator with the MacDiarmid Institute and a Professor of Physics & Chemistry at University of Auckland. She tells Bryan Crump that Zero Point Energy is a REAL thing, but that the writers of The Incredibles might have stretched the truth of it somewhat.

Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Neutronium comes up in Star Wars, Star Trek and many of the Marvel Comics. It's a hypothetical substance made purely of neutrons. Jan Eldridge, Associate Professor of Physics at the University of Auckland tells Bryan Crump how likely

Associate Professor in Physics at the Faculty of Science, University of Auckland, Jan Eldridge gives us her scientific take on Neutronium a material widely written about in fiction - including Star Wars, Star Trek and in the Marvel comics.

Spoiler Alert - it's a real thing.

Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Marvel's Antman can shrink down to the size of an ant but still pack the punch of Mike Tyson. The McDiarmid Institute's Dr Mike Price discusses the difficulties of making this a reality.

Antman was one of the original Avengers. A special suit enables him to shrink to the size of an ant, but also communicate and command armies the wee insects. MacDiarmid Institute guest and Rutherford Discovery Fellow at Victoria University of Wellington, Dr Mike Price talks to Bryan Crump about the practicalities of such a suit.

Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Axonite is a 'thinking' material that can replicate and spread across the cosmos to feed. The MacDiarmid Institute's Professor Bill Williams discusses whether this sort of material is scientifically possible.

Professor Bill Williams, MacDiarmid Institute Principal Investigator and Professor in Biophysics and Soft Matter at Massey University discusses Axonite from Dr Who - a 'thinking' material that can replicate any substance and spreads itself across the cosmos to feed itself.

Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Nth Metal is a hyper-conductive metal that negates gravity. It features heavily in DC comics, but how does it stack up in the real world Professor Penny Brothers gives Bryan Crump her scientific take on it.

Professor Penny Brothers, Emeritus Investigator at the MacDiarmid Institute and Professor of Chemistry at the Australian National University gives us her scientific take on Nth Metal from DC Comics, a hyper-conductive metal that has the ability to negate gravity, allowing a person to carry objects 20-70 times heavier than normal and to fly.

Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

In the Ender's Game series, philote is a particle that enables communication across the galaxy. Dr Krista Steenbergen talks to Bryan Crump about the realities of such a thing.

Philote, from the Ender's Game series, is a particle that can travel faster than the speed of light and enable instantaneous communication across vast distances. Bryan Crump speaks to Dr. Krista Steenbergen, Senior Lecturer of Physics in the School of Chemical and Physical Sciences at Victoria University of Wellington and MacDiarmid Institute Associate Investigator, to find out how plausible such a particle could be.

Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Professor Nicola Gaston, MacDiarmid Institute Co-Director and Professor of Physics at the University of Auckland, explores the science behind the multiverse.

The multiverse is a hypothetical group of multiple universes. Together, these universes comprise everything that exists: the entirety of space, time, matter, energy, information, and the physical laws and constants that describe them.

Professor Nicola Gaston, MacDiarmid Institute Co-Director and Professor of Physics at the University of Auckland explores the science behind the multiverse.

Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Jan Eldridge, Associate Professor of Physics at the University of Auckland, explores the use of supernovae (or exploding/dying stars) in fiction.

A supernova (pl. supernovae or supernovas) is a powerful and luminous stellar explosion that occurs during the last evolutionary stages of a massive star or when a white dwarf is triggered into runaway nuclear fusion. Supernovae have been featured in many works of fiction.

Jan Eldridge, Associate Professor of Physics at the University of Auckland explores the use of supernovae (or exploding/dying stars) in fiction.

Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Dr Natalie Plank, MacDiarmid Institute Principal Investigator and Senior Lecturer in Physics at Victoria University of Wellington investigates the power of the magic wand and we learn some great tricks to try at home.

Michel de Nostradame (1503-66) and Catherine de Medici (1519-89), wife of Henry II (1519-59) King of France. 1559 (pen & ink and wash on paper) by French School, (16th century); Bibliotheque Nationale, Paris, France;

Magic Wands have been used in storytelling for hundreds for years. From the traditional 18th Century Ballad, Allison Gross, CS Lewis' 1950 novel, The Lion The Witch and the Wardrobe, to more recently in Disney's Fantasia and, of course, the Harry Potter franchise.

Dr Natalie Plank, MacDiarmid Institute Principal Investigator and Senior Lecturer in Physics at Victoria University of Wellington investigates the power of the magic wand and we learn some great tricks to try at home.

With your ruler or any other rod or thing that you can find, put some charges on it with your jumper and then run your tap at home and then if you put the rod close to the tap, have a look at what happens to the water - how that moves - and that can tell you a little bit about what's going on there.

Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Jan Eldridge, Associate Professor of Physics at the University of Auckland on the facts behind the fiction of the Star Trek mind-swap episode - Turnabout Intruder.

Turnabout Intruder is the twenty-fourth and final episode of Star Trek. In the episode, a woman switches bodies with Captain Kirk and then tries to take over command of the Enterprise.

Jan Eldridge, Associate Professor of Physics at the University of Auckland on the facts behind the fiction of the Star Trek mind-swap episode - Turnabout Intruder.

I work in astronomy where we go and look at the Universe and we study these explosions, and how the Universe evolves, and stars evolve and it's so wonderfully complex. And then you suddenly realise, oh hang on... us individually, and our society, and the way we interact are wonderfully, beautifully complex as well.

Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Professor Nicola Gaston, MacDiarmid Institute Co-Director and Professor of Physics at the University of Auckland talks about the Dragonriders of Pern science fantasy series written by American author Anne McCaffrey.

In the a science fantasy series by author Anne McCaffrey, the planet of Pern has been colonised by humans who have lost much of their technology and history due to periodic deluge of a destructive spore called Thread

The Pernese use intelligent fire-breathing dragons to fight Thread with the human rider developing a telepathic bond with their dragon.

Professor Nicola Gaston, MacDiarmid Institute Co-Director and Professor of Physics at the University of Auckland talks about Dragonriders of Pern science fantasy series written by American author Anne McCaffrey.

Things like Lithium, potassium, sodium - they're not uncommon metals, but they're very rare in metallic form on this planet simply because we have an oxygen atmosphere so the idea that in rock form they could be chewed and produce a gas that is flammable... potentially.

Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

In this whimsical episode, MacDiarmid Institute Principal Investigator and Professor of Chemistry at the University of Auckland, Duncan McGillivray tries to work out how Rumpelstiltskin made straw into gold.

Rumpelstiltskin is the story of an imp who spins straw into gold in exchange for a girl's firstborn.

In this whimsical episode, MacDiarmid Institute Principal Investigator and Professor of Chemistry at the University of Auckland, Duncan McGillivray tries to work out how Rumpelstiltskin made straw into gold.

Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Associate Professor Geoff Willmott, MacDiarmid Institute Deputy Director for Commercialisation and Industry Engagement and Associate Professor of Physics at the University of Auckland speaks to Bryan Crump on the stillsuits from Dune; the water-saving suit that recycles sweat and other fluids for survival in the Deep Deserts of Arrakis.

A stillsuit is a full body suit designed to preserveand recycle the body's moisture.

Its various layers would absorb the body's moisture through sweating and urination, filtering the impurities to make drinkable water enabling the wearer to survive for weeks in the open desert of the planet Arrakis.

Associate Professor Geoff Willmott, MacDiarmid Institute Deputy Director for Commercialisation and Industry Engagement and Associate Professor of Physics at the University of Auckland speaks to Bryan Crump on the stillsuits from Dune; the water-saving suit that recycles sweat and other fluids for survival in the Deep Deserts of Arrakis.

Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

In this episode, our heroes dig deep into the Mines of Moria. Dr Chris Bumby, MacDiarmid Institute Associate Investigator and Senior Scientist at the Robinson Research Institute of Victoria University of Wellington regales Bryan with scientific tales of Mithril from Lord of the Rings.

Mithril is a fictional metal found in the writings of J. R. R. Tolkien. A very rare and expensive metal in Middle-earth, it is described as resembling silver, being stronger than steel but as light as wool.

Gandalf: "Bilbo had a shirt of Mithril rings that Thorin gave him."

Gimli: "Oh, that was a kingly gift."

Gandalf: "Yes! I never told him, but its worth was greater than the value of the Shire."

Dr Chris Bumby, MacDiarmid Institute Associate Investigator and Senior Scientist at the Robinson Research Institute of Victoria University of Wellington regales Bryan with scientific tales of Mithril from Lord of the Rings.

We're in the mines of Mordor here. We're right down in the deep depths of the earth. Who knows what's going on down there?

Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

In this episode, we welcome Dr Catherine Whitby, Senior Chemistry Lecturer at Massey University, and MacDiarmid Institute Associate Investigator, to talk about Mandalorian, the super light and super strong material in Star Wars, and its equivalent in this galaxy, Kevlar.

Mandalorian iron, also known by its Mando'a name of beskar, was an extremely durable iron ore whose only known source was the planet of Mandalore and its moon, Concordia. Mandalore was inhabited by warriors who mined their planet for this rare and valuable metal, using it in the creation of weapons, armor, and starships.

Dr Catherine Whitby, Senior Chemistry Lecturer at Massey University, and MacDiarmid Institute Associate Investigator, to talk about Mandalorian, the super light and super strong material in Star Wars, and its equivalent in this galaxy, Kevlar.

You could wear concrete, and that might protect you from a blaster shot, but you're not going to get very far wearing a suit of concrete. So the beauty of this (Mandalorian) armour is it is so strong and protective but at the same time it's light so you can run and jump and make your next move in the fight.

Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

In this episode, Professor Justin Hodgkiss, Co-Director of the MacDiarmid Institute talks to Bryan Crump about the scientific feasability of Star Wars' lightsabers. The ubiquitous, Jedi weapon from a galaxy far, far away...

The lightsaber in the Star Wars franchise is the weapon of the Jedi. It can be used to cut through blast doors or enemies alike. It requires skill and training to use, and is greatly enhanced when used in conjunction with the Force.

Professor Justin Hodgkiss, Co-Director of the MacDiarmid Institute talks to Bryan Crump about the scientific feasability of Star Wars' lightsabers.

It would be dangerous; it would cut things. It would Basically electrocute you and if you were going to carry this thing that is a really high voltage power supply around, then you're probably better off just electrocuting your opponent.

Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Good news, everyone! Dr Nate Davis, Associate Investigator and Senior Lecturer in Physical Chemistry at Victoria University of Wellington brings us the science - or lack of it - behind Jumbonium from Futurama.

Jumbonium from Futurama is a very rare, valuable and fictional element with atoms large enough to be seen with the naked eye. The Jumbonium atom was used for the Miss Universe competition, where it hovered above the prized tiara.

So what is it, already? It's a single atom of jumbonium, an element so rare the nucleus alone is worth more than $50,000.

Dr Nate Davis, MacDiarmid Institute Associate Investigator and Senior Lecturer in Physical Chemistry at Victoria University of Wellington explains jumbonium as:

"It's about a tennis-ball-sized atom, and then around that you see the electrons orbiting, as you would sort of imagine what an atom looks like... if you haven't got a chemistry degree, because that orbit is actually unstable."

Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Tony Starks's Iron Man suit enables him to fly, it has weapons and it's basically indestructible. What on earth (or space) is it made of?

Tony Stark first put on the Iron Man suit in 1968 and it's changed a lot over the years.

While it has always enabled Stark to fly and wear an arsenal, more recently the suit has been able to repair itself.

Dr Catherine Whitby, a Senior Lecturer in Chemistry at Massey University and Principal Investigator at the MacDiarmid Institute, said self-repairing materials are kind of the "holy grail" for scientists.

And she said nature is a key inspiration.

"It's kind of like a shell that's got this incredible strength and an ability to protect Tony from all sorts of situations," said Dr Whitby, "And we're actually starting to try and imitate these kinds of shells that already form in nature."

"In some cases, some animals can repair their shells. In other cases, an animal sometimes has to shed it and grow a new one."

Scientists are now working making materials that might start to approach self-repairing.

"It's pretty early days on the self-repairing but we're already having a lot of success on mimicking bio-mineralisation in the lab," Dr Whitby said.

Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Tonight's the night the magic happens. Old St Nick sets off from the North Pole and delivers presents to children all around the world. How does he do it?

On December 24, every year, Santa Claus piles his sleigh up with presents, he hitches Rudolph and his other reindeer up and heads off to deliver those gifts to every child in the world.

How?

JJ Eldridge, Associate Professor in Physics at the Faculty of Science, University of Auckland said if she was Santa, she would start with cloaking technology, which would explain why no one ever sees Santa dropping off the presents, and there is already a bit of this tech in development.

The ability to cover the whole world in one night gets trickier, but JJ said it is not outside the realms of possibility.

"One of the most difficult things about physics is you have to kind of throw out everything you understand from your own eyes and ears about how the world works," she said, "Because when we go down to the very small level, the quantum mechanics level, things get a bit strange."

Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

From a time-travelling DeLorean to a future where hovercars are everywhere, the movie Back to the Future is a dream for sci fi-loving petrol heads - but could it be a reality?

Throughout the 80s Marty McFly and Doc enthralled viewers with their modified DeLorean, which took Marty back to 1955 and then to the distant future - 2015.

Dr Rodrigo Martinez Gazoni, MacDiarmid Institute research fellow at the University of Canterbury fact checks the science behind Back to the Future, from flying cars to time travel.

Dr Martinez Gazoni was too young to watch the movie when it first came out, but once he saw the film he couldn't wait for 2015 when we would have flying cars.

"Here we are six years later and I still haven't seen ," he said.

But he believes hovercars could become a reality if we really wanted them.

"I'm very optimistic. I'm absolutely sure that we will be able to do something like that in the next ten years."

But Dr Martinez Gazoni warns they might not be the dream solution to our transport problems.

"The problem will be traffic. Not traffic jams, but traffic itself. It would be really, really dangerous."

Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Adamantium is the indestructible material infused onto the skeleton of mutant X-Men hero - Wolverine. But what is it really?

Marvel's Wolverine first appeared in 1974. He is a gruff Canadian mutant who joins the superhero league of X-Men.

Wolverine has super healing abilities and claws that come out when he's angry, which catch the attention of shady military figures who try to turn him into a weapon by fusing Adamantium to his skeleton

Dr Chris Bumby, Principal Scientist at Victoria University of Wellington's Robinson Institute and Associate Investigator at the MacDiarmid Institute gives us his scientific take on Adamantium.

He says adamantium appears to be strong, tough and hard which in scientific terms each have very specific meanings. And about the the time Marvel began writing the Wolverine stories, titanium technology was really taking off.

Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Dilithium Crystals have been around since the origins of Star Trek. They regulate matter and anti-matter in the Starship Enterprise's warp core. But what are they?

Dilithium crystals enable the Starship Enterprise to enter warp speed and travel across the universe.

Without them, matter and anti-matter in the warp core would create an annihilation reaction. Or would it?

Dr Krista Steenbergen, MacDiarmid Institute Associate Investigator and Physics lecturer at Victoria University of Wellington said if you squeeze lithium down it becomes a dilithium solid.

And she said anti-matter is a very real thing too.

"We can play around with it, particularly in particle accelerators," she said, "It is a thing that if you collide matter with anti-matter, a big one would be an electron and a positron, you get an annihilation and a large amount of energy."

Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Flubber has been around since 1961 when the mad scientist Professor Brainard discovered the flying rubber. It got a re-vamp with Robin Williams in the late 90s, but how realistic is it?

If we take the 1997 version on Flubber, it is a fluorescent green, slimy-looking rubbery substance with endless energy.

It defies the laws of physics and if it was real could be a terrifying prospect.

When something bounces it looses energy every time it hits the ground, but Dr. Nathaniel Davis, MacDiarmid Institute Associate Investigator and Lecturer in Physical Chemistry at Victoria University of Wellington said there are two ways something could get around this basic scientific principal.

"One is it has some form of internal energy that it's releasing," he said, "kind of like a battery. Or it's somehow absorbing energy on each bounce."

Dr Davis said there is some evidence that Flubber absorbs energy from around itself and that prospect is terrifying.

"It's going to be bouncing around the universe taking all the energy and never stopping until there's no energy left."

Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Listen in to hear New Zealand's brightest scientific minds discuss the merits of pop culture plot-drivers. From Wolverine's adamantium-fused skeleton to Star Trek's dilithium crystals.

Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details