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Parent info: Sci Fi / Sci Fact is recommended for ages 11 plus. It's an Episodic show that can be listened to in any order. Made in New Zealand, it's about Sci-Fi and Science for kids. Launched in 2021, it has 6 seasons.
Claims that a tinfoil hat will protect the wearer from electromagnetic fields and mind control have been around for many years but do they actually work? Justin Hodgkiss joins Bryan Crump to answer that question.…
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.…
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.…
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.
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?
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.…
Colm Healy chats about the magic of material science and possible real life equivalents to Harry Potter's invisibility cloak.
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.…
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.
Rodrigo Martinez Gazoni chats with Bryan Crump about the scientific plausibility of Batman's cape and some of his other gadgets.
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.
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.…
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…
Dr Krista Steenbergen takes a look at 'A New Element' as invented by Tony Stark and used in Ironman 2.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.…
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.
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?
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.
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.…
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.…
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.…
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…
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.…
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.…
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.…
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.…
Professor Nicola Gaston, MacDiarmid Institute Co-Director and Professor of Physics at the University of Auckland, explores the science behind the multiverse.…
Jan Eldridge, Associate Professor of Physics at the University of Auckland, explores the use of supernovae (or exploding/dying stars) in fiction.…
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.…
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.…
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 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.…
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 tha…
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 Mithri…
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 gala…
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...…
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.…
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?…
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?…
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?…
Adamantium is the indestructible material infused onto the skeleton of mutant X-Men hero - Wolverine. But what is it really?…
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?…
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?…
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.
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