328 | Redox Violations
Other than being a reaction and looking cool, thermite doesn’t really have anything to do with this episode.
00:00:00 - Phosphine has been detected in the atmosphere of Venus, where it shouldn’t exist. How could it have formed in detectable quantities? One explanation could be microbes living in a habitable zone high in the Venusian atmosphere, so that’s neat.
00:25:00 - Drinks would not exist for long on Venus due to the extreme heat, but here on Earth they go down just fine. Ben has a horchata-flavored drink which sounds delightful. Charlie has some coffee roasted by a buddy of his who is now selling his beans online at The Deer and the Bear, check it out! And Ryan has The Great Return IPA from Hardywood Park Craft Brewery which helps support restorations efforts of the James River in Richmond, VA, so that’s good.
00:32:53 - Our moon is a notably dry place with no oxygen, but an Indian probe recently detected hematite, aka rust, at the lunar poles. How could rust form in such an environment? Orbital dynamics and Earth’s magnetotail may provide the answer.
00:46:29 - PaleoPOWs are a lot like rust on the moon, you’re surprised to find it and not sure what to do with it now that you have it. First, Ryan thanks Rocky LaDuque for reposting Episode 77 to his own SoundCloud page, didn’t even know that was a thing but very grateful for it! Next, Charlie reads an e-mail from Stephanie from Travelcraft Journal who found us because we used her photo (with credit) when talking about the science behind spilled lattes. Finally, we come up with a BSso thesis for longtime supporter and homebrewer Richard P. who has earned his fake degree with a thesis entitled: Random Underdeveloped Simulation Test (RUST): Density and Temperature Gradient Stratification of S. cerevisiae during the fermentation of beer as an analog model for Phosine-generating microbial life in the atmosphere of Venus. Thanks, Richard!
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Audio Production by Rob Heath
Music credit: Tentative Cloud - Podington Bear
Image credit: Khan Academy
