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Internet Audio Resources for Science Learning

Please note, this page exists as an archive only. This program is no longer offered by the Center for Science Outreach.

S4theB! audio files my be downloaded from the archive page.

Snacks4theBrain!

Podcasting is the growing phenomenon that, in essence, is simply capturing automatically downloadable radio shows to a computer by means of a free "aggregator" program and then either burning them to CD or transferring them to a portable device (an iPod, iRiver, etc. or a handheld PDA) to listen to at one's convenience. In some important ways, podcasting is changing the face of radio on a global scale.

Snacks4theBrain! is a podcast program brought to you bi-weekly by the Center for Science Outreach. Shownotes (important links and commentary!) will appear at the Snacks4theBrain! blogsite and the show will be available there.

Some shows will be showcases of just what it is that the CSO does, including:

  • Videoconferencing connections between scientists and K12 students nationwide
  • Laboratory Hosting
  • Classroom Visits
  • Teacher Professional Development Programs
  • Summer Camps
  • Kids and Computers
  • Science Hotline
  • Teachers' Night Out
  • The Scientist-in-the-Classroom Program

Other shows will feature volunteers from Vanderbilt University's extensive pool of working research scientists sharing their valuable knowledge about specific topics. Still other shows will feature nationally prominent educational technologists and classroom teachers sharing their visions for the future of teaching and learning. Topics covered will include, but will not be limited to, the following:

  • Science standards
  • Inquiry
  • Space and space travel
  • Using sample hands-on science kits
  • Frontiers in Biomedical Research
  • Chemical reactions
  • Diffusion
  • Endothermic/exothermic processes
  • Fluorescence
  • Light
  • Minerals
  • pH
  • Sound

Other Excellent Science Podcasts:

Science and Society

BBC's "Naked Scientists"

ipodder.org offers a science podcasts page which may contain more links than the ones here (and in fact has recently added Snacks4theBrain!), but for starters, check out (courtesy of that site):

All About Podcasting

Detailed, easy-to-understand introductions to podcasts and podcasting can be found at

Adam Curry's site at curry.com is another good place to start.

Ipodder.org will get you the free download of iPodder Lemon, available for PC or Mac.

Purchase iPodderX for a reliable aggregator that will also automatically convert text webpages into audio--very neat.

Purchase Podspider or use their free edition for an alternative, also reliable aggregator.

Odeo, a concept still in beta testing, has opened up its site so users can "take it around the block" to see how well it works. The good news is that it appears to work very nicely!

PodcastAlley is a fine place to look over the ever-growing list of myriad podcasts.