Sep 19th, 2008 · Science Friday travels to the home base of NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander in Tuscon, Ariz., to discuss the continuing exploration of Mars. Scientists explain how various robots, both on the surface and in orbit, are mapping and cataloging the Red Planet.
Aug 19th, 2008 · Europe's space agency reached two milestones earlier this year. A European-built lab was installed at the International Space Station. Europe launched a robotic cargo vehicle that successfully docked with the station. The European Space Agency will be building more of those automated delivery trucks. And it's also thinking about converting the cargo vehicle into a crew vehicle that could take astronauts into orbit.
Aug 15th, 2008 · iPhones, electric toothbrushes, antilock brakes — all of these are products of a field called mechatronics, which combines physics, computer science and mechanical engineering. Students training in this difficult discipline at the University of Virginia get to have some fun, too; as a class project, they built electric guitars and robotic mice.
Jun 27th, 2008 · Writer Mark Jordan Legan examines the latest movies. Wall-E is an animated feature about a young robot searching for a home in outer space. Wanted is an action movie based on graphic novel about a team of assassins and Finding Amanda, is a comedy about compulsions we can't shake: drugs, booze and gambling, starriong Mathew Broderick and Brittany Snow.
Jun 26th, 2008 · Robot love story and human cautionary tale, the film is daring and traditional, groundbreaking and familiar, apocalyptic and sentimental. It's a tonic in these times — and it proves Pixar still has its touch.
Jun 26th, 2008 · A company that makes a robotic baby seal from Japan named Paro plans to sell it in the U.S. to help comfort people with dementia, autism and other problems related to social isolation. But some doctors say real pets provide the best kind of therapy.
Jun 14th, 2008 · A mini-drama unfolded millions of miles away this week near the North Pole of Mars when NASA's robotic lander Phoenix had trouble with a shovel-full of dirt. NPR's science correspondent David Kestenbaum wonders if there is life among the dirt on Mars.
Jun 13th, 2008 · Using a robotic arm on the Phoenix Mars lander Wednesday, scientists successfully gathered a sample of the planet's soil, clearing the way for further research on the possibility of life on Mars. The head of the Mars Phoenix mission joins Science Friday for an update.