What The If?

• Green SUN Apocalypse!

  What the if the Sun suddenly turned green? Your pizza now looks like charcoal because all red things go black. Stop signs become invisible. The sky shifts from cheerful blue to permanent dusk. And plants? They absolutely despise green light—they reflect it because green photons are the M&Ms they pick out of the bowl. So with a green Sun, photosynthesis grinds to a halt, oxygen tanks, and everything that breathes is in serious trouble. The only potential survivors might be weird microbes at deep ocean vents who never cared about sunlight anyway. On the bright side, colorblind people might finally see more colors, and whoever figures out the right makeup for green light is about to make a fortune—right before we all suffocate. --- Find out more about Gaby's science fiction short story! Here are the links for the anthology. The physical copy can be ordered here : https://www.neonhemlock.com/books/luminescent-machinations-queer-tales-of-monumental-invention The ebook can be ordered here: https://www.neonhemlock.com/ebooks/luminescent-machinations-queer-tales-of-monumental-invention

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• Dr. Kiki Turns Us Into BIRDS!

  Happy Thanksgiving! We're off this week for the holiday, so we're presenting an encore presentation of an episode that was originally broadcast on September 5, 2018, and remains one of our all-time audience favorites. What the if humans evolved into shrikes - those adorable songbirds that impale their prey on thorns and barbed wire? Dr. Kiki Sanford, neurobiologist and host of This Week in Science, transforms us into gray-and-white birds with natural domino masks, hollow bones, and respiratory systems so efficient they make mammalian lungs look pathetic. Discover why you're literally dinosaur spawn, how shrikes turn thorns into gruesome pantries, and why territorial bird disputes would make parking lot arguments look civilized. Fast forward 10,000 years and watch strike-kind conquer the galaxy, impaling entire planets and building Dyson smores around distant suns. It's the perfect blend of real bird biology and ridiculous speculation - plus you'll never look at songbirds the same way again! Check out Dr. Kiki's podcast This Week in Science at www.twis.org - they broadcast live on Wednesday evenings!Retry —— Find out more about Gaby's science fiction short story! Here are the links for the anthology. The physical copy can be ordered here : https://www.neonhemlock.com/books/luminescent-machinations-queer-tales-of-monumental-invention The ebook can be ordered here: https://www.neonhemlock.com/ebooks/luminescent-machinations-queer-tales-of-monumental-invention

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• Two BABIES, Two SPECIES!

  Scientists just discovered ant queens that give birth to two completely different species - not twins, but actual separate species hatching from the same mother. But what the if every animal on Earth reproduced this way? Suddenly every pregnancy becomes a species reveal party, dairy farms need to manage herds where some cows give birth to regular calves while others pop out Ice Age yaks, and your family reunions include relatives from entirely different species sitting around the same table. Pet stores become absolute chaos when golden retrievers randomly give birth to wolves, and nobody knows which species they're getting until it hatches or emerges. Your family tree stops being a tree and starts looking like a biological choose-your-own-adventure book. This bizarre discovery from Science Magazine proves that when biology textbooks try to define species boundaries, nature just laughs and does whatever it wants anyway. Reproduction just got way weirder than anyone thought possible. Based on "Ant Queen Lays Eggs That Hatch Into Two Species" from Science Magazine Read the full article here: https://www.science.org/content/article/ant-queen-lays-eggs-hatch-two-species --- Find out more about Gaby's science fiction short story! Here are the links for the anthology. The physical copy can be ordered here : https://www.neonhemlock.com/books/luminescent-machinations-queer-tales-of-monumental-invention The ebook can be ordered here: https://www.neonhemlock.com/ebooks/luminescent-machinations-queer-tales-of-monumental-invention

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• CHINA vs NASA

  This week we're trading hypothetical fungi and exploding planets for something scarier: actual government budgets. But don't worry - watching America accidentally hand the space race to China is just as entertaining as any sci-fi disaster scenario, and way more preventable. Think "For All Mankind" but with spreadsheets instead of heroic astronauts. What happens when NASA's budget gets slashed in half while China's space program keeps climbing? Chris Carberry from Explore Mars joins to explore a future where the International Space Station becomes the Chinese Space Station, lunar bases fly red flags instead of stars and stripes, and American astronauts have to hitch rides on Chinese rockets just to get into orbit. From Beijing's plans to build permanent moon bases to their ambitious Mars sample return missions that might beat NASA by years, discover how budget cuts could transform America from space exploration leader to space exploration spectator. Plus, find out why letting China dominate space science means losing more than just bragging rights - it means losing innovations in climate monitoring, planetary defense, and technologies that improve life here on Earth. Fair warning: this one gets into the nitty gritty of space policy and why funding science actually matters. Want more fascinating space content from Chris? Check out his books exploring the unexpected sides of space exploration - from the role of music in cosmic storytelling to humanity's long relationship with alcohol beyond Earth's atmosphere: The Music of Space: Scoring the Cosmos in Film and Television https://a.co/d/fQki9CS Alcohol in Space: Past, Present and Future https://a.co/d/aqCOkUz Alcohol in Space - The Movie https://www.amazon.com/gp/video/detail/B0DJR1J6F8/ref=atv_dp_share_cu_r And learn more about Chris' work advocating for human Mars exploration at Explore Mars: exploremars.org --- Find out more about Gaby's science fiction short story! Here are the links for the anthology. The physical copy can be ordered here : https://www.neonhemlock.com/books/luminescent-machinations-queer-tales-of-monumental-invention The ebook can be ordered here: https://www.neonhemlock.com/ebooks/luminescent-machinations-queer-tales-of-monumental-invention

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• Mosquitoes Fall for FUNGI!

  What the if mosquitoes were helpless against the sweet smell of their own doom? Scientists genetically engineered Metarhizium fungus to smell so irresistibly delicious that mosquitoes can't help but fly straight into deadly traps with a 90-100% success rate. Discover why these bloodsuckers are actually tiny recycling agents in nature (who knew?), learn why we can't just eliminate them without the whole ecosystem throwing a tantrum, and find out why one will inevitably end up on a future space station driving the crew absolutely bonkers. From glowing green fungus-covered mosquitoes that look like tiny Marvel villains to biological pest control that beats slathering industrial chemicals on everything, explore humanity's eternal quest to outsmart bugs that have been annoying us since the dawn of time. Based on "This Genetically Engineered Fungus Could Help Fix Your Mosquito Problem" by Jason Dinh, published in The New York Times on November 1st, 2025. Read the full article here: https://www.nytimes.com/2025/11/01/science/fungus-mosquitoes-genetic-engineering.html?unlocked_article_code=1.y08.x0jx.9OuE2HKzYyez&smid=url-share --- Find out more about Gaby's science fiction short story! Here are the links for the anthology. The physical copy can be ordered here : https://www.neonhemlock.com/books/luminescent-machinations-queer-tales-of-monumental-invention The ebook can be ordered here: https://www.neonhemlock.com/ebooks/luminescent-machinations-queer-tales-of-monumental-invention

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