Science Friday has been a "go to" for me for years. Often while cleaning up at the lab, we'd play it on NPR and it was a good intro for my undergrad students, to the nerdy, funny, gee-whiz aspects of science. Thanks for a real gem of a program!
I preferred the longer format but I understand the reasoning…it is not the only long podcast I listen to that went to shorter segments because it seemed more likely audiences would listen. I enjoy the variety of topics and views. I see a lot of negativity but if I am
Not interested in a topic I just skip it myself. The people interviewed that I listen to always seems knowledgeable and I always learn something.
Science Friday used to be an interesting listen of science discovery, with information that could occasionally challenge beliefs. Now a large proportion of topics and segments are unbalanced expositions of scientific studies designed simply to confirm an agenda. The good news is the segmented episode set up that many complain about actually serves to sift through some of this for the few gems of scientific discovery that aren’t obfuscated by their social agenda.
So much science to discuss and the program inserts political issues and trans issues into every story. They began a story saying we don’t talk enough about women and women’s bodies- and then they take away half the time to bring trans issues up not once but four times! I guess still no time for women in science
I very much miss the old full length format, because, as someone with ADHD, it’s hard for me to choose between the multiple short formats so I end up going to another podcast with a full length format. also, in general, it’s nice to have things I normally wouldn’t listen to just come up within the longer format podcast. Then I learn things I wouldn’t have chosen to listen to. Seriously, the new short length podcast set up is a terrible choice.
so I hardly ever listen anymore. Return to the full broadcast, pls.
Still hating the format - pls return to an hour at a time. Due to these chopped up portions, I only come once in a while - used to listen every week. 😑
I’m not sure that I believe people asked for this format, and if they did, it cannot have been very many. I don’t know why, but I can’t even listen to it in this format.
Podcasts are already weird enough with the order they play in— it’s like YouTube auto play where I always have to manually push stop and go back and find something I want to listen to. It’s nice to have one show where you know what you are listening to for the next hour.
Why don’t you just do a whole new show or cancel Science Friday altogether? I guess I’ll look for something to fill the loss.
I (like many other listens) am disappointed in the podcast format change. After all this years why would you change what was working best. Did you do it to appease the algorithm god? So disappointed. At this point if I don’t catch it live on my local news station I probably will listen less and less till I don’t come here anymore.
Luv the new format. Same great content, same great presenters. Same great production values, but now in an eminently more listenable length. My sweet spot for podcast length is 30-60 mins. The 2hr weekly segments are great on the radio, but I like my podcasts in more bite size segments. Thanks Science Friday!
I thoroughly enjoy Sci-Fri listening every week on the old fashioned terrestrial radio. And now that this new format is all that is available I will probably only listen to the terrestrial broadcast. Very sad
Up with full length science friday on Fridays! Please give me the whole episode- this is like 5 minute yoga or something. This was part of my identity every Friday. You’ve destroyed my Fridays, cry cry cry.
Yes, of course, it’s access to care, disproportionate impact to people of color! … a monomyth so pervasive that even a putative science show can’t avoid wasting time on it. The issue is not systemic; it is rather general homosexual behavior, including indiscriminate, unprotected partnering coupled with drug use as well as a belief that we have conquered disease. There’s nothing new here and the ‘systemic’ refrain is not only superfluous, but is also anti-scientific to the point of obscurantism.
Although I don’t mind the shorter segments, so many of them have the listener questions which is my least favorite part of the show. In the old format it was usually just 1 section of an hour long show I could skip through easily but now every time I go to listen to an episode I usually end up stopping it as soon as the listener questions start.
Also more Flora would be amazing! Her segments are always my favorite.
Like many, I prefer the old format; but I can deal with queuing up multiple segments. What I don’t understand is why the numbering is rarely in the order they come out. If it’s a production number or order the order they aired on the radio, then publish them in that order or renumber them. I realize your journalists, not scientists; but counting is neither rocket science nor brain surgery.
The content is generally good. There has been a little more headline-chasing, squishy science in recent years. Or maybe Ira is just better at finding the real science in topics. Some segments with other hosts sound a little too much like advocacy and too little like reporting.
I’ve lost interest in the show since the segments have been broken up and shortened. I miss the full episodes, when everything was organized. I used to look forward to catching all of the science updates and then diving a little deeper on certain topics with curiosity. I feel like the program is now multiple low quality programs with less genuine enthusiasm for science.
I miss the weekly long form podcast. I loved putting it on while I did my weekend chores and the new little story style makes the podcast useless for me. I wish I still had the option to hear the whole show outside of tuning in on the radio. This was my favorite podcast and I never missed it, but I hate the new format. Maybe reboot the release of the entire show in a separate feed. I want to look forward to “Science Fridays” again.
Used to enjoy this show for it’s solid science journalism. But a few years ago they started politicizing every story. It’s bad enough bringing any kind of politics into science, but they’re particular brand is particularly destructive. Left wing nut jobs are just as dangerous as right wing nut jobs.
The final straw was when they brought someone on to say that obesity was perfectly healthy and that doctors had no business even bringing the subject up. She went on a long political rant how it’s discrimination to encourage people to lose weight and all a conspiracy against obese people to take money from them and on and on. It has no place on a science podcast. To intentionally distort science to accommodate someone’s delusions is unacceptable.
When I write this review I notice how they have an episode on the decline of science journalism and mistrust in science is on the rise. These people are the exact reason why. Putting your cheesy politics into every story makes people doubt everything you say. Also, the host seems to want to attribute everything to climate change. His first question on over half the stories is: “How much is this due to climate change?”. Even on stories completely unrelated to climate. The guests invariably chuckle and pause and try to answer the question diplomatically. This kind of doom and gloom and “we’re all gonna die” coverage of climate change is exactly why we are in the current situation where people have thrown their hands up and even fallen into denialism.
I used to love this podcast. It was one of the highlights of my week. The new format doesn't work for me at all though. Episode lengths are all over the place, and it's easy to miss content. There are also way more ads. Sad to say I've pretty much stopped listening.
This used to be the highlight of my week with a pair of long episodes to listen to on a Friday drive. It now feels so unfocused with the short episodes.
Hi!
Long time listener, I love the show! I don’t like the new format of releases small episodes every day or so. Please go back to the longer episodes.
I gave it a chance, but I really dislike the new format. I assume the reason was to have more ads at the beginning and end of each episode, but it might actually result in less listeners overall. Unfortunately I have been listening less and will probably unsubscribe soon.
I’m loving getting treated with Science Friday other days of the week! For those complaining, I have also saved them up and listen to them all on Friday to feel like the old format! But sometimes I like to hear certain content more than once, so it has been nice to have individual titles to find what I would like to hear again.
Really miss the old format. These short episodes are so top-heavy on adds (over 3 minutes continuous adds, really??) and rush through the subjects, leaving me feeling dispersed and hectic.
Please bring back to old format. There's enough dispersion in this world.
I agree with many other comments about the new short format. I don’t like the fragmentation, especially since it makes looking back for older episodes frustrating. The fragmentation of the listening experience, coupled with a large number of sponsor placements at both the beginning and the middle of each episode, severely interrupts the flow of the show. I really miss the old unified format.
I miss being able to listen to Science Fridays and looked forward to it each week. Now it’s all chopped up, and the shorter episodes are annoying to listen to each day. It’s even more annoying to binge because of all the filler. I liked being able to hear about many different kinds of research while I am doing other things, and that’s not possible with this format, and I have sadly stopped listening for the most part.
At least put a full episode together once a week for people who want to listen to it in the old format?
Listened to Science Friday for nearly 4 years until you split into smaller segments. Listener can pause on their own. Please bring back hour episodes and keep science Friday on Fridays!
