Flora has produced science media for 20 years across many formats. She got her start right here at Science Friday, working her way up from intern to fill-in host, and resident videographer. From there, she worked as a video producer for The New York Times, co-creating an Emmy-nominated film series that dramatized scientific discoveries using… paper puppets. She also was nominated for an Emmy for her writing on Bill Nye’s Netflix show “Bill Nye Saves the World.” She has created and launched a number of podcasts in various roles, including hosting Gimlet’s beloved “Every Little Thing,” which connected listeners to experts who could answer their burning questions. The show ran for five years and published over 200 episodes. In her previous role as Hypothesis Fund Managing Editor, she told the stories of world-class scientists pursuing bold new ideas in a new storytelling initiative, The Leap.
Making science accessible, relatable, and human has been a focus of Flora’s career. Some of her inspiration comes from her own experience in science: Long, long ago, she worked at a NATO oceanographic lab in Italy. For the lab’s research expeditions, she lived on a ship where apertivi were served on the top deck, hoisted there via pulley by the ship’s chef.
You can find her @flichtman on social media platforms.
17:00
TikTok Is Shaping How We Think About ADHD
Mental health information on social media can be both revelatory and misleading. How do clinicians and their patients make sense of it?
12:07
NASA Astronauts Return To Earth After Extended Stay On The ISS
After nine months aboard the International Space Station, astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams have finally landed back on Earth.
17:02
Developing Faster, Simpler Tools To Treat Tuberculosis
TB kills more than a million people each year. Dr. Mireille Kamariza has spent her career developing better detection and treatment tools.
12:16
‘Delving’ Into The ‘Realm’ Of AI Word Choice
Certain words are overrepresented in text written by AI language models. A study investigates why such patterns develop.
17:15
DESI Data Strengthens Evidence Of Change In Dark Energy
Researchers built the largest 3D map of our universe yet. What they found supports the idea that dark energy could have evolved over time.
5:54
The Physics That Makes Swing-Top Bottles ‘Pop’
A German physicist and homebrewer discovered brief, intense physical reactions that happen when you uncork a bubbly swing-top bottle.
17:18
The Many, Many Ways Tuberculosis Shaped Human Life
In a new book, author John Green traces how the disease has impacted culture, geography, and even fashion over the centuries.
12:15
10% Of NOAA Staff Laid Off, With More Cuts Possible
Layoffs at the agency, which releases weather forecasts and monitors extreme weather, could have serious implications.
10:35
Scientists Observe Fungi Creating Complex Supply Chains
Fungal networks in the ground ferry crucial nutrients to plants. But how do brainless organisms form complex supply chain networks?
12:10
Frozen Climate And Conservation Funds Leave Farmers In Limbo
Funds for climate and sustainability-focused farming projects have been indefinitely frozen, even though the USDA has already signed contracts.