As Science Friday’s video producer, Luke is tasked with writing, filming, directing, editing, animating, narrating, and promoting many of the short films you’ll find on this here website. Every other week, he becomes obsessed with the research he films until his video is complete or his colleagues show him a shiny new study to play with. Luke also wrangles a stable of equally enthusiastic freelance filmmakers, helping them to produce and promote their own stories.
Prior to being domesticated by Science Friday, Luke worked at the Wildlife Conservation Society, where he profiled a wide cast of characters, both two- and four-legged. The experience provided hands-on training in storytelling, as well as some invaluable lessons in wildlife filmmaking, such as “Lemurs enjoy scent marking. Everything.” And, “Never let a baby walrus sit on you.”
Despite his snobby film school education at SUNY Purchase and his devotion to Werner Herzog, his favorite film remains The Bear. He doesn’t care that it is a “kiddie film” that anthropomorphizes animals—he cries every time and isn’t ashamed of it.
Shedding Light On The New Zealand Glow Worm
Biochemists Miriam Sharpe and Kurt Krause hope to discover the molecular basis for the New Zealand glow worm's bioluminescence.
How To Film A Polar Bear
As Science Friday's Luke Groskin says, it starts with a terrifying helicopter ride.
It’s A Bird! It’s A Plane! It’s Snarge!
Every day, the Smithsonian Institution's Feather Identification Lab receives dozens of envelopes filled with the remains of birds scraped off the sides of airplanes.
Desktop Diaries: Michael Pollan
In the latest installment of our Desktop Diaries video series, we'll take you into the home office (and garden) of the famous food and nature author Michael Pollan.
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The Polar Bear Necessities
USGS wildlife biologist Karyn Rode monitors how populations of polar bears are affected by shrinking sea ice and other changing conditions in the Arctic.
Breakthrough: Polar Bear Witness
For USGS wildlife biologist Karyn Rode, tracking and tranquilizing polar bears from a helicopter are the just the first thrilling steps in her research.
The Giant Squid’s Biggest Mystery
Estimating how many giant squid are lurking in the deep ocean seemed unfathomable...until now!
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Getting Inside The Head Of A Muskox
One researcher's game of pretend sheds light on species survival in a warming climate.
Bear In Mind The Muskox
Conservation scientist Joel Berger dresses up as a grizzly bear near musk oxen herds, to find out if male oxen make them safer from bears.
How To Save The World’s Rarest Sea Lion Pups
After being hunted off of the mainland of New Zealand centuries ago, a new generation of the earth's rarest sea lions species has miraculously returned to the Otago Peninsula.