Quirks and Quarks
Encyclopedia
Quirks & Quarks is a Canadian weekly science
news program heard over CBC Radio One
of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation
(CBC).
Airing since October 8, 1975, Quirks & Quarks is consistently rated among the most popular CBC programs, attracting over 500,000 listeners each Saturday from 12:00 to 13:00. The show is also heard on Sirius Satellite Radio
. The show consists of several segments each week, most of which involve the host interviewing a scientist about a recent discovery or publication, combined with in-depth documentaries; however, from time to time the show does a special "Question Show" episode, during which the format consists of scientists answering questions submitted by listeners.
Quirks & Quarks has offered listeners Internet audio streams and downloads since 1993, and today distributes in MP3
and OGG
formats. The MP3 audio files have been archived on the program web site since Sept. 2000. In 2005, Quirks became the first major CBC show available as a podcast. Since the program began, it has won more than 70 national and international journalism awards, including the prestigious Walter Sullivan Award (twice) and the Science Writing Award from the American Institute of Physics (twice).
Suzuki went on to host CBC Television's The Nature of Things
. Ingram left to become founding host of Discovery Channel Canada
's nightly science-news program @discovery.ca
. McDonald came to Quirks from having hosted CBC Television's children's science program Wonderstruck
.
Science
Science is a systematic enterprise that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe...
news program heard over CBC Radio One
CBC Radio One
CBC Radio One is the English language news and information radio network of the publicly-owned Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. It is commercial free and offers both local and national programming...
of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation
Canadian Broadcasting Corporation
The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, commonly known as CBC and officially as CBC/Radio-Canada, is a Canadian crown corporation that serves as the national public radio and television broadcaster...
(CBC).
Airing since October 8, 1975, Quirks & Quarks is consistently rated among the most popular CBC programs, attracting over 500,000 listeners each Saturday from 12:00 to 13:00. The show is also heard on Sirius Satellite Radio
Sirius Satellite Radio
Sirius Satellite Radio is a satellite radio service operating in North America, owned by Sirius XM Radio.Headquartered in New York City, with smaller studios in Los Angeles and Memphis, Sirius was officially launched on July 1, 2002 and currently provides 69 streams of music and 65 streams of...
. The show consists of several segments each week, most of which involve the host interviewing a scientist about a recent discovery or publication, combined with in-depth documentaries; however, from time to time the show does a special "Question Show" episode, during which the format consists of scientists answering questions submitted by listeners.
Quirks & Quarks has offered listeners Internet audio streams and downloads since 1993, and today distributes in MP3
MP3
MPEG-1 or MPEG-2 Audio Layer III, more commonly referred to as MP3, is a patented digital audio encoding format using a form of lossy data compression...
and OGG
Ogg
Ogg is a free, open container format maintained by the Xiph.Org Foundation. The creators of the Ogg format state that it is unrestricted by software patents and is designed to provide for efficient streaming and manipulation of high quality digital multimedia.The Ogg container format can multiplex...
formats. The MP3 audio files have been archived on the program web site since Sept. 2000. In 2005, Quirks became the first major CBC show available as a podcast. Since the program began, it has won more than 70 national and international journalism awards, including the prestigious Walter Sullivan Award (twice) and the Science Writing Award from the American Institute of Physics (twice).
Hosts
- 1975-1979: David SuzukiDavid SuzukiDavid Suzuki, CC, OBC is a Canadian academic, science broadcaster and environmental activist. Suzuki earned a Ph.D in zoology from the University of Chicago in 1961, and was a professor in the genetics department of the University of British Columbia from 1963 until his retirement in 2001...
- 1979-1991: Jay Ingram
- 1992–present: Bob McDonald
Suzuki went on to host CBC Television's The Nature of Things
The Nature of Things
The Nature of Things is a Canadian television series of documentary programs. It debuted on the CBC on November 6, 1960. Many of the programs document nature and the effect that humans have on it. The program was one of the first to explore environmental issues, such as clear-cut logging...
. Ingram left to become founding host of Discovery Channel Canada
Discovery Channel Canada
Discovery Channel is a Canadian English language Category A specialty channel devoted to nature, adventure, science and technology programming. Discovery Channel is currently owned by CTV Specialty Television Inc...
's nightly science-news program @discovery.ca
Daily Planet (TV series)
Daily Planet is a television program on Discovery Channel Canada which features daily news, discussion and commentary on the scientific aspects of current events and discoveries. The show first aired as @discovery.ca in 1995. It was renamed to Daily Planet in 2002. The show relaunched with in high...
. McDonald came to Quirks from having hosted CBC Television's children's science program Wonderstruck
Wonderstruck
Wonderstruck is a Canadian educational television series which taught science to children, that aired on the CBC between 1986 and 1992. It was hosted by Bob McDonald. Every episode began with McDonald saying I'm curious about things. Why they are the way they are, and why they're not something...
.