The Chicago Botanic Garden’s Eliza Fournier joins us to talk about spring gardening. She brings tips and reminders on how to clear out the damage from a long Chicago winter and prepare for bountiful seasons ahead.

BP says all the oil  from last week's spill is now cleaned up. But activists worry about the possibility of future spills. Elizabeth Brackett has the latest details. View a graphic on the Lake Michigan oil spill compared to the 10 biggest U.S. oil spills by volume.

For the last 50 years, Star Trek has captivated audiences as the crew of the U.S.S. Enterprise explored the galaxy using technological advances – warp drive, wormholes, beaming technology, holodecks – in order to do so. Dirk K. Morr, a professor at the University of Illinois at Chicago, joins us to discuss the scientific ideas behind Star Trek technologies. View a graphic and read an interview.

We sit down with Jason Blumberg, CEO of the Energy Foundry, a venture capital fund established as part of the $3.2 billion smart grid law that aims to invest in technology companies that will transform the energy landscape. Read an interview with Samir Mayekar, Co-Founder and CEO of SiNode Systems.

ReptileFest returns to the University of Illinois at Chicago this weekend, bringing with it hundreds of species of reptiles and amphibians from all over the world. Chicago Herpetological Society president John Archer and "Frog Lady" Deb Krohn visit our studios to give us a preview of some of the creatures we can expect to see this weekend. View an interactive graphic and behind-the-scenes slideshow of reptiles.

Scientists are forecasting that El Niño – a weather pattern that brings warmer than average temperatures to the U.S. – will likely develop later this year. We discuss what El Niño means for Chicago’s upcoming seasons with Paul Sirvatka, professor of meteorology at the College of DuPage. Read an interview.

The web bug known as Heartbleed has rocked the Internet world. After its discovery last week, Heartbleed continues to threaten personal information and sensitive data transmitted over the web daily. We chat with Alex Hilton, Founder and CEO of FroogaliT, about how the bug can affect average consumers and what people can do to protect themselves. Read an article and view a graphic.

Chris Fischer of OCEARCH is a man who tracks great white sharks, enabling scientists to learn about the mating, migratory patterns of the oceans’ top predator. View a graphic of some of the sharks Fischer tracks.

What does climate change and national security have to do with each other?  Everything according to science and military experts. We take a closer look on Tuesday’s Scientific Chicago.

Conservation biologists Curt Meine and Stanley A. Temple discuss species extinction, the importance of biodiversity, and what we can do in Chicago to help out. 

Advancements in robotics technology are changing the fields of medicine, defense, and manufacturing. We talk with Rabiah Mayas about that and more. 

If you've ever dreamed of leaving our planet to visit otherworldly destinations, it just got a bit easier to do. On May 16, Adler Planetarium is set to open its newest space adventure, “Destination Solar System." Adler President Michelle Larson joins us to talk about the new show, more. 

Now that spring-like weather is actually here, what should you do with your tulips and other flowers? Eliza Fournier from the Chicago Botanic Garden joins us to offer spring gardening pointers. Read tips from Chicago Botanic Garden's May gardening checklist.