Where curiosity meets discovery.

BEYOND THE LAB

Produced in collaboration with PBS Reno and DRI, Beyond the Lab explores groundbreaking research from around the globe that is happening in Reno. The series features DRI scientists and researchers whose curiosity carries them to remote peaks, deep deserts, and even into the clouds. The guests featured on Beyond the Lab delve into multi-layered topics including cloudseeding, archaeology, and ice core drilling.

Beyond the Lab is filmed at PBS Reno and hosted by Sherry Swensk, a television veteran with more than 40 years of experience in the industry. From 1985 to 1994, Swensk produced and edited entertainment and documentary programming at KPIX and KRON in the San Francisco Bay Area. Swensk recently retired from KLAS 8 News NOW in Las Vegas, where she served as a weather anchor, co-anchor, field reporter, and producer for more than 31 years. In September 2026, Swensk earned the Southern Nevada Television Lifetime Achievement award from the Nevada Broadcasters Association.

Premiering November 4th at 8 PM on PBS Reno

Beyond the Lab (PROMO)

Explore how ice cores preserve thousands of years of Earth’s environmental history.

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Showcase

A look into Episode 1

Beyond the Lab: Ice Core

The episode explores the fascinating world of ice core science and how ancient ice can reveal thousands of years of Earth’s environmental and human history. Like buried treasure, ice cores preserve microscopic particles, from volcanic ash and wildfire debris to industrial pollution and pollen from ancient forests. These frozen records can reveal everything from changing landscapes to shifts in human activity, including the decline in lead pollution as the Roman economy faltered during the Antonine Plague. DRI’s Ice Core Lab has developed many of the tools used to read this ancient ice and is racing to uncover its stories before they melt away.