A mammoth discovery: oldest DNA on record from million-year-old teeth

Researchers sequence the oldest DNA ever recovered, and the people bringing art and science together.

In this episode: 00:46 Million-year-old mammoth DNA This week, researchers have smashed a long-standing record by sequencing a genome that's over a million years old. They achieved this feat by extracting DNA from permafrost-preserved mammoth teeth, using it to build-up a more detailed family tree for these ancient animals.

Research Article: van der Valk et al. News: Million-year-old mammoth genomes shatter record for oldest ancient DNA News and Views: Million-year-old DNA provides a glimpse of mammoth evolution

10:00 Research Highlights A spacecraft catches a rare glimpse of a rock smashing into Jupiter, and the perilous state of sawfish populations.

Research Highlight: Robotic eyes spy the flash of a meteor on Jupiter Research Highlight: Humans push a hulking fish with a chainsaw nose towards oblivion

12:18 Putting art into science (and science into art) Art and science are sometimes considered disparate, but when brought together the results can be greater than the sum of their parts. This week we hear from an artist and a scientist on the benefits they found when crossing the divide.

Career Feature: How to shape a productive scientist–artist collaboration Career Feature: How the arts can help you to craft a successful research career Where I work: ‘All my art is curiosity-driven’: the garden studio where art and physics collide

Some resources for bringing arts and science together: https://okre.org https://lifeology.io/

21:43 Briefing Chat We discuss some highlights from the Nature Briefing. This time, a neanderthal gene makes brain-like organoids bumpy, and uncovering the original location of Stonehenge’s stone circle.

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