It is not much to recount in a podcast but the picture of the disintegrating Larsen A,B and C ice shelves has on one level a lot of detail but on the other a simple message of an unfolding catastrophe for Earth. The finding of PCB and dioxin in the crustaceans in the ocean's deepest trenches really is a sign of how bad things could have got if the scientists didn't ring the alarm bells. It was good getting the details of the seven planets orbiting Trappest star. I found out that they are named after the telescope system. I do thing the instability of dwarf stars and the really long time scales here it is on the cards that these are thoroughly dead worlds. The number 69 light years away comes to mind. The testes shrinking effect of the Zika virus might not be of a concern as this was only for mice studies. The article about the evolution of the horse after speciation really shows how strong a hold simple textbook content can lock in a sequence of understanding. This links with the investigation of fossil whale ears that showed they were hearing deep notes well before their size increased. The story on new man made gems and minerals did let slip the number of natural minerals at 5000 and 207 man made. This is a real exercise for me in memory and I don't feel I have performed all that well. I do think Cosmos is a rung above New Scientist as the articles are derived from publications in the journals and are less speculative with traps for the unwary. MP4 recording     MP3 recording -- -- Your browser does not support the audio element.