Nature Podcast

By Springer Nature Limited

News & Politics Technology Science & Medicine

What's Nature Podcast about?

The Nature Podcast brings you the best stories from the world of science each week. We cover everything from astronomy to zoology, highlighting the most exciting research from each issue of Nature journal. We meet the scientists behind the results and provide in-depth analysis from Nature's journalists and editors.

For complete access to the original papers featured in the Nature Podcast, subscribe to Nature.

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22 August 2019: Combating o...

08.21.2019

This week, the resilience of internet hate groups, and searching for early life. In this episode: 00:46 Tackling internet hate Researchers have been modelling how hate groups interact online, and have come up with suggestions to combat this activity. Research ...

Nature Podcast episodes:

08.21.2019 22 August 2019: Combating online hate speech, and identifying early fossils This week, the resilience of internet hate groups, and searching for early life. In this episode: 00:46 Tackling internet hate Researchers have been modelling how hate groups interact online, and have come up with suggestions to combat this activity. Research ...
08.14.2019 15 August 2019: Atomic espionage in the Second World War, and exploring the early Universe This week, spilling nuclear secrets, and a mysterious period in the Universe’s history. In this episode: 00:46 "The most dangerous spy in history" We hear the story of Klaus Fuchs, who gave away the details of building an atomic bomb. ...
08.07.2019 08 August 2019: A mindset for success, and mercury in fish This week, a mindset to improve school performance, and the complex story of how mercury accumulates in fish. In this episode: 00:46 Growth Mindset How a one hour course could improve academic achievement. Research article: Yeager et al. 11:47 Research ...
07.31.2019 01 August 2019: The placental microbiome, and advances in artificial intelligence This week, whether the placenta is lacking microbes, and new hardware for artificial intelligence. In this episode: 00:43 Microbe-free placentas? New research suggests that the placenta is sterile. Research article: de Goffau et al.; News and Views: No bacteria found ...
07.26.2019 Nature PastCast, July 1942: Secret science in World War 2 This episode was first broadcast in July 2013. This year, Nature celebrates its 150th birthday. To mark this anniversary we’re rebroadcasting episodes from our PastCast series, highlighting key moments in the history of science. During the Second World War, scientists ...
07.24.2019 25 July 2019: The history of climate change, and making vaccines mandatory This week, how the climate has changed throughout history, and why enforcing vaccination should be done with care. In this episode: 00:39 Climate through time Researchers have modelled how climate has changed throughout the past 2000 years. Research article: Neukom ...
07.19.2019 Backchat July 2019: Breaking news, audience-led journalism and human gene editing In this episode: 01:01 Breaking News The first image of a black hole took the world by storm, but what was it like reporting such a quickly developing story? News: Black hole pictured for first time — in spectacular detail; ...
07.17.2019 18 July 2019: Quantum logic gates in silicon, and moving on from lab disasters This week, a new advance in silicon based quantum computing and experiences of how to recover when disaster strikes. In this episode: 00:45 Quantum logic A fast and accurate two-qubit logic gate has been designed in silicon. Research article: Simmons ...
07.10.2019 11 July 2019: The moon, past, present, and future This week, an extended chat about all things lunar with Alex Witze. Instead of a regular edition of the Nature Podcast, this week we’re celebrating the 50th anniversary of humans walking on the Moon. Nick Howe catches up with planetary ...
07.03.2019 04 July 2019: Machine learning in materials science, and sand’s sustainability This week, using an algorithm to find properties in materials science, and the global consequences of sand-mining. In this episode: 00:47 Predicting properties A word-association algorithm is reading millions of abstracts to discover new properties of materials. Research article: Tshitoyan ...
06.28.2019 Nature PastCast, June 1876: Gorillas, man-eating monsters? This year, Nature celebrates its 150th birthday. To mark this anniversary we’re rebroadcasting episodes from our PastCast series, highlighting key moments in the history of science. According to the fables of early explorers, the gorilla was a terrible, man-eating monster. ...
06.26.2019 27 June 2019: Callused feet, and protein-based archaeology This week, how wearing shoes might affect foot sensitivity, and uncovering history with ancient proteins. For information regarding your data privacy, visit acast.com/privacy
06.19.2019 20 June 2019: Non-native species, and a blood-inspired robot battery This week, what makes birds invasive, and a robotic fish powered by a blood-like battery. In this episode: 00:44 How do alien bird species establish themselves? Researchers have been looking at how bird species settle in non-native locations. Research article: ...
06.12.2019 13 June 2019: Mighty magnets, and aerosols in the atmosphere This week, a record-breaking magnetic field, and aerosols’ potential effects on the atmosphere. In this episode: 00:45 Making massive magnets Researchers have created the world’s strongest direct current magnetic field. 08:38 Research Highlights Macaques’ musicality and human consumption of microplastics. ...
06.05.2019 06 June 2019: Microbes modifying medicine and kickstarting plate tectonics This week, how gut microbes might be affecting drugs, and a new theory on the beginning of plate tectonics. In this episode: 00:45 Microbes metabolising drugs Researchers are investigating whether the gut microbiota can alter the activity of medicinal drugs. ...
05.31.2019 Nature PastCast May 1983: Discovering the ozone layer hole This year, Nature celebrates its 150th birthday. To mark this anniversary we’re rebroadcasting episodes from our PastCast series, highlighting key moments in the history of science. The discovery of the ozone hole in the mid-1980s was a shock. Scientists suspected ...
05.30.2019 30 May 2019: Cold fusion, gender parity in universities, and studying wildfires This week, looking back at cold fusion, a ranking of gender balance in universities, and measuring the impact of wildfires. For information regarding your data privacy, visit acast.com/privacy
05.22.2019 23 May 2019: Pre-industrial plankton populations, European science, and ancient fungi. This week, how climate change has affected plankton, the future of European science, and evidence of an ancient fungus. For information regarding your data privacy, visit acast.com/privacy
05.15.2019 16 May 2019: Recoding genomes, and material from the Moon's far side This week, rewriting the script of life, and a trip to the far side of the Moon. For information regarding your data privacy, visit acast.com/privacy
05.08.2019 09 May 2019: Urban vs Rural BMI, and the health of rivers This week, body mass increases around the world, and river connections in decline. For information regarding your data privacy, visit acast.com/privacy
05.01.2019 02 May 2019: China's growing science network, and talking brain signals This week, China’s Belt and Road Initiative, and translating brain patterns into speech. For information regarding your data privacy, visit acast.com/privacy
04.26.2019 Nature PastCast April 1953: The other DNA papers This year, Nature celebrates its 150th birthday. To mark this anniversary we’re rebroadcasting episodes from our PastCast series, highlighting key moments in the history of science. Over 60 years ago, James Watson and Francis Crick published their famous paper proposing ...
04.25.2019 25 April 2019: Tiny earthquakes, the genetics of height, and how US-China politics is affecting research This week we’ve got an extended News Chat between presenter Benjamin Thompson and Nature's European Bureau Chief Nisha Gaind. They discuss a new way to identify tiny earthquakes, new insights into the heritability of height, and how political tensions between ...
04.17.2019 18 April 2019: Reviving brains, lightning, and spring books This week, restoring function in dead pig brains, spring science books, and the structure of lightning. If you have any questions about the partly-revived brains study, then the reporters at Nature are keen to answer them. You can submit them ...
04.11.2019 Podcast Extra: The first image of a black hole This week, researchers released the first image of a black hole at the centre of the M87 galaxy. In this special News Chat, Nature reporter Davide Castelvecchi, who was at a press conference in Brussels where the image was announced, ...
04.10.2019 11 April 2019: Heart failure and vacuum field fluctuations. This week, a new mouse model for heart failure and characterising energy fluctuations in empty space. For information regarding your data privacy, visit acast.com/privacy
04.03.2019 04 April 2019: MDMA and the malleable mind, and keeping skin young This week, why MDMA could make social interactions more rewarding, and how your skin keeps itself youthful. For information regarding your data privacy, visit acast.com/privacy
03.29.2019 Backchat March 2019: Calls for a research moratorium, and the evolution of science reporting In this month’s roundtable, our reporters discuss calls to pause heritable genome-editing research, and how science journalism has changed in the past 20 years. For information regarding your data privacy, visit acast.com/privacy
03.27.2019 28 March 2019: Human impacts on Mount Kilimanjaro, sex differences in pain, and a crystal-based cooling method This week, how humans are affecting Kilimanjaro's ecosystems, differences in pain based on biological sex, and refrigerating with crystals. For information regarding your data privacy, visit acast.com/privacy
03.20.2019 21 March 2019: Antibiotics in orchards, and rethinking statistical significance This week, a plan to spray antibiotics onto orange trees, and is it time to retire statistical significance? For information regarding your data privacy, visit acast.com/privacy
03.15.2019 Nature Pastcast March 1918: The eclipse expedition to put Einstein to the test This year, Nature celebrates its 150th birthday. To mark this anniversary we’re rebroadcasting episodes from our Pastcast series, bringing to life key moments in the history of science. As the First World War draws to an end, astronomer Arthur Eddington ...
03.14.2019 14 March 2019: Ebola in DRC, a new HIV treatment, and the proposed US budget. Instead of a regular edition of the Nature Podcast, this week we’ve got an extended News Chat between Benjamin Thompson and Amy Maxmen. They discuss the ongoing Ebola outbreak in DRC, an injectable treatment for HIV, and how the proposed ...
03.06.2019 07 March 2019: Coastal carbon-sinks, mobile health, and Mileva Marić This week, wetlands' ability to store carbon, mobile health, and the story of Mileva Marić. For information regarding your data privacy, visit acast.com/privacy
02.27.2019 28 February 2019: Cuckoo parasitism, topological materials, and cannabinoids in yeast. This week, the parenting strategies of a tropical cuckoo, increasing the number of topological materials, and growing cannabinoids in yeast. For information regarding your data privacy, visit acast.com/privacy
02.20.2019 21 February 2019: Mouse cell atlases and cataloguing viruses This week, mapping every cell in a mouse embryo and the benefits of cataloguing all the viruses on Earth. For information regarding your data privacy, visit acast.com/privacy
02.13.2019 14 February 2019: Atherosclerosis and disruptive science This week, the links between atherosclerosis and sleep-deprivation, and how team size affects research outputs. For information regarding your data privacy, visit acast.com/privacy
02.06.2019 07 February 2019: Massive chemical libraries, and CRISPR-CasX This week, virtual drug discovery, and a new addition to the CRISPR toolkit. For information regarding your data privacy, visit acast.com/privacy
01.30.2019 31 January 2019: Women of the periodic table, and harvesting energy from Wi-Fi This week, the female chemists who helped build the periodic table, and harnessing the extra energy in Wi-Fi signals. For information regarding your data privacy, visit acast.com/privacy
01.23.2019 24 January 2019: Economic downturns and black holes This week, the effects of recessions on public health, and simulating supermassive black holes. For information regarding your data privacy, visit acast.com/privacy
01.16.2019 17 January 2019: RNA splicing in yeast, and a walking fossil This week, investigating introns’ roles, and reanimating a fossil. For information regarding your data privacy, visit acast.com/privacy
01.11.2019 Podcast Extra: The search for a rare disease treatment Nick Sireau’s sons have a rare genetic disease called alkaptonuria, which can lead to body tissues becoming brittle, causing life long health issues. In this Podcast Extra, Geoff Marsh speaks to Nick and to the physician Dr Lakshminarayan Ranganath about ...
01.09.2019 10 January 2019: Fast Radio Bursts and new year future gazing This week, detecting intergalactic radio bursts, and seeing what’s in store for science in 2019. For information regarding your data privacy, visit acast.com/privacy
12.26.2018 26 December 2018: Our reporters' top picks of 2018 In this special round-up episode of the Nature Podcast, a few of our regular reporters choose their favourite podcast piece of 2018, and explain why they enjoyed making it. For information regarding your data privacy, visit acast.com/privacy
12.19.2018 20 December 2018: Quantum physics adds a twist, and festive fun The Nature Podcast’s 2018 end of year special, including songs, books, our annual quiz, and more! For information regarding your data privacy, visit acast.com/privacy
12.13.2018 Podcast Extra: Evidence of a ‘transmissible’ Alzheimer’s protein New research suggests that a key protein involved in the neurodegenerative disease can be transferred between brains. For information regarding your data privacy, visit acast.com/privacy
12.12.2018 13 December 2018: The art of performing science, and chiral chemistry This week, ‘performing’ experiments, and making mirrored molecules. For information regarding your data privacy, visit acast.com/privacy
12.05.2018 06 December 2018: Heart xenotransplants and phage fighting This week, improving heart xenotransplants, and soil bacteria versus phages. For information regarding your data privacy, visit acast.com/privacy
11.28.2018 29 November 2018: Atomic clock accuracy and wind farm worries This week, measuring gravity’s strength with clocks, and worries over wind farms’ wakes. For information regarding your data privacy, visit acast.com/privacy
11.21.2018 22 November 2018: An ion-drive aeroplane, and DNA rearrangement. This week, a solid-state plane engine with no moving parts, and ‘mosaicism’ in brain cells. For information regarding your data privacy, visit acast.com/privacy
11.14.2018 15 November 2018: Barnard’s Star, and clinical trials This week, evidence of a nearby exoplanet, and clinical trials in a social media world. For information regarding your data privacy, visit acast.com/privacy

Older episodes

Nature Podcast

What's Nature Podcast about?

Download our free app to listen on your phone

Nature Podcast episodes:

22 August 2019: Combating online hate speech, and identifying early fossils

15 August 2019: Atomic espionage in the Second World War, and exploring the early Universe

08 August 2019: A mindset for success, and mercury in fish

01 August 2019: The placental microbiome, and advances in artificial intelligence

Nature PastCast, July 1942: Secret science in World War 2

25 July 2019: The history of climate change, and making vaccines mandatory

Backchat July 2019: Breaking news, audience-led journalism and human gene editing

18 July 2019: Quantum logic gates in silicon, and moving on from lab disasters

11 July 2019: The moon, past, present, and future

04 July 2019: Machine learning in materials science, and sand’s sustainability

Nature PastCast, June 1876: Gorillas, man-eating monsters?

27 June 2019: Callused feet, and protein-based archaeology

20 June 2019: Non-native species, and a blood-inspired robot battery

13 June 2019: Mighty magnets, and aerosols in the atmosphere

06 June 2019: Microbes modifying medicine and kickstarting plate tectonics

Nature PastCast May 1983: Discovering the ozone layer hole

30 May 2019: Cold fusion, gender parity in universities, and studying wildfires

23 May 2019: Pre-industrial plankton populations, European science, and ancient fungi.

16 May 2019: Recoding genomes, and material from the Moon's far side

09 May 2019: Urban vs Rural BMI, and the health of rivers

02 May 2019: China's growing science network, and talking brain signals

Nature PastCast April 1953: The other DNA papers

25 April 2019: Tiny earthquakes, the genetics of height, and how US-China politics is affecting research

18 April 2019: Reviving brains, lightning, and spring books

Podcast Extra: The first image of a black hole

11 April 2019: Heart failure and vacuum field fluctuations.

04 April 2019: MDMA and the malleable mind, and keeping skin young

Backchat March 2019: Calls for a research moratorium, and the evolution of science reporting

28 March 2019: Human impacts on Mount Kilimanjaro, sex differences in pain, and a crystal-based cooling method

21 March 2019: Antibiotics in orchards, and rethinking statistical significance

Nature Pastcast March 1918: The eclipse expedition to put Einstein to the test

14 March 2019: Ebola in DRC, a new HIV treatment, and the proposed US budget.

07 March 2019: Coastal carbon-sinks, mobile health, and Mileva Marić

28 February 2019: Cuckoo parasitism, topological materials, and cannabinoids in yeast.

21 February 2019: Mouse cell atlases and cataloguing viruses

14 February 2019: Atherosclerosis and disruptive science

07 February 2019: Massive chemical libraries, and CRISPR-CasX

31 January 2019: Women of the periodic table, and harvesting energy from Wi-Fi

24 January 2019: Economic downturns and black holes

17 January 2019: RNA splicing in yeast, and a walking fossil

Podcast Extra: The search for a rare disease treatment

10 January 2019: Fast Radio Bursts and new year future gazing

26 December 2018: Our reporters' top picks of 2018

20 December 2018: Quantum physics adds a twist, and festive fun

Podcast Extra: Evidence of a ‘transmissible’ Alzheimer’s protein

13 December 2018: The art of performing science, and chiral chemistry

06 December 2018: Heart xenotransplants and phage fighting

29 November 2018: Atomic clock accuracy and wind farm worries

22 November 2018: An ion-drive aeroplane, and DNA rearrangement.

15 November 2018: Barnard’s Star, and clinical trials

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