Episode 300

The first genetically engineered synapses have been implanted in a mammal’s brain. Chemical brain signals have been bypassed in the brains of mice and replaced with electrical signals, changing their behaviour in incredible ways. Not only did they become more sociable, they were also less anxious and exhibited fewer OCD-like symptoms. This work has sparked hope that one day we could use this technology to help humans with mental health conditions. But would you want someone making permanent edits to your brain?

For the first time, climate scientists can now link specific fossil fuel companies to climate-related economic damages in particular places. A new method has been developed that can show the exact impact these companies are having on our environment - which the world’s top five emitters linked to trillions of dollars of economic losses. Find out how scientists have managed to piece this together - and whether these companies are about to face massive lawsuits.

As we reflect on the death of Pope Francis, we explore his legacy on scientific issues and his transformative stance on climate change. As the spiritual leader of 1.4 billion Catholics, he became an influential figure in advocating for better care to be taken of our planet. Will his legacy continue with the next Pope?

Chapters:

(00:28) First brain engineering in a mammal

(10:57) Landmark in fossil fuel lawsuits

(19:33) Climate legacy of Pope Francis

Hosted by Rowan Hooper and Penny Sarchet, with guests Alexandra Thompson, James Dinneen, William Schafer, Chris Callahan, Justin Mankin and Miles Pattenden.

To read more about these stories, visit https://www.newscientist.com/

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Episode 299

In a climate justice special episode of the podcast, the biggest issue of the century is up for discussion. Find out the true impact of climate change on our planet and who should be paying to fix the crisis.

Rowan Hooper and Madeleine Cuff are joined by two climate experts - Friederike Otto and Joyce Kimutai from the World Weather Attribution project at Imperial College London.

This episode is dedicated to answering three questions - starting with the issue of climate attribution. To what extent can we blame climate change for extreme weather events like hurricanes, droughts, heatwaves, floods and wildfires? Find out how climate attribution began as a fringe science and how it has evolved to become a firm part of public consciousness.

The next question is one of climate justice - how can we make sure rich countries pay for the loss and damage caused to poorer countries by climate change? The argument is that poorer nations are least responsible for climate change, yet they are most affected by its impacts. So at the latest UN climate summit, COP28, a lot of money was pledged - yet hardly any of it has actually materialised. So what’s going on?

And the third question is about litigation - can climate attribution be used to achieve justice, by forcing climate polluters to pay up? A trial is ongoing where a company in Germany is being sued for its role in damaging the climate - but it’s still unclear whether the case will be successful. The hope is with climate attribution, it’ll be easier to bring cases like this forward and offer up a more detailed picture of how much damage has been done - and how much money is owed.

Chapters:

(01:16) Weather attribution

(19:58) Climate justice

(32:52) Climate litigation

To read more about stories like this, visit https://www.newscientist.com/

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Episode 298

Big news has just broken - astronomers claim they’ve detected the strongest evidence for alien life yet. The news has got the world’s media fired up with excitement - but is this really a “revolutionary moment”?

Astronomers studying the atmosphere of a distant planet called K2-18b say they have detected a molecule called DMS that is only produced on Earth by living organisms, so it’s thought life might be producing it there too. Hear from the lead researcher on this project, Nikku Madhusudhan of the University of Cambridge, who says “these are the first hints of an alien world that is possibly inhabited”.

But even if this biosignature detection is confirmed, would it be the slam dunk everyone thinks it is? In this episode, Alex Wilkins and Rowan Hooper offer a bit of balance to the discussion and explore how far this is from definitive evidence of alien life. We also hear the views of Laura Kreidberg, managing director of the Max Planck Institute for Astronomy.

To read more about stories like this, visit https://www.newscientist.com/

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Episode 297

The “de-extinction company” Colossal Biosciences claims to have brought dire wolves back from extinction. This is an ancient animal that roamed Earth 10,000 years ago and famously is depicted in Game of Thrones. After gene editing grey wolves, three pups have been born. But is it right to call them dire wolves, or are these just grey wolves in dire wolf clothing?

It’s a turbulent time for US science, with massive and sweeping cuts being made to jobs and budgets. Departments like the National Institutes of Health and the Food and Drug Administration have been affected – raising major concerns about the future of public health in the country and beyond.

Physicists have discovered the perfect way to pour a cup of coffee. Hot on the heels of the perfect cacio e pepe recipe and how to make the perfect boiled egg, this discovery is yet another hilarious hack that works in principle but is a massive faff. 

Chapters:

(00:31) Return of the dire wolf

(08:58) Turbulent time for US science

(16:36) Perfect way to brew a cuppa coffee

Hosted by Penny Sarchet and Timothy Revell, with guests Michael Le Page and Chelsea Whyte.

To read more about these stories, visit https://www.newscientist.com/

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Episode 296

There’s a strange phenomenon in the plant world that we’ve known about for ages - but have only just figured out how to make use of it. Thanks to a process that sometimes happens during plant grafting, we can give plants skin transplants. This process produces ‘graft chimeras’, which have been seen as mere curiosities for many years. But now one company in the Netherlands is now planning to do something more with them, creating a whole new world of plant combinations that could produce more pest resistant crops or more delicious fruits.

Air pollution in China has been a hot topic for many years, especially since the 2008 Beijing Olympics. But China has been successful in bringing emissions from aerosols down drastically - a massive win for the health of people in the country. However, there’s been an unintended consequence, as their efforts to clean the air have caused a spike in the rate of global warming. What’s going on? Find out how this all links to the subject of geoengineering.

The oldest ivory tools ever found have been discovered in Ukraine. Thought to be created by our ancient ancestor, Homo heidelbergensis, these tools made from mammoth tusks are 400,000 years old. They give a surprising window into the lives of ancient humans - who may have been more intelligent than we realised.

Chapters:

(00:31) Giving plants skin transplants

(07:16) How China’s pollution win has spiked global temperatures

(16:34) The oldest ivory tools ever found

Hosted by Rowan Hooper and Penny Sarchet, with guests Michael Le Page, Madeleine Cuff, Jeroen Stuurman and Vadim Stepanchuk.

To read more about these stories, visit https://www.newscientist.com/

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Episode 295

The changes the body goes through during and after pregnancy have been examined in more detail than ever before. A landmark study is finally helping us to piece together some of the mysteries and myths surrounding this time – from how long it takes the body to go back to “normal” after birth to the extended periods of nutrient deficiency. This comes after a flurry of studies have given us the clearest picture yet of how the brain changes – and is dramatically remodelled – throughout pregnancy.

Are you worried about your smartphone habit? Science is upending our understanding of phone use and just how damaging the urge to doom-scroll can be. Are smartphones really killing our sleep and distracting us more than ever? And is it really impacting the mental health of children? The answers are not what many people assume.

One of the weirdest substances in our universe is one we very much take for granted – water. Not only does it perform impressive feats that we see every day, but water can also transform into a superacid, potentially resulting in diamond rain falling on planets in our solar system. Find out how it could be doing this somewhere in the cosmos right now.

Chapters:

(00:28) The effects of pregnancy

(07:16) How bad is smartphone use?

(16:34) Surprising facts about water

Hosted by Penny Sarchet and Timothy Revell, with guests Carissa Wong and Alexandra Thompson.

To read more about these stories, visit https://www.newscientist.com/

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Episode 294

Markings discovered on rocks from Mars look to be good evidence that microbial life once existed on the Red Planet. NASA’s Perseverance rover spotted little speckles on rocks in part of Jezero crater, and minerals usually formed in the presence of water. New analysis suggests these markings also contain signs of organic compounds. Presented with the possibility of microbial Martians, can we now say Mars really did once have life?

Dark energy, the mysterious force thought to be driving the expansion of the universe, might be getting weaker. If it is, that completely upends our understanding of the universe - from one that’s getting bigger and bigger, to one that could eventually collapse in a “big crunch”.  Results from the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument (DESI) in Arizona may be the biggest discovery about dark energy we’ve had in 25 years.

Last year we had the controversial discovery that “dark” oxygen may be produced by metallic nodules on the seafloor. But it was widely contested and the exact mechanism unknown. But researchers in China now think they’ve figured out what’s going on - dark oxygen could be key to keeping deep sea creatures alive, with implications for life beyond Earth.

Chapters:

(00:31) Suggestions of past life on Mars

(7:42) Dark energy and how the universe might end

(11:56) Solving the mystery of dark oxygen

Hosted by Rowan Hooper and Penny Sarchet, with guests Jacob Aron and Michael Le Page.

To read more about these stories, visit https://www.newscientist.com/

Video credit: Perseverance Explores the Jezero Crater Delta

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Episode 293

The future of NASA and of US science is under threat, following cuts made by the Trump administration. Johns Hopkins University lost $800 million in grants this week which will impact the health of people all over the world. At the same time, there’s chaos at NASA where the budget is set to be cut in half, with multiple people losing their jobs overnight. What missions will we have to sacrifice - and will NASA survive?

As we pump ever increasing amounts of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, some people argue this is actually a benefit to the world’s plant life. As carbon dioxide rises, photosynthesis can increase - but only up to a point. New research shows there’s a limit to this effect and many, many consequences. One study on trees suggests rising CO2  levels could impact the carbon storage capacity, and the lifespan, of the world’s forests.

Our understanding of memory has been flipped on its head. Researchers have been looking into a memory illusion that warps our perception of time. In a clever experiment, they’ve shown that experiencing something multiple times not only makes our memory of it stronger, but also makes us think it’s an older memory too. Find out what’s happening - and how there is no single thing as “memory”. 

Chapters:

(00:21) The future of NASA

(6:52) Photosynthesis collapse

(19:59) The mystery of memory

Hosted by Rowan Hooper and Penny Sarchet, with guests Jacob Aron, Madeleine Cuff, Sophie Berdugo, Rob MacKenzie, Gustaf Degen, Ian Billick and Alex Easton.

To read more about these stories, visit https://www.newscientist.com/

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Episode 292

Chimps are often seen as our hyper-aggressive ancestral cousins, while bonobos are famously more peaceful and caring. But studies of their sexual habits and practices show they are much more alike than we realised. Both apes appear to use sex and genital contact not just to reproduce, but also to smooth tensions in the group, deal with stressful situations and handle conflict at feeding time. Sophie Bergudo has recently finished a PhD on chimp behaviour and shares insights from her time spent with wild chimps in Bossou in Guinea, West Africa. Beyond sex, she also explores a unique display of tool use among these chimps, who use stone tools to crack open nuts. Find out why this UN protected cultural behaviour is on the brink of extinction. 

Ancient humans were using tools made from animal bones over 1 million years earlier than we thought. We know our ancestors used stone tools at least 2.6 million years ago, but have only had evidence of bone use from about 400,000 years ago. But now archaeologists have unearthed at least 27 bone tools from the Olduvai Gorge in Tanzania, that are at least 1.5 million years old - shifting our understanding of the evolution of these technologies.

The US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency is exploring ways to grow massive biological structures in space, to be used as telescope antennas, huge nets to catch debris or space elevators linking Earth’s surface to orbit. The idea is quite ‘out there’, even for DARPA. The question is, is it even possible?

Chapters:

(00:58) Sexuality of chimps and bonobos

(17:31) Ancient animal bone tools

(22:41) Creating biological space structures

Hosted by Rowan Hooper and Penny Sarchet, with guests Sophie Berdugo, Jake Brooker and Katarina Almeida-Warren.

To read more about these stories, visit https://www.newscientist.com/

Listen to our previous episode on why chimps are stuck in the stone age:

https://www.newscientist.com/podcasts/weekly-why-chimps-are-still-in-the-stone-age-and-humans-are-in-the-space-age/ 

Read Sophie’s article on ancient tools here: 

https://www.newscientist.com/article/mg26435164-200-before-the-stone-age-were-the-first-tools-made-from-plants-not-rocks/

Read Rowan’s column on building a lunar space elevator here:

https://www.newscientist.com/article/mg26435200-200-how-a-space-elevator-could-make-trips-to-the-moon-affordable-for-all/ 

Image credits:

CSIC

Credit Jake Brooker/ Chimfunshi Wildlife Orphanage Trust

Zanna Clay/ Lola ya Bonobo

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Episode 291

Who got better sleep - hunter-gatherers or modern-day humans? We’re constantly being told we’re in the midst of an epidemic of poor sleep, but were our ancestors spending any longer in bed than we are? The answer may well surprise you. We weigh up the pros and cons of sleeping in industrialised societies and explore the real reasons why we’re always complaining about being tired.

We often hear you can’t make up for a bad night’s sleep - once you’ve missed those precious hours in bed, no amount of lie-ins will fix the damage. But is that true? We look into the surprising impacts on your brain from racking up just a few hours of sleep debt, plus tips on how to recover from it. And if you’re in sleep debt and don’t know it, we share the signs to look out for.

Our microbiome is linked to various aspects of our health - and now it seems it shares a two-way connection with sleep. Irregular sleep patterns have been shown to boost the number of “bad” microbes living in our guts, so we unpack what’s going on. We also learn what supplements and foods you can use to improve your sleep, if cheese gives you nightmares - and whether a poop transplant can help you rest easier.

Many people are using sleep trackers these days to improve their sleep habits, but how useful are they? Some experts say sleep trackers are doing more harm than good, making you so stressed about your sleep that you struggle to get any. The team shares their experiences with sleep wearables and other tech - everything from temperature controlled mattresses to EEG brain scanners.

Naps can be good for you - if you do them the right way. Nap too long and you’ll end up feeling worse. So what’s the perfect amount of time to snooze in the afternoon? We dig into the science of naps, why the military recommends “tactical naps” and whether offices should be bringing in “nap pods” for staff. We also take a look at the strange practices of polyphasic sleeping, where you sleep in chunks throughout the day.

Sleep special: https://www.newscientist.com/subject/sleep/

Chapters:

(00:52) Are we really in a poor sleep epidemic?

(6:22) Getting into sleep debt

(16:47) How sleep affects your microbiome

(25:36) Sleep trackers and other tech

(29:28) Perfect the art of the nap

Offering their sleep tips in this special episode of the podcast are Rowan Hooper, Madeleine Cuff, Catherine de Lange and Alison George.

To read more about these stories, visit https://www.newscientist.com/

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