Quirks and Quarks

Researchers discover 130,000 new viruses, giving us a new way to watch for emerging pathogens; Chimpanzees aren't monkeys, but they learn by monkey see, monkey do; Is the moon driving the movement of the Earth's tectonic plates?; Deer choose to return to their smoldering home in the wake of a massive wildfire; Aliens often look like us in movies — will they look like us in real life?

Plants can’t adapt to climate change when seed-dispersing animals are lost; The Earth is at the centre of a cosmic bubble created by supernovae; Medieval knights rode pony-sized war-horses into battle; Scientists have seen new memories forming in an animal for the first time; How an important study of vaccine mixing in Canada got sabotaged by COVID chaos.

We interrupt your usual Quirks & Quarks podcast feed with a special bonus episode from the CBC Podcast Tai Asks Why. There's a MAJOR event happening in space science, NASA is set to launch the enormous James Webb Space Telescope. Guiding Tai on this starlit path of discovery is Dr. Naomi Rowe-Gurney, a James Webb Space Telescope postdoctoral researcher with the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center and Howard University. More episodes are available at http://hyperurl.co/taiaskswhy

We know humans are behind climate change, thanks to this Nobel Physics laureate’s work; New Nobel laureate in chemistry reflects on how his discovery catalyzed his field; Researchers investigate an ‘ultra-hot Jupiter’ with iron rain and calcium wind; Canadian concept to pump carbon into subsea rock could sequester gigatons of CO2; Cloud-based sunscreen could help protect the Great Barrier Reef from future heat damage; How watching water bears walk could help us make small and squishy robots.

Indigenous archeology and the search for unmarked graves at residential schools; Ice age footprints suggest North America’s first peoples were here earlier than we thought; Monkeys respond to high pressure situations by choking, just like humans do; Set weapons on sautee, as engineers learn to cook with lasers; Vampire bats share blood meals with their besties; Do spiders learn to build better webs with experience?

What if there were a pill that could add decades to your life? Would you take it? For thousands of years, people have searched for elixirs that could delay death and extend human life. Could new advances in medicine finally make this a reality? From madcap medicine to cutting-edge science, the quest to unlock the fountain of youth is teeming with dreamers, skeptics and charlatans alike. More episodes are available at: hyperurl.co/unlocking

Ancient Jordanian town destroyed by a meteor blast may have inspired Biblical stories, scientists say; Animals are shapeshifting in response to climate warming, and it could be costing them; Tiny flying microchips inspired by maple seeds could help monitor the environment; An inside scoop on how COVID vaccines are being tested on kids; Widespread vaccination should mean the impact of COVID variants ‘will be blunted’; What are the relative sources of light on a moonless night?

Canadian science suffered from COVID. After the election, how do we bring it back better?; Potty training cows to solve the problem of pee pollution; Fashion backward — Archaeologists find 120,000 year old tools for making clothes; How does a black hole eat? With its spiral arms.

You can visit our archives and listen to older content at our website at cbc.ca/quirks

How much of a lake or river is actually fish pee? What's corn silk actually for? What happens when an astronaut gets gassy in a space suit? And much more..