Science Weekly

Environment editor Damian Carrington tells Madeleine Finlay about his recent trip to Greenland on board a ship with a group of intrepid scientists. They were on a mission to explore the maelstrom beneath Greenland’s glaciers, an area that has never been studied before, and were hoping to find answers to one of the world’s most pressing questions – how quickly will sea levels rise?. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/sciencepod

Last month the World Health Organization declared the recent mpox outbreak that began in the Democratic Republic of the Congo a public health emergency of international concern. As scientists race to find out more about the new strain, Ian Sample talks to Trudie Lang, professor of global health research and director of the global health network at the University of Oxford, to find out what we still need to learn in order to tackle and contain the virus. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/sciencepod

The arrest of Telegram’s founder and CEO in Paris last month has thrown the spotlight on the messaging app and its approach to content moderation. Madeleine Finlay hears from Russian affairs reporter Pjotr Sauer and technology journalist Alex Hern about how the case could influence how social media companies approach problematic content on their platforms. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/sciencepod

The psychologist Chris French has spent decades studying paranormal claims and mysterious experiences, from seemingly impossible coincidences to paintings that purportedly predict the future. In this episode from April 2024, Ian Sample sits down with French to explore why so many of us believe in what he terms ‘weird shit’, and what we can learn from understanding why we are drawn to mysterious and mystic phenomena. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/sciencepod

Labradors are known for being greedy dogs, and now scientists have come up with a theory about the genetic factors that may be behind their behaviour. In this episode from April 2024, the Guardian’s science correspondent and flat-coated retriever owner Nicola Davis visits the University of Cambridge to meet Dr Eleanor Raffan and Prof Giles Yeo to find out how understanding this pathway could help treat the obesity crisis in humans. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/sciencepod

A record 10,000 research papers were retracted in 2023. In this episode from February 2024, Ian Sample speaks to Ivan Oransky, whose organisation Retraction Watch has been monitoring the growing numbers of retractions for more than a decade, and hears from blogger Sholto David, who made headlines this year when he spotted mistakes in research from a leading US cancer institute. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/sciencepod

We all know the cliches about older siblings being responsible, younger ones creative, and middle children being peacemakers. But is there any evidence our position in the family affects our personality? In this episode from March 2024, Madeleine Finlay meets Dr Julia Rohrer, a personality psychologist at the University of Leipzig, to unpick the science behind birth order. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/sciencepod

Butterfly numbers appear to be at the lowest on record in the UK after a wet spring and summer dampened their chances of mating. This comes on top of a long and worrying trend of decline. To find out what’s going on and what we can all do to help butterflies cope with extreme weather patterns, Phoebe Weston speaks to Dr Richard Fox, head of science for the charity Butterfly Conservation, and to Matthew Hayes who is part of the Banking on Butterflies project, a collaboration between the Insect Ecology Group at the Zoology Department in Cambridge University, and the Wildlife Trust for Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Northamptonshire (BCN). Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/sciencepod

For the regular drinker it is a source of great comfort: the fat pile of studies that say a daily tipple is better for a longer life than avoiding alcohol completely. But a new analysis challenges that thinking and says it was based on flawed research that compares drinkers with people who are sick and sober. Madeleine Finlay hears from the study’s lead author, Tim Stockwell, a scientist at the Canadian Institute for Substance Use Research at the University of Victoria, to find out why scientists (including him) were so convinced, and what the actual risks of alcohol are. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/sciencepod

Jess Thom, lead psychologist for Team GB, tells Madeleine Finlay how she prepares athletes for failure and success – and the challenges that arise when the games are over and they have to return to normal life. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/sciencepod