MIT professor and entrepreneur Ariel Furst is used to people underestimating what biology can do. But she is proving that DNA and microbes can help us decarbonize energy: DNA can be harnessed to transform carbon into useful products and in her words, “microbes are the coolest,”—they can be engineered for use in all kinds of recycling. Furst shares how sometimes the simple (and even microscopic) solutions can have big results.

What if it works? is a production of the MIT Energy Initiative. This episode was hosted by Rob Stoner and Kara Miller.

Transcript and show notes at energy.mit.edu/podcasts