Nature Podcast22 Jan 2025

What's the best way to become a professor? The answer depends on where you are

00:56 How the paths to professorship vary

A huge analysis of hiring practices has revealed that criteria to get a promotion to full professorship is hugely variable around the world. The authors suggest that this variability results in researchers from countries that value one type of metric being locked out of professor positions in others. They hope that the database of hiring practices created in this study could help institutions adjust their hiring policies to create a more diverse science workforce.

Research Article: Lim et al.

News: Want to become a professor? Here’s how hiring criteria differ by country

09:36 Research Highlights

Lasers reveal hidden tattoos on ancient mummified-skin, and a new pill that cuts flu symptoms and viral levels in the body.

Research Highlight: Hidden tattoos on mummy skin emerge under a laser’s light

Research Highlight: Got flu? Promising drug shortens symptoms

12:13 Cancer cells’ broken mitochondria could poison immune cells

Researchers have shown that cancer cells can slip their dysfunctional mitochondria into T cells, limiting the immune system’s cancer-fighting capabilities. Cancer cells are known to steal healthy mitochondria from immune cells to help tumours survive and thrive. Now, researchers have shown mitochondria can move in the opposite direction too, with the donor T cells showing signs of various stress responses that make them less effective when inside a tumour. The team showed that blocking this transfer limited this effect, and hopes that this mechanism could offer a new avenue for boosting the immune system’s response to cancer.

Research Article: Ikeda et al.

News & Views: Mitochondrial swap from cancer to immune cells thwarts anti-tumour defences

21:12 Science and the Gaza conflict

Noah Baker and Ehsan Masood turn to the war in Gaza, and discuss what comes next for science as a ceasefire comes into force.

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Briefing Chat: How 1,000 pairs of buried underpants helped measure soil health

In this episode:00:21 Our picks of this year’s Ig Nobel prizesNature: Buried underpants and a new definition of kissing win 2026 Ig Nobel prizes07:47 Massive xenon experiment detects tantalizing hint ...

4 Sep 12min

Audio long read: Could mending damaged DNA prolong life?

Scientists are amassing evidence that unrepaired or poorly repaired DNA damage underlies many of the hallmarks of ageing. This has led to research into whether boosting DNA repair can keep people heal...

2 Sep 18min

Briefing Chat: How Dolly Parton left her mark on science

In this episode:00:18 Researchers celebrate Dolly Parton's contributions to scienceNature: Dolly Parton dies aged 80 — researchers celebrate her contributions to science08:40 Phase III trial of melano...

28 Aug 14min

Highest-ever ocean temperatures recorded as El Niño intensifies

Why extreme temperatures are expected to weaken ocean carbon sinks — plus, how mitochondrial injections could treat vision loss.00:46 The world’s oceans reach a record temperatureNature: Ocean tempera...

26 Aug 19min

Briefing Chat: New narcolepsy drug could unlock host of novel brain therapies

Nature staff discuss how an FDA-approved drug for narcolepsy could have promise beyond the condition, and the longest-lived human brain organoids yet.00:28 The promise of a new narcolepsy drugNature: ...

21 Aug 12min

A black hole's spin could finally be measured by a high-speed star

Star orbiting close to Sagittarius A* could reveal its spin — plus, how exoskeletons might change the way humans move.00:46 The star that could reveal a black hole’s spinResearch article: Dayem et al....

19 Aug 29min

Briefing Chat: Anthropic rolls out new AI watermark — will it make a difference?

In this episode:00:29 What does Anthropic’s new watermark mean for research?Nature: Can Anthropic’s invisible watermarks curb ‘AI slop’? Researchers remain sceptical10:57 Ticklishness is a distinct, s...

14 Aug 16min

The probiotic bacteria engineered to treat diabetes

Genetically modified bacteria lower high blood-sugar in animal trials — plus, how to safely watch a solar eclipse.00:45 A living diabetes treatmentResearch article: Guan et al.08:03 Research Highlight...

12 Aug 19min