How the immune system can cause psychosis, and tool use in otters
On this week’s show: What happens when the body’s own immune system attacks the brain, and how otters’ use of tools expands their diet First on the show this week, when rogue antibodies attack the b...
16 Maj 202432min
A very volcanic moon, and better protections for human study subjects
Jupiter’s moon Io has likely been volcanically active since the start of the Solar System, and a proposal to safeguard healthy human subjects in clinical trials First on the show this week, a look at...
9 Maj 202429min
Improving earthquake risk maps, and the world’s oldest ice
Bringing historical seismic reports and modern seismic risk maps into alignment, and a roundup of stories from our newsletter, ScienceAdviser First on the show this week, a roundup of stories with o...
2 Maj 202424min
The science of loneliness, making one of organic chemistry’s oldest reactions safer, and a new book series
Researchers try to identify effective loneliness interventions, making the Sandmeyer safer, and books that look to the future and don’t see doom and gloom First up on the show, Deputy News Editor Ke...
25 Apr 202442min
Ritual murders in the neolithic, why 2023 was so hot, and virus and bacteria battle in the gut
A different source of global warming, signs of a continentwide tradition of human sacrifice, and a virus that attacks the cholera bacteria First up on the show this week, clearer skies might be acce...
18 Apr 202438min
Trialing treatments for Long Covid, and a new organelle appears on the scene
]Researchers are testing HIV drugs and monoclonal antibodies against long-lasting COVID-19, and what it takes to turn a symbiotic friend into an organelle First up on the show this week, clinical tr...
11 Apr 202433min
When did rats come to the Americas, and was Lucy really our direct ancestor?
Tracing the arrival of rats using bones, isotopes, and a few shipwrecks; and what scientists have learned in 50 years about our famous ancestor Lucy First on the show: Did rats come over with Christ...
4 Apr 202431min
Teaching robots to smile, and the effects of a rare mandolin on a scientist’s career
Robots that can smile in synchrony with people, and what ends up in the letters section First on this week’s show, a robot that can predict your smile. Hod Lipson, a roboticist and professor at Colum...
28 Mars 202430min
