A caterpillar that haunts spiderwebs, solving the last riddles of a famed friar, and a new book series

A caterpillar that haunts spiderwebs, solving the last riddles of a famed friar, and a new book series

First up on the podcast, bringing Gregor Mendel’s peas into the 21st century. Back in the 19th century Mendel, a friar and naturalist, tracked traits in peas such as flower color and shape over many generations. He used these observations to identify basic concepts about inheritance such as recessive and dominant traits. Staff Writer Erik Stokstad talks with host Sarah Crespi about the difficulty of identifying genes for these phenotypes all these years later. We also hear some other stories from the plant world, including evidence that wavy fields are more attractive to insects and a tree benefits from being struck by lightning. Next on the show, a carnivorous caterpillar that haunts spiderwebs, camouflaged in its insect prey’s body parts. Producer Kevin McLean talks with Daniel Rubinoff, a professor in the department of plant and environmental protection sciences at the University of Hawaii at Manoa, about how such an adaptation might have evolved and the overlooked importance of insect conservation. Finally, we kick off our 2025 books series on the science of death and dying. Books host Angela Saini and books editor Valerie Thompson talk about the challenges of putting this year’s list together and the reads they are looking forward to. This week’s episode was produced with help from Podigy. About the Science Podcast Authors: Sarah Crespi; Erik Stokstad; Kevin McLean; Valerie Thompson; Angela Saini Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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Psychoactive substances helped spur Andean civilization, and breaking barriers to education

Psychoactive substances helped spur Andean civilization, and breaking barriers to education

First up on the podcast, producer Meagan Cantwell and freelance journalist Andrew Lawler discuss how psychoactive drugs might have shaped culture in pre-Inca Andean societies. They chat about how tech...

10 Sep 33min

Sex-reversing frogs, and Europe’s rising rates of a deadly tick-borne disease

Sex-reversing frogs, and Europe’s rising rates of a deadly tick-borne disease

First up on the podcast, Senior International Correspondent Richard Stone joins host Sarah Crespi to discuss how climate is pushing the disease-carrying tick Hyalomma marginatum out of its comfort zon...

3 Sep 27min

Making drugs in space, the man who fed India, and what narwhals can teach us about changing seas

Making drugs in space, the man who fed India, and what narwhals can teach us about changing seas

First up on the podcast, will it ever make economic sense to produce drugs and biomedical supplies in space? Associate Online News Editor Michael Greshko discusses his story on the researchers attempt...

27 Aug 49min

Why tracing cyclosporiasis is so tough, and a digestible probe for the microbiome

Why tracing cyclosporiasis is so tough, and a digestible probe for the microbiome

First up on the podcast, the News team’s Diverse Voices in Science Journalism interns Mona Patterson and Laura Martín Agudelo join host Sarah Crespi to talk over some of their reporting from the summe...

20 Aug 28min

A vest for blocking cosmic rays, and updates on NIH funding

A vest for blocking cosmic rays, and updates on NIH funding

First up on the podcast, ScienceInsider Editor Jocelyn Kaiser joins host Sarah Crespi for the latest science policy news. The two discuss recent grant cancellations by the U.S. National Institutes of ...

13 Aug 26min

Did meat or fruit give people big brains, and protecting bison diversity using ancient DNA

Did meat or fruit give people big brains, and protecting bison diversity using ancient DNA

First up on the podcast, Deputy News Editor Michael Price discusses the history of the North American bison population, its decline, and resurrection—and links to Indigenous cultures. He’s joined by U...

6 Aug 38min

AI’s influence on society, measuring muscles, and a Crick biography

AI’s influence on society, measuring muscles, and a Crick biography

First up on the podcast, we catch up with Celina Zhao, a staff reporter for Science’s AI In Science reporting initiative. She talks with host Sarah Crespi about artificial intelligence’s knack for fin...

30 Juli 46min

Death in a gene-editing trial, and insect larvae surviving in deep waters

Death in a gene-editing trial, and insect larvae surviving in deep waters

First up on the podcast, freelance science journalist Brendan Borrell talks about his work reporting on the previously undisclosed death of a 6-year-old girl in a gene-editing clinical trial in China ...

23 Juli 37min

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