The 3 Best Science Weekly Podcast Episodes
1) Why do humans struggle to think of ourselves as animals?
The pandemic has demonstrated why humans are ultimately an impressive species. From monitoring the genetic evolution of Sars-CoV-2 to devising vaccines in record time, we have put our minds together t...Show More
2) Jaws made us scared of sharks but is a lack of sharks scarier?
Last week, the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) world conservation congress took place in Marseille. Guardian biodiversity reporter Phoebe Weston was there and heard about the...Show More
3) Nasa’s new space telescope and its search for extraterrestrial life
On 22 December, if all goes to plan, the £7.5bn James Webb space telescope (JWST) will be blasted into space on top of a giant European Ariane 5 rocket. As it travels to its final destination – a poin...Show More
4) Is curiosity the key to ageing well?
Psychologists have traditionally believed we become less curious as we age, but recent research has shown that curiosity actually becomes more targeted and specific in our later years. To find out why...Show More
5) RFK Jr and the chaos at the CDC
It’s been a dramatic week at the US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). In the space of seven days, the agency’s head was sacked and replaced by an interim head, four senior staff member...Show More
6) ‘AI psychosis’: could chatbots fuel delusional thinking?
There are increasing reports of people experiencing delusions after intensive use of AI chatbots. The phenomenon, dubbed ‘AI psychosis’, has raised concerns that features built into large language mod...Show More
7) A decade long mystery - why were billions of starfish turned to goo?
For more than a decade, scientists have been puzzling over what was causing billions of starfish to dissolve into piles of white goo. Sea star wasting disease has ravaged starfish populations, wiping ...Show More
8) Can science crack the mystery of ME?
Scientists have found the first robust evidence that people’s genes affect their chances of developing myalgic encephalomyelitis or chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS), a mysterious and debilitating ill...Show More
9) Why can’t the world get its act together on plastics?
After three years of negotiating, talks over a global plastics treaty came to an end in Geneva last week with no agreement in place. So why has it been so difficult to get countries to agree to cut pl...Show More
10) Staying cool in Europe’s record-breaking heat
Europe is suffering from another heatwave as deadly temperatures of up to 44C hit the continent and wildfires blazed across the Mediterranean. To find out why Europe is heating faster than anywhere el...Show More