Science Quickly

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Sinking Cities, Waving Cuttlefish and Falling Spacecraft May 12, 2025

Show notes

A 1970s Soviet spacecraft is hurtling down from space—and no one knows where it will land. All 28 of the most populous cities in the U.S. are slowly sinking. Investments and overconsumption make the wealthiest 10 percent of the global population responsible for two thirds of climate-change-related warming.

Recommended reading:

Cuttlefish May Communicate with Discolike Arm Gestures https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/cuttlefish-may-communicate-with-discolike-arm-gestures/

This Soviet Spacecraft Will Soon Crash-Land on Earth https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/what-to-know-about-kosmos-482-the-soviet-spacecraft-crash-landing-on-earth/

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E-mail us at sciencequickly@sciam.com if you have any questions, comments or ideas for stories we should cover!

Discover something new every day: subscribe to Scientific American and sign up for Today in Science, our daily newsletter.

Science Quickly is produced by Rachel Feltman, Fonda Mwangi, Kelso Harper, Naeem Amarsy and Jeff DelViscio. This episode was hosted by Rachel Feltman. Our show is edited by Alex Sugiura with fact-checking by Shayna Posses and Aaron Shattuck. The theme music was composed by Dominic Smith.

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This Podcast Was Recorded Inside a Particle Collider May 09, 2025

Show notes

We’re taking a field trip to the U.S.’s only particle collider, the Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider (RHIC), housed at Brookhaven National Laboratory. Staff scientist Alex Jentsch takes listeners through some basic terminology and interconnected technologies that help Brookhaven researchers probe questions about our unseen universe. The RHIC is winding down in preparation for the new Electron-Ion Collider, which could help us discover the secrets of the “glue” that holds visible matter together.

Be sure to head over to our YouTube account to see the video version of this podcast, shot on-site at Brookhaven National Laboratory!

Recommended reading:

Who Will Build the Next Giant Particle Collider?

https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/who-will-build-the-next-giant-particle-collider/

Supersymmetry Washes Out at the Large Hadron Collider

https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/supersymmetrys-long-fall-from-grace/

Physicists Are Closer Than Ever to Solving the Puzzle of the Ghostly Neutrino’s Mass

https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/neutrino-mass-mystery-shrinks-with-latest-katrin-results/

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E-mail us at sciencequickly@sciam.com if you have any questions, comments or ideas for stories we should cover!

Discover something new every day: subscribe to Scientific American and sign up for Today in Science, our daily newsletter.

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Rejecting Toxic Fitness Culture with Casey Johnston May 07, 2025

Show notes

Casey Johnston is not your typical health and fitness influencer. She joins host Rachel Feltman to discuss how finding joy in strength training changed her relationship to fitness, food and body image. Johnston’s new book, A Physical Education, reflects on engaging with exercise in a balanced way.

Recommended reading:

You can get Johnston’s book A Physical Education here

You can also get Johnston’s training program book LIFTOFF: Couch to Barbell here

Read her newsletter She’s a Beast

Or follow her on Bluesky

Tell us what you think! Take our survey for the chance to win some SciAm swag!

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E-mail us at sciencequickly@sciam.com if you have any questions, comments or ideas for stories we should cover!

Discover something new every day: subscribe to Scientific American and sign up for Today in Science, our daily newsletter.

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Jupiter’s Cyclones, Amazon’s Satellites and T. rex Collagen May 05, 2025

Show notes

The congressionally mandated National Climate Assessment grinds to a halt. Amazon launches its first round of Internet satellites. The European Space Agency launches a satellite to measure the biomass of Earth’s trees. New data from NASA’s Juno spacecraft offer insights into Jupiter and Io. Claims of Tyrannosaurus rex leather are, predictably, misleading.

Recommended reading:

Trump Dismisses Scientists Writing Key Climate Reporthttps://www.scientificamerican.com/article/trump-dismisses-scientists-writing-the-national-climate-assessment/

Jupiter’s Supervolcanic Moon Io Dazzles in Photos from NASA’s Close Flybyshttps://www.scientificamerican.com/article/jupiters-supervolcanic-moon-io-dazzles-in-photos-from-nasas-close-flybys/

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E-mail us at sciencequickly@sciam.com if you have any questions, comments or ideas for stories we should cover!

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The Fungi Facing Extinction and the Conservationists Working Hard to Protect Them May 02, 2025

Show notes

Conservationists are ringing the alarm about the fungi facing extinction. The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List features vulnerable pandas and endangered tortoises, but it also highlights more than 400 fungi species that are under threat. Gregory Mueller, chief scientist emeritus at the Chicago Botanic Garden and coordinator of fungal conservation programs at the IUCN, and Anders Dahlberg, a professor of mycology at the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, explain the critical role fungi play in our environment and ways we can protect these threatened species.

Recommended reading:

Mysterious ‘Dark Fungi’ Are Lurking Everywhere

For fans of The Last of Us, our 2023 podcast on real zombifying fungi

E-mail us at sciencequickly@sciam.com if you have any questions, comments or ideas for stories we should cover!

Discover something new every day: subscribe to Scientific American and sign up for Today in Science, our daily newsletter.

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Griefbots Offer AI Connections with Deceased Loved Ones Apr 30, 2025

Show notes

Griefbots, artificial intelligence chatbots that mimic deceased loved ones, are increasingly in popularity. Researcher Katarzyna Nowaczyk-Basińska reflects on what death, grief and immortality look like in the digital age. She shares insights from a project that she is leading as a AI2050 Early Career Fellow: Imaginaries of Immortality in the Age of AI: An Intercultural Analysis. Plus, we discuss the ethical and privacy concerns surrounding how the data of the deceased are used and what consumers should be on the lookout for if they want to use griefbots.

Recommended reading:

You can read a recent paper on griefbots co-authored by Nowaczyk-Basińska:

https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s13347-024-00744-w

And you can keep up with her research:

https://katarzynanowaczykbasinska.pl/en/dr-katarzyna-nowaczyk-basinska/

Read our coverage of the tricky ethical debates around AI:

https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/the-god-chatbots-changing-religious-inquiry/

E-mail us at sciencequickly@sciam.com if you have any questions, comments or ideas for stories we should cover!

Discover something new every day: subscribe to Scientific American and sign up for Today in Science, our daily newsletter.

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Scientific American in 1925: Solar Eclipses, Seances and Some Strange Inventions Apr 28, 2025

Show notes

We’re taking a break from our usual weekly news roundup to do a little time travel. In 1925 Scientific American covered a total solar eclipse that featured some surprising solar shadow play and a prediction about today’s eclipses. Plus, we review some long-gone sections of the magazine that tried to verify mediums and show off zany inventions!

Recommended reading:

You can read more from our archives here: https://www.scientificamerican.com/archive/issues/

E-mail us at sciencequickly@sciam.com if you have any questions, comments or ideas for stories we should cover!

Discover something new every day: subscribe to Scientific American and sign up for Today in Science, our daily newsletter.

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How to Become an Urban Naturalist Apr 25, 2025

Show notes

Wild NYC author Ryan Mandelbaum takes host Rachel Feltman through New York City’s Prospect Park to find urban wildlife. They explore the city’s many birds, surprising salamanders and unexpected urban oases. Plus, they discuss what the rules of engagement with wildlife are and how you can find wildlife in your own urban or suburban environment.

Recommended reading:

Read Wild NYC: Experience the Amazing Nature in and around New York City, which is out now.

Listen to our episode on protecting wildlife wherever you are.

E-mail us at sciencequickly@sciam.com if you have any questions, comments or ideas for stories we should cover!

Discover something new every day: subscribe to Scientific American and sign up for Today in Science, our daily newsletter.

Science Quickly is produced by Rachel Feltman, Fonda Mwangi, Kelso Harper, Naeem Amarsy and Jeff DelViscio. This episode was hosted by Rachel Feltman.

Our show is edited by Alex Sugiura with fact-checking by Shayna Posses and Aaron Shattuck. The theme music was composed by Dominic Smith.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Our Fear and Fascination around Snakes Apr 23, 2025

Show notes

When writer Stephen S. Hall was a child, he would capture snakes—much to his mother’s chagrin. Now the science journalist is returning to his early fascination In his latest book, Slither: How Nature’s Most Maligned Creatures Illuminate Our World. The book explores our long, complicated relationship with snakes. Plus, Hall chats about humans’ and other animals’ evolved reactivity to the presence of snakes and the adaptations that keep snakes alive in even the most extreme environments.

Recommended reading:

Slither is out now: https://www.hachettebookgroup.com/titles/stephen-s-hall/slither/9781538741337/

An Evolutionary ‘Big Bang’ Explains Why Snakes Come in So Many Strange Varieties

https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/an-evolutionary-big-bang-explains-why-snakes-come-in-so-many-strange-varieties/

Venomous Snakes May Spread into Vulnerable Communities because of Climate Change https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/venomous-snakes-are-spreading-because-of-climate-change/

E-mail us at sciencequickly@sciam.com if you have any questions, comments or ideas for stories we should cover!

Discover something new every day: subscribe to Scientific American and sign up for Today in Science, our daily newsletter.

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Childhood Illnesses Surge, Magnetic Poles Wandered, and a Colossal Squid Is Found Apr 21, 2025

Show notes

Measles cases are going up—and a federal scientist has warned that case counts have probably been underreported. Another vaccine-preventable illness, whooping cough, sees a troubling increase in cases. Ancient humans found sun-protection solutions when Earth’s magnetic poles wandered. A colossal squid has been captured on video in its natural habitat for the first time. Plus, we discuss evidence that Mars once had a carbon cycle and a planet that is orbiting a pair of brown dwarfs.

Recommended reading:

This Is the First Colossal Squid Filmed in the Deep Sea—And It’s a Baby! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6f8leNRUXdo&t=1s

RFK, Jr., Is Wrong about Cause of Rising Autism Rates, Scientists Say https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/the-real-reason-autism-rates-are-rising/

How to Talk about Vaccines in an Era of Scientific Mistrust https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/why-does-vaccine-hesitancy-occur-and-how-can-people-combat-it/

E-mail us at sciencequickly@sciam.com if you have any questions, comments or ideas for stories we should cover!

Discover something new every day: subscribe to Scientific American and sign up for Today in Science, our daily newsletter.

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