The World, the Universe and Us

Latest Episodes:

Dead Planets Society #2: Punch A Hole in a Planet Jul 31, 2023

Show notes

In this episode of Dead Planets Society, Leah and Chelsea embark on a boring journey… no, as in they literally try to bore through a planet! With the help of planetary scientists, Baptiste Journaux of the University of Washington and Konstantin Batygin of the California Institute of Technology, our hosts drill down into the science of achieving this momentous task, discussing which planets are perfect for perforation, how to deal with melting drill bits, and catapulting a whale to outer space…

Tune in to find out if they get to the core of the issue… or if the pressure will be too much.

Dead Planets Society is a podcast that takes outlandish ideas about how to tinker with the cosmos – from punching a hole in a planet to unifying the asteroid belt to destroying the sun – and subjects them to the laws of physics to see how they fare.

Your hosts are Leah Crane and Chelsea Whyte.

If you have a cosmic object you’d like to figure out how to destroy, email the team at deadplanets@newscientist.com. It may just feature in a later episode… And if you just want to chat about this episode or wrecking the cosmos more generally, tweet @chelswhyte and @downhereonearth.

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Weekly: Cheaper cures for many diseases; How to understand the superconductor ‘breakthrough’; Hear a star twinkle Jul 28, 2023

Show notes

New Scientist Weekly #208

Better and cheaper treatments for everything from sickle cell disease to ageing should come as a result of a new technique for delivering mRNA to blood stem cells. The technique has been adapted from the technology in mRNA covid-19 vaccines and could even be used for doping in sport.

Controversial claims of a superconductor that works at room temperature and pressure have ignited heated discussion this week. Such a finding would be revolutionary, with implications for transport, medical science and even nuclear fusion. But is it too early to celebrate this new discovery?

Scientists are scrambling to save coral in the Florida Keys, where record sea temperatures are threatening the entire ecosystem. The coral and their symbiotic algae are being moved using a “coral bus” to off-shore nurseries in the hope of reestablishing them after the heat wanes. Genetic research could be instrumental in saving the reefs.

Ever wondered what a star’s twinkle sounds like? Astronomer Evan Anders has developed a new way of modelling the movement of gases inside stars, giving us a glimpse (with our ears) at how they are built on the inside, how they spend their lives and evolve…

Most of us are heavy-handed when it comes to estimating the weight of our… hands, something researchers have struggled to put their finger on. The strange phenomenon, where we misjudge the weight of our own body parts, could have an evolutionary explanation.

Hosts Christie Taylor and Sam Wong discuss all of this with guests Michael Le Page, Karmela Padavic-Callaghan, Sofia Quaglia and Jason Murugesu. To read about these subjects and much more, you can subscribe to New Scientist magazine at newscientist.com.

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CultureLab: Oppenheimer – The rise and fall of the “father of the atomic bomb” Jul 24, 2023

Show notes

First J. Robert Oppenheimer created the weapon, then he fought for years to warn of its dangers. During the second world war, the so-called “father of the atomic bomb”, led a team of scientists in the US in a race against Nazi Germany to create the first nuclear weapon. Then it was used to kill thousands in Hiroshima and Nagasaki in Japan.

In Oppenheimer, Christopher Nolan’s new 3-hour blockbuster, the film focuses on the years that followed and how the physicist’s campaigning ultimately led to his downfall.

In this episode of CultureLab, Christie Taylor speaks to Kai Bird, a journalist and historian who co-authored the book that was the main source material for Nolan’s film – American Prometheus: The Triumph and Tragedy of J. Robert Oppenheimer.

To read about subjects like this and much more, you can subscribe to New Scientist magazine at newscientist.com.

Links and info:

Check out our review of Oppenheimer, by Simon Ings.

Kai Bird on exonerating Oppenheimer.

The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists commemorating Oppenheimer’s death (1967)

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Weekly: How to measure consciousness; Nature-made graphene; New sabretooth cats Jul 21, 2023

Show notes

New Scientist Weekly #206

A major theory of consciousness is being put to the test with brain scans. Integrated information theory proposes a value called "phi" to represent consciousness and in a new experiment, it seems to work. Does the discovery bring us any closer to solving the elusive “hard problem” of neuroscience?

Graphene has been hailed as a super material since its synthesis in 2004. But, unbeknownst to us, nature has long-been producing graphene, right under our noses. Understanding natural graphene production could revolutionise the way we create this remarkable material.

A roarsome discovery of two previously unknown sabre-toothed cat species in South Africa provides insights into their cheetah-like and leopard-like lifestyles. The finding challenges our long-held beliefs about these ancient felines.

Could chargrilled mushrooms be the key to fireproofing our homes? A team in Melbourne, Australia, unveiled a fire-resistant material created from the mycelium of edible mushrooms this week. With remarkable flame resistance and environmentally-friendly properties, the approach looks promising.

Finally, some intriguing space discoveries, including the Janus star, with its unique hydrogen-helium split surface, a giant exoplanet called PDS 70b, which reveals a potential sibling forming in its orbit, marking the first time two planets have been found to share an orbit, and the LEGO robot creating DNA machines.

Hosts Timothy Revell and Christie Taylor discuss all of this with guests Clare Wilkins, Corryn Wetzel and Alex Wilkins. To read about these subjects and much more, you can subscribe to New Scientist magazine at newscientist.com.

Events and links:

To listen to the first episode of our new podcast, The Dead Planets Society, click the link here.

To find out more about our 2024 Polar Tours, visit https://www.newscientist.com/tours/

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Dead Planets Society #1: Kill The Sun Jul 17, 2023

Show notes

The sun is the centre of our solar system, the parent body to all the planets, unquestionably the most important cosmic object for life on Earth. But what if we were to destroy it?

It turns out that is easier said than done. In the premier episode of the Dead Planets Society podcast, our hosts Leah Crane and Chelsea Whyte resort to extreme methods in their quest to put out the sun. They learn that adding a giant ball of water to the equation will only provide more fuel for the fire, stretching the sun into long noodle-like ribbons is only a temporary solution, and that there are no earthly weapons with enough power to take it out or force it to go supernova.

They speak with planetary scientist Paul Byrne about the absurd methods we might use to quench our star and how these would play out if they were possible in real life. They are shooting for the stars, quite literally, and the consequences for Earth and the entire solar system are dire.

To listen, subscribe to New Scientist Weekly or visit our podcast page here.

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Weekly: JWST’s amazing year; Giant sloth jewellery; $1million mathematics prize Jul 14, 2023

Show notes

New Scientist Weekly #205

Following a year of incredible, awe-inspiring images from deep space, the team is celebrating the 1st birthday of the James Webb Space Telescope. They reflect on the amazing discoveries so far, and look at how JWST will alter our understanding of the universe.

From this summer, the International Seabed Authority will be considering licences for deep sea mining, despite the fact that no set of rules has been agreed upon to govern it. At this critical time, the team explores new research that’s showing just how damaging it could be to mine the seabed. Are the precious minerals worth the risk?

One million dollars is being thrown at a decades old mathematical problem which has proved surprisingly controversial over the years. The team explains how the ABC conjecture has split the mathematical community, and how substantial cash prizes could end the debate once and for all.

Sloths once came in a giantvariety, and were as big as grizzly bears. These giant sloths died out 10,000 years ago but new archaeological evidence suggests humans were making jewellery out of their bones – giving us a new understanding of when humans first arrived in the Americas.

CRISPR to the rescue! Making paper isn’t the most environmentally friendly process, but CRISPR gene editing (the hero promised to solve many issues) can apparently help here too. The team explains how it involves modifying trees to make them easier to process.

On the pod are Timothy Revell, Christie Taylor, Leah Crane, Chen Ly and Corryn Wetzel. To read about these subjects and much more, you can subscribe to New Scientist magazine at newscientist.com.

Events and links:

AI Unleashed

10 for 10

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CultureLab: Earth’s Deep History: Chris Packham on the epic and tumultuous story of our planet Jul 11, 2023

Show notes

Our world has led a long, sometimes tumultuous, and always complicated life. Over the last four billion years, Earth’s geology has changed radically and dramatically.

Earth, a new five-part BBC documentary narrated by naturalist Chris Packham, tells the story of this change by looking at significant moments in the planet’s history - from the dramatic moment when nearly all life on Earth was wiped out, to the end of the dinosaurs and the rise of humanity.

In this episode, Chris explains why he was drawn to working on the series, explores issues of human-driven climate change and biodiversity loss, and explains the perhaps counterintuitive role that romance plays in science.

To read about subjects like this and much more, you can subscribe to New Scientist magazine at newscientist.com.

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Weekly: Earth breaks heat records; Quantum LiDAR for self-driving cars; Cryptography in pre-Viking runic writing Jul 07, 2023

Show notes

New Scientist Weekly #203

July has become a record-busting month. In fact, this month has seen the hottest global average temperatures ever recorded on Earth. With heat waves hitting the US and the UK coast, the team finds out what’s driving temperatures to such extremes.

Driverless cars could someday go quantum. LiDAR, a light-detection device used in driverless cars to help them navigate, could be replaced by quantum light, or photons. The team explains how this would make driverless cars better at navigating the streets and more resilient against ‘attacks.’

Encrypted runic writing from the 7th Century has been discovered in Norway, becoming the oldest evidence of cryptography in an ancient civilization. But can the team crack the code?

What is a healthy weight? Most people look to their BMI (Body Mass Index) for answers - but can we trust it? The team explains why our definition of overweight may be wrong - and how this isn’t the first time BMI has been challenged.

Ready for your mind to be melted? It turns out time ran 5 times slower in the early universe than it does today. Time dilation was predicted by Einstein, and as the team explains, we’ve now finally been able to prove it.

On the pod are Timothy Revell, Christie Taylor, Clare Wilson, Madeleine Cuff and Karmela Padavic-Callaghan. To read about these subjects and much more, you can subscribe to New Scientist magazine at newscientist.com.

Events and links:

Yili: www.newscientist.com/yili

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Weekly: New era in gravitational astronomy; Upending stereotypes of women in hunter-gatherer societies; Orangutan beatboxing and human speech origins Jun 30, 2023

Show notes

New Scientist Weekly #202

In a potentially era-defining scientific breakthrough, we are now able to detect some of the biggest objects in the cosmos. Researchers have figured out how to use gravitational waves and dead stars to locate supermassive black holes. The team says this discovery could revolutionise our understanding of the origins of the universe.

It’s often assumed that men in hunter-gatherer societies did the hunting, and women did the gathering. But that’s just plain wrong. Archaeological finds and evidence from present day hunter-gatherer societies paint a completely different picture. As the team explains, not only did women hunt, but it’s likely they did it carrying children on their backs!

Can orangutans beatbox? Not quite - but they’re not far off! The team shares the sounds of a “kiss-squeak”, a noise as complex as beatboxing, which orangutans can do effortlessly. Adriano Lameira from the University of Warwick explains what this tells us about our primate cousins and the origins of human speech.

Magic mushrooms have brought religious leaders closer to the divine, in a new experiment looking at the effects of psychedelics. This is one of the projects highlighted at the world’s biggest conference on the science of psychedelics in Denver, Colorado. Grace Wade shares the latest from the conference.

Did you know some companies use artificial intelligence to sort through job applicants? While this can help streamline the hiring process, AI algorithms are notoriously biased, and could be making sexist or racist decisions. The team discusses a new law in New York City which aims to tackle the issue.

On the pod are Timothy Revell, Christie Taylor, Grace Wade, Alex Wilkins and Michael Le Page. To read about these subjects and much more, you can subscribe to New Scientist magazine at newscientist.com.

Events and links:

New Scientist Live: https://live.newscientist.com/

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Weekly: The truth behind the orca uprising; Earth enters uncharted territory; genetic treatments for unborn babies. Jun 22, 2023

Show notes

New Scientist Weekly #201

A new therapy is being used to treat a rare genetic disorder in babies, before they’ve even been born. The condition, called X-linked ectodermal dysplasia, which only affects boys, leaves them with few teeth, sparse hair and no sweat glands. The team learns about a groundbreaking technique which delivers a key protein to the fetus through the amniotic fluid.

With extreme marine heatwaves currently hitting the UK and Ireland - and as temperatures climb with the arrival of El Niño - 2023 is shaping up to be the hottest year on record. The team discuss the contribution of climate change to the heat, but end on a glimmer of good news.

The orcas are revolting! Or are they really… You may have seen reports of the ‘orca uprising’ on social media, as killer whales have been filmed ‘attacking’ sailboats off the coast of Portugal and Spain. But are these really orchestrated acts of revenge, as some theories suggest?

Rogue stars that escaped from the Andromeda galaxy could now be whizzing through our own galaxy - the Milky Way. But how did they get here? The team hears how these super-fast stars may have been slingshotted across the universe. The question is - can we find any of these exiles?

During the COP15 biodiversity summit, countries agreed to the 30x30 target - to protect and restore 30% of land and sea on the planet by 2030. It’s been 6 months - so, has anything actually been achieved? Are we on course to reach that target? Rowan speaks to Alex Antonelli, professor of biodiversity and director of science at Kew Gardens in London, who’s also on an advisory group for the Convention on Biological Diversity.

On the pod are Rowan Hooper, Christie Taylor, Madeleine Cuff, Clare Wilson and Corryn Wetzel. To read about these subjects and much more, you can subscribe to New Scientist magazine at newscientist.com.

Events and links:

New Scientist Neanderthals tour: newscientist.com/neanderthalfrance

New Scientist Book Club: https://www.newscientist.com/article-topic/new-scientist-book-club/

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