The world’s first CRISPR babies are now toddlers. Now, nearly four years since the super-controversial experiment was announced, scientists in China want to set up a healthcare institute specifically to look after the three children. The team examines the ethics of it all.
Humans thrive at particular temperatures, and that’s why we live where we live. But th ... Show More
Nov 14
New genome of ancient human; 95% of us have a dormant virus that causes disease; Formula E cars faster than F1; Bill Bryson joins the pod!
Episode 332
For only the second time, the genome of an ancient Denisovan has been sequenced - thanks to the discovery of a 200,000-year-old tooth found in a Siberian cave. This ancient member of the human family has long been a mystery, so this genome is being described as a bom ... Show More
45m 2s
Jun 2021
Cov-Boost trial; SARS-Cov 2 infection in action; sapling guards; why tadpoles are dying
Scientists are now looking at the question of third doses of vaccines against SARS-Cov2, and this week the Cov-Boost trial was launched. It’s being run from University of Southampton and is going to be using seven different vaccines, some at half doses, in people over the age of ... Show More
30m 22s
Dec 2021
Dave Goulson, "Silent Earth: Averting the Insect Apocalypse" (Harper, 2021)
Drawing on thirty years of research, Goulson has written an accessible, fascinating, and important book that examines the evidence of an alarming drop in insect numbers around the world. "If we lose the insects, then everything is going to collapse," he warned in a recent intervi ... Show More
58m 14s
Dec 2021
The Evidence: When will the pandemic end?
Everybody hopes that the new super-charged Omicron variant of coronavirus will be less severe, but even if it is, it’s spreading so fast and infecting so many people, health services around the world could still buckle under the strain.Two years into the pandemic, Claudia Hammond ... Show More
50m 9s
Jul 2021
Covid-19 : un risque chez les animaux ? (FdS#32)
<p>Pour cette semaine du 5 juillet : coup de chaud en haute atmosphère, un potentiel signe de vie autour de Saturne, le rôle des animaux dans la pandémie, un champignon qui fait pousser le cerveau et une nouvelle carte de l'Islande. Bonne écoute, et bon week-end !</p><br><p>👉<a ... Show More
5m 40s