Nara Milanich’s Paternity: The Elusive Quest for the Father (Harvard University Press, 2019) explains how fatherhood, long believed to be impossible to know with certainty, became a biological “fact” that could be ascertained with scientific testing. Though the advent of DNA testing might seem to make paternity less elusive, Milanich’s book invites readers t ... Show More
Apr 2025
Amy Zhang, "Circular Ecologies: Environmentalism and Waste Politics in Urban China" (Stanford UP, 2024)
After four decades of reform and development, China is confronting a domestic waste crisis. As the world's largest waste-generating nation, the World Economic Forum projects that by 2030, the volume of household waste in China will be double that of the United States. Starting in ... Show More
1h 7m
Today
Paulette F. C. Steeves, "The Indigenous Paleolithic of the Western Hemisphere" (U Nebraska Press, 2021)
The Indigenous Paleolithic of the Western Hemisphere (U Nebraska Press, 2021) is a reclaimed history of the deep past of Indigenous people in North and South America during the Paleolithic. Paulette F. C. Steeves mines evidence from archaeology sites and Paleolithic environments, ... Show More
40m 1s
Today
Marc Sommers, "We the Young Fighters: Pop Culture, Terror, and War in Sierra Leone" (U Georgia Press, 2023)
We the Young Fighters: Pop Culture, Terror, and War in Sierra Leone (U Georgia Press, 2023) by Dr. Marc Sommers is at once a history of a nation, the story of a war, and the saga of downtrodden young people and three pop culture superstars. Reggae idol Bob Marley, rap legend Tupa ... Show More
1h 18m
Jan 2025
Nara Milanich, "Paternity: The Elusive Quest for the Father" (Harvard UP, 2019)
Nara Milanich’s Paternity: The Elusive Quest for the Father (Harvard University Press, 2019) explains how fatherhood, long believed to be impossible to know with certainty, became a biological “fact” that could be ascertained with scientific testing. Though the advent of DNA test ... Show More
1h 6m
Oct 2023
The Iceman, Y Chromosome Puzzle, Planets
Today, you’ll hear the truth about the chromosome that determines the male sex, new secrets from an old iceman, and an exoplanet denser than steel. Y Chromosome Puzzle “The Y Chromosome’s genetic puzzle is finally complete.” by Tina Hesman Saey. 2023. “Chromosomal Sex Determinati ... Show More
13m 20s
May 2024
EP 134: Prenatal genetic testing and the future of AI in genetic counselling with Kira Dineen, host of DNA Today
In episode 134, we welcome fellow genetics podcaster Kira Dineen. Kira is most widely known for her award winning podcast, DNA Today, as well as producing a number of other health and science podcasts. Now running for more than 10 years, DNA Today is the winner of the 2020, 2021, ... Show More
40m 44s
Feb 2025
Alisse Waterston, "My Father's Wars: Migration, Memory, and the Violence of a Century" (Routledge, 2024)
On the podcast today I am joined by Presidential Scholar and Professor Emerita of Anthropology at John Jay College, City University of New York, Alisse Waterston to talk about her award-winning book, My Father’s Wars: Migration, Memory, and the Violence of A Century (Routledge, 2 ... Show More
1h 14m
Sep 13
Ancestors and Identity: Unraveling the Genetics of the Levant with Dr. Pierre Zalloua
<p>What do our genes really reveal about who we are? In this episode, Dr. Pierre Zalloua, geneticist and author of Ancestors, takes us deep into the DNA of the Levant. We explore how personal experience, history, and science intersect to shape identity. From Phoenician expansion ... Show More
43m 34s
Aug 25
How AI could generate new life-forms | Eric Nguyen
<p>If DNA is just a string of letters, could AI learn to read it … or even write it? Bioengineering researcher Eric Nguyen reveals how AI has upended the rules of biology, potentially creating a future where disease is cured with personalized medicine, extinct species are resurre ... Show More
13m 5s