logo
episode-header-image
Feb 2025
25m 25s

Is science in danger?

Vox
About this episode

Funding cuts and research censorship have shaken the foundations of America’s health and science agencies, leaving researchers shocked, confused, and afraid. In this episode of Unexplainable, we ask, what does this mean for the future of science?

This episode was hosted and produced by Noam Hassenfeld with help from Byrd Pinkerton, Thomas Lu, and Amanda Llewelyn, edited by Jorge Just and Meradith Hoddinott, fact-checked by Melissa Hirsch, and engineeered by Cristian Ayala. 

Broken lab beakers. Image by robuart for Shutterstock.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Up next
Yesterday
Trump deploys the National Guard
The president is attempting to send the National Guard into two American cities for two (seemingly) different reasons with two (for now) different results. This episode was produced by Denise Guerra and Danielle Hewitt, edited by Amina Al-Sadi, fact-checked by Laura Bullard and K ... Show More
25m 55s
Oct 7
We're in our AI slop era
Meta just dropped Vibes and OpenAI just dropped Sora 2. Both social media platforms are filled with AI videos that warp our sense of reality. This episode was made in collaboration with Vox's Future Perfect. It was produced by Ariana Aspuru, edited by Jolie Myers, fact-checked by ... Show More
26m 23s
Oct 6
TrumpRx
President Trump wants to put his stamp on health care. But TrumpRx is no Obamacare. This episode was produced by Kelli Wessinger, edited by Jolie Myers, fact-checked by Laura Bullard, engineered by Patrick Boyd and Adriene Lilly, and hosted by Sean Rameswaram. President Trump aft ... Show More
25m 58s
Recommended Episodes
Feb 2025
Is science in danger?
Funding cuts and research censorship have shaken the foundations of America’s health and science agencies, leaving researchers shocked, confused, and afraid. What does this mean for the future of science?For show transcripts, go to vox.com/unxtranscriptsFor more, go to vox.com/un ... Show More
25m 31s
Feb 2025
The War on Science
U.S. science is in turmoil. Amid agency firings and confusion over federal funding, researchers are freaking out. Many can’t do their work, and they have no idea what the future holds. Plus, we’re hearing that all of this could jeopardize medical treatments for people in the U.S. ... Show More
37m 43s
Jun 2025
Why I left the NIH
Francis Collins oversaw some of the most revolutionary science of the last few decades at the National Institutes of Health. A few months ago, he suddenly resigned. One of America's foremost scientists could no longer do his job. What does that mean for the US? And for science? G ... Show More
40m 34s
Jul 3
Is ChatGPT hurting our critical thinking skills?
Are AI chatbots dulling our brains? A new MIT study suggests critical thinking skills are at risk from tools like ChatGPT. What does the science say happens to brains that rely on AI? And how can you use AI tools while protecting your ability to think for yourself? In this episod ... Show More
22m 2s
Jul 25
Greenland’s Ice Sheet Is at Risk—And So Are We
Chief multimedia editor Jeffery DelViscio ventured to Greenland for a month to learn from the scientists studying the country’s ice sheet. He speaks with host Rachel Feltman about his time in the field and his takeaways from conversations with climate scientists. This story was s ... Show More
22m 5s
Jul 25
Greenland’s Ice Sheet Is at Risk—And So Are We
Chief multimedia editor Jeffery DelViscio ventured to Greenland for a month to learn from the scientists studying the country’s ice sheet. He speaks with host Rachel Feltman about his time in the field and his takeaways from conversations with climate scientists. This story was s ... Show More
22m 5s
Apr 2025
From the Internet’s Beginnings to Our Understanding of Consciousness, This Editor Has Seen It All
Senior mind and brain editor Gary Stix has covered the breadth of science and technology over the past 35 years at Scientific American. He joins host Rachel Feltman to take us through the rise of the Internet and the acceleration of advancement in neuroscience that he’s covered t ... Show More
20m 15s
Sep 5
Inside the Turmoil at the CDC
In this episode of Science Quickly, host Rachel Feltman is joined by associate editor for health and medicine Lauren J. Young to unpack the growing unrest at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention following the departure of the agency’s director Susan Monarez. As criticis ... Show More
14m 2s
Apr 2025
The Age of Aquaticus
For years, scientists thought nothing could live above 73℃/163℉. At that temperature, everything boiled to death. But scientists Tom Brock and Hudson Freeze weren’t convinced. What began as their simple quest to trawl for life in some of the hottest natural springs on Earth would ... Show More
43 m
Sep 17
The Role Our Microbiome Plays In Our ‘Gut Feelings’
Scientists are tuning in to a surprising conversation happening inside us—between our gut and our brain. Host Rachel Feltman chats with Maya Kaelberer, an assistant professor at the University of Arizona’s department of physiology, to explore how intestinal cells and microbiomes ... Show More
13m 26s