WIRED

Science, Spoken

Science EN ↓ 2373 episodes

Get in-depth coverage of current and future trends in technology, and how they are shaping business, entertainment, communications, science, politics, and society.

Be sure to visit the podcast's website and support the creator: play.prx.org

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WIRED

Episodes

Lasers Are Mapping Scotland’s Mysterious Iron Age Passages 01.02.2023 6:28

Digitized archaeology is making souterrains—subterranean passages in the Highlands—accessible in a way Indiana Jones could only dream of. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The Tonga Eruption Is Still Revealing New Volcanic Dangers 31.01.2023 10:51

One year later, researchers are still marveling at the power of the Hunga Tonga explosion—and wondering how to monitor hundreds of other undersea volcanoes. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

This Seriously Hipster Bean Is Coffee’s Best Hope for Survival 30.01.2023 10:30

Climate change is straining the world’s two favorite coffee species. Could a resilient 19th-century alternative solve the brew’s existential crisis? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The Key to California's Survival Is Hidden Underground 27.01.2023 10:23

The state is ping-ponging between severe drought and catastrophic flooding. The solution to both? Making the landscape spongier. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Why the Search for Life in Space Starts With Ancient Earth 26.01.2023 10:15

Need to estimate, from trillions of miles away, how likely another world is to host life? There’s a flowchart for that. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The US Just Greenlit High-Tech Alternatives to Animal Testing 25.01.2023 12:24

Lab animals have long borne the brunt of drug safety trials. A new law allows drugmakers to use miniature tissue models or "organs on chips" instead. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

What This Fearsome Weapon Reveals About Early Americans 24.01.2023 11:35

The hottest West Coast tech 16,000 years ago was a “projectile point” for hunting game. Though tiny, the artifact tells an outsize tale. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Meet the Earth’s Lawyers 23.01.2023 13:30

ClientEarth helps shape new laws and enforce old ones to protect the planet and its most vulnerable inhabitants. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Climate Enforcers Need Hard Evidence. Friederike Otto Has It 20.01.2023 13:04

World Weather Attribution ties disasters and extreme conditions to climate change—providing crucial leverage for legal and policy battles. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Why Do You Get Sick in the Winter? Blame Your Nose 19.01.2023 9:57

A new study shows that as temperatures drop, nasal cells release fewer of the tiny protectors that bind and neutralize invading germs. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Drug Shortages Aren’t New. The Tripledemic Just Made You Look 18.01.2023 10:39

Flu meds and prescription drugs have been in short supply all winter—but the problem goes back over a decade. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In the Next Pandemic, Let’s Pay People to Get Vaccinated 17.01.2023 10:05

Data from Sweden and the US suggests cash incentives increase uptake without denting people’s trust in vaccines or future willingness to get them. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

2022 Wasn't the Hottest on Record. That's Nothing to Celebrate 16.01.2023 9:51

Last year was one of the warmest measured, say NASA and NOAA. It would have been even more sweltering if not for La Niña, which will soon fade away. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Let’s Go to Mars. Let’s Not Live There 13.01.2023 15:08

Space agencies and companies aim to send people to the Red Planet. But settling there would be hell on—well, you know what we mean. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

You Don’t Need to Fear a World of 8 Billion Humans 12.01.2023 8:50

Some environmentalists warn the planet can’t handle so many people, but we may need to rethink our approach to rising populations. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Here’s What’s Next for Pig Organ Transplants 11.01.2023 12:35

2022 was a breakthrough year for xenotransplantation, a procedure that could be a lifeline for patients in desperate need of a donor. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Eating Too Much Salt Could Cause Stress Levels to Rise 10.01.2023 9:25

Holiday feasts tend to be salt-heavy—but early animal experiments are finding that overindulging in the condiment could take an emotional toll. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

A More Elegant Form of Gene Editing Progresses to Human Testing 09.01.2023 11:23

Instead of cutting out chunks of the genome to disable malfunctioning genes, base editing makes a smaller, more precise swap. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The Bittersweet Defeat of Mpox 06.01.2023 11:55

The epidemic has largely subsided, but largely because queer men seem to have learned more from AIDS and Covid-19 than the authorities did. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Vertical Farming Has Found Its Fatal Flaw 05.01.2023 9:43

Europe’s energy crisis is forcing companies to switch strategies or close down. The industry’s future hangs in the balance. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Russia Has Turned Eastern Ukraine Into a Giant Minefield 04.01.2023 10:04

Vast swathes of the country have been vindictively laced with explosives, threatening the civilian population both physically and mentally. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The Mystery of Nevada’s Ancient Reptilian Boneyard 02.01.2023 12:25

Whale-sized shonisaurs dominated the ocean 230 million years ago. A fossil cluster offers a fascinating glimpse at how they lived—based on where they died. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Bio-Based Plastics Aim to Capture Carbon. But at What Cost? 30.12.2022 10:57

Growing crops to make plastic could theoretically reduce reliance on fossil fuels and even pull carbon out of the atmosphere, but at an enormous environmental cost. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

How Far Can You Fly a Battery-Powered Jumbo Jet? 29.12.2022 15:09

The answer explains why electric cars are everywhere, but electric aircraft are still a novelty. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

How the UN’s ‘Sex Agency’ Uses Tech to Save Mothers’ Lives 28.12.2022 13:49

Big Data, drones, diagnostics—the United Nations and other groups hope to innovate the world out of a maternal and reproductive health crisis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices