Synopsis
Leading science journalists provide a daily minute commentary on some of the most interesting developments in the world of science. For a full-length, weekly podcast you can subscribe to Science Talk: The Podcast of Scientific American . To view all of our archived podcasts please go to www.scientificamerican.com/podcast
Episodes
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French Prez Invites Trumped Researchers
02/06/2017 Duration: 02minNew French president, Emmanual Macron, reacted to the U.S. withdrawal from the Paris climate agreement by inviting disaffected U.S. researchers to make France "a second homeland."
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Trees Beat Lawns for Water-Hungry L.A.
27/05/2017 Duration: 02minEvaporation from overwatered lawns cost the city of Los Angeles 70 billion gallons of wasted water a year. But the city's trees were much thriftier. Christopher Intagliata reports.
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Former CDC Head Warns of Threats Biological and Political
26/05/2017 Duration: 01minTom Frieden, head of the CDC from 2009 to 2017, told graduating medical students that we face challenges from pathogens, and from politicians.
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Fitness Bands Fail on Calorie Counts
24/05/2017 Duration: 01minActivity trackers accurately reckon heart rate—but they're way off in estimates of energy expenditure. Christopher Intagliata reports.
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New Concrete Recipes Could Cut Cracks
19/05/2017 Duration: 02minRecipes for concrete that incorporate by-products from the coal and steel industries, like fly ash and slag, could reduce road salt–related cracking. Christopher Intagliata reports.
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Bees Prefer Flowers That Proffer Nicotine
17/05/2017 Duration: 02minBumblebees sought out flowers with nicotine in their nectar, and the drug appeared to enhance the bees' memories. Christopher Intagliata reports. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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Large Impacts May Cause Volcanic Eruptions
16/05/2017 Duration: 04minReally big meteorite or asteroid strikes may cause melting and deep deformations that eventually lead to volcanic eruptions. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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Why the Cross Put Chickens on a New Road
15/05/2017 Duration: 03minA religiously inspired change in the European diet about a thousand years ago led to the development of the modern domesticated chicken.
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Field Study: Worms Leave 'Til No-Till
12/05/2017 Duration: 02minEarthworm numbers doubled in fields after farmers switched from conventional plowing to no-till agriculture. Christopher Intagliata reports.
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The Sneaky Danger of Space Dust
11/05/2017 Duration: 03minWhen tiny particles of space debris slam into satellites, the collision could cause the emission of hardware-frying radiation. Christopher Intagliata reports. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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Insects Donate DNA to Unrelated Bugs
10/05/2017 Duration: 01minBacteria swap DNA among themselves. And that process may be more common in multicellular organisms than previously believed. Christopher Intagliata reports.
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Gophers versus the Volcano
09/05/2017 Duration: 02minPocket gophers survived the Mount Saint Helens eruption in their underground burrows and immediately went to work bringing back the ecosystem.
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Wilderness Areas Suffer from Human Sound
07/05/2017 Duration: 02minHuman-produced noise doubles the background sound levels in 63 percent of protected areas, and raises it tenfold in 21 percent of such landscapes.
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Pollution Peaks When Temperatures Top Out
03/05/2017 Duration: 03minAs temperatures rise, energy demands peak, with a corresponding increase in air pollutants. Christopher Intagliata reports. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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Hot Chilies Cool Down Gut Inflammation in Mice
02/05/2017 Duration: 02minThe spicy compound in chilies kicks off a chemical cascade that reduces gut inflammation and immune activity in mice. Christopher Intagliata reports.
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Bronx River's Cleanup Brings Herring Home
01/05/2017 Duration: 02minCalled an "open sewer" in the recent past, the Bronx River is now clean enough for a type of herring to once again be introduced and to make runs to the ocean.
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Ancient Human DNA Found in Cave Dirt
28/04/2017 Duration: 01minScientists uncovered genetic traces of Neandertals and Denisovans by screening cave dirt for DNA. Christopher Intagliata reports.
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Gut Microbes Help Keep Starved Flies Fecund
26/04/2017 Duration: 02minMicrobes living in the guts of fruit flies appear to influence the flies' food choice—and promote egg production, even under a nutrient-poor diet. Christopher Intagliata reports.
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Selective Breeding Molds Foxes into Pets
25/04/2017 Duration: 02minEvolutionary biologist Lee Dugatkin talks about the six-decade Siberian experiment with foxes that has revealed details about domestication in general.
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Why One Researcher Marched for Science
22/04/2017 Duration: 02minLisa Klein, from the materials science and engineering department at Rutgers University, commented on the March for Science at an April 21 talk to the chemistry department at Lehman College in the Bronx.