The World, the Universe and Us

Omicron, a new covid-19 variant of concern, has become the most common variant in South Africa and is spreading fast. The team examines fears that it may be more transmissible than the delta variant, and better at evading vaccines and immunity. Following research of 5000-year-old beer jars, the team finds out that Ancient Egyptians used to eat (or drink?) alcoholic beer porridge - seriously! Then they go back even further in time to discover the origins of water, and how new evidence suggests water first arrived on Earth like rain from space. They also find out how living robots - xenobots - are able to reproduce, and bring news of a black hole doomsday double whammy. On the pod are Rowan Hooper, Penny Sarchet and Carissa Wong. To read about these stories and much more, subscribe at newscientist.com/podcasts. Thanks to our sponsor Brilliant - remember the first 200 people to sign up using this link http://brilliant.org/newscientist will get 20% off unlimited access to all the courses on Brilliant for a whole year. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Where did covid-19 really come from? Well, the team explains why the wet market in Wuhan is back on top as the most likely place of origin. They also look ahead to the future of the pandemic, as the delta variant continues to run rampant across the globe. In eyesight news, forget carrots - if you want to improve your vision all you need (maybe) is some red light. The team digs into new research which shows that red light can boost mitochondrial activity in cells - but will it prove useful? The team get a little self conscious when the topic of body odour comes up. But this story is actually about an odourless chemical that we emit, that seems to influence human behaviour - affecting men and women differently. They also touch on an innovative new climate-saving method of making plastic, and they find out why NASA is sending a rocket to smash into an asteroid. On the pod are Rowan Hooper, Penny Sarchet, Clare Wilson and Michael Le Page. To read about these stories and much more, subscribe at newscientist.com/podcasts. Thanks to our sponsor Brilliant - remember the first 200 people to sign up using this link http://brilliant.org/newscientist will get 20% off unlimited access to all the courses on Brilliant for a whole year. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The race for quantum supremacy continues, with IBM setting a new benchmark for processing power. But the new supercomputer hasn’t actually demonstrated its capabilities just yet - so will it really beat its competitors? The team shares the latest. They also report on Russia’s ‘dangerous’ anti-satellite weapon test, which sent fragments of satellite hurtling towards the International Space Station. They hear from founder of the popular science YouTube channel Kurzgesagt, Philipp Dettmer, about his new book Immune: A Journey into the Mysterious System That Keeps You Alive. As the dust starts to settle following COP26 in Glasgow, the team reflects on the progress that has been made - providing countries stick to their pledges. And there’s a story about an AI drug detective, which has been trained to help keep “legal highs” off the market. On the pod are Penny Sarchet, Timothy Revell, Matthew Sparkes, Leah Crane, Chelsea Whyte and Conrad Quility-Harper. To read about these stories and much more, subscribe at newscientist.com/podcasts. Thanks to our sponsor Brilliant - remember the first 200 people to sign up using this link http://brilliant.org/newscientist will get 20% off unlimited access to all the courses on Brilliant for a whole year. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Young climate activists from nations bearing the brunt of climate change speak out. In this COP26 special, hear the moving and impassioned words of the young voices representing the plight of the Global South, as they demand action and reparations. As the climate summit comes to an end, the team in Glasgow reflect on their experiences of the event, and unpack the pledges and commitments that have been made. Ahead of the release of the official cover decision - the document that will outline the main outcome of the event - the team explains what we know so far. This includes a joint declaration put out by the US and China - an unexpected but welcome message of hope. They also discuss the developed world’s attempts to make up for breaking the promise made in Paris - the payment of $100 billion that was meant to help developing countries tackle climate change. The team ends by looking to the positives, and discussing the post-Glasgow path ahead. On the pod are Rowan Hooper, Penny Sarchet, Richard Webb, Adam Vaughan and special guest, climate scientist Emily Shuckburgh of the University of Cambridge. Finally, Paris 2015 legend Christiana Figueres pops up to give a message of optimism. And to read about these stories and much more, subscribe at newscientist.com/podcasts. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It’s the most consequential climate meeting in a generation. COP26 is underway and we’re bringing you special episodes of the podcast featuring in-depth analysis and interviews. Reporter Graham Lawton is in Glasgow and shares his experiences of the event, discussing positive news about “game-changing” pledges to cut methane emissions. There have been many exciting pledges made at the event, and the team examines new analysis that suggests we could keep global warming under the 2 degrees mark if countries follow through. Friday is Youth Empowerment Day at COP26, and we hear the thoughts of Larissa Naylor from the University of Glasgow, who started her climate activism when she was 15 by organising Earth Rallies. The team also finds out about a commitment to end nearly all deforestation within nine years. There’s some non-COP news in there too, including an out-of-this-world story about tardigrades, and some amazing work being done to engineer microbes to live inside mammalian cells. On the pod are Rowan Hooper, Penny Sarchet, Graham Lawton and Adam Vaughan. Rowan and Adam will be at Glasgow next week for the second of our special episodes, so stay tuned. In the meantime sign up to our COP26 newsletter here. And to read about these stories and much more, subscribe at newscientist.com/podcasts. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Earth could be heading for disaster. In the lead up to COP26 the team discusses The Emissions Gap, a new UN report which has found that even if countries around the world stick to their emissions pledges, the planet will still warm by 2.7°C, which would be catastrophic. Legendary sci-fi writer Kim Stanley Robinson makes an appearance, discussing his climate heroes, thoughts on geoengineering and on the future of the planet. The team unveils the news that a signal from space that looked like it was sent by aliens… probably wasn’t aliens. They also explain why sperm quality is declining in American men, prompting predictions that the average sperm count will hit zero by 2045. And they discuss the news that Elon Musk’s Tesla has become only the sixth US company ever to reach a trillion dollar valuation. On the pod are Rowan Hooper, Chelsea Whyte, Alice Klein and Leah Crane. To read about these stories and much more, subscribe at newscientist.com/podcasts. If you’re interested in listening to the Sleep Whispers podcast, follow this link. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In rare cases children can be born without an immune system, and sadly their chances are very bad. Fortunately the team brings news of a life-saving implant which has now been approved for use in the US. If you’re thinking of seeing the new film adaptation of Frank Herbert’s epic novel Dune, you’ll want to hear the insights of ecosystem professor Yadvinder Malhi. Herbert was amazingly ahead of his time, anticipating the work of James Lovelock and the Gaia hypothesis, for example.  The team hears about the world’s largest artificial intelligence - the Megatron-Turing Natural Language Generation model - and finds out what it is capable of. They also discuss how hard Iran has been hit by the coronavirus pandemic: new data shows nearly every person in the country has had covid, some twice or even three times. And in the build up to COP26, the team is getting in the party spirit, and shares details of a climate-inspired Spotify playlist they’ve put together. You can listen to it here. On the pod are Rowan Hooper, Chelsea Whyte, Alice Klein, Bethan Ackerley and Matt Sparkes. To read about these stories and much more, subscribe at newscientist.com/podcasts. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Breadfruit could help us weather the storm of climate change. The team hears how the tropical fruit is tough enough to survive Earth’s warming temperatures and could even replace staple crops like wheat in the future. The team finds out why children living below the poverty line experience a raft of health issues, as new research examines the mechanisms that are at play. They also explore a good old fashioned space mystery, after strange signals have been detected from an unknown object at the centre of our galaxy. And that’s not the only exciting space news - they also discuss Blue Origin’s latest passenger flight to space, featuring Star Trek legend William Shatner. They also share deepfake audio of Donald Trump, showcasing how accurate the technology has become, and why we should be concerned. And they share a fascinating new theory about how sea cucumbers are able to survive in extreme environments. On the pod are Rowan Hooper, Penny Sarchet, Michael Le Page, Jason Murugesu and Chelsea Whyte. To read about these stories and much more, subscribe at newscientist.com/podcasts. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The team opens with the welcome news that after 37 years of development, the world’s first malaria vaccine has been approved. They then hear from Swedish author Andreas Malm, who argues that the climate movement needs to get more militant. He says the likes of Extinction Rebellion have 'peace-washed' historical accounts of protest movements, and, controversially, puts the case for escalating from mass civil disobedience to engage in property destruction. The fight against covid is picking up pace - the team unpacks a flurry of announcements about promising new treatments. They discuss the new UAE space mission launching in 2028 which plans to swing by Venus before heading to the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter. They also share a roundup of the physics and chemistry Nobel prize winners, and find out how touch receptors in the skin are involved in social bonding and sexual desire. On the pod are Rowan Hooper, Penny Sarchet and Alice Klein. To read about these stories and much more, subscribe at newscientist.com/podcasts. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

CRISPR gene-edited food has gone on sale commercially for the first time. The team finds out about this ‘super tomato’ which has been created by a startup in Japan. Have you ever wondered why leaves change colour in the autumn? The team discusses an evolutionary explanation suggesting that leaf colour is a signal. Following Greta Thunberg’s latest speech at the pre-COP26 event Youth4Climate, the team reflects on Germany’s recent election, which could be very positive for action on climate change. They also discover how mini-black holes may have created some of the moon’s craters, and they find out why humans don’t have tails. On the pod are Rowan Hooper, Penny Sarchet and Abby Beal. To read about these stories and much more, subscribe at newscientist.com/podcasts. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices