Nature Podcast
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Inside the evidence revolution — how decision-making became data driven
In this episode of Nature hits the books, we speak with Nature's Helen Pearson whose book Beyond Belief: How Evidence Shows What Really Works looks at the history of using evidence, rather than opinion, in decision making.
The book traces the course of the movement in various disciplines, such as the rise of evidence-based medicine in the 90s, looking at the rebels who led the charge, the barriers they faced, and why the use of evidence is crucial at a time when misinformation is rife.
Beyond Belief: How Evidence Shows What Really Works Helen Pearson Princeton University Press (in the press)
Music supplied by SPD/Triple Scoop Music/Getty Images
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Meet Ace, the table-tennis robot that can beat elite players
In this episode:
00:45 The table-tennis robot that can mix it with the pros
Research Article: Dürr et al.
News and Views: Robot can beat elite players at table tennis
Video: This robot can beat you at table tennis
14:13 Research Highlights
Nature: Venus’s impenetrable haze could be made of cosmic dust
Nature: Graves reveal plague’s inequitable toll
16:21 Why physicists can’t agree on the strength of Big G
Nature: How big is Big G? Mystery deepens after ten-year effort to measure gravity’s strength
Research Article: Schlamminger et al.
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Briefing Chat: Penguins pick up PFAS pollution
In this episode:
00:30 The penguins measuring environmental PFAS
Science: Penguins become marine detectives, thanks to pollutant-detecting anklets
05:14 Treating autoimmune diseases with CAR-T
Nature: One woman, three autoimmune diseases: CAR-T therapy vanquishes ultra-rare disease trio
10:34 Why an anglerfish’s lure might have two uses
Science: Why do anglerfish have glowing lures? It might be sex
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Giant cancer study reveals effectiveness of 'off label' treatments
In this episode:
00:46 A massive trial assessing the outcomes of ‘off label’ cancer treatment
Research Article: Verkerk et al.
12:49 Research Highlights
Nature: Microbial hockey: bacteria can spin a ‘puck’ just by swimming
Nature: Regular physical activity in midlife cuts risk of early death
15:14 10,000 years of western Eurasian evolution
Nature: Landmark ancient-genome study shows surprise acceleration of human evolution
Research Article: Akbari et al.
Never miss an episode. Subscribe to the Nature Podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube Music or your favourite podcast app. An RSS feed for the Nature Podcast is available too.
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Behind the scenes with Artemis II’s scientists during the historic Moon fly-by
In this episode:
On Monday, reporter Alexandra Witze was in the heart of the Artemis II mission’s science operations. She tells us about the experience and what NASA’s researchers have learnt from the mission so far.
Nature: I was with Artemis II’s scientists during the Moon fly-by. Here’s what I saw
Nature: First photos from Artemis II: see stunning ‘Earthset’ and more
Nature: Historic Artemis II Moon fly-by — Nature’s live coverage as it happened
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Briefing Chat: The tongue trick that helps sunbirds suck
In this episode:
00:41 Exosome therapies could deliver drugs to hard to reach places
Nature: Eye drops made from pig semen deliver cancer treatment to mice
5:08 The impact of parenthood on women’s academic careers
Nature: Motherhood derails women’s academic careers — these data reveal how and why
10:34 The unusual suction that lets Sunbirds drink
Science: These birds suck—literally
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Artemis II is go: humans head to the Moon after half-century absence
In this podcast we'll talk about NASA's Artemis II launch, which has ushered in a new era of lunar exploration.
Nature: Lift off! Artemis II mission sends humans to the Moon — opening a new era of exploration
Nature: Artemis II mission is about to fly humans to the Moon — here’s the science they’ll do
Nature: Humanity is heading back to the Moon — why aren’t more scientists thrilled?
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These scientists chased a jet to learn more about ‘lean-burn’ contrails
In this episode:
00:46 Collecting contrails at 30,000 feet
Research Article: Voigt et al.
11:23 Research Highlights
Nature: Sunken Soviet nuclear submarine’s radioactive release
Nature: History of ‘forever’ chemicals is written in Antarctic snow
13:34 Fakery in science
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Briefing Chat: ‘Zombie cells’ resurrected with new genes
Nature staff discuss some of the week's top science news.
00:18 ‘Zombie cells’ revived with genome transplant
Nature: ‘Zombie cells’ return from the dead — after a genome transplant
05:27 A limit to cloning, in mice
Nature: Can a mouse be cloned indefinitely? Decades-long experiment has answers
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Why insects aren't huge: a new challenge to a decades-old idea
00:44 Why insects aren’t massive
Research Article : Snelling et al.
11:39 Research Highlights
Nature: Faster ticking of ‘biological clock’ predicts shorter lifespan
Nature: Mighty mini-magnet is low in cost and light on energy use
14:05 CRISPR creates CAR-T cancer therapy inside mice
Research Article: Nyberg et al.
News & Views: A gene-editing method generates immunotherapeutic CAR T cells in the body
Nature: CRISPR makes enhanced cancer-fighting immune cells inside mice
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Briefing Chat: Are scientists funny? The evidence is in — and it's no joke
In this episode:
00:22 Exploring how gut microorganisms contribute to ageing
Nature: Memory loss is fuelled by gut microbes in ageing mice
04:30 How good jokes are in short supply during academic conferences
Nature: Knock knock, no one’s there. Study finds scientists’ jokes mostly fall flat
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Botanical mystery solved: how plants make a crucial malaria drug
In this episode:
00:46 Piecing together a biochemical puzzle
Research Article : Lombe et al.
12:26 Research Highlights
Nature: Electric-vehicle batteries toughen up to beat the heat
Nature: Live parrots were carried across the Andes before the Incas’ rise
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Briefing chat: ‘Can it run Doom?’ — why scientists got brain cells and a satellite to play the classic game
00:26 Why researchers keep using Doom in their research
Nature: How the classic computer game Doom became a tool for science
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This fish shouldn’t exist — the weird genetics of clonal vertebrates
A study reveals how the asexual Amazon molly defies evolutionary expectations — plus, evidence of what may be powering superluminous supernovae.
In this episode:
00:46 Unravelling the genetics of an asexual fish that should be extinct
Research Article:Ricemeyer et al.
News and Views:How an all-female fish species defies evolutionary expectations
10:19 Research Highlights
Nature:Jam-packed star system is most compact of its kind ever found
Nature:Peanut-processing microbes ward off dangerous allergic shock
11:31 How a superluminous supernova got so bright
Research Article : Farah et al.
News and Views: Ultra-bright supernova wobbles like a spinning top
Subscribe to Nature Briefing, an unmissable daily round-up of science news, opinion and analysis free in your inbox every weekday: https://www.nature.com/briefing/signup
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Briefing chat: What Galileo’s scribbled margin notes reveal about his scientific journey
In this episode:
00:25 How paediatricians’ antibodies could treat serious viral infections
New Scientist: Paediatricians’ blood used to make new treatments for RSV and colds
04:22 Galileo’s annotations in an ancient text
Science: Galileo’s handwritten notes found in ancient astronomy text
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Heart surgery with quick-setting magnetic fluid could prevent strokes
Injectable fluid safely fills area in which blood clots can form, in animal trials — plus, strong evidence that an elusive form of diamond has been made in the lab.
00:47 A magnetic seal to stop clots forming in the heart
Research Article : Wang et al.
News and Views: Magnetic fluid offers better seal in heart-plugging medical procedure
Video:Magnetic gel injected into the heart could stop strokes
07:02 Research Highlights
Nature: Sewage systems secretly waft pollution into the air
Nature: This ant species is composed of only queens — no workers or males
11:31 Making hexagonal diamond
Research Article: Lai et al.
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Audio long read: Many people have no mental imagery. What’s going on in their brains?
This is an audio version of our Feature: Many people have no mental imagery. What’s going on in their brains?
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Briefing chat: Pokémon turns 30 — how Pikachu and pals inspired generations of researchers
In this episode:
00:15 How Pokémon inspired fields as diverse as evolution, biodiversity and research integrity
Nature: Pokémon turns 30 — how the fictional pocket monsters shaped science
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How earthquakes and lightning help explain squeaky sneakers
High-speed footage reveals shoe squeaks can start with a tiny bolt of lightning — plus, evidence that a debated brain phenomenon exists in humans.
00:44 The science of squeaky shoes
Research Article : Djellouli et al.
Basketball sound effects via Bradley Kanaris/Getty.
09:05 Research Highlights
Nature: Runaway black hole leaves a trail of stars
Nature: Super-sticky feet help a robot to climb the walls
11:31 Evidence of hippocampal neurogenesis
Research Article: Disouky et al.
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Briefing chat: How hovering bumblebees keep their cool
00:25 How brains differ by sex and age
Nature: Brain differences between sexes get more pronounced from puberty
07:14 Bumblebees ‘fan themselves’ during flight to keep cool
Science: How do busy bees avoid overheating from flying?
Video: Birds gliding through bubbles reveal aerodynamic trick
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This chunk of glass could store two million books for 10,000 years
00:46 Data stored in glass
Nature: Microsoft Research Project Silica Team
Nature: Microsoft team creates 'revolutionary' data storage system that lasts for millennia
08:09 Research Highlights
Nature: Parasitic wasps use tamed virus to castrate caterpillars
Nature: Flexible joints: robot morphs into a range of cyborg species
10:10 An mRNA vaccine for Triple-Negative Breast Cancer
Nature: Sahin et al.
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Briefing Chat: Caffeine slows brain ageing, suggests decades of data
In this episode:
00:26 Moderate caffeine intake might reduce dementia risk, study suggests
Nature: Coffee linked to slower brain ageing in study of 130,000 people
04:15 Using AI to work out the rules of a long-forgotten board game
Scientific American: Rules of mysterious ancient Roman board game decoded by AI
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These hungry immune cells tidy sleeping flies' brains
In this episode:
00:46 The immune cells that eat waste fats from fruit flies’ brains
Nature: Cho et al.
10:21 Research Highlights
Nature: Beetle is locked into an eternal dance ― with an ant
Nature: Super-sniffer aeroplane finds oil fields’ hidden emissions
12:41 Ancient DNA evidence reveals a nuanced story of the Bell Beaker Expansion
Nature: Olalde et al.
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Briefing Chat: 'External lungs' keep man alive for 48 hours until transplant
In this episode:
00:42 External, artificial-lung system keeps patient alive for transplant
Nature: 48 hours without lungs: artificial organ kept man alive until transplant
06:22 How lung cancer in mice hijacks neurons to outwit the immune system
Nature: How tumours trick the brain into shutting down cancer-fighting cells
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These mysterious ridges could help skin regenerate
00:46 Understanding how rete ridges form in the skin
09:32 Research Highlights
Nature: Genetically engineered ‘stinkweed’ comes up roses for making seed oil
Nature: Largest galaxy survey yet confirms that the Universe is not clumpy enough
11:52 The open-source AI that performs scientific literature reviews
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Briefing Chat: What Brazilian centenarians could reveal about the science of ageing
In this episode:
00:36 Study probes genetics of extreme longevity
Nature: Still working at 107: supercentenarian study probes genetics of extreme longevity
05:32 Controlling fluorescent proteins’ brightness with magnets
Nature: ‘Remote controlled’ proteins illuminate living cells
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How your brain chemistry rewards hard work
00:46 Why completing difficult tasks feels rewarding
Nature: Touponse et al.
11:34 Research Highlights
Nature: Disappearing ‘planet’ reveals a solar system’s turbulent times
Nature: Getting to the (square) root of stock-market swings
13:43 How extreme weather events could threaten malaria elimination efforts
Nature: Symons et al.
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Audio long read: ‘I rarely get outside’ — scientists ditch fieldwork in the age of AI
This is an audio version of our Feature: ‘I rarely get outside’: scientists ditch fieldwork in the age of AIHosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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Briefing Chat: The canny cow that can use tools, and how babies share their microbiomes
In this episode:
00:24 How babies share their gut microbes
Nature: Sending babies to nursery completely reshapes their microbiome
05:25 First evidence of tool use in cattle
Science: No bull: This Austrian cow has learned to use tools
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The biggest 'Schrödinger's cat' yet — physicists put 7,000 atoms in superposition
00:46 Protein-sized superposition surpasses previous experiments
Nature: Pedalino et al.
News: Schrödinger's cat just got bigger: quantum physicists create largest ever 'superposition'
11:46 Research Highlights
Nature: Ancient pottery reveals early evidence of mathematical thinking
Nature: Gifted dogs learn new words by overhearing humans
14:11 How Trump’s second term has impacted research
Nature: US science after a year of Trump
Nature: US science in 2026: five themes that will dominate Trump’s second year
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