Energy Roundup
Scientists are developing brain implants powered by the body’s own sugars.
Drugs from Nature Roundup
Medical researchers tackle deadly diseases with the help of worms and poppies.
Podcast for 25 May 2012
FARM SCIENCE - Does exposure to farms and forests stave off asthma and allergies? How to combat viruses with pigs. And why milk goes sour faster than other beverages.
Biodiversity, Allergies & Asthma
People who live around fewer varieties of plants, and whose skin carries fewer kinds of bacteria, are more likely to have allergies.
Spoiled Milk
A listener asks why milk goes bad more quickly than other beverages.
Podcast for 11 May 2012
BIRDS & DINOSAURS - Scientists discover T. Rex's feathered cousin, did dino gas warm the ancient earth? And giant fleas that may have pestered the prehistoric giants. Also: why the amorous pursuits of an Australian bird has turned it into a horticulturalist, and how ravens keep track of friend and foe.
Gardening Birds
Male Spotted Bowerbirds unintentionally cultivate ornamental plants while attempting to woo the opposite sex.
Australian Extinction
Human hunters drove Australia’s largest animals to extinction around 40,000 years ago.
Podcast for 23 March 2012
EVOLUTION & EXTINCTION - What really happened to Australia's missing megafauna, how carnivores lost their sweet tooth, why lovelorn fruit flies resort to alcohol, strategic miscarriages in monkeys, and a new frog species is discovered in plain sight.
Plants into Plastic
A new technique generates two key plastic components from plant material.
Boosting Photosynthesis
Researchers are trying to boost the efficiency of photosynthesis in crops like soybeans, rice and potatoes to feed the world’s growing population.
Podcast for 18 February 2012
AAAS 2012 ANNUAL MEETING SPECIAL - This week, we're coming to you from Vancouver, British Columbia, where scientists are gathering to tackle issues or global importance, such as how to boost crop productivity to feed a growing population, and making cookstoves safer for the world's poor. Also: video games to combat cataracts, and ultra-thin electronics printed with silver ink.
Flora & Fauna Roundup
Researchers have discovered what makes buttercups so shiny.
Podcast for 16 December 2011
BEHAVIOR, ECOLOGY & ENVIRONMENT - why dirty laundry could be damaging the environment, how to make wine growing compatible with wildlife, what the Monarch butterfly genome can tell us about their epic migrations, and how wasps see faces.
DNA Fingerprint Roundup
New uses for DNA fingerprinting include tracking deadly tse-tse flies and identifying species from ancient soil samples.
Wine & Wildlife
Wildlife often suffer from our insatiable need for agricultural land. But researchers in California are finding that birds and vineyards can actually benefit each other.
Gypsy Moth Virus
A single gene in a lethal virus makes gypsy moth caterpillars stop molting and eat constantly.
Podcast for 23 September 2011
PLANETS & PATHOGENS - Gardening for Mars, the darkest planet, a parasite that turns rats against themselves, telling the viruses from the bacteria, and the link between caffeine and skin cancer prevention.
Podcast for 9 September 2011
MARVELS OF EVOLUTION - A prehistoric pregnancy clears up a Mesozoic mystery. The economics of plant-fungi cooperation. How to get six butterflies in one. Counting up the species on earth. And how your stress could be bad news for your mate if you're a finch.
Species Roundup
A new study documents the rate at which species are moving toward the poles or up the sides of mountains to escape climate change.
Free-Market Fungi
Symbiotic plants and fungi reward generous trade partners and punish stingy ones.
Podcast for 26 August 2011
FEAR, LIES & SHRINKING BRAINS - Why our brains shrink, but chimps' don't, why computers are better at spotting lies than we are, and an enzyme for fear. Also, medical electronics that resemble tattoos, and how organic chicken farms could be a boon to public health.
Plant Sonar
A Cuban plant has acoustically-enhanced leaves that help pollinating bats find it in the dark.
Nature Roundup
Scientists are sequencing the genomes of thousands of insect species.