Nature

This week, a speedy, yet simple switch, and a video-based AI helps assess heart health.

In this episode:

01:57 Speedy switches

Researchers have developed an ultra-fast electrical switch that they hope can be used in communication and imaging applications. Research Article: Nikoo et al.

08:14 Research Highlights

Using sound to estimate glacial retreat, and building a dodgier drone. Research Highlight: Underwater microphones listen as as glacier retreats; Research article: Falanga et al.

10:32 Algorithmic heart diagnosis

Scientists have developed a new algorithm which calculates the amount of blood pumped by the heart beat by beat. Research Article: Ouyang et al.; News and Views: AI tracks a beating heart’s function over time

Subscribe to Nature Briefing, an unmissable daily round-up of science news, opinion and analysis free in your inbox every weekday.

Radioactive is a new biopic on Marie Skłodowska Curie with Rosamund Pike taking on the role of Curie. This Podcast Extra is an extended version of reporter Lizzie Gibney's interview with Rosamund, in which they talk about stepping into the shoes of the scientific giant.

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Radioactive is a new biopic on Marie Skłodowska Curie with Rosamund Pike taking on the role of Curie. This Podcast Extra is an extended version of reporter Lizzie Gibney's interview with Rosamund, in which they talk about stepping into the shoes of the scientific giant.

In the first of our new podcast series, Benjamin Thompson, Noah Baker, and Amy Maxmen discuss the epidemiology needed to control the Covid-19 outbreak.

In this episode:

03:57 Testing times

Case numbers of Covid-19 have leapt around the world in recent days, but how many undetected cases are out there? We talk about the urgent need to deploy two of the cornerstones of effective epidemiology – testing and contact tracing – and discuss why these measures aren’t being rolled out worldwide.

News article: Scientists exposed to coronavirus wonder: why weren’t we notified?; News article: South Korea is reporting intimate details of COVID-19 cases: has it helped?; News explainer: What China’s coronavirus response can teach the rest of the world

14:23 Global governance in the wake of Covid-19

The International Health Regulations (IHR) were set up to help countries prepare for, and respond to, public-health emergencies. Rebecca Katz, a health security researcher specialising in emerging infectious diseases, tells us how the IHR are holding up during the Covid-19 outbreak.

Worldview: Pandemic policy can learn from arms control

Subscribe to Nature Briefing, an unmissable daily round-up of science news, opinion and analysis free in your inbox every weekday.

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

In the first of our new podcast series, Benjamin Thompson, Noah Baker, and Amy Maxmen discuss the epidemiology needed to control the Covid-19 outbreak.

In this episode:

03:57 Testing times

Case numbers of Covid-19 have leapt around the world in recent days, but how many undetected cases are out there? We talk about the urgent need to deploy two of the cornerstones of effective epidemiology – testing and contact tracing – and discuss why these measures aren’t being rolled out worldwide.

News article: Scientists exposed to coronavirus wonder: why weren’t we notified?; News article: South Korea is reporting intimate details of COVID-19 cases: has it helped?; News explainer: What China’s coronavirus response can teach the rest of the world

14:23 Global governance in the wake of Covid-19

The International Health Regulations (IHR) were set up to help countries prepare for, and respond to, public-health emergencies. Rebecca Katz, a health security researcher specialising in emerging infectious diseases, tells us how the IHR are holding up during the Covid-19 outbreak.

Worldview: Pandemic policy can learn from arms control

Subscribe to Nature Briefing, an unmissable daily round-up of science news, opinion and analysis free in your inbox every weekday.

This week, we speak to Rosamund Pike about her experience portraying Marie Skłodowska Curie, and we find out how science in Russia is changing after years of decline.

In this episode:

01:43 Radioactive

British actor Rosamund Pike tells us about her new film, and her experience of portraying double Nobel-Laureate Marie Curie. Arts Review: Marie Curie biopic should have trusted pioneer’s passion

10:17 Research Highlights

The neural circuitry involved in stopping, and a jelly-like substance that cleans paintings. Research Highlight: A neural highway to human motor control; Research article: Mastrangelo et al.

12:27 Russian science

Decades after the collapse of the Soviet Union, Russian science may be having a revival. News Feature: Russia aims to revive science after era of stagnation; Editorial: The price of Russia–China research collaborations

Subscribe to Nature Briefing, an unmissable daily round-up of science news, opinion and analysis free in your inbox every weekday.

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

This week, we speak to Rosamund Pike about her experience portraying Marie Skłodowska Curie, and we find out how science in Russia is changing after years of decline.

In this episode:

01:43 Radioactive

British actor Rosamund Pike tells us about her new film, and her experience of portraying double Nobel-Laureate Marie Curie. Arts Review: Marie Curie biopic should have trusted pioneer’s passion

10:17 Research Highlights

The neural circuitry involved in stopping, and a jelly-like substance that cleans paintings. Research Highlight: A neural highway to human motor control; Research article: Mastrangelo et al.

12:27 Russian science

Decades after the collapse of the Soviet Union, Russian science may be having a revival. News Feature: Russia aims to revive science after era of stagnation; Editorial: The price of Russia–China research collaborations

Subscribe to Nature Briefing, an unmissable daily round-up of science news, opinion and analysis free in your inbox every weekday.

In this Podcast Extra, we hear from epidemiologists, genomicists and social scientists about how they're working to tackle the coronavirus and what they've learned so far.

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

In this Podcast Extra, we hear from epidemiologists, genomicists and social scientists about how they're working to tackle the coronavirus and what they've learned so far.

Research in the 1960s and 1970s suggested that emotional expressions – smiling when happy, scowling when angry, and so on – were universal. This idea stood unchallenged for a generation.

But a new cohort of psychologists and cognitive scientists are revisiting the data. Many researchers now think that the picture is a lot more complicated, and that facial expressions vary widely between contexts and cultures.

This is an audio version of our feature: Why faces don’t always tell the truth about feelings, written by Douglas Heaven and read by Kerri Smith.

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Research in the 1960s and 1970s suggested that emotional expressions – smiling when happy, scowling when angry, and so on – were universal. This idea stood unchallenged for a generation.

But a new cohort of psychologists and cognitive scientists are revisiting the data. Many researchers now think that the picture is a lot more complicated, and that facial expressions vary widely between contexts and cultures.

This is an audio version of our feature: Why faces don’t always tell the truth about feelings, written by Douglas Heaven and read by Kerri Smith.

This week, a newly discovered bird species from the time of the dinosaurs, and microbes hundreds of metres below the ocean floor.

In this episode:

00:44 A tiny, toothy, ancient bird

Researchers have found a perfectly preserved bird fossil trapped in amber, with some rather unusual features. Research Article: Xing et al.; News and Views: Tiny bird fossil might be the world’s smallest dinosaur

08:09 Research Highlights

Dental hygiene in the time of the Vikings, and wildebeest bones feed an African ecosystem. Research Article: Bertilsson et al; Research Article: Subalusky et al.

10:21 Deep sea life

Scientists have uncovered traces of life 750m below the ocean’s surface. Research article: Li et al.

17:31 News Chat

Updates on the Coronavirus outbreak, and peer review in predatory journals. News: Coronavirus: latest news on spreading infection; News: Labs rush to study coronavirus in transgenic animals — some are in short supply

CORRECTION: This podcast states that the small bird skull found in amber is 7.1mm long. This figure only refers to the back section of the skull excluding the ‘beak’. The skull is actually 14.25mm long.

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

This week, a newly discovered bird species from the time of the dinosaurs, and microbes hundreds of metres below the ocean floor.

In this episode:

00:44 A tiny, toothy, ancient bird

Researchers have found a perfectly preserved bird fossil trapped in amber, with some rather unusual features. Research Article: Xing et al.; News and Views: Tiny bird fossil might be the world’s smallest dinosaur

08:09 Research Highlights

Dental hygiene in the time of the Vikings, and wildebeest bones feed an African ecosystem. Research Article: Bertilsson et al; Research Article: Subalusky et al.

10:21 Deep sea life

Scientists have uncovered traces of life 750m below the ocean’s surface. Research article: Li et al.

17:31 News Chat

Updates on the Coronavirus outbreak, and peer review in predatory journals. News: Coronavirus: latest news on spreading infection; News: Labs rush to study coronavirus in transgenic animals — some are in short supply

This week, improving computers’ image identification, and a new method for growing crystals.

00:44 Upgrading computer sight

Researchers have designed a sensor that allows machines to assess images in nanoseconds. Research Article: Mennel et al.; News and Views: In-sensor computing for machine vision

06:51 Research Highlights

Calorie restriction’s effects on rat cells, and the dwindling of sandy seashores. Research Highlight: Old age’s hallmarks are delayed in dieting rats; Research Highlight: Sandy beaches are endangered worldwide as the climate changes

08:53 Crafting crystals

To understand the structure of materials, researchers often have to grow them in crystal form. A new method aims to speed up this process. Research article: Sun et al.

14:48 News Chat

Coronavirus outbreak updates, and climate change’s role in the Australian bush fires. News: Coronavirus: latest news on spreading infection; News: Climate change made Australia's 'unprecedented' bushfires 30% more likely

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

This week, improving computers’ image identification, and a new method for growing crystals.

00:44 Upgrading computer sight

Researchers have designed a sensor that allows machines to assess images in nanoseconds. Research Article: Mennel et al.; News and Views: In-sensor computing for machine vision

06:51 Research Highlights

Calorie restriction’s effects on rat cells, and the dwindling of sandy seashores. Research Highlight: Old age’s hallmarks are delayed in dieting rats; Research Highlight: Sandy beaches are endangered worldwide as the climate changes

08:53 Crafting crystals

To understand the structure of materials, researchers often have to grow them in crystal form. A new method aims to speed up this process. Research article: Sun et al.

14:48 News Chat

Coronavirus outbreak updates, and climate change’s role in the Australian bush fires. News: Coronavirus: latest news on spreading infection; News: Climate change made Australia's 'unprecedented' bushfires 30% more likely

In this edition of Backchat we take a deep dive into Nature's coverage of coronavirus. As cases climb, what are some of the challenges involved in reporting on the virus?

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

In this edition of Backchat we take a deep dive into Nature's coverage of coronavirus. As cases climb, what are some of the challenges involved in reporting on the virus?

This week, the brain pathways of egg laying in fruit flies, and preventing fractures in metallic glass.

In this episode:

00:46 Working out the wiring behind fruit fly behaviour

Researchers have identified a neural circuit linking mating and egg laying in female fruit flies. Research Article: Wang et al.

06:01 Research Highlights

Ancient, cave-dwelling cockroaches, and hairy moths dampen sound. Research Highlight: Cockroaches preserved in amber are the world’s oldest cave dwellers; Research Highlight: Stealth flyers: moths’ fuzz is superior acoustic camouflage

07:57 Making better metallic glass

Metallic glasses have many desirable properties, but these materials are prone to fracturing. Now, a new manufacturing process may have overcome this issue. Research article: Pan et al.; News and Views: Metallic glasses rejuvenated to harden under strain

13:47 News Chat

Coronavirus outbreak updates, a survey shows Indian bird numbers are in decline, and the genomes of New York rats. News: Coronavirus: latest news on spreading infection; News: Hundreds of bird species in India are declining; News: Genomes reveal how New York City’s rats thrive in the urban jungle

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

This week, the brain pathways of egg laying in fruit flies, and preventing fractures in metallic glass.

In this episode:

00:46 Working out the wiring behind fruit fly behaviour

Researchers have identified a neural circuit linking mating and egg laying in female fruit flies. Research Article: Wang et al.

06:01 Research Highlights

Ancient, cave-dwelling cockroaches, and hairy moths dampen sound. Research Highlight: Cockroaches preserved in amber are the world’s oldest cave dwellers; Research Highlight: Stealth flyers: moths’ fuzz is superior acoustic camouflage

07:57 Making better metallic glass

Metallic glasses have many desirable properties, but these materials are prone to fracturing. Now, a new manufacturing process may have overcome this issue. Research article: Pan et al.; News and Views: Metallic glasses rejuvenated to harden under strain

13:47 News Chat

Coronavirus outbreak updates, a survey shows Indian bird numbers are in decline, and the genomes of New York rats. News: Coronavirus: latest news on spreading infection; News: Hundreds of bird species in India are declining; News: Genomes reveal how New York City’s rats thrive in the urban jungle

In recent days, the number of coronavirus cases have surged in South Korea.

In this Podcast Extra Nick Howe speaks to Bartosz Gryzbowski, a researcher based in the Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology, which is just 60km away from epicentre of the South Korean outbreak. He explains how the outbreak has affected his research and what the atmosphere is like there at the moment.

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.