Nature

The UK government has announced that virtually all COVID restrictions will be removed in England on Monday 18th July. This will do away with social distancing requirements, allow businesses to re-open to full capacity and remove legal mask mandates. This decision comes, however, amidst soaring infections rates in the country, driven by the delta variant.Now scientists are questioning the wisdom of this policy and asking whether the combination of high transmission and a partially vaccinated population could provide the perfect breeding ground for vaccine-resistant variants - a possibility which could have devastating global consequences.News: Why England’s COVID ‘freedom day’ alarms researchers
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Why heat waves disproportionately impact minorities in US cities, and the researcher that critiqued his whole career on Twitter.In this episode:00:45 How heat waves kill unequallyResearchers are beginning to unpick how historic discrimination in city planning is making the recent heat waves in North America more deadly for some than others.News Feature: Racism is magnifying the deadly impact of rising city heat11:59 Research HighlightsA graphene layer can protect paintings from age, and a new and endangered species of ‘fairy lantern’.Research Highlight: A graphene cloak keeps artworks’ colours agelesResearch Highlight: Newfound ‘fairy lantern’ could soon be snuffed out forever14:25 Self-criticismWhen researcher Nick Holmes decided to criticise his past papers, in 57 tweets, he found the reflection enlightening. Now he’s encouraging other researchers to self-criticise, to help speed scientific progress.World View: I critiqued my past papers on social media — here’s what I learnt20:53 Briefing ChatWe discuss some highlights from the Nature Briefing. This time, Richard Branson’s commercial space flight, and the Maori perspective on Antarctic conservation.The Washington Post: Richard Branson and his Virgin Galactic crew are safely back from space, ushering in a new eraThe New York Times: The Maori Vision of Antarctica’s Future (intermittent paywall)Subscribe to Nature Briefing, an unmissable daily round-up of science news, opinion and analysis free in your inbox every weekday.
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For much of the pandemic, the greatest burden of disease has been felt by older generations. But now, for the first time, vaccine roll outs are starting to skew the average age of those infections towards the young. This has led many researchers to ask what this might mean for the future of the pandemic. In this episode of Coronapod we discuss what we know and what we don't know about this change in the demographic profile of COVID infections. We ask how this might impact global vaccination efforts, disease transmission and the health and wellbeing of young people.News: Will COVID become a disease of the young?News: How kids’ immune systems can evade COVIDPodcast: Coronapod: counting the cost of long COVIDPodcast: Coronapod: Kids and COVID vaccinesSubscribe to Nature Briefing, an unmissable daily round-up of science news, opinion and analysis free in your inbox every weekday.
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Addressing the problem of sudden food scarcity in US cities, and the up-and-coming field of computational social science.In this episode:00:45 Food shocksClimate change, the COVID-19 pandemic, and geopolitical crises can cause food shortages. To tackle this issue, Alfonso Mejia and colleagues have modelled how to best mitigate these food shocks in US cities. Alfonso tells us about the new analyses and what steps cities could take in the future.Research Article: Gomez et al.News and Views: How to buffer against an urban food shortage06:07 Research HighlightsA tiny lattice can withstand the impacts of projectiles at twice the speed of sound, and the neurons that allow humans to perceive time.Research Highlight: Supersonic strikes leave just a dent in this super-light materialResearch Highlight: The ‘time neurons’ that help the brain keep track08:25 Computational Social ScienceBig data is transforming research, and social science is no exception. This week, Nature is running a special issue on ‘computational social science’. We catch up with some of the editors involved to find out more about this up-and-coming field.Collections: Computational Social Science19:27 Briefing ChatWe discuss some highlights from the Nature Briefing. This time, discovering the dazzling diversity of viruses, and how China eradicated malaria.Nature News Feature: Beyond coronavirus: the virus discoveries transforming biologyScience: It’s official: China has eliminated malariaSubscribe to Nature Briefing, an unmissable daily round-up of science news, opinion and analysis free in your inbox every weekday.
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Since the beginning oft he pandemic, researchers have searched for a biomarker which indicates immune protection from COVID-19 known as a correlate of protection. Now, the team developing the Oxford–AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine have published the first results of their so-called 'breakthrough study' which indicated puts forwards thresholds of neutralising antibodies that they suggest correlate with protection. The hope is that, should these results be confirmed, such biomarkers could speed up the development of new vaccines, and provide better ways to monitor the efficacy of tweaked vaccine aimed at fighting variants.News: Scientists identify long-sought marker for COVID vaccine successSubscribe to Nature Briefing, an unmissable daily round-up of science news, opinion and analysis free in your inbox every weekday.
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A historian reflects on the life of Chinese crop scientist Yuan Longping, and the possible influence of geothermal energy production on earthquake aftershocks.In this episode:00:46 Remembering Yuan LongpingYuan Longping, one of China’s most famous scientists, died in May at the age of 90. Known as the ‘father of hybrid rice’, we reflect on his life and the impact of his research, which helped feed billions of people.Obituary: Yuan Longping (1930–2021)09:55 Research HighlightsThe ancient and incredibly well-preserved beetle found in dinosaur poo, and a 5,000 year old, less transmissible strain of plague bacteria.Research Highlight: A piece of Triassic poo yields a beautifully preserved beetleResearch Highlight: A hunter-gather’s bones yield the oldest known strain of plague12:14 Geothermal power and earthquake aftershocksIn 2019, a magnitude 7.1 earthquake rippled through California, except – according to some researchers – at the site of a geothermal power plant. Now, a paper in Nature tries to understand why.Research paper: Im et al.16:47 Briefing ChatWe discuss some highlights from the Nature Briefing. This time, the new skull fossils that might expand the human family tree, and a new estimate of the age of an ancient ‘living fossil’.Nature News: Mysterious skull fossils expand human family tree — but questions remainScience: This ‘living fossil’ could reach 100 years oldSubscribe to Nature Briefing, an unmissable daily round-up of science news, opinion and analysis free in your inbox every weekday.
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A deluge of trials has stress-tested the systems that produce evidence.Around the world, researchers have raced to test therapies to treat COVID-19. The speed and urgency of this task has revealed both the weaknesses in the collection and use of research-based evidence, and how well-run trials have helped save lives.This is an audio version of our feature: How COVID broke the evidence pipeline
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Early vaccine trials did not include pregnant or breastfeeding people which left some people asking whether COVID vaccines are safe and effective for those who are breastfeeding. The latest data suggests that they are and in this episode of Coronapod we dig into the questions scientists have been asking. Could the vaccine make it into breastmilk? Can COVID antibodies be transferred to a breastfeeding child? And if so, how?News Feature: COVID vaccines and breastfeeding: what the data saySubscribe to Nature Briefing, an unmissable daily round-up of science news, opinion and analysis free in your inbox every weekday.
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Researchers isolate the protein thought to allow birds to sense magnetic fields, and astronomers pinpoint the stars that could view Earth as an exoplanet.In this episode:00:45 Homing in on the molecule that helps birds find their way.How migratory birds sense magnetic fields is a long standing mystery in sensory biology. Now researchers have isolated a molecule, found within the eyes of these birds, which might act as a compass using quantum mechanics.Research paper: Xu et al.07:28 Research HighlightsHow spending time on land boosts the brainpower of amphibious fish, and the neural pathway of sneezing has been revealed.Research Highlight: Amphibious fish get smart — by working out on landResearch Highlight: How the brain makes us go ‘Achoo!’09:52 Exoplanet EarthAstronomers have catalogued almost 2,000 stars from which the Earth could be detected passing in front of the Sun. The team suggest that these stars would be good targets to search for planets that could harbour life.Research Article: Kaltenegger & Faherty18:46 Briefing ChatWe discuss some highlights from the Nature Briefing. This time, the unexpected science kicked up by the Ingenuity helicopter on Mars, and how science is embracing the world of non-fungible tokens (NFTs).Nature News: Mars helicopter kicks up ‘cool’ dust clouds — and unexpected scienceNature News: How scientists are embracing NFTsSubscribe to Nature Briefing, an unmissable daily round-up of science news, opinion and analysis free in your inbox every weekday.
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After a slew of wildly successful vaccine trials, this week marked a more underwhelming result. The third mRNA vaccine to complete phase three trials, developed by CureVac, is just 47% effective at staving off disease according to preliminary data. This is a stark contrast with previous mRNA vaccines from Moderna and Pfizer BioNtec which returned around twice that efficacy in their trials. In this episode of Coronapod, we ask why the CureVac vaccine has faltered, and what this might mean for the future of the pandemic and mRNA vaccine development.News: CureVac COVID vaccine let-down spotlights mRNA design challengesNews Feature: How COVID unlocked the power of RNA vaccinesSubscribe to Nature Briefing, an unmissable daily round-up of science news, opinion and analysis free in your inbox every weekday.
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The pros and pitfalls of collaboration, with insights from researchers and beyond.This week, Nature has a special issue on collaborations, looking at the benefits to science and society that working together can bring. In this collaboration-themed edition of the podcast, we’re joined by Nature’s David Payne to discuss the issue, and the state of research collaborations in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.In this episode:02:49 How are research collaborations changing?To answer the biggest questions, research teams are coming together in larger numbers than ever before. But the scientific enterprise hasn’t been set up to support or reward team efforts. We look at how funding systems and methods for giving research-credit need to adapt, to match the reality of modern science.Feature: How the COVID pandemic is changing global science collaborationsCareers Feature: The authorship rows that sour scientific collaborationsCareers Feature: ‘We need to talk’: ways to prevent collaborations breaking down16:45 Community-research collaborationsIn order to do research that can help communities, scientists need to develop relationships with community members. Creating these bonds can be fraught with difficulty, so we examine how to make them work using the example of Flint, Michigan in the US.Comment: Community–academic partnerships helped Flint through its water crisisNature Video: China and the UK: Making an international collaboration workTake Nature’s 2021 International Salary and Job Satisfaction SurveySubscribe to Nature Briefing, an unmissable daily round-up of science news, opinion and analysis free in your inbox every weekday.
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The global burden of COVID-19 has predominantly been measured using metrics like case numbers, hospitalisations and deaths. But the long term health impacts are more difficult to capture. In this episode of Coronapod we discuss one way that public health experts are trying to get to grips with the problem using metrics such as disability adjusted life years (DALYs) and quality adjusted life years (QALYs).As new data suggests that COVID could leave millions with lasting disability or ill-health, we ask how changing the lens through which we asses the impacts of COVID could change public health policies, the perception of risk and even the behaviour of individuals.News Feature: The four most urgent questions about long COVIDComment: Count the cost of disability caused by COVID-19Subscribe to Nature Briefing, an unmissable daily round-up of science news, opinion and analysis free in your inbox every weekday.
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An AI that designs computer chips in hours, and zooming in on DNA’s complex 3D structures.In this episode:00:46 An AI computer microchip designerWorking out where to place the billions of components that a modern computer chip needs can take human designers months and, despite decades of research, has defied automation. This week, however, a team from Google report a new machine learning algorithm that does the job in a fraction of the time, and is already helping design their next generation of AI processors.Research Article: Mirhoseini et al.News and Views: AI system outperforms humans in designing floorplans for microchipsEditorial: Google is using AI to speed up microchip design — a welcome advance that must be handled with care07:00 Research HighlightsThe blood proteins that may help assess cardiovascular fitness, and how the rock-hard teeth of a mollusc could inspire stronger 3D-printed materials.Research Highlight: How fit can you get? These blood proteins hold a clueResearch Highlight: The surprise hidden in the teeth of the ‘wandering meatloaf’09:47 Zooming in on the 3D structure of DNAIn order to switch genes on, DNA often needs to twist up into complex 3D shapes, bringing distant parts of a genome together. Understanding precisely which sections come into contact has been difficult, but now a new technique is helping to reveal them at an individual base-pair level.Research paper: Hua et al.15:22 Briefing ChatWe discuss some highlights from the Nature Briefing. This time, the missing sections from the human genome sequence that have now been filled, and NASA announces two missions to Venus.Stat: Researchers claim they have sequenced the entirety of the human genome — including the missing partsNational Geographic: NASA will head to Venus for first time in roughly 30 yearsSubscribe to Nature Briefing, an unmissable daily round-up of science news, opinion and analysis free in your inbox...
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Since the beginning of the pandemic, there have been allegations that SARS-CoV-2 could have originated in a Chinese lab. A phase one WHO investigation concluded that a 'lab-leak' was "extremely unlikely" and yet, the theory has seen a resurgence in recent weeks with several scientists wading into the debate.In this episode of Coronapod, we delve into what scientists have been saying and ask how and why the 'lab-leak' hypothesis has gained so much traction. We ask if the way we communicate complex and nuanced science could be fuelling division, and what the fallout could be for international collaboration on ending the pandemic.News: Divisive COVID ‘lab leak’ debate prompts dire warnings from researchersScience: Investigate the origins of COVID-19Subscribe to Nature Briefing, an unmissable daily round-up of science news, opinion and analysis free in your inbox every weekday.
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The cross-discipline effort to work our how ancient humans learned to count.In this episode:00:45 Number originsAround the world, archaeologists, linguists and a host of other researchers are trying to answer some big questions – when, and how, did humans learn to count? We speak to some of the scientists at the forefront of this effort.News Feature: How did Neanderthals and other ancient humans learn to count?07:47 Research HighlightsHow sea anemones influence clownfish stripes, and how skin-to-skin contact can improve survival rates for high-risk newborns.Research Highlight: How the clownfish gets its stripesResearch Highlight: Nestling skin-to-skin right after birth saves fragile babies’ lives09:48 Briefing ChatWe discuss some highlights from the Nature Briefing. This time, an upper limit for human ageing, and could tardigrades survive a collision with the moon?Scientific American: Humans Could Live up to 150 Years, New Research SuggestsScience: Hardy water bears survive bullet impacts—up to a pointSubscribe to Nature Briefing, an unmissable daily round-up of science news, opinion and analysis free in your inbox every weekday.
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A vaccine candidate for a neglected tropical disease, and calls to extend the 14-day limit on embryo research.In this episode:00:46 A vaccine candidate for an important livestock diseaseAfrican animal trypanosomiasis is a parasitic disease that kills millions of cattle each year, affecting livelihoods and causing significant economic costs in many sub-Saharan countries. Developing a vaccine against the disease has proved difficult as the parasite has a wealth of tricks to evade the immune system. This week however, a team of researchers have created a vaccine candidate that shows early promise in mice.Research Article: Autheman et al.08:27 Research HighlightsA tapeworm infection helps worker ants live longer (at a cost), and how humanity’s shift to farming influenced plant-life in pre-industrial times.Research Highlight: Tapeworm infestation gives lowly ants long lifeResearch Highlight: Our radical changes to Earth’s greenery began long ago — with farms, not factories11:21 New guidelines for stem cell researchFor the first time since 2016, the International Society for Stem Cell Research has updated its guidelines for biomedical research involving human embryos. We discuss the rapid advances in the field over the past five years, and how the new guidelines have had to change to keep pace with them.News: 14-day limit on growing human embryos in lab dropped by advisory bodySubscribe to Nature Briefing, an unmissable daily round-up of science news, opinion and analysis free in your inbox every weekday.
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Scientists are trying to figure out whether these pervasive plastic specks are dangerous.Wherever they look – from the bottom of oceans to the top of mountains – researchers are uncovering tiny specks of plastic, known as microplastics.Scientists are trying to understand the potential impacts of ingesting these pervasive plastics but early results are ambiguous, as some experiments might not reflect the diversity of microplastics that exist in the real world.This is an audio version of our feature: Microplastics are everywhere — but are they harmful?
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Smouldering fires lay dormant before bursting back into flame in spring.In this episode:00:56 The mysterious overwintering forest firesResearchers have shown that fires can smoulder under snow in frozen northern forests before flaring up the following spring. Understanding how these so-called ‘zombie’ fires start and spread is vital in the fight against climate change.Research Article: Scholten et al.07:39 Research HighlightsAesthetic bias means pretty plants receive the most research attention, and ancient tooth gunk reveals the evolution of the mouth microbiome.Research Highlight: Flashy plants draw outsize share of scientists’ attentionResearch Highlight: Microbes in Neanderthals’ mouths reveal their carb-laden diet10:04 Briefing ChatWe discuss some highlights from the Nature Briefing. This time, Voyager 1 detects a faint interstellar ‘hum’, and a trove of Neanderthal bones found in an Italian cave.Reuters: Faraway NASA probe detects the eerie hum of interstellar spaceThe Guardian: Remains of nine Neanderthals found in cave south of RomeVideo: Hawaii’s surprise volcanic eruption: Lessons from Kilauea 2018
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Over the past few weeks, India has been experiencing a devastating second wave of COVID-19, recording hundreds of thousands of new cases a day.Evidence is growing that a new variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus known as B.1.617, first detected in India in October, may be driving this wave.On this week’s Coronapod we talk about the race to learn more about B.1.617, with early results suggesting it may be more transmissible and could cause more severe disease.News: Coronavirus variants are spreading in India — what scientists know so far
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A new neural interface lets people type with their mind, and a crafting journey into materials science.In this episode:00:45 A brain interface to type out thoughtsResearchers have developed a brain-computer interface that is able to read brain signals from people thinking about handwriting, and translate them into on-screen text. The team hope this technology could be used to help people with paralysis to communicate quicker than before.Research Article: Willett et al.News and Views: Neural interface translates thoughts into typeVideo: The BCI handwriting system in action07:37 Research HighlightsLight-sensitive cells help headless worms ‘see’ with their bodies, and a wearable device that monitors itchiness.Research Highlight: How headless worms see the light to steerResearch Highlight: How itchy are you? A new device knows precisely10:26 The science of everyday materialsMaterials scientist Anna Ploszajski joins us to talk about her new book Handmade, which details how her journey into craft helped shape her materials research.Book review: From spoons to semiconductors — we are what we make18:26 Briefing ChatWe discuss some highlights from the Nature Briefing. This time, the genomes of some viruses that contain a very unusual DNA nucleobase, and the smouldering nuclear reactions that remain in the wreckage of the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant.Nature: Weird viral DNA spills secrets to biologistsScience: ‘It’s like the embers in a barbecue pit.’ Nuclear reactions are smoldering again at Chernobyl
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