The 2023 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine was awarded to Katalin Karikó and Drew Weismann for their contributions to developing the fundamentals that led to life saving mRNA vaccines. Although funding and support were not always assured on their road to the Nobel, Katalin Karikó tells Roland she used these setbacks to drive her towards success. On the other side of the coin, allegations of scientific misconduct over bold room temperature superconductivity claims. Earlier this year, eleven authors submitted a paper to Nature. Now, eight of them are calling for a retraction. Science journalist Dan Garisto covers the story. Also this week, NASA Ames researcher Jacob Kegerreis details how Saturn got its rings. Hint: It’s a smashing story. And, what is the most fear inducing sound in the world? Lions roaring? Gunshots? According to mammals in South Africa it is the human voice. Fear-ecologist Liana Zanette explains.
Presenter: Roland Pease
Producer: Ella Hubber
Editor: Martin Smith
Production Co-ordinator: Jana Bennett-Holesworth (Image: Katalin Karikó. Credit: Mark Makela / Getty Images)
Folgen von Science In Action
335 Folgen
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Folge vom 05.10.2023The best and the worst
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Folge vom 28.09.2023Trilobite dinnerWhat did a 465-million-year-old trilobite eat for dinner? And how can we possibly know? Archaeologist Per Ahlberg has used x-ray to peer into the guts of one ancient scuttling creature and worked out what it what was munching on in its final moments. From life in ancient earth rocks to potential life in space rocks, mineralogist and astrobiologist Bob Hazen has been training AI to spot signatures of life on Earth. He now hopes to use this tool on space samples. We also ask experimental particle physicist Jeffrey Hangst how antimatter, the last mystery of the universe, responds to gravity - was Einstein's theory of general relativity right? And the antiviral Covid medication, Molnupiravir, may be causing the virus to mutate. Theo Sanderson discusses how he figured this out and how concerned we should be. Presenter: Roland Pease Producer: Ella Hubber Editor: Martin Smith Production co-ordinator: Jana Bennett-Holesworth (Image: Fig. 1: Bohemolichas incola (Barrande, 1872). Credit: Kraft et al)
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Folge vom 21.09.2023More likely, more intenseStorm Daniel devastated the city of Derna in Libya after heavy rainfall broke a dam, causing extreme flooding downstream. The World Weather Attribution (WWA) reports that severe flooding in Libya and across the Mediterranean has been made more likely and more intense due to human induced climate change. WWA scientist Friederike Otto gets into the report. Back in 2020, NASA’s OSIRIS-REx scooped up rock and dust samples from asteroid Bennu and on Sunday September 24th, 2023 the sample capsule will finally be released 100,000 kilometres above Earth, delivering it to the Great Salk Lake Desert. OSIRIS REx engineer Anjani Polit tells us about the nail-biting return. Also this week, Dr Peter Hotez warns us about the dangerous and rapid rise of anti-science sentiment in the United States. It’s all in his new book "The Deadly Rise of Anti-Science". And the remnants of what is thought to be the oldest wooden structure have been found in Zambia. Professor of Archaeology Lawrence Barham talks about the simple structure made by our ancestors almost 500,000 years ago. Presenter: Roland Pease Producer: Ella Hubber Editor: Martin Smith Production Co-ordinator: Jana Bennett-Holesworth (Image: Building collapsed and surrounded by rubble following floods in Derna. Credit: RICARDO GARCIA VILANOVA / Getty Images)
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Folge vom 14.09.2023Deadly floods in DernaEarlier this week the deadly Mediterranean cyclone, Storm Daniel, swept through the small city of Derna in Libya, collapsing a 50-year-old dam in its wake, and triggering devastating floods which have killed over 5000 people. We speak to atmospheric scientist, Stavros Dafis, about the cyclone’s characteristics and to civil and structural engineer, Lis Bowman, about the dam collapse. Unsurprisingly, it all comes back to climate change. Far, far from Earth, the James Webb Space Telescope has set its site on the atmosphere of exoplanet K2-18b where the presence of methane and carbon dioxide offer the tantalising possibility of an extraterrestrial Ocean. Astrophysicist Nikku Madhusudhan discusses his exciting results. And an even less expected presence in space: the ancient remains of our ancestors. Archaeologist Lee Berger has come under fire after sending precious bone samples on a Virgin Galactic space flight. South African archaeologist, Robyn Pickering, expresses the frustration that is on everyone’s mind. Also expressing their anger, two young climate protesters recently stormed the stage during an orchestral performance at a Swiss music festival. But, to everyone’s surprise, conductor Vladimir Jurowski allowed them to speak to his audience. We hear from the Renovate Switzerland protestors, Anthony and Selina, on their unlikely experience.Presenter: Roland Pease Producer: Ella Hubber Editor: Martin Smith Production Co-ordinator: Jana Bennett-Holesworth(Image: Collapsing buildings and flooded land in the aftermath of the Derna floods. Credit: Anadolu Agency / Getty Images)