Synopsis
Leading science journalists provide a daily minute commentary on some of the most interesting developments in the world of science. For a full-length, weekly podcast you can subscribe to Science Talk: The Podcast of Scientific American . To view all of our archived podcasts please go to www.scientificamerican.com/podcast
Episodes
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Hitchhiking Worms Survive Slug Guts Transport
13/07/2015 Duration: 03minNematode worms hitch rides inside the guts of slugs and other invertebrates, and emerge alive and well after exiting with the rest of the digestive track's products. Karen Hopkin reports Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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Roman Builders May Have Copied Volcanic "Concrete"
09/07/2015 Duration: 02minThe rock of the Campi Flegrei Caldera, west of Naples, Italy, has an intricate network of mineral fibers—just like the famed Roman concrete. Christopher Intagliata reports.
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Dark Matter Dominates Just-Discovered Galaxies
08/07/2015 Duration: 01minAstronomers have discovered more than 800 so-called "ultradiffuse galaxies" that are virtually invisible because they have relatively few stars and are mostly dark matter. Clara Moskowitz reports
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Best Male Nightingale Vocalists Make Best Fathers
06/07/2015 Duration: 02minMale nightingales use singing virtuosity to signal prospective mates that they will be the most doting dads. Sabrina Imbler reports Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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Improved Solar Storm Tracking Lengthens Prep Time for Tech Disruption
02/07/2015 Duration: 02minWe currently have a maximum of about 60 minutes to prepare for tech disruptions on Earth due to coronal mass ejections from the sun, but an improved forecasting system could lengthen that lead time by hours. Maria Temming reports Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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Marijuana Muddies Memory and Mixes with Alcohol to Make Trouble
01/07/2015 Duration: 01minPeople who smoke pot and drink are twice as likely to do both at the same time than to do just one, with the combo associated with bad decision-making; and chronic pot smokers who had not indulged in a month were still more likely to have faulty memories than were nonsmokers. Erika Beras reports
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Bird Literally Weighs Its Food Options
30/06/2015 Duration: 02minMexican Jays compare peanuts to determine which one has the most meat inside before choosing one for a meal. Karen Hopkin reports Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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Noses Agree When Genes See Eye to Eye
29/06/2015 Duration: 03minWe all perceive smells differently—and two people’s preferences may give clues to their degree of genetic similarity. Christopher Intagliata reports Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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Smartphone Battery Drains a Lot Even with Dark Screen
25/06/2015 Duration: 02minBackground app updates, cell tower pings and other hidden activity accounts for almost half the battery drain on Android phones. Christopher Intagliata reports Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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Alaska Surface Glacier Melting Means More Glug Glug Glug
24/06/2015 Duration: 03minThe vast majority of ice loss in Alaska glaciers comes from those that sit completely on land—which contributes meltwater to sea level rise. Julia Rosen reports Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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Programmed Bacteria Can Detect Tumors
23/06/2015 Duration: 02minSangeeta Bhatia of M.I.T. talks about efforts to get bacteria to home in on tumors and let us know they're there. Cynthia Graber reports
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Extreme Exercise Can Poison the Blood
22/06/2015 Duration: 02minEven four hours of intense activity may be enough to let bacteria escape from the gut into the blood, setting off a chain of inflammation. Christopher Intagliata reports Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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Einstein–Bohr Friendship Recounted by Bohr's Grandson
19/06/2015 Duration: 02minOn June 3, 2015, Vilhelm Bohr talked about his famous grandfather's life, including the relationship with Einstein, at the Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics
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Comet Dust Kicks Up Clouds over the Moon
17/06/2015 Duration: 03minThe same particles that streak through Earth's atmosphere as "shooting stars" kick up lunar dust when they strike the surface of the atmosphere-less moon. Christopher Intagliata reports Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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Rare Multitasking Plus: Brain-Teasers Enhance Workout
16/06/2015 Duration: 01minTest subjects rode stationary bikes 25 percent faster when they simultaneously tackled some relatively easy cognitive challegnes. Karen Hopkin reports
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Ant Smells Like Blue Cheese for a Reason
15/06/2015 Duration: 01minThe "odorous house ant" smells like blue cheese or rotten coconut because it produces chemical compounds similar to those found in its nose-sakes. Cynthia Graber reports
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Mars Surface Glass Could Hold Ancient Fossils
12/06/2015 Duration: 02minScientists have found ancient "impact glass" on the surface of Mars, which formed when asteroids struck, a billion or more years ago. If anything was alive at the time, biological materials could be trapped inside. Christopher Intagliata reports
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Is Lying a Good Strategy?
11/06/2015 Duration: 01minA new documentary film presents the science behind when and why people lie. Daisy Yuhas reports
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Wild Chimps Seen Drinking Alcoholic Beverage
09/06/2015 Duration: 03minIn west Africa researchers observed wild chimps seek out and drink fermented tree sap left outside by humans. Karen Hopkin reports Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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Color You Remember Seeing Isn't What You Saw
09/06/2015 Duration: 02minPeople tend to remember a color they saw, for example green-blue teal, as being closer to a more stereotypical variant, such as straight blue or green. Karen Hopkin reports