In this episode:
Oxygen 28 is an isotope of oxygen with 20 neutrons and eight protons. This strange isotope has long been sought after by physicists, as its proposed unusual properties would allow them to put their theories of how atomic nuclei work to the test. Now, after decades of experiments physicists believe they have observed oxygen 28. The observations are at odds with theory predictions, so they imply that there’s a lot more physicists don’t know about the forces that hold atomic nuclei together.
Research article: Kondo et al.
News and Views: Heaviest oxygen isotope is found to be unbound
How venus fly traps can protect themselves from wildfires, and a ball-point pen that can ‘write’ LEDs.
Research Highlight: Venus flytraps shut their traps when flames approach
Research Highlight: A rainbow of LEDs adorns objects at the stroke of a pen
AIs have been beating humans at games for years, but in these cases the AI has always trained in exactly the same conditions in which it competes. In chess for example, the board can be simulated exactly. Now though, researchers have demonstrated an AI that can beat humans in a place where simulation can only take you so far, the real world. The Swift AI system is able to race drones against champion-level humans, and beat them most of the time. The researchers hope this research can help improve the efficiency of drones in general.
Research article: Kaufmann et al.
News and Views: Drone-racing champions outpaced by AI
Video: AI finally beats humans at a real-life sport - drone racing
This time, the Indian Space Research Organization’s successful moon landing, and the low level of support offered to researchers whose first language isn’t English by journals.
Nature News: India lands on the Moon! Scientists celebrate as Chandrayaan-3 touches down
Nature News: Scientists who don’t speak fluent English get little help from journals, study finds
Subscribe to Nature Briefing, an unmissable daily round-up of science news, opinion and analysis free in your inbox every weekday.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Ancient mud reveals the longest record of climate from the tropics
Higgs boson at 10: a deep dive into the mysterious, mass-giving particle
Coronapod: detecting COVID variants in sewage
Higgs boson turns ten: the mysteries physicists are still trying to solve
Ed Yong on the wondrous world of animal senses
Norovirus could spread through saliva: a new route for infection?
Audio long read: These six countries are about to go to the Moon
Coronapod: USA authorises vaccines for youngest of kids
How science can tackle inequality
How the Black Death got its start
Coronapod: COVID and smell loss, what the science says
Ancient 'giraffes' sported thick helmets for headbutting
Audio long read: The brain-reading devices helping paralysed people to move, talk and touch
Robot exercises shoulder cells for better tissue transplants
Coronapod: 'A generational loss' - COVID's devastating impact on education
X-ray analysis hints at answers to fossil mystery
How galaxies could exist without dark matter
Coronapod: 'viral ghosts' support idea that SARS-CoV-2 reservoirs could be behind long COVID
Retinas revived after donor's death open door to new science
Swapping in a bit of microbial 'meat' has big eco-gains
Create your
podcast in
minutes
It is Free
More or Less: Behind the Stats
NPP BrainPod
Pediatric Research Podcast
Eye Podcast