In this episode:
01:28 Inflammation’s role in memoryHow memories are stored is an ongoing question in neuroscience. Now researchers have found an inflammatory pathway that responds to DNA damage in neurons has a key role in the persistence of memories. How this pathway helps memories persist is unclear, but the researchers suggest that how the DNA damage is repaired may play a role. As inflammation in the brain is often associated with disease, the team were surprised by this finding, which they hope will help uncover ways to better preserve our memories, especially in the face of neurodegenerative disorders.
Research Article: Jovasevic et al.
News and Views: Innate immunity in neurons makes memories persist
The effect of wind turbines on property values, and how waste wood can be used to 3D print new wooden objects.
Research Highlight: A view of wind turbines drives down home values — but only briefly
Research Highlight: Squeeze, freeze, bake: how to make 3D-printed wood that mimics the real thing
Due to variations in the speed of Earth’s rotation, the length of a day is rarely exactly 24 hours. By calculating the strength of the different factors affecting this, a researcher has shown that while Earth’s rotation is overall speeding up, this effect is being tempered by the melting of the polar ice caps. As global time kept by atomic clocks occasionally has to be altered to match Earth’s rotation, human-induced climate change may delay plans to add a negative leap-second to ensure the two align.
Research article: Agnew
News and Views: Melting ice solves leap-second problem — for now
An AI for antibody development, and the plans for the upcoming Simons observatory.
Nature News: ‘A landmark moment’: scientists use AI to design antibodies from scratch
Nature News: ‘Best view ever’: observatory will map Big Bang’s afterglow in new detail
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23 April 2020: Denisovan DNA in modern Europeans, and the birth of an unusual celestial object
Coronapod: Troubling news
Coronapod: An untapped resource
09 April 2020: A plastic-recycling enzyme, and supercooled molecules
Coronapod: Ramping up responses
02 April 2020: Dating an ancient hominid skull, and an ancient Antarctic rainforest
Coronapod: Old treatments and new hopes
25 March 2020: Ultra-fast electrical switches, and computing heart health
Podcast Extra: Rosamund Pike on portraying Marie Curie
Coronapod: “Test, test, test!”
19 March 2020: Rosamund Pike in Radioactive, and the resurgence of Russian science
Podcast Extra: Coronavirus - science in the pandemic
Long Read Podcast: Are feelings more than skin deep?
12 March 2020: An ancient bird trapped in amber, and life beneath the ocean floor
05 March 2020: Ultrafast machine vision, and quicker crystal creation
Backchat: Covering coronavirus
27 February 2020: Mapping fruit flies’ neural circuitry, and perfecting the properties of metallic glass
Podcast Extra: ‘There is lots of anxiety’: a scientist’s view from South Korea
20 February 2020: Improving battery charging, and harnessing energy from the air
13 February 2020: The puzzling structures of muddled materials, and paving the way for the quantum internet
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