The world, the universe and us

• This breakthrough could let gay couples have biological kids

  A groundbreaking experiment in reproductive biology has resulted in mice being born from two biological fathers. By fusing sperm and putting them into an emptied egg cell, researchers in China have produced healthy and fertile offspring from two male mice. While it’s early days and the technique requires hundreds of embryos to get results, it opens up the possibility of same-sex reproduction in mammals, including humans, in the future. New insights into the power of sleep reveal how short naps can boost creativity. A study found that reaching a certain stage of sleep, known as N2, significantly increased people’s chances of having an “aha!” moment. It’s more evidence of how deeply intertwined sleep is with problem-solving and innovation, and why naps might be more productive than we thought. One ancient lizard family managed to survive the asteroid that killed the dinosaurs, and they’re still around today! Scientists have traced the lineage of night lizards back to over 90 million years ago. Their ability to shelter underground and survive on little energy may have helped them live through one of Earth’s biggest disasters. Chapters: (00:38) Same-sex reproduction breakthrough (12:09) Power naps and creativity (22:37) Ancient lizard survives dinosaur-killing asteroid Hosted by Rowan Hooper, Penny Sarchet, and Michael Le Page. To read more about these stories, visit https://www.newscientist.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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• First skull of mysterious human ancestor; Decoding whale language; Heatwaves 20x more likely to happen

  Episode 308 An ancient skull discovered in China has been confirmed to belong to a Denisovan. It’s been tough to study this mysterious human ancestor, as we’ve only ever found a finger and jaw bone - so this new discovery could reshape our understanding of them. After being kept secret for decades, the “dragon man” skull is opening up a new window into our past. We’ve unlocked another clue in our quest to decode whale language. Analysis of 15 sperm whales in the Caribbean suggest their language may contain vowels, used in a similar way to human language. Using their various clicks, researchers have discovered interesting patterns in the way they communicate. Feeling hot and sweaty? Well, strap in - because these heatwaves are set to continue…and get worse. Summers are evolving fast as a result of climate change and weather events that would’ve once been rare are becoming much more common. Find out how the UK could be in for a string of long 40C summers in the very near future. The winner of The Women’s Prize for Non-Fiction has been revealed - Dr Rachel Clarke claims the title for her book “The Story of a Heart”. The book explores the history of heart transplants and tells the story of a nine year old girl whose heart saved two other children and two adults. Rachel explains why she chose to write this story and the surprising things she learnt along the way. Chapters: (00:41) Denisovan skull discovery (14:02) Deconding whale language (18:14) Hot summers becoming more common (26:16) Winner of The Women’s Prize for Non-Fiction Hosted by Rowan Hooper and Penny Sarchet, with guests Madeleine Cuff, Mike Marshall, Gillian Kay, Alison Flood and Rachel Clarke. To read more about these stories, visit https://www.newscientist.com/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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• Is this the first step to cyborg brains? How drones are reshaping warfare forever; New Vera Rubin observatory goes live

  Episode 307 Using new “ultrasoft” electronics, researchers at Harvard have effectively created tadpole cyborgs. A soft bioelectronic device has been implanted into their brains - one which grows with them as they develop into frogs. This neural implant is a first step in helping us better understand the inner workings of the brain. But could this work in mammals…or humans? Discussing just that, the Royal Society held a meeting this week called Cyborg Futures. How soon until humans become one with machines? A small fleet of cheap drones has been deployed by Ukraine’s security service, causing $7 billion of damage to Russian air power. Just 117 drones were able to take out a third of Russia’s nuclear bomb force. Difficult to catch, hard to jam and nearly impossible to shoot down - are drones a paradigm shift in warfare? The Vera Rubin Observatory in Chile has just opened, promising to carry out a legacy survey of space and time. US editor Chelsea Whyte visited the newly operational telescope to see how it will map out the night sky in never-before-seen detail. Learn how it hopes to answer some of the biggest mysteries about dark matter and dark energy - and find out about the legacy of Vera Rubin, the astronomer the telescope is named after. Think net-zero climate action is costing us way too much, driving up living costs and damaging the economy? Think again. The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) has taken on all of the misinformation circulating about our goal to achieve net zero emissions, showing that raising climate ambition would actually boost the global economy. Find out why. Chapters: (00:32) Frogs with cyborg brains…are humans next? (11:25) How drones are reshaping warfare (16:16) Vera Rubin observatory opens (24:59) How net zero will boost the global economy Hosted by Rowan Hooper and Penny Sarchet, with guests Alexandra Thompson, Chelsea Whyte, Jonathan Rossiter, Tamar Makin, Robert Bunker and Simon Evans. To read more about these stories, visit https://www.newscientist.com/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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• $1 trillion of platinum on the moon; how your brain distinguishes between reality and imagination; rise of the hyperworm

  Episode 306 It’s been discovered that the moon is probably home to $1 trillion worth of platinum. Researchers suggest nearly 6500 of the Moon’s craters were made by asteroids containing commercial quantities of platinum, palladium, rhodium, ruthenium, iridium and osmium. Does that mean space companies are going to head out on mining missions imminently…and should they? Hear the reasons for and against mining on the Moon. When you imagine something in your mind, how does your brain know that it’s not real? Certain brain regions have been identified in a new experiment which help keep reality and make-believe separate. This finding could tell us a lot about conditions like schizophrenia - or what’s going on when we dream. It may even answer that question; are we living in a simulation? Read our imagination special here: https://www.newscientist.com/issue/3545/  A newly discovered emergent behaviour has been found in nematode worms - the world’s commonest animal. These millimetre long worms are able to merge to form superorganisms, creating tentacles or towers that can straddle long distances. Learn about this collective behaviour and how it's coordinated.  Chapters: (00:16) Platinum on the moon (08:44) How your brain distinguishes between reality and imagination  (18:05) Rise of the hyperworm - nematodes merge to form superorganism Hosted by Rowan Hooper and Penny Sarchet, with guests Carissa Wong, Jayanth Chennamangalam, Steve Fleming and Serena Ding. To read more about these stories, visit https://www.newscientist.com/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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• The real threat of AI - ethics, exploitation and the erosion of truth

  Episode 305 As artificial intelligence grows into more and more aspects of our lives, it seems we’re just at the beginning of the boom. Hundreds of billions of dollars are being pumped into advancing AI capabilities, making it the best funded area in science. But, just like the dot-com revolution, is it a bubble waiting to burst? In this special episode of the podcast, we explore the growing promise of AI - and also the existential threat it poses. Despite the amount of money going into AI, chatbots are still making glaring mistakes, plagued with hallucinations. All the while students are relying on them to do their homework for them, and others are using them to replace very human tasks, like writing wedding speeches. So we hear from two authors who have been thinking hard about AI and machine learning - and what that means for the future. We also get into the idea of AGI, artificial general intelligence - and its cousin, artificial superintelligence, which may already exist in certain areas. With many researchers concerned about AI overthrowing humanity, is it even worth worrying about? We dig into whether AGI is even possible and who would want to develop it. This discussion has to include some mention of the human and environmental costs of these technologies, too. Energy demands are expected to skyrocket over the next few years - can the planet keep up with the demand? And alongside that, there’s a lot of human exploitation going on to help fuel these machines - a little-known fact that has to be tackled. Finally, is superintelligent AI a threat to the existence of humankind - will they want to wipe us out when they get smart enough? Or is the threat more insidious, one where we watch the slow erosion of truth and democracy? Chapters: (02:49) How chatbots and LLMs came to dominate (15:50) Superintelligent AI (18:18) What does $500 billion buy? (19:30) The high energy demand of AI (20:56) The murky ethics of the AI race (25:15) How AI is being thrust upon us (26:48) The existential threat of AI (29:57) Is AI a bubble waiting to burst? Hosted by Rowan Hooper and Sophie Bushwick, with guests Alex Wilkins, Adam Becker and Emily Bender.To read more about these stories, visit https://www.newscientist.com/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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