Science Magazine Podcast

Visiting utopias, fighting heat death, and making mysterious ‘dark earth’

Sep 28, 2023

Exploring radical alternatives to the traditional family home, India's efforts to combat climate-induced heat in cities, and the mystery of ancient Amazonian 'dark earth' are discussed in this podcast.

01:32:07

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Quick takeaways

The podcast discusses the intentional creation of nutrient-rich 'dark earth' in the Amazon by ancient indigenous communities, which is still practiced today.

The study highlights how the practices of spreading ash, charcoal, and organic waste to create dark earth can inform sustainable agricultural practices and carbon sequestration in the Amazon region.

Deep dives

The Formation of Dark Earth in Ancient Amazonia

Dark earth, a nutrient-rich soil found in the Amazon, has long been a subject of study. This research aims to understand whether the creation of dark earth was intentional or incidental. The study compares modern indigenous villages that still produce dark earth with archaeological sites and abandoned villages. The findings show similarities in soil composition and distribution patterns, suggesting that dark earth formation was indeed intentional. The indigenous people purposefully spread ash, charcoal, and organic waste as fertilizer to improve soil fertility and create dark earth.

Introduction

2min

Urban Temperature Study and Dark Earth Analysis

2min

Redefining the Nuclear Family

4min

Origins of Utopian Ideas and Fighting for Change

11min

A Shift Towards Grassroots Solutions and Alternative Ways of Living

2min

Combating heat-induced by climate change in India

14min

The Mysterious Dark Earth in the Amazon

15min

A book on utopias and gender roles, India looks to beat climate-induced heat in cities, and how ancient Amazonians improved the soil

First up on this week’s show: the latest in our series of books on sex, gender, and science. Books host Angela Saini discusses Everyday Utopia: In Praise of Radical Alternatives to the Traditional Family Home with ethnographer Kristen Ghodsee, professor of Russian and Eastern European studies at the University of Pennsylvania. See this year’s whole series here.

Also this week, as part of a special issue on climate change and health, host Sarah Crespi speaks with Vaishnavi Chandrashekhar, a freelance journalist based in Mumbai, India. They talk about how India is looking to avoid overheating cities in the coming decades, as climate change and urbanization collide.

Finally, we hear about how ancient Amazonians created fertile “dark earth” on purpose. Sarah is joined by Morgan Schmidt, an archaeologist and geographer at the Federal University of Santa Catarina. They discuss recent research published in Science Advances on the mysterious rich soil that coincides with ancient ruins, which may still be produced by modern Indigenous people in Brazil.

This week’s episode was produced with help from Podigy.

About the Science Podcast

Authors: Sarah Crespi, Vaishnavi Chandrashekhar, Angela Saini

Episode page: https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.adl0606

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