Delta has quickly become the dominant COVID variant in many countries across the world, in this episode we ask why. Over the past few weeks, a slew of studies have started to shed more light on how the Delta variant differs from its cousins and even the mechanisms behind its rampant spread. We dig into studies on the epidemiology and molecular biology of Delta to ask some key questions surrounding its transmissibility, lethality and what all this might mean for vaccine roll outs.News: The mutation that helps Delta spread like wildfireNews: COVID vaccines protect against Delta, but their effectiveness wanes News: How do vaccinated people spread Delta? What the science saysNews: Delta coronavirus variant: scientists brace for impactNews: Delta’s rise is fuelled by rampant spread from people who feel fineSubscribe 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.

A team is creating bespoke words for scientific terms in African languages, and the sustainability of the electric car boom.00:46 Creating new words for scientific termsMany words that are common to science have never been written in some African languages, or speakers struggle to agree what the right term is. Now a new project aims to change that, by translating 180 research papers into six languages spoken by millions of people across the continent of Africa.News: African languages to get more bespoke scientific terms11:48 Research HighlightsA rainbow of biodegradable inks derived from brown seaweed, and the enormous centipede that preys on baby birds.Research Highlight: From drab to dazzling: seaweed yields sparkling coloured inksResearch Highlight: The giant centipede that devours fluffy baby seabirds13:58 How sustainable is the electric car boom?As electric cars become more ubiquitous, manufacturers will have to up the production of batteries needed to power them. But that begs the question - can they be mass produced in a sustainable way?News Feature: Electric cars and batteries: how will the world produce enough?24:06 Briefing chatWe discuss some highlights from the Nature Briefing. This time, how a tusk-based ‘chemical GPS’ revealed details of a mammoth’s enormous journeys , and why the Perseverance rover’s first efforts to collect a Mars rock sample didn’t go according to plan.Nature: Mammoth’s epic travels preserved in tuskNature: Why NASA’s Mars rover failed to collect its first rock coreSubscribe 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.

Several wealthy nations have announced plans to give third vaccine doses in a bid to help increase the protection of their most vulnerable citizens - but the science is not clear on whether this strategy will be effective or indeed necessary. Meanwhile with limited vaccine supplies - billions around the world still have no access to vaccines at all. In this episode of Coronapod we discuss the science of boosters, the stark reality of vaccine disparity and what this means for the future of the pandemic.News: COVID boosters for wealthy nations spark outrageNews feature: COVID vaccine boosters: the most important questionsCoronapod: the inequality at the heart of the pandemicCoronapod: the biomarker that could change COVID vaccinesSubscribe 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.

Researchers uncover how grid cells fire in a 3D space to help bats navigate, and a fabric that switches between being stiff and flexible.In this episode:00:47 Mapping a bat’s navigation neurons in 3DGrid cells are neurons that regularly fire as an animal moves through space, creating a pattern of activity that aids navigation. But much of our understanding of how grid cells work has involved rats moving in a 2D plane. To figure out how the system works in a 3D space, researchers have mapped the brain activity of bats flying freely around a room.Research Article: Ginosar et al.07:44 Research HighlightsHow a ‘toxin sponge’ may protect poison dart frogs from themselves, and the world’s oldest known coin foundry has been found.Research Highlight: An absorbing tale: poison dart frogs might have a ‘toxin sponge’Research Highlight: Found: the world’s oldest known mint and its jumbo product09:59 A flexible fabric that transforms from soft to rigid (and back again)Researchers have created a ‘tunable’ fabric, inspired by medieval chainmail, that when compressed changes from flexible to rigid. The stiffened structure can hold 30 times its own weight, and the team behind it suggest this material could be used to build temporary shelters or have medical applications.Research article: Wang et al.16:33 Stark warning from the IPCC’s latest reportThis week the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change released its long awaited report detailing compiling the latest climate science data. Nature’s Jeff Tollefson joins us to discuss the report and the warnings it contains for our warming world.News: IPCC climate report: Earth is warmer than it’s been in 125,000 yearsSubscribe 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.

Ivermectin is a cheap, widely available, anti-parasitic drug that has been proposed by many as a possible treatment for COVID-19. Dozens of trials have been started, but results have been far from clear, with inconsistent results further confused by high profile paper retractions. Nonetheless many countries have recommended the use of Ivermectin, despite WHO advice to the contrary.Now a group of researchers have found suspect data in another influential paper which claimed a Ivermectin caused a 90% reduction in fatality. The paper, published at the end of 2020, has since been withdrawn pending investigation. In this episode of Coronapod we ask what this might mean for Ivermectin, and what's next for the controversial drug.Correction: at 2:53 when discussing two discredited studies, we mistakenly say that the papers say "both drugs worked really well". In fact, this retracted study from the Lancet claimed that the drug hydroxychloroquine caused harm. We apologise for any confusion. More information on the scandal surrounding these papers can be found here.News:Flawed ivermectin preprint highlights challenges of COVID drug studiesNews: Latin America’s embrace of an unproven COVID treatment is hindering drug trialsCoronapod: The Surgisphere scandal that rocked coronavirus drug researchSubscribe 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.

Satellite imaging has shown population increases are 10x higher in flood prone areas than previously thought, and a new way to introduce fairness into a democratic process.In this episode:00:47 Calculating how many people are at risk of floods.Researchers have used satellite imagery to estimate the number of people living in flood-prone regions. They suggest that the percentage of people exposed to floods has increased 10 times more than previously thought, and with climate change that number is only set to climb.Research Article: Tellman et al.News and Views: The fraction of the global population at risk of floods is growing09:41 Research HighlightsPeople are happy to be selfish towards a crowd, but generous to an individual; and how wildfire smoke affects clouds’ brightness.Research Highlight: ‘Robber’ experiment tests generosity — with sobering resultsResearch Highlight: Wildfire smoke creates brighter clouds — and weather changes12:01 Making democracy fairerCitizens’ assemblies are small groups of people invited to come together to help inform and affect policy decisions. But deciding who is in these groups is a mathematical challenge — the process needs to be random, but still reflect social demographics. This week, researchers describe a new algorithm that could offer a solution.Research article: Flanigan et al.News and Views: A bridge across the democracy–expertise divide20:04 Briefing ChatWe discuss some highlights from the Nature Briefing. This time, how ships could spread a deadly coral disease, and research shows that female scientists are less likely to be cited in elite medical journals.The Guardian: Deadly coral disease sweeping Caribbean linked to water from shipsNature News: Fewer citations for female authors of medical researchSubscribe 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.

Researchers debate whether an ancient fossil is the oldest animal yet discovered, and a new way to eavesdrop on glaciers.In this episode:01:04 Early spongeThis week in Nature, a researcher claims to have found a fossil sponge from 890-million-years-ago. If confirmed, this would be more than 300-million-years older than the earliest uncontested animal fossils but not all palaeontologists are convinced.Research Article: Turner10:13 Research HighlightsA caffeine buzz appears to improve bees’ memory, and reconstructing an Iron Age man’s final meal.Research Highlight: A caffeine buzz gives bees flower powerResearch Highlight: The guts of a ‘bog body’ reveal sacrificed man’s final meal12:34 Eavesdropping on a glacier’s baseWe hear about one researcher’s unorthodox attempt to listen in to the seismic-whisper at the foot of a Greenland glacier – a method that might reveal more about conditions under these enormous blocks of ice.Research Article: Podolskiy et al.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.

Archaeological evidence shows that ancient people ate carbs, long before domesticated crops.While the idea that early humans subsisted mainly on meat persists, archaeologists are increasingly understanding that ancient people have actually long been in love with carbs, even before the advent of agriculture.This is an audio version of our feature: How ancient people fell in love with bread, beer and other carbs Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Early in 2021 the United Kingdom, along with several other countries, allowed mass gatherings as part of a series of controlled studies aimed at better understanding the role events could play in the pandemic. The goal was to inform policy - however early results have provided limited data on viral transmission. As the Olympic games kick off in Tokyo, we delve into the research, asking what the limitations have been, if more data will become available and whether policy makers are likely to take the findings into account in the future.News: COVID and mass sport events: early studies yield limited insightsNews: Why England’s COVID ‘freedom day’ alarms researchersPodcast: Coronapod: does England's COVID strategy risk breeding deadly variants?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.

Funding for gun violence research in the US returns after a 20-year federal hiatus, and the glass sponges that can manipulate ocean currents.In this episode:00:45 Gun violence research is rebootedFor 20 years there has been no federally-funded research on gun violence in the US. In 2019, $25 million a year was allocated for this work. We speak to some of the researchers that are using these funds, and the questions they are trying to answer about gun violence.News Feature: Gun violence is surging — researchers finally have the money to ask whyPodcast: Stick to the science09:21 Research HighlightsStrategic laziness and yak dung help pikas survive harsh winters, and how food gets wasted in China’s supply chains.Research Highlight: Pikas in high places have a winter-time treat: yak pooResearch Highlight: China wastes almost 30% of its food11:40 How a sea sponge controls ocean currentsVenus’ flower baskets are marine sponges that live at the bottom of the Pacific Ocean. These sponges have an unusual glass skeleton that helps them gather food, and even appears to control ocean currents.Research Article: Falcucci et al.News and Views: Fluid flow through a deep-sea sponge could inspire engineering designs18:55 Briefing ChatWe discuss some highlights from the Nature Briefing. This time, investment in non-human primate facilities, and the European Union's latest climate plan.Nature News: The US is boosting funding for research monkeys in the wake of COVIDBBC News: EU unveils sweeping climate change planSubscribe 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.