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Quanta Science Podcast

Susan Valot narrates in-depth news episodes based on Quanta Magazine's articles about mathematics, physics, biology and computer science.

Ranked #1

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Machine Learning Confronts the Elephant in the Room

Machine Learning Confronts the Elephant in the Room

A visual prank exposes an Achilles’ heel of computer vision systems: Unlike humans, they can’t do a double take. ... Read more

15 Aug 2019

12mins

Ranked #2

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In the Nucleus, Genes’ Activity Might Depend on Their Location

In the Nucleus, Genes’ Activity Might Depend on Their Location

Using a new CRISPR-based technique, researchers are examining how the position of DNA within the nucleus affects gene ex... Read more

29 Aug 2019

15mins

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Ranked #3

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What No New Particles Means for Physics

What No New Particles Means for Physics

Physicists are confronting their “nightmare scenario.” What does the absence of new particles suggest about how nature w... Read more

15 Sep 2016

13mins

Ranked #4

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Biologists Search for New Model Organisms

Biologists Search for New Model Organisms

The bulk of biological research is centered on a handful of species. Are we missing a huge chunk of interesting biology?... Read more

18 Aug 2016

15mins

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Ranked #5

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How Mutant Viral Swarms Spread Disease

How Mutant Viral Swarms Spread Disease

A new understanding of viral swarms is helping researchers predict how viruses will evolve and where disease is likely t... Read more

3 Sep 2015

28mins

Ranked #6

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The Peculiar Math That Could Underlie the Laws of Nature

The Peculiar Math That Could Underlie the Laws of Nature

New findings are fueling an old suspicion that fundamental particles and forces spring from strange eight-part numbers c... Read more

23 May 2019

26mins

Ranked #7

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Strange Dark Galaxy Puzzles Astrophysicists

Strange Dark Galaxy Puzzles Astrophysicists

The surprising discovery of a massive, Milky Way–size galaxy that is made of 99.99 percent dark matter has astronomers d... Read more

27 Oct 2016

16mins

Ranked #8

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Scientists Debate the Origin of Cell Types in the First Animals

Scientists Debate the Origin of Cell Types in the First Animals

Theories about how animals became multicellular are shifting as researchers find greater complexity in our single-celled... Read more

16 Jul 2020

18mins

Ranked #9

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The Neuroscience Behind Bad Decisions

The Neuroscience Behind Bad Decisions

Irrationality may be a consequence of the brain’s ravenous energy needs. The post The Neuroscience Behind Bad... Read more

22 Sep 2016

13mins

Ranked #10

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Colliding Black Holes Tell New Story of Stars

Colliding Black Holes Tell New Story of Stars

Just months after their discovery, gravitational waves coming from the mergers of black holes are shaking up astrophysic... Read more

13 Oct 2016

13mins

Ranked #11

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A Puzzle of Clever Connections Nears a Happy End

A Puzzle of Clever Connections Nears a Happy End

The three young friends who devised the “happy ending” problem would become some of the most influential mathematicians ... Read more

20 Jul 2017

11mins

Ranked #12

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Closed Loophole Confirms the Unreality of the Quantum World

Closed Loophole Confirms the Unreality of the Quantum World

A quickly closed loophole has proved that the “great smoky dragon” of quantum mechanics may forever elude capture. ... Read more

20 Jun 2019

18mins

Ranked #13

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Pentagon Tiling Proof Solves Century-Old Math Problem

Pentagon Tiling Proof Solves Century-Old Math Problem

A French mathematician has completed the classification of all convex pentagons, and therefore all convex polygons, that... Read more

21 Sep 2017

10mins

Ranked #14

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Why Earth’s Cracked Crust May Be Essential for Life

Why Earth’s Cracked Crust May Be Essential for Life

Life needs more than water alone. Recent discoveries suggest that plate tectonics has played a critical role in nourishi... Read more

11 Apr 2019

26mins

Ranked #15

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Can Microbes Encourage Altruism?

Can Microbes Encourage Altruism?

If gut bacteria can sway their hosts to be selfless, it could answer a riddle that goes back to Darwin. The p... Read more

31 Aug 2017

15mins

Ranked #16

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Giant Genetic Map Shows Life’s Hidden Links

Giant Genetic Map Shows Life’s Hidden Links

In a monumental set of experiments, spread out over nearly two decades, biologists removed genes two at a time to uncove... Read more

17 Nov 2016

9mins

Ranked #17

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A Math Theory for Why People Hallucinate

A Math Theory for Why People Hallucinate

Psychedelic drugs can trigger characteristic hallucinations, which have long been thought to hold clues about the brain’... Read more

5 Jul 2019

23mins

Ranked #18

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Amateur Mathematician Finds Smallest Universal Cover

Amateur Mathematician Finds Smallest Universal Cover

Through exacting geometric calculations, Philip Gibbs has found the smallest known cover for any possible shape. ... Read more

6 Sep 2019

11mins

Ranked #19

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Neutrinos Hint of Matter-Antimatter Rift

Neutrinos Hint of Matter-Antimatter Rift

A hint that neutrinos behave differently than antineutrinos suggests an answer to one the biggest questions in physics. ... Read more

11 Aug 2016

11mins

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