Staff Writer Paul Voosen talks with host Sarah Crespi about how Arctic sea ice is under attack from above and below—not only from warming air, but also dangerous hot blobs of ocean water.
Next, Damien Fordham, a professor and global change ecologist at the University of Adelaide, talks about how new tools for digging into the past are helping catalog what happened to biodiversity and ecosystems during different climate change scenarios in the past. These findings can help predict the fate of modern ecosystems under today’s human-induced climate change. And in our books segment, Kiki Sanford talks with author Carl Bergstrom about his new book: Calling Bullshit: The Art of Skepticism in a Data-Driven World.
August 26, 2020: Protecting delicate quantum bits from radiation, convalescent plasma for serious Covid-19 patients and a competition to replicate findings from ancient computer code.
In this episode:
01:04 Quantum computers vs ionizing radiation
The quantum bits, or ‘qubits’, central to the operation of quantum computers are notoriously sensitive. Now, researchers have assessed the damaging effects that ionizing radiation can have on these qubits and what can be done about it. Research Article: Vepsäläinen et al.
08:15 Coronapod
We discuss the US Food and Drug Administration’s decision to authorize convalescent plasma for emergency use in COVID-19 patients. As accusations of political interference fly, what might this mean for the future of the US coronavirus response?
Many scientists have published papers based on code. Recently though, a gauntlet was thrown down for researchers to try to replicate their code, 10 years or more after they wrote it. Tech Feature: Challenge to scientists: does your ten-year-old code still run?
This Morning With Gordon Deal reports: Melania Trump, Mike Pompeo buck tradition with convention speeches, gunfire breaks out at Wisconsin protest, and TSA worker reunites bride with wedding gown left at checkpoint.
NPR’s Tamara Keith and Amy Walter of the Cook Political Report join Judy Woodruff to discuss the latest in politics, including last week’s Democratic National Convention and whether Joe Biden achieved his objectives during it and how President Trump will approach this week’s Republican National Convention in response.
Axios’ Jonathan Swan says to expect less of a traditional Republican National Convention and more of a reality TV show, featuring President Trump every night.
Plus, how the pandemic makes fighting California wildfires even harder.
And, an exclusive Harris poll shows Americans agree on who should get a COVID vaccine first.
Guests: Axios’ Jonathan Swan, Sam Baker and freelance environmental reporter Miranda Green.
The Economist reports: Turkey discovers large gas discovery in the Black Sea, U.S. to require Hong Kong to label exports as “made in China”, and other world news.
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