Audio

Morning News Podcast: U.S. Jobs Report, Covid-19 Relief, China & HOng Kong

The Labor Department’s new jobs report comes out today as Congress is poised to pass a new round of COVID-19 relief. The Biden administration ended Trump’s “Remain in Mexico” policy, but that doesn’t mean the asylum system is up and running.

And, the Chinese national parliament meeting that begins today will include a proposal to give the Chinese government new control over Hong Kong’s elections.

Science Podcast: 2000-Year-Old Pet Cemetary, Eyeless Worms See Color

Science’s Online News Editor David Grimm joins host Sarah Crespi to talk about a 2000-year-old pet cemetery found in the Egyptian city of Berenice and what it can tell us about the history of human-animal relationships. 

Also this week, Dipon Ghosh, a postdoctoral fellow at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, talks about how scientists missed that the tiny eyeless roundworm Caenorhabditis elegans, which has been intensively studied from top to bottom for decades, somehow has the ability to detect colors. 

Morning News Podcast: New Police Reform Bill, NY Governor & Security Risks

House cancels Thursday session after security agencies cite risk of new violence, Gov. Andrew Cuomo says he won’t resign, and a good boy gets reunited with his owner.

Science Podcast: Unequal Surge In Research Papers, Energy Without Oxygen

The pandemic’s unequal toll on the research community, and a newly discovered mitochondria-like symbiosis.

In this episode:

00:48 The pandemic’s unequal toll on researchers

Although 2020 saw a huge uptick in the numbers of research papers submitted, these increases were not evenly distributed among male and female scientists. We look at how this could widen existing disparities in science, and damage future career prospects.

Editorial: COVID is amplifying the inadequacy of research-evaluation processes

09:18 Research Highlights

How a parasite can make viral infections more deadly, and the first known space hurricane.

Research Highlight: Intestinal worms throw open the door to dangerous viruses

Research Highlight: The first known space hurricane pours electron ‘rain’

11:36 Energy without oxygen

Millions of years ago, a microscopic protist swallowed a bacterium and gained the ability to breathe nitrate. This relationship partially replaced the cell’s mitochondria and allowed it to produce abundant energy without oxygen. This week, researchers describe how this newly discovered symbiosis works.

Research Article: Graf et al.

News and Views: A microbial marriage reminiscent of mitochondrial evolution

19:22 Briefing Chat

We discuss some highlights from the Nature Briefing. This time, the weakening of the Gulf Stream, and a new satellite to monitor deforestation in the Amazon.

The Guardian: Atlantic Ocean circulation at weakest in a millennium, say scientists

Science: Brazil’s first homemade satellite will put an extra eye on dwindling Amazon forests

Morning News Podcast: Sanctions On Russia, UK Budget & Latest Tech

We unpack Washington’s sanctions on Moscow after the Biden administration accuses Russian intelligence of poisoning Alexei Navalny. Plus: we look at what’s in the latest UK budget for arts and culture, and round up the latest tech news.

Interview: BMW Motorrad Chief Designer Edgar Heinrich On CE 04 Scooter

In this week’s episode of ‘The Chiefs’, Monocle’s editorial director Tyler Brûlé is joined by BMW Motorrad’s chief designer Edgar Heinrich. They discuss why the future of the two-wheeler is looking bright and the innovative design process behind the upcoming CE 04.

Morning News Podcast: J&J Vaccine Approval, New York Governor Cuomo

What will the approval of the J&J vaccine mean for the immunization effort, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo responds to sex-harassment claims, and a troop made up of homeless girls is on a mission to sell Girl Scout cookies in all 50 states.

Sunday Morning Podcast: World News From Zurich, London & Tokyo (Feb 28)

The weekend’s biggest discussion topics dissected by Monocle’s editorial director Tyler Brûlé, Rob Cox, Christof Münger and Nina Müller, with insights from our editors in the UK and Japan.

Plus: what’s on the pages of ‘The South China Morning Post’ this weekend?