Wrapping Up Season 1
This week on Entanglements: What did we learn from our first season? What’s on deck for the future? Our hosts explore these questions and more in conversations with a special guest.
Dec 30, 2024•21 min•Ep. 140
Entanglements, by Undark
After a two-year hiatus, the Undark podcast returns with a new format and a new name: Entanglements. Join science journalists Brooke Borel and Anna Rothschild as they invite guests with both expertise and divergent opinions on some of the most contentious and politicized areas of science today, from vaccines and GMOs to deep sea mining, AI, and the origins of Covid. Their goal: To see if they can break through the discord and find common ground. Far from an exercise in false balance, Entanglements, like Undark, seeks to bring civil discussion — and a bit of fun and wonder — back to the intersection of science and culture.
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Episodes
Is Fluoride Toxic at Low Levels?
This week on Entanglements: Is fluoride toxic at low levels? Our hosts explore this question in conversations with a professor from the University of Illinois Chicago College of Dentistry and a neuropsychologist and professor at York University.
Dec 23, 2024•50 min•Ep. 139
Should We Unleash GMO Mosquitoes?
This week on Entanglements: Should we unleash GMO mosquitoes? Our hosts explore this question in conversations with a molecular biologist from the University of California, San Diego, and a social scientist from North Carolina State University.
Dec 16, 2024•32 min•Ep. 138
Is the Misinformation Crisis Overblown?
This week on Entanglements: Is the misinformation crisis overblown? Our hosts explore this question in conversations with a social psychologist from the University of Cambridge and a cognitive scientist from the Intstitut Jean Nicod.
Dec 09, 2024•31 min•Ep. 137
Cannabis and Severe Mental Health Disorders
This week on Entanglements: Is cannabis safe for people with severe mental health disorders? Our hosts explore this question in conversations with a psychiatrist from Yale School of Medicine and a neuroscientist from the University of Calgary.
Dec 02, 2024•32 min•Ep. 136
Is It Likely that Covid-19 Came From a Lab?
This week on Entanglements: Could the Covid-19 pandemic have been sparked by a lab leak? Our hosts explore this hot-button question in conversations with a Weill Cornell microbiologist and a Broad Institute scientist who is an avid lab-leak proponent.
Nov 25, 2024•43 min•Ep. 135
Risky Science and Public Consent
This week on Entanglements: Should citizens decide on risky science? Our hosts talk to an Oxford political scientist and a former law and ethics professor about how democracy should play a role in high-stakes decisions.
Nov 18, 2024•28 min•Ep. 134
Will Artificial Intelligence Kill Us All?
This week on Entanglements, hosts Brooke Borel and Anna Rothschild talk to a former OpenAI employee and a Princeton professor about AI and doom. Could AI really become an existential threat to humanity? Or is the possibility — highlighted by some 300 AI experts in an open letter last year — overhyped?
Nov 11, 2024•33 min•Ep. 133
The Undark Podcast Returns — as "Entanglements"
The Undark podcast is back with a new format and a new name: Entanglements. Tune in as our hosts explore some of the most contentious topics in science today. Our first 8-episode season will launch November 11, with new episodes dropping every Monday through the end of the year.
Nov 01, 2024•1 min•Season 1Ep. 132
Ep. 63: For Deep Ocean Mining, Questions Abound
This month: Some regions of the deep ocean contain vast amounts of key minerals, like cobalt and nickel, that are needed to power clean energy technologies. But some scientists warn that mining them could have tremendous consequences, not just for underwater ecosystems, but for the planet as a whole.
Aug 03, 2022•35 min•Ep. 131
Ep. 62: Restoring Landscapes and Livelihoods in Western Bosnia
This month: Twenty-six years after the end of the Bosnian War, farmers in Livno are once again making cheese the traditional way, grazing herds of sheep on the wide-open plains. The animals' return is restoring natural wetlands, leading to cascading impacts on the environment and the economy.
Jun 29, 2022•32 min•Ep. 130
Ep. 61: When Accents Speak Louder Than Words
For scientists who come from abroad to live and work in America, accents can be personal. It's discouraging to be misunderstood, even when they think they’re speaking clearly. Sometimes, it could even be a career liability. Is the problem the accent, or those on the receiving end?
May 31, 2022•35 min•Ep. 129
Ep. 60: Cascading Effects of Pollution in Lebanon’s Litani River
Residents of Lebanon's Beqaa Valley say pollution in the Litani River is responsible for a host of chronic health problems. While a causal link is hard to prove, cleanup efforts are precarious amid the country's economic crisis and shifting blame between refugees and government inaction.
Apr 28, 2022•38 min•Ep. 128
Ep. 59: Water Cremation Ignites Debate Over Dignified Death
Alkaline hydrolysis is an end-of-life option that’s gaining popularity in Canada and the U.S. It’s marketed as a greener form of cremation — a way to still end up with ashes, but without sending harmful emissions into the air. But getting the technology approved by lawmakers has proven difficult.
Mar 30, 2022•30 min•Ep. 127
Ep. 58: When an Intellectual Disability Means Life or Death
When Pervis Payne was sentenced to death more than three decades ago, it was permissible to execute someone with an intellectual disability. A Supreme Court decision changed that in 2002, but Payne's disability was acknowledged only last year. Why did it take so long to remove him from The Row?
Jan 31, 2022•38 min•Ep. 126
Ep. 57: In Lagos, Vulnerable Communities Buried by Urbanization
Urbanization in Lagos, Nigeria, is moving at a rapid clip — burying mangrove forests and wetlands under mounds of sand to make way for wealthy subdivisions. Without strong regulations around how that sand is harvested, the social, economic, and environmental consequences are vast.
Dec 06, 2021•33 min•Ep. 125
Ep. 56: Understanding a Terrorist's Brain
Scientists and counterterrorism experts believe understanding the underlying motivations of radical extremists will help them deradicalize people. Now, one group has studied the brain activity of active extremists after asking them to contemplate the values they are willing to fight and die for.
Jul 01, 2021•32 min•Ep. 124
Ep. 55: In Pursuit of Climate-Friendly Refrigerants
In December of last year, Congress passed legislation that gives the Environmental Protection Agency authority to phase out most hydrofluorocarbons — potent greenhouse gases that keep refrigerators cool — over the next 15 years. But there's no perfect alternative to replace them.
May 31, 2021•24 min•Ep. 123
Ep. 54: Translating Portugal’s Approach to Drugs and Addiction
Twenty years ago Portugal decriminalized all drugs as part of a bigger national strategy to fight addiction. Last month Oregon became the first U.S. state to do the same, in a policy modeled off Portugal’s approach — but many questions about how success may translate remain unanswered.
Mar 31, 2021•29 min•Ep. 122
Ep. 53: ‘Mainstreaming’ Psychedelic Drugs to Treat Mental Health
Amid a worldwide mental health emergency, the discovery of new pharmaceuticals to treat conditions like depression has stalled. But researchers and therapists are showing that when paired with therapy, psychedelic drugs like LSD and magic mushrooms are a new class of promising treatments.
Feb 26, 2021•31 min•Ep. 121
Ep. 52: In India, Mismanaging the Monkey Menace
In India, macaque monkeys are a menace — attacking people for food, breaking into offices, and in one state, damaging at least 54 million dollars worth of crops. A sterilization program aimed to curb the population, but some experts and locals question if it’s working or even the right approach.
Jan 29, 2021•32 min•Ep. 120
Ep. 51: A Scramble to Define ‘Habitat’ — and the Future of Conservation
A recent U.S. Supreme Court decision on the dusky gopher frog now has conservationists and developers squaring off over the legal definition of the term ‘habitat.’ The accepted meaning will guide American lawmakers in designating protected areas for endangered species across the country.
Dec 23, 2020•31 min•Ep. 119
Ep. 50: Studying and Surviving the Pandemic's Collective Trauma
In South Africa, trauma researchers are studying — and working to ease — the psychological toll of Covid-19, while trying to endure the pandemic themselves. They warn the widespread and long-lasting impacts of this collective trauma could span generations and cross national borders.
Nov 30, 2020•29 min•Ep. 118
Ep. 49: When Wildfires and a Pandemic Collide
As smoky summers resulting from wildfires have become the new normal across much of the West Coast, communities have tried to put better systems in place protect their most vulnerable residents. But this year, they didn’t plan on dealing with a smoke wave in the middle of a pandemic. How are they coping?
Oct 29, 2020•26 min•Ep. 117
Ep. 48: Capturing the Songs of a Changing Climate
This month: Acoustic ecologists are racing to record Earth’s shifting soundscapes before they disappear. Some researchers are using their recordings to answer questions about how the environment and its inhabitants are changing, while others are sounding the alarm on pressing conservation issues.
Sep 22, 2020•27 min•Ep. 116
Ep. 47: The Toll of the Culture of Silence in Animal Research
This month: Communicating about animal research with the public can open early career scientists up to social stigma and even campaigns that threaten careers. But working with animals can be an emotionally taxing job — and the silence could isolate scientists further and strengthen public misconceptions.
May 30, 2020•26 min•Ep. 115
Ep. 46: A Debate on the Dregs of Asbestos Mining
This month: Ground-up waste leftover from asbestos mining still lines the landscape of Quebec. Now, a number of companies are eager to transform that waste into profitable product — but health officials worry this new industry might reawaken an old problem the province finally seemed to be moving away from.
May 06, 2020•27 min•Ep. 114
Ep. 45: Making Precision Medicine a Reality
This month: Tailoring medicine to each individual patient could make health care more affordable and effective. But that reality won’t come to fruition unless researchers, industry, the government, and the public reach a consensus on issues like patient privacy, data bias, and sharing of medical records.
Mar 31, 2020•31 min•Ep. 113
Ep. 44: Confronting Knowledge Gaps in Intersex Health Care
This month: The impulse to “fix” intersex infants with invasive surgeries is facing increased and, some would argue, long overdue scrutiny. As doctors, parents, and intersex people face decisions that may affect their long-term health, researchers grapple with defining and measuring outcomes.
Feb 27, 2020•30 min•Ep. 112
Ep. 43: A Reality Check on Regenerative Agriculture
This month: A new farming method has been touted as better for the earth and for struggling farmers. Some are putting these claims to the test.
Jan 31, 2020•29 min•Ep. 111
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