Skip to content

EscapePod Podcasts

Shows worth your time, picked up where you left off.

NP

Earthworks spotted in the Amazon hint at huge ancient civilization

29 Jul 2026 · 21 min

In this episode:

00:45 Ancient structures hidden beneath the Amazon’s canopy Research article: Pärssinen et al.

09:15 Research Highlights Nature: It’ll grow on you: live fungi formed into sustainable fashion Physical Review Fluids: Gourmandie et al.

11:48 Tiny fossils represent the earliest-known squid ancestor Research article: Song 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.

More episodes

‘Learning about physics changed my life’: author Hernan Diaz on his new novel Ply 2 Oct 2026 · 32 min In this episode, we speak with Hernan Diaz whose most recent novel Ply blends a vision of a dystopian future with questions about selfhood and asks whether advanced physics could…

These optical illusions are why butterflies are so hard to catch 30 Sept 2026 · 18 min High-speed footage of takeoffs reveal that the butterfly markings mislead the eye, making them harder to catch. 00:45 Butterflies in flight create confusing motion cues that baffl…

Briefing Chat: Why scientists made papyrus scrolls, then burnt them 25 Sept 2026 · 12 min In this episode 00:23 How detecting lead could help researchers read damaged Roman scrolls Nature: Watch scientists decipher burned scrolls without unrolling them 06:42 A biodegra…

Bank accounts reveal the fingerprints of abusive financial control 23 Sept 2026 · 24 min 00:45 Investigating the day-to-day impacts of Financial Abuse Nature: Trendl et al. Support organizations UK: Surviving Economic Abuse US: National Domestic Violence Helpline 12:1…

Briefing Chat: Evidence mounts for hidden chambers beyond Tutankhamun's tomb 18 Sept 2026 · 13 min In this episode: 00:22 Could secret rooms lie beyond Tutankhamun's tomb? Nature: Exclusive: New evidence for hidden chambers beyond Tutankhamun’s tomb 05:55 A multifunctional brai…

Transplanted human brain-tissue takes root in mice without a cortex 16 Sept 2026 · 28 min In this episode: 00:46 Human brain-organoids transplanted into mice missing their cortex Nature: Human brain cells transplanted into mice in ‘most extensive’ integration ever 13:5…

Briefing Chat: The Bunsen burner myth that turns out to be just hot air 11 Sept 2026 · 16 min Nature staff discuss an AI tool that can assess the impact of nine billion mutations — plus, how the Bunsen burner’s reputation for sterilization may be based on tradition alone.…

Phone tutoring boosts math scores when schools are forced to close 9 Sept 2026 · 21 min In this episode: 00:46 How telephone teaching could boost education during school shutdowns Nature: Pick up the phone! Phone calls with tutors keep kids learning when schools shut…

Briefing Chat: How 1,000 pairs of buried underpants helped measure soil health 4 Sept 2026 · 12 min In this episode: 00:21 Our picks of this year’s Ig Nobel prizes Nature: Buried underpants and a new definition of kissing win 2026 Ig Nobel prizes 07:47 Massive xenon experiment d…

Audio long read: Could mending damaged DNA prolong life? 2 Sept 2026 · 18 min Scientists are amassing evidence that unrepaired or poorly repaired DNA damage underlies many of the hallmarks of ageing. This has led to research into whether boosting DNA repair…