Science Vs

The Trump administration is rolling back restrictions on air pollution in the U.S., and some experts say this could affect the health of millions of people. And what makes air pollution especially dangerous is that we often can’t see it at all. 

So today, we’re going back to the story of Ella Kissi-Debrah, a little girl who suddenly got sick and landed in the hospital. In this episode, her mom, Rosamund, takes on the fight to find out what exactly happened to Ella. And the answer has BIG implications — for us all. We’ll hear from Rosamund Adoo-Kissi-Debrah and Professor Stephen Holgate.

Find our transcript here: https://tinyurl.com/ScienceVsAirPollution

In this episode, we cover:

(00:00) Ella’s story 

(13:02) The campaign and investigation

(21:01) Why air pollution is so dangerous

(25:39) Accountability and change

This episode was produced by Ekedi Fausther-Keeys with help from Rose Rimler, Wendy Zukerman, Michelle Dang, Meryl Horn, and Courtney Gilbert. We’re edited by Blythe Terrell. Wendy Zukerman is the Executive Producer. Extra help by Saidu Tejan-Thomas, Nicole Beemsterboer, Kendra Pierre-Louis, and Alex Blumberg. Fact checking by Erica Akiko Howard. Mix and sound design by Bumi Hidaka. Music written by Bumi Hidaka, Peter Leonard, Emma Munger, Bobby Lord and SoWylie. Thanks to all of the researchers and experts we got in touch with for this episode, including Jocelyn Cockburn, Professor Vernon Morris, Dr. George Thurston, Dr. Lauren Zajac, Dr. Jennifer Burney, Dr. Sacoby Wilson, Dr. Melissa Burroughs, Dr Wei Peng, Professor Barbara Hoffman, Dr Michael Craig, and Dr Wes Austin. Special thanks to Rachel Humphreys, BBC Motion Gallery / Getty Images, Jonah Delso, Jackie Llanos, the Zukerman Family and Joseph Lavelle Wilson. 

Science Vs is a Spotify Studios Original. Listen for free on Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts. Follow us and tap the bell for episode notifications. 
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Ibogaine. Fans say this psychedelic is a game changer for treating a bunch of mental health conditions — that even a single trip to your friendly ibogaine clinic could cure you of lifelong struggles with addiction. And recently President Trump signed an executive order fast-tracking research into this psychedelic drug. But how well does it really work? And is it safe?? To find out, we talk to clinical psychologist Dr. Alan Davis and psychiatrist Prof. Paul Glue. 

Some resources for help with substance use and domestic violence:


Substance use and mental health concerns (U.S.): SAMHSA National Helpline: 1-800-662-HELP (4357)


National Domestic Violence Hotline (U.S.): 800.799.7233 or www.thehotline.org


Find international resources and more at spotify.com/resources

Find our transcript here: https://tinyurl.com/ScienceVsIbogaine 

In this episode, we cover:

(00:00) The hot new psychedelic on the block 

(07:25) Can ibogaine help with opioid addiction? 

(18:31) How does ibogaine help people?

(20:50) How long do the benefits last?

(26:10) What are the risks?

(29:31) Is there a safe dose that can help people?

This episode was produced by Meryl Horn with help from Rose Rimler, Ekedi Fausther-Keeys, Michelle Dang and Wendy Zukerman. We’re edited by Blythe Terrell. Wendy Zukerman is the executive producer. Fact checking by Diane Kelly. Mix and sound design by Bobby Lord. Music written by Bobby Lord, Bumi Hidaka, So Wylie, Emma Munger and Peter Leonard. Thanks to the researchers we spoke to about this, including Dr. Rafael Santos, and a special thanks to those who talked to us about their ibogaine experiences.

Science Vs is a Spotify Studios Original. Listen for free on Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts. Follow us and tap the bell for episode notifications.
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A weird virus has popped up on a cruise ship, and it’s making a bunch of us nervous. It’s a type of hantavirus called Andes virus, and scientists think that it’s infected almost a dozen people so far — three of them have died. And now people are getting off the boat, some of them going into government quarantine, but some of them traveling home. And people are like, wait … this all sounds VERY familiar … from the early days of Covid. So — how scary is this? Could this hantavirus be the next pandemic?? We talk to Prof. Michelle Harkins, Prof. Ann Sheehy and Dr. Neil Vora to find out.

Find our transcript here: https://tinyurl.com/ScienceVsHantavirus

 

In this episode, we cover:

(00:00) Hantavirus shows up on a cruise ship

(03:11) What happens if you get sick with hantavirus?

(09:32) How does hantavirus spread? 

(14:05) How good is this hantavirus at spreading?

(26:08) Is this hantavirus going to cause the next pandemic?

This episode was produced by Michelle Dang, with help from Blythe Terrell, Meryl Horn, Rose Rimler, Ekedi Fausther-Keeys and Wendy Zukerman. We’re edited by Blythe Terrell. Wendy Zukerman is the executive producer. Fact checking by Diane Kelly. Mix and sound design by Bobby Lord. Music written by Bobby Lord, Bumi Hidaka, So Wylie, Emma Munger and Peter Leonard. Special thanks to the other researchers we spoke to about this, including Prof. Glenn Marsh. 

Science Vs is a Spotify Studios Original. Listen for free on Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts. Follow us and tap the bell for episode notifications. 

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Tons of us are inked — one in three American adults has a tattoo — but lately, we’ve been hearing that tattoos are actually bad for us. We’re told that they mess with our immune system and could even lead to cancer. Can that be true?! Plus, are there any upsides to having a tattoo? We talk to immunologist Dr. Santiago González, epidemiologist Dr. Christel Nielsen, and psychologist Prof. Viren Swami. 

Find our transcript here: https://tinyurl.com/ScienceVsTattoos 

(00:00) Tattoos Under Attack

(02:03) Getting Under Our Skin

(11:38) Do Tattoos Cause Cancer?

(18:50) Should You Get Them Lasered Off?

(20:53) The Benefits of Tattoos

This episode was produced by Rose Rimler, with help from Blythe Terrell, Ekedi Fausther-Keeys, Meryl Horn, and Michelle Dang. Wendy Zukerman is our executive producer. We’re edited by Blythe Terrell. Fact checking by Diane Kelly. Mix and sound design by Bumi Hidaka and Bobby Lord. Music written by Bobby Lord, Bumi Hidaka, So Wylie, Emma Munger and Peter Leonard. Special thanks to all the experts we spoke with for this episode, including Dr. Signe Clemmensen, Prof. David Kriebel, Dr. John Swierk, Natacha Cingotti, Dr. Sandrine Henri, Prof. Chris Lynn, and Tricia Allen. 

Science Vs is a Spotify Studios Original. Listen for free on Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts. Follow us and tap the bell for episode notifications.

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We keep hearing that we need to be BORED more, with people online swearing that boredom can work magic — restoring your mind, and even supercharging your creativity. So, is boredom secretly good for us? We talk to cognitive neuroscientist Prof. James Danckert and organizational psychologist Prof. Guihyun Park to find out. 

Find our transcript here: https://tinyurl.com/ScienceVsBoredom

In this episode, we cover:

(00:00) They say we need more boredom

(02:06) This is your brain on boredom

(12:30) Does boredom push us into creativity? 

(22:08) Should you try to be more bored? 

(23:53) When you give your brain time to rest

This episode was produced by Michelle Dang, with help from Meryl Horn, Rose Rimler and Ekedi Fausther-Keeys. Wendy Zukerman is our executive producer. We’re edited by Blythe Terrell. Fact checking by Erica Akiko Howard. Mix and sound design by Bobby Lord. Music written by Bobby Lord, Bumi Hidaka, So Wylie, Emma Munger and Peter Leonard. 

Science Vs is a Spotify Studios Original. Listen for free on Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts. Follow us and tap the bell for episode notifications. 

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices