Quanta Science Podcast

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Listen to Quanta Magazine's in-depth news stories about developments in mathematics, theoretical physics, theoretical computer science and the basic life sciences. Quanta, an editorially independent magazine published by the Simons Foundation, seeks to enhance public understanding of basic research.

Quanta Magazine

New York, N.Y.


    • May 27, 2025 LATEST EPISODE
    • every other week NEW EPISODES
    • 19m AVG DURATION
    • 269 EPISODES

    4.7 from 387 ratings Listeners of Quanta Science Podcast that love the show mention: science podcast, magazine, great writing, scientific, subject, overall, current, topics, great job, like, content, new, best, love, gauss rhymes with 'house'.


    Ivy Insights

    The Quanta Science Podcast is an exceptional podcast that delves deep into various scientific topics and provides listeners with a comprehensive understanding of complex issues. The production value and format, which includes interviews with experts in the field, result in a well-produced podcast that is engaging and informative. Additionally, the podcast covers a wide range of fields, giving listeners valuable insights into the latest hot topics across different scientific disciplines. What sets this podcast apart is its commitment to providing high-quality and well-cited information, akin to a research paper presentation.

    One of the best aspects of The Quanta Science Podcast is its ability to present complex scientific concepts without dumbing them down. Unlike many other science podcasts that tend to oversimplify subjects, this podcast maintains a high level of intellectual rigor and explores the nuances and logic behind important scientific issues. It is refreshing to have access to a podcast that caters to both professionals in the field and non-experts who seek in-depth knowledge.

    However, some listeners might find The Quanta Science Podcast challenging to follow at times. Due to the cutting-edge nature of the topics discussed and the depth at which they are explored, it can be mentally demanding for individuals who are not well-versed in STEM fields. While this may pose a challenge for some listeners, it ultimately contributes to the podcast's quality as an informative source.

    In conclusion, The Quanta Science Podcast is an outstanding science podcast that excels in providing detailed discussions on interesting scientific topics. Its commitment to intellectual depth and exploration of evolving views within different scientific disciplines make it stand out among other science podcasts. Although it may require active listening and concentration due to its complexity, The Quanta Science Podcast offers an invaluable resource for both scientists and non-scientists seeking thought-provoking content on cutting-edge research.



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    Latest episodes from Quanta Science Podcast

    Math and Beauty in the Age of AI

    Play Episode Listen Later May 27, 2025 20:44


    Mathematicians have started to prepare for a profound shift in what it means to do math. This is the second episode of our new weekly series The Quanta Podcast, hosted by Quanta magazine Editor-in-Chief Samir Patel. This week’s guest is Jordana Cepelewicz; she recently published “Mathematical Beauty, Truth and Proof in the Age of AI” for Quanta’s AI special package. (If you’ve been a fan of Quanta Science Podcast, it will continue as ‘audio edition episodes’ in this same feed every other week.)

    Audio Edition: Can AI Models Show Us How People Learn? Impossible Languages Point a Way.

    Play Episode Listen Later May 22, 2025 18:43


    Certain grammatical rules never appear in any known language. By constructing artificial languages that have these rules, linguists can use neural networks to explore how people learn.

    AI Is Nothing Like a Brain, and That's OK

    Play Episode Listen Later May 20, 2025 18:47


    The brain's astounding cellular diversity and networked complexity could show how to make AI better.

    Introducing The Quanta Podcast

    Play Episode Listen Later May 13, 2025 12:23


    he Quanta Podcast is your weekly dispatch from the frontiers of science and mathematics. In each episode, editor in chief Samir Patel will talk to the writers and editors behind our most popular, interesting and thought-provoking stories. The first episode of The Quanta Podcast will be live on May 20. In this trailer episode, Patel talks to executive editor Michael Moyer about what Quanta covers, how it has changed over time and our recent special series on “Science, Promise and Peril in the Age of AI.” Join us every Tuesday for stimulating conversations and insights about the biggest ideas in basic science and mathematics. Listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, TuneIn or your favorite podcasting app, or you can stream it from Quanta.

    Quantum Computers Cross Critical Error Threshold

    Play Episode Listen Later May 8, 2025 19:08


    In a first, researchers have shown that adding more “qubits” to a quantum computer can make it more resilient. It's an essential step on the long road to practical applications. Read more at QuantaMagazine.org. Music is “Clover 3” by Vibe Mountain.

    Fish Have a Brain Microbiome. Could Humans Have One Too?

    Play Episode Listen Later Apr 24, 2025 15:58


    The discovery that other vertebrates have healthy, microbial brains is fueling the still controversial possibility that we might have them as well.

    Exotic New Superconductors Delight and Confound

    Play Episode Listen Later Apr 10, 2025 17:22


    Three new species of superconductivity were spotted this year, illustrating the myriad ways electrons can join together to form a frictionless quantum soup.

    It Might Be Possible to Detect Gravitons After All

    Play Episode Listen Later Mar 27, 2025 20:28


    A new experimental proposal suggests detecting a particle of gravity is far easier than anyone imagined. Now physicists are debating what it would really prove.

    The Hidden World of Electrostatic Ecology

    Play Episode Listen Later Feb 19, 2025 24:08


    Invisibly to us, insects and other tiny creatures use static electricity to travel, avoid predators, collect pollen and more. New experiments explore how evolution may have influenced this phenomenon.

    The Cellular Secret to Resisting the Pressure of the Deep Sea

    Play Episode Listen Later Feb 5, 2025 20:07


    Cell membranes from comb jellies reveal a new kind of adaptation to the deep sea: curvy lipids that conform to an ideal shape under pressure. Read more at QuantaMagazine.org. Music by Enchanted Forest Dub by South London HiFi.

    Computer Scientists Prove That Heat Destroys Quantum Entanglement

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 22, 2025 13:16


    While devising a new quantum algorithm, four researchers accidentally established a hard limit on the “spooky” phenomenon.

    Physicists Pinpoint the Quantum Origin of the Greenhouse Effect

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 15, 2025 15:03


    Carbon dioxide's powerful heat-trapping effect has been traced to a quirk of its quantum structure. The finding may explain climate change better than any computer model.

    What Happens in a Mind That Can't 'See' Mental Images

    Play Episode Listen Later Dec 11, 2024 20:33


    Neuroscience research into people with aphantasia, who don't experience mental imagery, is revealing how imagination works and demonstrating the sweeping variety in our subjective experiences.

    What Could Explain the Gallium Anomaly?

    Play Episode Listen Later Nov 26, 2024 14:00


    Physicists have ruled out a mundane explanation for the strange findings of an old Soviet experiment, leaving open the possibility that the results point to a new fundamental particle.

    Cryptographers Discover a New Foundation for Quantum Secrecy

    Play Episode Listen Later Nov 13, 2024 20:09


    Researchers have proved that secure quantum encryption is possible in a world without hard problems.

    Electric 'Ripples' in the Resting Brain Tag Memories for Storage

    Play Episode Listen Later Oct 30, 2024 19:07


    New experiments reveal how the brain chooses which memories to save and add credence to advice about the importance of rest.

    How the Human Brain Contends With the Strangeness of Zero

    Play Episode Listen Later Oct 18, 2024 17:19


    Zero, which was invented late in history, is special among numbers. New studies are uncovering how the brain creates something out of nothing. The post How the Human Brain Contends With the Strangeness of Zero first appeared on Quanta Magazine

    AI Starts to Sift Through String Theory's Near-Endless Possibilities

    Play Episode Listen Later Oct 16, 2024 25:11


    Using machine learning, string theorists are finally showing how microscopic configurations of extra dimensions translate into sets of elementary particles — though not yet those of our universe.

    Insects and Other Animals Have Consciousness, Experts Declare

    Play Episode Listen Later Oct 2, 2024 18:08


    A group of prominent biologists and philosophers announced a new consensus: There's “a realistic possibility” that insects, octopuses, crustaceans, fish and other overlooked animals experience consciousness.

    Dark Energy May Be Weakening, Major Astrophysics Study Finds

    Play Episode Listen Later Sep 18, 2024 20:13


    A generation of physicists has referred to the dark energy that permeates the universe as “the cosmological constant.” Now the largest map of the cosmos to date hints that this mysterious energy has been changing over billions of years.

    Brain's 'Background Noise' May Explain Value of Shock Therapy

    Play Episode Listen Later Sep 4, 2024 12:36


    Electroconvulsive therapy is highly effective in treating major depressive disorder, but no one knows why it works. New research suggests it may restore balance between excitation and inhibition in the brain.

    Swirling Forces, Crushing Pressures Measured in the Proton

    Play Episode Listen Later Aug 21, 2024 17:46


    Long-anticipated experiments that use light to mimic gravity are revealing the distribution of energies, forces and pressures inside a subatomic particle for the first time.

    Never-Repeating Tiles Can Safeguard Quantum Information

    Play Episode Listen Later Aug 7, 2024 17:44


    Two researchers have proved that Penrose tilings, famous patterns that never repeat, are mathematically equivalent to a kind of quantum error correction. Read more at QuantaMagazine.org. Music is “Quasi Motion” by Kevin MacLeod.

    Radio Maps May Reveal the Universe's Biggest Magnetic Fields

    Play Episode Listen Later Jul 25, 2024 11:03


    A controversial technique has produced detailed maps of the magnetic fields in colossal galaxy clusters. If confirmed, the approach could be used to reveal where cosmic magnetic fields come from.

    New Clues for What Will Happen When the Sun Eats the Earth

    Play Episode Listen Later Jul 10, 2024 13:23


    Recent observations of an aging, alien planetary system are helping to answer the question: What will happen to our planet when the sun dies? Read more at QuantaMagazine.org. Music is “Dark Toys” by SYBS.

    New Cell Atlases Reveal Untold Variety in the Brain and Beyond

    Play Episode Listen Later Jun 26, 2024 21:05


    Recent efforts to map every cell in the human body have researchers floored by unfathomable diversity, with many thousands of subtly different types of cells in the human brain alone. Read more at QuantaMagazine.org. Music is “Confusing Disco” by Birocratic.

    Extra-Long Blasts Challenge Our Theories of Cosmic Cataclysms

    Play Episode Listen Later Jun 11, 2024 25:08


    Astronomers thought they had solved the mystery of gamma-ray bursts. A few recent events suggest otherwise. Read more at QuantaMagazine.org. Music is “Light Gazing” by Andrew Langdon.

    Meet Strange Metals: Where Electricity May Flow Without Electrons

    Play Episode Listen Later May 29, 2024 20:57


    For 50 years, physicists have understood current as a flow of charged particles. But a new experiment has found that in at least one strange material, this understanding falls apart. Read more at QuantaMagazine.org. Music is “Thought Bot” by Audionautix.

    In the Gut's 'Second Brain,' Key Agents of Health Emerge

    Play Episode Listen Later May 15, 2024 17:25


    Sitting alongside the neurons in your enteric nervous system are underappreciated glial cells, which play key roles in digestion and disease that scientists are only just starting to understand. Read more at QuantaMagazine.org. Music is “Running Out” by Patrick Patrikios.

    During Pregnancy, a Fake 'Infection' Protects the Fetus

    Play Episode Listen Later May 1, 2024 9:59


    Cells in the placenta have an unusual trick for activating gentle immune defenses and keeping them turned on when no infection is present. It involves crafting and deploying a fake virus. Read more at QuantaMagazine.org. Music is “Unanswered Questions” by Kevin MacLeod.

    Why the Human Brain Perceives Small Numbers Better

    Play Episode Listen Later Apr 17, 2024 21:16


    The discovery that the brain has different systems for representing small and large numbers provokes new questions about memory, attention and mathematics. Read more at QuantaMagazine.org. Music is “Quasi Motion” by Kevin MacLeod.

    Inside Scientists' Life-Saving Prediction of the Iceland Eruption

    Play Episode Listen Later Apr 3, 2024 22:15


    The Reykjanes Peninsula has entered a new volcanic era. Innovative efforts to map and monitor the subterranean magma are saving lives. Read more at QuantaMagazine.org. Music is “Fire Water” by Saidbysed.

    Echoes of Electromagnetism Found in Number Theory

    Play Episode Listen Later Mar 20, 2024 20:39


    A new magnum opus posits the existence of a hidden mathematical link akin to the connection between electricity and magnetism. Read more at QuantaMagazine.org. Music is “Clover 3” by Vibe Mountain.

    Tiny Language Models Come of Age

    Play Episode Listen Later Mar 6, 2024 20:48


    To better understand how neural networks learn to simulate writing, researchers trained simpler versions on synthetic children's stories. Read more at QuantaMagazine.org. Music is “Thought Bot” by Audionautix.

    Rogue Worlds Throw Planetary Ideas Out of Orbit

    Play Episode Listen Later Feb 21, 2024 21:48


    Scientists have recently discovered scores of free-floating worlds that defy classification. The new observations have forced them to rethink their theories of star and planet formation. Read more at QuantaMagazine.org. Music is “Light Gazing” by Andrew Langdon.

    What Makes Life Tick? Mitochondria May Keep Time for Cells

    Play Episode Listen Later Feb 7, 2024 23:58


    Every species develops at its own unique tempo, leaving scientists to wonder what governs their timing. A suite of new findings suggests that cells use basic metabolic processes as clocks. Read more at QuantaMagazine.org. Music is “Pulse” by Geographer.

    An Old Conjecture Falls, Making Spheres a Lot More Complicated

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 24, 2024 16:37


    The telescope conjecture gave mathematicians a handle on ways to map one sphere to another. Now that it has been disproved, the universe of shapes has exploded. Read more at QuantaMagazine.org. Music is “Slow Burn” by Kevin MacLeod.

    Even Synthetic Life Forms With a Tiny Genome Can Evolve

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 10, 2024 15:21


    By watching “minimal” cells regain the fitness they lost, researchers are testing whether a genome can be too simple to evolve. Read more at QuantaMagazine.org. Music is “Hidden Agenda” by Kevin MacLeod.

    Selfish, Virus-Like DNA Can Carry Genes Between Species

    Play Episode Listen Later Dec 20, 2023 13:09


    Genetic elements called Mavericks that have some viral features could be responsible for the large-scale smuggling of DNA between species. Read more at QuantaMagazine.org. Music is “Clover” by Vibe Mountain.

    Exoplanets Could Help Us Learn How Planets Make Magnetism

    Play Episode Listen Later Dec 6, 2023 12:47


    New observations of a faraway rocky world that might have its own magnetic field could help astronomers understand the seemingly haphazard magnetic fields in our own solar system. Read more at QuantaMagazine.org. Music is “Light Gazing” by Andrew Langdon.

    To Move Fast, Quantum Maze Solvers Must Forget the Past

    Play Episode Listen Later Nov 21, 2023 15:56


    Quantum algorithms can find their way out of mazes exponentially faster than classical ones, at the cost of forgetting the paths they took. A new result suggests that the trade-off may be inevitable. Read more at QuantaMagazine.org. Music is “Confusing Disco” by Birocratic.

    Underground Cells Make 'Dark Oxygen' Without Light

    Play Episode Listen Later Nov 8, 2023 13:37


    In some deep subterranean aquifers, cells have a chemical trick for making oxygen that could sustain whole underground ecosystems. Read more at QuantaMagazine.org. Music is “Pulse” by Geographer.

    How the Brain Protects Itself From Blood-Borne Threats

    Play Episode Listen Later Oct 25, 2023 12:09


    To buffer the brain against menaces in the blood, a dynamic, multi-tiered system of protection is built into the brain's blood vessels. Read more at QuantaMagazine.org. Music is “Good Times” by Patrick Patrikios.

    JWST Spots Giant Black Holes All Over the Early Universe

    Play Episode Listen Later Oct 11, 2023 25:05


    Giant black holes were supposed to be bit players in the early cosmic story. But recent James Webb Space Telescope observations are finding an unexpected abundance of the beasts. Read more at QuantaMagazine.org. Music is “Light Gazing” by Andrew Langdon.

    Is It Real or Imagined? How Your Brain Tells the Difference.

    Play Episode Listen Later Sep 27, 2023 18:27


    New experiments show that the brain distinguishes between perceived and imagined mental images by checking whether they cross a “reality threshold.” Read more at QuantaMagazine.org. Music is “Who's Using Who” by The Mini Vandals.

    Chatbots Don't Know What Stuff Isn't

    Play Episode Listen Later Sep 13, 2023 16:59


    Today's language models are more sophisticated than ever, but they still struggle with the concept of negation. That's unlikely to change anytime soon. Read more at QuantaMagazine.org. Music is “Hidden Agenda” by Kevin MacLeod.

    Global Microbiome Study Gives New View of Shared Health Risks

    Play Episode Listen Later Aug 30, 2023 21:07


    The most comprehensive survey of how we share our microbiomes suggests a new way of thinking about the risks of developing some diseases that aren't usually considered contagious. Read more at QuantaMagazine.org. Music is “Transmission” by John Deley and the 41 Players.

    Physicists Use Quantum Mechanics to Pull Energy out of Nothing

    Play Episode Listen Later Aug 16, 2023 19:26


    The quantum energy teleportation protocol was proposed in 2008 and largely ignored. Now two independent experiments have shown that it works. Read more at QuantaMagazine.org. Music is “Pulse” by Geographer.

    How Loneliness Reshapes the Brain

    Play Episode Listen Later Aug 2, 2023 21:28


    Feelings of loneliness prompt changes in the brain that further isolate people from social contact. Read more at QuantaMagazine.org. Music is “Slow Burn” by Kevin MacLeod.

    Gene Expression in Neurons Solves a Brain Evolution Puzzle

    Play Episode Listen Later Jul 19, 2023 19:41


    The neocortex of our brain is the seat of our intellect. New data suggests that mammals created it with new types of cells that they developed only after their evolutionary split from reptiles. Read more at QuantaMagazine.org. Music is “Pulse” by Geographer.

    Machines Learn Better if We Teach Them the Basics

    Play Episode Listen Later Jul 5, 2023 20:41


    A wave of research improves reinforcement learning algorithms by pre-training them as if they were human. Read more at QuantaMagazine.org. Music is “Quasi Motion” by Kevin MacLeod.

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