Science Quickly

In this week’s news roundup, we take a look at what’s happening with the Ebola outbreak in parts of Africa. Later SciAm editorial fellow Peter Hall joins host Rachel Feltman to discuss recent claims by OpenAI and Anthropic that their models have solved some of the world’s toughest math and physics problems. Plus, we dive into new research that suggests making daylight saving time permanent could put schoolchildren at risk.

Recommended Reading:

Dueling proofs from OpenAI and Anthropic astound scientists

OpenAI just scooped mathematicians’ work on another million-dollar problem

E-mail us at [email protected] if you have any questions, comments or ideas for stories we should cover!

Discover something new every day: subscribe to Scientific American and sign up for Today in Science, our daily newsletter.

Science Quickly is produced by Rachel Feltman, Fonda Mwangi, Sushmita Pathak, Allison Rodgers and Jeff DelViscio. This episode was edited by Alex Sugiura, with fact-checking by Marielle Issa and Aaron Shattuck. Our theme music was composed by Dominic Smith.
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In this Halloween special episode of Science Quickly, host Rachel Feltman explores why our fascination with vampires refuses to die. We dive into the spooky history of vampires—from tuberculosis outbreaks in the 18th and 19th centuries to sexy pop culture icons—and examine what our collective obsession with them says about us.

Recommended Reading:

Exhumed: Unearthing the History of the American Vampire. Aaron Mahnke. Running Press Adult, 2026

Recreational Fear Lab, co-directed by Mathias Clasen, at Aarhus University in Denmark

“Monsters and Posttraumatic Stress: An Experiential-Processing Model of Monster Imagery in Psychological Therapy, Film and Television,” by Jenny Hamilton, in Humanities and Social Sciences Communications, Vol. 7, Article No. 142. Published online November 5, 2020

E-mail us at [email protected] if you have any questions, comments or ideas for stories we should cover!

Discover something new every day: subscribe to Scientific American and sign up for Today in Science, our daily newsletter.

Science Quickly is produced by Rachel Feltman, Fonda Mwangi, Sushmita Pathak, Allison Rodgers and Jeff DelViscio. This episode was edited by Alex Sugiura, with fact-checking by Marielle Issa and Aaron Shattuck. Our theme music was composed by Dominic Smith.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

New approaches aim to extend treatment durability and improve long-term vision outcomes in wet AMD.

Scientific American Custom Media recently sat down with Dr. Nadia Waheed, Ocular Therapeutix’s chief medical officer, to discuss the real-world burden behind the standard of care and how emerging approaches, including sustained-delivery therapies under investigation, aim to reduce it.

This podcast was produced for Ocular Therapeutix by Scientific American Custom Media, a division separate from the magazine’s board of editors.

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Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What does science have to do with the midterms? In this episode of Science Quickly, host Rachel Feltman speaks with Scientific American breaking news reporter Adam Kovac about candidates with science backgrounds, the future of Medicare for All, the role of evidence in policymaking and the election’s consequences for the broader scientific community.

Recommended Reading:

Abdul El-Sayed explains how science influences his politics

Tom Stalcup on climate change, a science-based approach to politics and misinformation

E-mail us at [email protected] if you have any questions, comments or ideas for stories we should cover!

Discover something new every day: subscribe to Scientific American and sign up for Today in Science, our daily newsletter.

Science Quickly is produced by Rachel Feltman, Fonda Mwangi, Sushmita Pathak, Allison Rodgers and Jeff DelViscio. This episode was edited by Alex Sugiura, with fact-checking by Marielle Issa and Aaron Shattuck. Our theme music was composed by Dominic Smith.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

From fearmongering about ingredients to misleading dietary trends, nutrition misinformation is everywhere. In this podcast, nutrition scientist Jessica Knurick explores why food myths spread, how to recognize unreliable health claims and distinguish credible research from pseudoscience, and what decades of scientific evidence reveal about making healthier food choices.

This podcast was produced for Bayer by Scientific American Custom Media, a division separate from the magazine’s board of editors.

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Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices