A show for curious minds. Join us each week as academic experts tell us about the fascinating discoveries they're making to understand the world, and the big qu...
How close are quantum computers to being really useful?
Quantum computers have the potential to solve big scientific problems that are beyond the reach of today’s most powerful supercomputers, such as discovering new antibiotics or developing new materials. But to achieve these breakthroughs, quantum computers will need to perform better than today’s best classical computers at solving real-world problems. And they’re not quite there yet. So what is still holding quantum computing back from becoming useful?We speak to quantum computing expert Daniel Lidar at the University of Southern California in the US about what problems scientists are still wrestling with when it comes to scaling up quantum computing, and how close they are to overcoming them.This episode was written and produced by Gemma Ware and Katie Flood with production assistance from Mend Mariwany and sound design by Michelle Macklem. Our theme music is by Neeta Sarl. Full credits for this episode are available. Sign up here for a free daily newsletter from The Conversation.If you like the show, please consider donating to The Conversation, which is an independent, not-for-profit news organisation. And please do rate and review the show wherever you listen.Further reading:What is quantum advantage? A quantum computing scientist explains an approaching milestone marking the arrival of extremely powerful computersWe’re getting closer to having practical quantum computers – here’s what they will be used forQuantum computers are like kaleidoscopes − why unusual metaphors help illustrate science and technology Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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A wildfire warning from California's Ice Age past
Firefighters in Los Angeles continue to battle devastating wildfires that have killed at least 27 people and left thousands of homes destroyed. Today, we’re revisiting an interview we ran in late 2023 with Emily Lindsey, a paleoecologist who works at the La Brea tar pits archaeological site in Los Angeles, about a wildfire warning from southern California’s ice age history.The interview originally aired in November 2023. This episode was written and produced by Katie Flood. Sound design was by Eloise Stevens and Michelle Macklem. Full credits for this episode are available. Sign up here for a free daily newsletter from The Conversation.If you like the show, please consider donating to The Conversation, which is an independent, not-for-profit news organisation. And please do rate and review the show wherever you listen.Further reading:Human use of fire has produced an era of uncontrolled burning: Welcome to the PyroceneA changing climate, growing human populations and widespread fires contributed to the last major extinction event − can we prevent another?How Santa Ana winds fueled the deadly fires in Southern California Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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23:57
Silicon Valley’s bet on a future of AI-enabled warfare
From Gaza to Ukraine, today’s war zones are being used as testing grounds for new systems driven by artificial intelligence. Billions of dollars are now being pumped into AI weapons technology, much of it from Silicon Valley venture capitalists.In this episode, we speak to Elke Schwarz, a reader in political theory at Queen Mary University of London in the UK who studies the ethics of autonomous weapons systems, about what this influx of new investment means for the future of warfare. This episode was written and produced by Mend Mariwany and Gemma Ware with sound design by Michelle Macklem. Our theme music is by Neeta Sarl. Full credits for this episode are available. Sign up here for a free daily newsletter from The Conversation.If you like the show, please consider donating to The Conversation, which is an independent, not-for-profit news organisation. And please do rate and review the show wherever you listen.Further reading:The Silicon Valley venture capitalists who want to ‘move fast and break things’ in the defence industryGaza war: Israel using AI to identify human targets raising fears that innocents are being caught in the netWar in Ukraine accelerates global drive toward killer robots Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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32:24
How the world fell in love with plastic without thinking through the consequences
Every year, 400 million tons of plastic are produced worldwide, and every year, approximately 57 million tons of plastic waste is created. And yet in November, the latest round of negotiations to agree the first legally binding international treaty on plastics pollution collapsed.So what can we really do about the plastics pollution problem? In this episode we sat down with Mark Miodowonik, professor of materials and society at UCL in the UK, to understand the history of plastic, how it’s shaped our lives, and what can be done to make sure more plastic is recycled and less ends up polluting the planet. This episode was written and produced by Katie Flood and Gemma Ware with sound design by Michelle Macklem. Our theme music is by Neeta Sarl. Full credits for this episode are available. Sign up here for a free daily newsletter from The Conversation.If you like the show, please consider donating to The Conversation, which is an independent, not-for-profit news organisation. And please do rate and review the show wherever you listen.Further reading:Can you trust companies that say their plastic products are recyclable? US regulators may crack down on deceptive claimsThe plastic recycling system is broken – here’s how we can fix itIf plastic manufacturing goes up 10%, plastic pollution goes up 10% – and we’re set for a huge surge in productionTime is running out for a treaty to end plastic pollution – here’s why it matters Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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Brain implants, agentic AI and answers on dark matter: what to expect from science in 2025
In a special episode to start 2025, we’ve brought together three science editors from The Conversation’s editions around the world to discuss what to look out for in the world of science and technology in the coming year. Host Gemma Ware is joined by Paul Rincon from The Conversation in the UK, Elsa Couderc from The Conversation in France and Signe Dean from The Conversation in Australia. This episode was written and produced by Gemma Ware and Katie Flood with sound design by Michelle Macklem. Our theme music is by Neeta Sarl. Full credits for this episode are available. Sign up here for a free daily newsletter from The Conversation.If you like the show, please consider donating to The Conversation, which is an independent, not-for-profit news organisation. And please do rate and review the show wherever you listen.Further reading and listening Has Nasa found evidence of ancient life on Mars? An expert examines the latest discoverySeveral companies are testing brain implants – why is there so much attention swirling around Neuralink? Two professors unpack the ethical issuesNuclear fusion record broken – what will it take to start generating electricity? PodcastQuantum computers are like kaleidoscopes − why unusual metaphors help illustrate science and technology Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
A show for curious minds. Join us each week as academic experts tell us about the fascinating discoveries they're making to understand the world, and the big questions they’re still trying to answer. A podcast from The Conversation, hosted by Gemma Ware. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
South Africa