Into The Impossible

On this episode of The INTO THE IMPOSSIBLE Podcast, Carl Zimmer discusses the importance of ethics in scientific communication and how scientific discoveries can be inaccurately reported by journalists, leading to misunderstandings by the public. The difficulty of defining what it means to be alive is explored and the stakes of this debate, particularly in regards to the autonomy of one's own body, are discussed. The episode also touches on the controversy surrounding gain of function research on pathogens and the importance of verifying scientific findings. The guest shares anecdotes from her career, including her experience covering the controversial discovery of arsenic life, and reflects on why biology continues to surprise and fascinate her. The episode ends with a discussion on the human brain’s difficulty in dealing with ambiguous states and the challenge of capturing people’s interest in retractions or flawed findings. Carl Zimmer is an expert science writer who is highly curious about the mysteries o