The Next 50 Years: A Global Census of Life

The Next 50 Years: A Global Census of Life

Author: University of Texas at Austin, College of Natural Sciences, Marc Airhart January 8, 2020 Duration: 9:41
We know absolutely nothing about roughly 80 percent of the different types of life on Earth. Biologist David Hillis aims to discover all those missing species—by some estimates 5 to 10 million—possibly in the next few decades. Sound impossible? He shares his vision for how this would work in this first episode of our new miniseries, The Next 50 Years. Check out more podcasts and essays in this series: https://cns.utexas.edu/news/tags/the-next-50-years Hillis, along with colleagues Derrick Zwickl and Robin Gutell, published a stunning new tree of life in 2003 based not just on the physical traits but also the genetics of 3,000 species from across all known groups of life. The unique circular layout which first appeared in the journal Science has come to be known as a Hillis plot. To download a printable version of the Hillis plot and see tattoos and other artistic renderings, visit: http://www.zo.utexas.edu/faculty/antisense/DownloadfilesToL.html Learn about the computational approaches that enabled this new type of tree of life: https://science.sciencemag.org/content/300/5626/1692.full and https://cns.utexas.edu/news/tree-of-life Music for today’s show was produced by: Podington Bear - https://www.podingtonbear.com/ Chuzausen - https://freemusicarchive.org/music/Chuzausen Have you heard our other news? Now you can listen to Point of Discovery on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4bWQkQ9jBV0cyKeyqeKwdA

Curiosity is the engine of science, but the path from a question to an answer is rarely a straight line. Point of Discovery, from the University of Texas at Austin's College of Natural Sciences and hosted by Marc Airhart, pulls back the curtain on that process. This podcast is less about headlines and more about the human endeavor-the late nights, the failed experiments, the unexpected twists, and the collaborative moments that lead to new understanding. Each episode is a journey alongside researchers, giving you a front-row seat to the methods, debates, and sheer persistence that define real scientific work. You'll hear directly from the people behind the data, individuals whose unique perspectives and dedicated curiosity help map everything from microscopic cells to distant galaxies. The stories are intimate and specific, revealing how knowledge is built piece by piece. With original music by Podington Bear setting the tone, the podcast creates an immersive experience that celebrates the nuance and humanity at the heart of discovery. It’s an invitation to appreciate not just the destination, but the fascinating, often meandering trail that gets us there. Point of Discovery is produced as part of the Texas Podcast Network.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 62

Point of Discovery
Podcast Episodes
Does This Look Like Cancer? [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 8:39
A team of scientists and engineers led by Livia S. Eberlin at The University of Texas at Austin has invented a powerful tool that rapidly and accurately identifies cancerous tissue during surgery, delivering results in a…
When Will We Have Quantum Computers? [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 7:59
Quantum computers might sound like science fiction. A fully functioning quantum computer could complete calculations in a matter of seconds that would take a conventional computer millions of years to process. Science fi…
Can Sound Save a Fish? [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 9:33
Gulf Corvina look pretty ordinary—they’re a couple of feet long and silvery. Yet the sounds they make—when millions get together to spawn—are a kind of wonder of the natural world. It’s also why they are in danger. Gulf…
Keeps Us on Our Toes [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 5:26
Worried that smart robots are taking over the world? You’ll be relieved to know they still have a long way to go. That is unless you’re an artificial intelligence researcher like Peter Stone. One big challenge facing rob…
The Science of Relationships [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 17:26
In honor of Valentine’s Day, we’re speaking with Lisa Neff, a researcher studying what makes happy, healthy romantic relationships tick. Neff is an associate professor in the Department of Human Development and Family Sc…
Resetting the Alcoholic Brain [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 10:56
Adron Harris, director of the Waggoner Center for Alcoho and Addiction Research at The University of Texas at Austin, and his team mapped the differences in gene expression between an alcoholic's brain and a non-alcoholi…
The Mighty Copepod [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 7:05
These teeny shrimp-like critters at the bottom of the ocean food web seem totally unimportant. But throw in an oil spill and some well-intentioned human intervention and they can have a huge impact, right up to the top o…
Evolution Inspires Anthrax Cure [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 10:04
This fall marks the 15th anniversary of the U.S. anthrax letter attacks that sickened dozens of people and killed five. At the time, there was no effective treatment for a late stage infection. The attacks accelerated wo…
The Last First Planetary Mission [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 8:30
The New Horizons spacecraft brought humanity face to face with the last unexplored planet in our solar system: Pluto. What we're learning is amazing. But, time and again, the mission almost didn't happen. University of T…
Bacterial BFFs or Frenemies? [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 5:45
About how long would you say the microbes living in your gut have been there? You might be surprised by what researchers discovered when they compared the microbes in our guts with those of our closest relatives, the gre…