In this episode:

100 days into his term, President Donald Trump and his administration have already caused the biggest shakeup in modern scientific history, slashing funding, bringing large swathes of US research to a standstill and halting many clinical trials. But many fear these actions are just the beginning. We look at what the long-term impacts of these decisions might be for science in the United States and the world.

Nature: Will US science survive Trump 2.0?

A distant planet that orbits two stars, at a right angle, and how fringe-lipped bats’ hearing helps them find palatable amphibians.

Research Highlight: ‘Tatooine’-like planet orbits two stars ― but at a weird angle

Research Highlight: For these bats, eavesdropping is a valuable learnt skill

The first skeletal evidence from bones that Roman gladiators fought lions, and scientists finally pinpoint the genes responsible for three of the pea traits studied by Gregor Mendel.

BBC News: Bites on gladiator bones prove combat with lion

Nature: Century-old genetics mystery of Mendel’s peas finally solved

Subscribe to Nature Briefing, an unmissable daily round-up of science news, opinion and analysis free in your inbox every weekday.

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Research shows that, over the past two decades, rates of mental illness have been increasing in adolescents in many countries. While some scientists point to soaring use of smartphones and social media as a key driver for this trend, others say the evidence does not show a large effect of these technologies on teenagers’ psychological health.

At the heart of the dispute is a large, complex and often conflicting body of research that different researchers interpret in different ways. This has left parents unsure what to do.

This is an audio version of our Feature: Do smartphones and social media really harm teens’ mental health?

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Using a laser system to activate specific eye cells, a team has allowed five study participants to perceive a vibrant blue-greenish hue well outside the natural range of colours seen by humans. Although the setup required to accomplish this feat is currently complicated, this finding could provide more understanding about how the brain perceives colour and could one day help boost the vision of people with colour blindness.

Nature News: Brand-new colour created by tricking human eyes with laser

The US Food and Drug Administration has approved the first trial to test whether genetically modified pig livers can be used safely to treat people with organ failure. In the initial phase of the trial, four people with severe liver failure will be temporarily connected to an external pig liver that will filter their blood. Participants will then be monitored for a year for safety and changes in liver function. The organs have been genetically modified to make them more compatible with humans.

Nature News: Pig livers for people: US regulator greenlights first safety trial

Using a designer ‘circulatory system’, a team of researchers have created what they think is the largest piece of meat grown in the laboratory yet. One of the challenges to producing larger pieces of lab-grown meat has been providing cells with sufficient oxygen and nutrients, something the team’s new setup helps overcome. They used it to grow a chunk of chicken muscle about the size of a nugget, but multiple challenges remain before meat produced in this way could make it to market.

Nature News: Winner, winner, lab-made dinner! Team grows nugget-sized chicken chunk

Subscribe to Nature Briefing, an unmissable daily round-up of science news, opinion and analysis free in your inbox every weekday.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.