De-Permafrosting

Big Picture Science

Science, Technology

4.6 • 986 Ratings

🗓️ 19 September 2022

⏱️ 54 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Above the Arctic Circle, much of the land is underlaid by permafrost. But climate change is causing it to thaw. This is not good news for the planet. As the carbon rich ground warms, microbes start to feast… releasing greenhouse gases that will warm the Earth even more. Another possible downside was envisioned by a science-fiction author. Could ancient pathogens–released from the permafrost’s icy grip–cause new pandemics? We investigate what happens when the far north defrosts. Guests: Jacquelyn Gill – Associate professor of paleoecology at the University of Maine. Jim Shepard – Novelist and short story writer, and teacher of English at Williams College, and author of “Phase Six.” Scott Saleska – Global change ecologist, professor of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at the University of Arizona, and co-founder of IsoGenie. Originally aired September 6, 2021 Featuring music by Dewey Dellay and Jun Miyake Big Picture Science is part of the Airwave Media podcast network. Please contact [email protected] to inquire about advertising on Big Picture Science. You can get early access to ad-free versions of every episode by joining us on Patreon. Thanks for your support! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	You're listening to an airwave media podcast.
0:05.0	The world is filled with many questions such as, did giants exist?
0:09.0	What is junk DNA?
0:10.4	Does it mean that you're trash?
0:11.8	Do you ever wonder if aliens have underwater bases in our oceans and that's why there are so many
0:16.8	UFO sightings off the coast of islands all over the world?
0:20.8	How serious even is climate change and when should we start building our rafts?
0:25.0	Hello everyone, you may recognize me as Gabby from the History of Everything podcast.
0:29.0	And my name is Bruna, and you don't recognize me from anything yet. Together we're two
0:34.6	scientists who explore the answers to these questions and many many more in our new
0:38.2	podcast Mystery of Everything available everywhere you get your podcast.
0:43.0	Tech moves fast.
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1:01.0	Listen to Tech Crunch Daily Crunch now wherever you get your
1:05.1	podcasts. That's Tech Crunch Daily Crunch, wherever you get your podcasts. asks. Imagine that you've just made the most exciting discovery of your career, but at the same time you wish it had never happened?
1:30.0	Well that's what it feels like for some scientists discovering rare ice age bones in the melting
1:35.3	permafrost. Produced at the SETI Institute, this is Big Picture Science.
1:40.6	I'm Seth Chostak.
1:41.8	I'm Molly Bentley.
1:43.0	Scientists are making incredible discoveries in the Arctic,
	...

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