Fantastic-er Voyage

Big Picture Science

Science, Technology

4.5 • 1K Ratings

🗓️ 23 March 2026

⏱️ 54 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Thinking small can sometimes achieve big things. A new generation of diminutive robots can enter our bodies and deal with medical problems such as intestinal blockages. But do we really want them swimming inside us, even if they’re promising to help? You might change your mind when you hear what else is cruising through our bloodstream: microplastics! We take a trip into the human body, beginning with the story of those who first dared to open it up for medical purposes. But were the first surgeons really cavemen? Guests: Ira Rutkow – Surgeon and writer, and author of “Empire of the Scalpel: The History of Surgery” Dick Vethaak – Emeritus professor of ecotoxicology, water quality and health at the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam (Free University, Amsterdam) in The Netherlands Li Zhang – Professor in the Department of Mechanical and Automation Engineering, The Chinese University of Hong Kong Michael LaBarbera - Professor in organismal biology, anatomy and geophysical sciences, University of Chicago Descripción en español originally aired June 20, 2022 Opening theme by Jun Miyake Big Picture Science is part of the Airwave Media podcast network. Please contact advertising@airwavemedia.com 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.
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1:04.4	Well, it looks like science fiction has led the way again. But who would have thought in 1966
1:10.1	that the colorful psychedelic film
1:13.0	Fantastic Voyage was prophetic, describing future medical science?
1:18.1	We can reduce anything down any size we want. People, ships, tanks, planes. We can shrink
1:23.7	an army with all this equipment, put in a bottle cut.
1:31.1	In the film, a miniaturized submarine cruises through a human bloodstream on a mission to clear
1:35.9	out an arterial blockage.
1:38.0	The journey is wild and far-fetched, but it may not be so different from what a new fleet
1:42.5	of medical devices could do.
1:47.7	Are nanobots the future of surgery? Do we want them to be?
	...

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