Global Superbugs Surge, Chikungunya Hits Long Island, and Satellites Leak Data

Science Quickly

Scientific American

Science

4.3 • 1.4K Ratings

🗓️ 20 October 2025

⏱️ 8 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

This week on Science Quickly, we cover the global rise of antibiotic-resistant superbugs, a rare U.S. case of the mosquito-borne chikungunya virus and new research on anti-inflammatory supplements. Plus, scientists warn of satellite vulnerabilities—from Earth’s weakening magnetic shield to unencrypted data leaks—and uncover a surprising fungal nursery hidden in stink bug legs. Recommended Reading Which Anti-Inflammatory Supplements Actually Work? How the New Chikungunya Virus Outbreak in China Could Reach the U.S. Dangerous ‘Superbugs’ Are on the Rise. What Can Stop Them? E-mail us at [email protected] if you have any questions, comments or ideas for stories we should cover! Discover something new every day: subscribe to Scientific American and sign up for Today in Science, our daily newsletter. Science Quickly is produced by Rachel Feltman, Fonda Mwangi and Jeff DelViscio. This episode was edited by Alex Sugiura. Shayna Posses and Aaron Shattuck fact-check the show. The theme music was composed by Dominic Smith. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:27.1	Thank you. Happy Monday listeners. For Scientific American Science Quickly, I'm Rachel
0:45.9	Feltman.
0:51.4	Let's kick off the week with a quick roundup of some of the latest science news.
0:57.0	Last Monday, the World Health Organization warned that drug-resistant bacterial infections
1:02.0	are on the rise around the globe. According to the WHO, superbugs that are antimicrobial
1:08.0	resistant, or AMR, contributed to almost 5 million deaths in 2019,
1:12.8	and bore direct responsibility for more than 1 million.
1:16.8	By 2023, the WHO reported one in six laboratory confirmed bacterial infections showed resistance
1:23.2	to antibiotics, with upwards of 40% of the medications commonly used in these cases, having
1:29.4	lost effectiveness over the five years prior.
1:32.9	Low-end middle-income countries were more likely to be experiencing antibiotic resistance,
1:36.9	according to the New York Times.
1:38.8	And in fact, the situation could be worse than it appears.
1:42.1	The WHO noted that just 48% of countries actually shared data
1:46.3	on antimicrobial resistance, and of those, roughly half, had lacking tracking systems.
1:52.6	The agency says that improving surveillance over the coming years will be crucial in the fight
1:57.3	against superbugs. Zooming in on some more localized public health news and some much bigger bugs,
2:03.6	New York officials confirmed last Tuesday that a Long Island resident had tested positive for the chicken guinea virus.
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