Putting organs into the deep freeze, a scavenger hunt for robots, and a book on race and reproduction

First up this week on the show, scientists are learning how to “cryopreserve” tissues—from donor kidneys to coral larvae. Contributing Correspondent Warren Cornwall joins host Sarah Crespi to talk about the latest in freezing and thawing technology.

Next up: How much does a robot need to “know” about the world to navigate it? Theophile Gervet, a Ph.D. student at Carnegie Mellon University, discusses a scavenger hunt–style experiment that involves bringing robots to Airbnb rentals.

Finally, as part of our series of books on sex, gender, and science, host Angela Saini interviews author Dorothy Roberts, a professor of law and sociology at the University of Pennsylvania, about her book Killing the Black Body: Race, Reproduction, and the Meaning of Liberty.

[note: interview with Dorothy Roberts begins at 0:27:11.2]

TRANSCRIPT
[music]

0:00:05.7 Sarah Crespi: This is the Science Podcast for June 30th, 2023. I'm Sarah Crespi. First up this week, scientists are learning how to cryopreserve tissues from donor kidneys to coral larvae. Contributing correspondent Warren Cornwall joins me to talk about the latest in freezing...