Aphantasia is the inability to see with your mind’s eye. And its discovery has made scientists ask a surprising question: What is the mind’s eye even for? (First published in 2022.)
Guests: Alice Coles, artist; Adam Zeman, cognitive neurologist at the University of Exeter Medical School; Joel Pearson, professor of neuroscience at the University of New South Wales; Emily Holmes, professor of psychology at Uppsala University
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14/5/2025
25:45
An imaginary planet that feels extremely real
Scavengers Reign, the Emmy-winning Netflix show, has done something most sci-fi shows or movies struggle to do. Build a world that feels truly alien.
Guests: Joe Bennett, co-creator of Scavengers Reign, and Sean Buckelew, writer on Scavengers Reign
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12/5/2025
26:03
The view from inside a volcano
The magma chambers at the heart of volcanoes are very deep and very hot. So naturally, some researchers want to build an observatory in one.
Guests: Mike Poland, scientist-in-charge of the Yellowstone Volcano Observatory; Yan Lavallée, chair of magmatic petrology and volcanology at LMU München and scientific and technical board member of the Krafla Magma Testbed; John Eichelberger, volcanologist at the University of Alaska Fairbanks and founding scientist of KMT
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07/5/2025
25:53
Who are you calling a Neanderthal?
Rumors of Neanderthal brutishness have been greatly exaggerated.
Guest: Paige Madison, science writer
For show transcripts, go to vox.com/unxtranscripts
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05/5/2025
20:04
Sorry, we left an implant in your brain
What happens when you get a life-changing device implanted into your body... and then the company that maintains it goes bankrupt?
Guests: Jennifer French, Executive Director and Founder of Neurotech Network, a nonprofit focused on education and advocacy for neurotechnology, and Liam Drew, freelance science journalist who reported on abandoned neurotech for Nature
For show transcripts, go to vox.com/unxtranscripts
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Unexplainable takes listeners right up to the edge of what we know…and then keeps on going. The Unexplainable team — Noam Hassenfeld, Julia Longoria, Byrd Pinkerton, and Meradith Hoddinott — tackles scientific mysteries, unanswered questions, and everything we learn diving into the unknown. New episodes Mondays and Wednesdays.
Ireland