Listen Ad-free

Unsung Science

CBS News

Hear the untold stories of mind-blowing achievements in science and tech. “CBS Sunday Morning” correspondent and six-time Emmy winner David Pogue takes you behind the scenes into the creation stories of the world’s greatest advances and the people behind them. From transportation, food, space, internet, and health, creators reveal their inspirations and roadblocks they encountered in bringing their breakthroughs to the public. Hear all-new episodes of the award-winning Unsung Science podcast every other Friday.

read less

Our Editor's Take

The Unsung Science podcast demystifies technological and scientific developments listeners should know about. Host David Pogue is an acclaimed journalist for CBS News. His podcast makes sense of complexities like AI, vaccines, and placebo effects. How does the Fitbit know when people are asleep? How do phones see for blind people? Pogue investigates these and other modern advances by talking to inventors.

One episode of Unsung Science studies the capabilities and fallibilities of ChatGPT. The large language model displaces humans from jobs. Some proponents compare it to the calculator. People once feared calculators would prevent humans from learning advanced math. That proved true, but did it matter, or did calculators make humans more efficient? The podcast reveals six problems with AI tools and why developers should have fixed those first. The third problem Pogue lists is the most frightening. Creators admit they're developing new tools to correct it. Pogue demonstrates the threat by giving ChatGPT a specific prompt on the podcast.

Some people assume placebo effects are mental. The Unsung Science podcast interviews researchers who've measured physiological changes. Ted Kaptchuk directs Harvard University's Program in Placebo Studies. He conducted a study of IBS patients, half of whom received placebos. The other half only had doctor interaction. The placebos worked better. The most fascinating part is the patients knew they were placebos. Author David Robson says the medicine delivery method matters. In one study, patients received morphine without knowing it. They experienced inferior pain relief to patients who knew they were taking morphine. Robson wrote The Expectation Effect. He explains how placebos influence expectations, which affect everything from aging to performance.

Pogue interviews several geniuses generating meaningful change. He himself is among them. Pogue graduated summa cum laude from Yale. He's a former Broadway conductor who has written over 120 books, including How to Prepare for Climate Change. The host addresses that topic here also. Yet he asks questions the way listeners would. He is still a relatable intellectual. Pogue uses phrases like "freaking weird" to describe placebo effects. Unsung Science is an informational gift to those who can't question the people Pogue can.

read less
ScienceScience

Episodes