Fungi and Fossils #150

This week, we’re talking about strange lifeforms that stretch our assumptions about the natural world. Molecular pharmacologist David Kroll, Science Communications Director of the Nature Research Center at North Carolina’s state Museum of Natural Sciences, returns to tell us about fungi and their amazing uses, from necessities like bread and beer, to medical and environmental breakthroughs. And on the podcast, we’re joined by Sarah Mathews, principal investigator at the Arnold Arboretum of Harvard University, to discuss a new study that used genetic techniques to overturn the popular conception of cycads as “living fossils.”