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Termites Digest Wood Thanks To Microbes

In this episode, Ed Yong explores the secrets behind termites’ power to digest an abundant source of food: wood. The key is microbes in their gut. Ed checks in with Princeton scientist Xinning Zhang to learn how termites evolved into wood-eating specialists about 150 million years ago, and how they use a unique social behavior to pass along the microbes.
Season 1 Episode 1 Length 07:12 Premiere: 01/25/18

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Season 1 Episodes

Solving Crimes with the Necrobiome
S1 E11 Length 07:10 Premiere Date 04/03/18

Microbes from Mom — Vaginal Birth vs C-Section
S1 E10 Length 09:12 Premiere Date 04/03/18

Can a Fungus Save Plants from Global Warming?
S1 E9 Length 08:02 Premiere Date 04/03/18

Fecal Microbiota Transplants: The Ins and Outs of FMT
S1 E8 Length 07:22 Premiere Date 04/03/18

A World Without Microbes: An Apocalyptic Thought Experiment
S1 E7 Length 07:02 Premiere Date 04/03/18

Nature's Cutest Symbiosis: The Bobtail Squid
S1 E6 Length 08:05 Premiere Date 02/27/18

A Wasp Mom’s Gift: Blankets of Bacteria
S1 E5 Length 09:10 Premiere Date 01/25/18

Mosquitoes Might SAVE Lives, Thanks To Bacteria
S1 E4 Length 09:04 Premiere Date 01/25/18

How Giant Tube Worms Survive at Hydrothermal Vents
S1 E3 Length 10:20 Premiere Date 01/25/18

Superbugs That Resist Antibiotics Can Evolve in 11 Days
S1 E2 Length 08:51 Premiere Date 01/25/18

Termites Digest Wood Thanks To Microbes
S1 E1 Length 07:12 Premiere Date 01/25/18

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