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Back to Press Play with Madeleine Brand

Press Play with Madeleine Brand

How the 40 trillion microbes in and on us shape our lives

We have about 40 trillion microbes living in and on us. In other words: a lot of germs. Until recently, we thought they were the enemy. Now we know they keep us alive. They are, as science writer Ed Yong says, the unsung heroes of human existence.

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    By Madeleine Brand • Aug 29, 2016 • 1 min read

    We have about 40 trillion microbes living in and on us. In other words: a lot of germs. Until recently, we thought they were the enemy. Now we know they keep us alive. They are, as science writer Ed Yong says, the unsung heroes of human existence. Yong wrote about the promise and limitations of our microbiome in his new book titled, “I Contain Multitudes: The Microbes Within Us and a Grander View of Life.”

    • https://images.ctfassets.net/2658fe8gbo8o/AvYox6VuEgcxpd20Xo9d3/769bca4fbf97bf022190f4813812c1e2/new-default.jpg?h=250

      Madeleine Brand

      Host, 'Press Play'

    • https://images.ctfassets.net/2658fe8gbo8o/AvYox6VuEgcxpd20Xo9d3/769bca4fbf97bf022190f4813812c1e2/new-default.jpg?h=250

      Matt Holzman

      Producer, 'The Document'

    • https://images.ctfassets.net/2658fe8gbo8o/AvYox6VuEgcxpd20Xo9d3/769bca4fbf97bf022190f4813812c1e2/new-default.jpg?h=250

      Anna Scott

      Former KCRW Housing and Homelessness Reporter

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      Jolie Myers

      Managing Producer, 'Press Play'

    • KCRW placeholder

      Ed Yong

      science writer at The Atlantic

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    Back to Press Play with Madeleine Brand