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The inspiring scientists who saved the world’s first seed bank

During the siege of Leningrad, botanists in charge of an irreplaceable seed collection had to protect it from fire, rodents – and hunger. By Simon Parkin. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/longreadpod

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  The ‘mad egghead’ who built a mouse utopia

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  From the archive: Cold comfort: how cold water swimming cured my broken he…

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  Teeth as time capsules: Soviet secrets and my dentist grandmother

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  The brain collector: the scientist unravelling the mysteries of grey matter

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  From the archive: The invisible addiction: is it time to give up caffeine?

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  The rollercoaster king: the man behind the UK’s fastest thrill-ride

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  Best of 2024: ‘If there’s nowhere else to go, this is where they come’: ho…

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  Best of 2024: As a teenager, John was jailed for assaulting someone and st…

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  Best of 2024: ‘It comes for your very soul’: how Alzheimer’s undid my dazz…

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  Best of 2024: Nairobi to New York and back: the loneliness of the internat…

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  Revisited: Two poems, four years in detention: the Chinese dissident who s…

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  10 years of the long read: Ukraine’s death-defying art rescuers (2024)

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  10 years of the long read: ‘All that we had is gone’: my lament for war-to…

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  A new nuclear arms race is beginning. It will be far more dangerous than t…

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  Revisited: Too much stuff: can we solve our addiction to consumerism?