The Naked Scientists Podcast

This week we're exploring how populations come by their genes including the surprise finding of African DNA in a remote village in Yorkshire. Oxford University's Bruce Winney explains how studying rural populations in Britain is helping to uncover genes linked to different diseases, and Turi King, from Leicester University, discusses what your Y chromosome says about your surname. Plus we'll be hearing how Cambridge scientist Mike Majerus is putting evolution to the test with the help of the peppered moth, and in kitchen science, more jam tomorrow as Ben and Dave show you a trick with a... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

This week on the Naked Scientists an invitation to come and dive beneath the surface of the sea, to find out what is happening in the world's oceans. Your guides will be Marine Biologist Dr Annelise Hagan (University of Cambridge) and Ecology and Evolutionary Biologist Dr Stan Harpole (University of California, Irvine). Annelise will be talking about her project which monitors coral reefs and will explain why and how she does this, Stan will discuss his recent Nature paper on species loss resulting from reduced niche dimension and how nutrient pollution is responsible. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

This week we look at new developments in the science of cancer with Fiona Watt and Andy Futreal, we will see how new gene technologies could be key to understanding cancer, and knowing the role of stem cells could be essential to find effective cures. Meanwhile, Dave tells you how to make your own electric slime. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

This week we explore the science of Heart Disease. Dr Niall Campbell joins us to explain what heart attacks are and how theyre treated, Dr Anthony Mathur discusses how stem cells might hold the key to mending a broken heart, and Ben Valsler visits Brian Callingham to investigate how arteries behave when you give them various drugs. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

This week we explore the science of flight. Dr Graham Taylor from Oxford University talks about the aerodynamics of insect flight and how video camera back-packs allow him to see how eagles fly, and Jenny Goodman describes how future aircraft might be flying at six times the speed of sound while withstanding temperatures hot enough to melt stainless steel in 5 seconds! In Kitchen Science, Ben Valsler sticks with the flight theme and finds out how a hot air balloon works. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Every year the Cambridge Science Festival celebrates some of the best and most exciting science and engineering going on in the UK - and the Naked Scientists were there! Find out about the cool science of ice cream, the microscopic world of microbes, and the IgNobel awards for science at its most silly. Looking further afield, the University of Aucklands Peter Metcalf unlocks the secrets of a viral sarcophagus, and Mike Brown from the California Institute of Technology discusses the origin of some mysterious objects in the Kuiper Belt. To cool us down after all that excitement, Dave and Azi... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Contaminated petrol, astronauts in danger of lung diseases, a new way to put the brakes on car accident rates, gas sensors made from silicon replicas of marine algae and how pollution is causing droughts, plus a healthy digest of your science questions and emails top the bill in this weeks Naked Scientists. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

This week we unwrap the secrets of ancient mummies from Peru with the help of London Universitys Lawrence Owens, find out where domestic animals and pets came from with Keith Dobney from the University of Durham, and in kitchen science Dave explores the science of fires and fuels by blowing up some custard. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Clean water is something that many of us take for granted, but Mark Booth describes how in many parts of the world dirty water can lead to life-threatening disease and parasitic infections. To talk about the current strategies in place to supply clean water we are joined by the World Heath Organisations Alex McKie, and Colin Humphreys explains how high-energy UV LEDs could help provide clean water in the future. In Kitchen Science, Helen Scales and Dave Ansell bring sweetness and light to a house in Cottenham... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Dr Chris and Dr Helen answer all your burning science questions, including why frost can form even when the air temperature is above zero, why hair looks darker when it is wet, why sunlight looks red through your eyelids, and whether cracking your knuckles really causes arthritis. We also talk to Chemistry World editor Mark Peplow about venomous vipers, artificial kidneys, and how LSD might be switching on hallucinations, and in Kitchen Science Anna Lacey and Dave Ansell look at some slightly safer visual effects with the help of a sodium street light. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Nuclear energy is always in the news, but how much do you know about nuclear fission and what happens to nuclear waste? To find out how it works, Anna Lacey and Dave Ansell visit Sizewell B power station in Suffolk, and studio guest Ian Farnan discusses nuclear waste disposal and why current methods might not contain the radiation for as long as we thought. But as clinical radiologist Anant Krishnan explains, radiation plays a crucial role in medicine, including allowing us to see broken bones and killing off tumours. Sticking with uses of radiation that save lives, Anna and Dave find out how... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

The science of pain is our hot topic this week. David Julius reveals the molecular mechanisms of pain and what a chilli pepper has in common with a tarantula, Geoff Woods describes the genetic mutations that lead to people not feeling pain at all, and to explain the phenomenon of phantom limbs and ways in which we can deal with pain is pain consultant Cathy Stannard. In Kitchen Science Derek Thorne braves freezing weather to sniff out the science of sausages, and in the final part of our Science of Colour series, Anna Lacey discovers how colour could find you your perfect date. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

This week we take a look at extreme environments and the organisms that live in them. Crispin Little talks about hydrothermal vents and the fastest fossilisation on the planet, Steve Scott explains why mining companies are interested in hydrothermal vents, and Lisa Pratt describes how bacteria find energy three kilometres beneath the surface of the earth and how similar strategies could be used by life on other planets. From the extremes of the Earth to the extremes of the kitchen, Derek Thorne and Hugh Hunt find out whats hot and whats not in the dishwasher... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Following this weeks crazy weather we have a look at Climate Change with Eric Wolff from theBritish Antarctic Survey, who will be talking about secrets about the climate locked away in ancient ice,Jon Gibbins from Imperial College tells us about ways we can store all that excess carbon dioxideunderground, Ali talks to Alison Hill from the British Wind Energy Association and Max Carcas from OceanPower Delivery about wind energy and wave energy, and Derek Thorne, Dave Ansell and Ali Webb try to discoverhow much power we could generate by hooking the countrys gyms to the electricity grid. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

With a new year comes a whole new stack of science questions to challenge Dr Chris, Dr Dave and Dr Kat. This week they explain where the sand in the Sahara comes from, whether mirrors can reflect x-rays, if it is dangerous to live near a phone mast, and whether splitting water could solve our energy problems. We are also joined by the editor of Chemistry World, Dr Mark Peplow, who talks about labs the size of a postage stamp, nanoparticles in exhaust fumes, and why putting milk in your tea might not be such a good idea, and sticking with chemistry, Dave Ansell discovers which household liquids... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

In the first show of 2007, Drs Chris, Dave and Helen find out why red wine is better for you than white wine or grape juice, and explore the science of healthy living with with London University researcher and author Roger Corder. We also discover the science behind another of the nations favourite drugs, caffeine, with the help of Bristol Universitys Peter Rogers, and University of St Louis researcher Jeffrey Gordon explains how the bugs living in your intestines help you to make the most out of mealtimes. They might also, he thinks, make some people fat. Plus, in kitchen science, Dave... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

In the final show of 2006, Chris, Dave and Kat answer all your science questions including why poppadoms curl upwards in the pan, how seedless grapes grow, and if lightning really does strike twice. To celebrate the coming of Christmas, Colin Humphries joins us to explain the astronomical phenomenon behind the Star of Bethlehem, and in Kitchen Science Derek Thorne and Alicia Webb knock back a few shots of vodka to find out how breathalysers catch drink-drivers. In the second part of the Science of Colour series, Anna Lacey finds out about the history of mauve and how hair dye conceals those... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Shedding light on the deepest depths of the universe is Gerry Gilmore, who talks about the Big Bang and the mystery of dark matter. We also hear from Peter Muller and Giulio del Zanna about 3-D imaging of the surface of Mars and how solar flares contribute to everything from the Northern Lights to damaging communication systems. David Block describes how Andromeda, the galaxy closest to the Milky Way, was recently involved in a galactic collision, and in case you fancy seeing some collisions here on Earth, Derek and Dave are in the kitchen making meteorite craters. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Dr Chris, Dr Dave and Dr Phil answer all your questions on science, technology and medicine, including why spiders do not run out of silk, what the universe is expanding into, what a flame looks like in space, and what happens when the brain is cut off from a supply of oxygen. We also talk to Dr Mark Peplow about polonium 210, how much was needed to kill former Russian spy Alexander Litvinenko, and where the perpetrators could have acquired it. Sticking with nasty substances, Derk and Dave make a mess with milk and vinegar in Kitchen Science. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Repairing damage in the nervous system is incredibly challenging, but our guests this week have some promising solutions. Consultant ophthalmologist Robert MacLaren and colleagues at University College London have discovered a way to encourage the growth of photoreceptors in the retinas of blind mice, and Geoff Raisman will discuss his research into spinal cord repair. In Kitchen Science, Derek Thorne and Hugh Hunt take a closer look at the aerodynamics of a ping pong ball. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists