Whether you’re curious about getting healthy, the Big Bang or the science of cooking, find out everything you need to know in under 30 minutes with Instant Genius. The team behind BBC Science Focus Magazine talk to world-leading experts to bring you a bite-sized masterclass on a new subject each week.Then when you’ve mastered the basics with Instant Genius. Dive deeper with Instant Genius Extra, where you’ll find longer, richer discussions about the most exciting ideas in the world of science and technology. Only available on Apple Podcasts. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.
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Anthony Warner: Are we really too fat?
In this week's Science Focus Podcast chef and author of the book The Truth About Fat: Why Obesity is Not that Simple (£9.99, Oneworld), Anthony Warner chews the fat about, well, fat.Pretty much all of us have been tempted at some point in our lives to shed some weight around our midriff, especially when we see our BMI creeping over 25, but what does this actually mean, and is it really a reliable measure of general health?He speaks to our editorial assistant Amy Barrett about why the body needs fat, what influences our body shape, and why there is so much stigma about being obese.Read the full transcriptionLet us know what you think of the episode with a review or a comment wherever you listen to your podcasts.Subscribe to the Science Focus Podcast on these services: Acast, iTunes, Stitcher, RSS, OvercastListen to more episodes of the Science Focus Podcast:Samantha Alger: What can we do to save the bees?Randall Munroe: How do you find the worst solution to any problem?Bill Bryson: What should we know about how our bodies work?Phillippa Diedrichs: Is body positivity the answer to body image issues?Professor Catharina Svanborg: Is the cure for cancer hiding in human breast milk?Giles Yeo: Eating for your genes See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.
Camilla Pang: How can science guide my life?
Dr Camilla Pang is a bioinformatician, who was diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder when she was eight years old.Her first book, Explaining Humans (£14.99, Viking), is a guide to navigating life, love and relationships using the lessons she’s learned in her scientific career so far.In it she draws on examples from how the different proteins in the human body can reflect the different roles in a social group, to the way how light refracts through a prism helping her to break down fear into something manageable.In this episode of the Science Focus Podcast, she discusses her current work using disease and cancer data, along with machine learning methods, to find patterns that can be used in healthcare and lead to the development of therapies.She also explains how her neurodiversity has affected the way she works.If you have a burning science question you want an expert to answer, send them to us on twitter at @sciencefocus, and we may answer them in a future episode.Subscribe to the Science Focus Podcast on these services: Acast, iTunes, Stitcher, RSS, OvercastLet us know what you think of the episode with a review or a comment wherever you listen to your podcasts.Listen to more episodes of the Science Focus Podcast:Why AI is not the enemy – Jim Al-KhaliliWhat we got wrong about pandas and teenagersJim Davies: How do you use your imagination?Dean Burnett: What’s going on in the teenage brain?Dr Guy Leschziner: What is your brain doing while you sleep?Everything that's wrong with the human body – Nathan Lents See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.
Kevin Fong: What happened to Apollo 13?
This week we catch up with Kevin Fong about the new series of his award-winning podcast 13 Minutes to the Moon.Whereas the first series celebrated the 50th anniversary of one of humanity’s greatest scientific achievements, the Moon landing, the new season follows what could have been one of our worst disasters – an explosion aboard the spacecraft Apollo 13.We discuss what happened on this ill-fated mission, how it impacted the astronauts and staff at Mission Control, and whether catastrophe at space could ever happen again.If you have a burning science question you want an expert to answer, send them to us on twitter at @sciencefocus, and we may answer them in a future episode.Subscribe to the Science Focus Podcast on these services: Acast, iTunes, Stitcher, RSS, OvercastLet us know what you think of the episode with a review or a comment wherever you listen to your podcasts.Listen to more episodes of the Science Focus Podcast:Kevin Fong: Why is the Moon landing still relevant 50 years on?Katherine Johnson: mathematician and NASA pioneer dies age 101Dr Erin Macdonald: Is there science in Star Trek?Dr Becky Smethurst: How do you actually find a black hole?Mike Garrett: Is there anybody out there?Monica Grady: What is the future of space science?Richard Wiseman: The mindset behind the Moon landing See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.
Aleks Krotoski: What happens to your data when you die?
What happens to all your digital data once you die? We ask social psychologist, host of BBC Radio 4's Digital Human and BBC Science Focus columnist Aleks Krotoski about life after death, and she enlightens us on how much digital data is really out there, the value of virtual gravestones and why big data firms really don’t care if you’re alive or dead.If you have a burning science question you want an expert to answer, send them to us on twitter at @sciencefocus, and we may answer them in a future episode.Subscribe to the Science Focus Podcast on these services: Acast, iTunes, Stitcher, RSS, OvercastLet us know what you think of the episode with a review or a comment wherever you listen to your podcasts.Listen to more episodes of the Science Focus Podcast:Dr Kathryn Mannix: What it’s really like to dieRobert Elliott Smith: Are algorithms inherently biased?Gretchen McCulloch: How has the internet affected how we communicate?Caroline Criado Perez: Does data discriminate against women?John Higgs: Are Generation Z our only hope for the future?Jesse Bering: What psychology can tell us about suicide See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.
Professor Fay Dowker: What is the problem of quantum gravity?
This week, we’re going on a search for the theory of everything.The two main theories of physics are at odds with one another. Einstein's general relativity explains gravity, but it contradicts quantum theory: how we understand matter, atoms and particles.Theoretical physicist at Imperial College London Professor Fay Dowker has been working on a solution to this quantum gravity problem, and tells us why the theories are incompatible, and how she plans to bring them together.If you have a burning science question you want an expert to answer, send them to us on twitter at @sciencefocus, and we may answer them in a future episode.Subscribe to the Science Focus Podcast on these services: Acast, iTunes, Stitcher, RSS, OvercastLet us know what you think of the episode with a review or a comment wherever you listen to your podcasts.Listen to more episodes of the Science Focus Podcast:Dr Erin Macdonald: Is there any science in Star Trek?Dr Becky Smethurst: How do you actually find a black hole?Kathryn D. Sullivan: What is it really like to walk in space?Hannah Fry: How much of our lives is secretly underpinned by maths?Robert Elliott Smith: Are algorithms inherently biased?Monica Grady: What is the future of space science? See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.
Jim Davies: How do you use your imagination?
Imagine, just for one moment, that you’re flying. What can you see? How high up are you? Can you feel the rush of wind in your face? Keep these thoughts in mind while you listen to this week's podcast.Your imagination is a strange old thing, with some people experiencing vivid senses while some struggle to picture anything at all. In this episode, we speak to Jim Davies, whose book, Imagination: The Science of Your Mind's Greatest Power (£21.99, Pegasus), sheds light on this mysterious function of the brain.As you can imagine, we go deep into the neuroscience of conjuring up mental images, but we also find out why your memory doesn’t need to be perfect, the joys of playing video games after a bad day, the benefits of imaginary friends, and, rather bizarrely, how to make a better door.If you have a burning science question you want an expert to answer, send them to us on twitter at @sciencefocus, and we may answer them in a future episode.Subscribe to the Science Focus Podcast on these services: Acast, iTunes, Stitcher, RSS, OvercastLet us know what you think of the episode with a review or a comment wherever you listen to your podcasts.Listen to more episodes of the Science Focus Podcast:Dean Burnett: What’s going on in the teenage brain?Gordon Wallace: Is an implantable electronic device the future of medicine?Dr Guy Leschziner: What is your brain doing while you sleep?Gustav Kuhn: Do you believe in magic?Helen Russell: What does it mean to be happy?Richard Wiseman: The mindset behind the Moon landing See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.
Mark Miodownik: Are biodegradable plastics really better than traditional plastic?
You’ve probably bought something from a corner shop and taken it home in a plastic bag that says it’s biodegradable, or eaten takeaway food with a compostable fork.But when you’re done with your bag or your fork, what do you do with them? Can you put them in your food waste bin, your compost heap, or even the recycling bin?To find out, we spoke to materials scientist Professor Mark Miodownik. Mark is leading the Big Compost Experiment, a nationwide citizen science experiment to explore whether home-compostable plastics really do compost in your garden.If you sent us a question for Mark, listen out for his answer towards the end of the episode.If you have a burning science question you want an expert to answer, send them to us on twitter at @sciencefocus, and we may answer them in a future episode.Subscribe to the Science Focus Podcast on these services: Acast, iTunes, Stitcher, RSS, OvercastLet us know what you think of the episode with a review or a comment wherever you listen to your podcasts.Listen to more episodes of the Science Focus Podcast:Solving the plastic problem – Mark MiodownikHow can we save our planet? – Sir David AttenboroughChris Lintott: Can members of the public do real science?Dr Erin Macdonald: Is there any science in Star Trek?John Higgs: Are Generation Z our only hope for the future?Mark Lynas: Could leaving nature to its own devices be the key to meeting the UK’s climate goals? See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.
Dr Erin Macdonald: Is there any science in Star Trek?
This week we’re boldly going where no Science Focus Podcast has gone before.Dr Erin Macdonald is the new science consultant for the Star Trek franchise. With the release of Star Trek: Picard on Amazon Prime, she takes us through the science of both the new and classic series.She tells our production assistant and resident Trekkie Holly Spanner about supernovae, what a science consultant really does, and whether warp drive is possible.Subscribe to the Science Focus Podcast on these services: Acast, iTunes, Stitcher, RSS, OvercastLet us know what you think of the episode with a review or a comment wherever you listen to your podcasts.Listen to more episodes of the Science Focus Podcast:What if the Earth’s magnetic field died? – Jim Al-KhaliliBuilding a base on the Moon, and crafting believable sci-fi – Andy WeirDr Becky Smethurst: How do you actually find a black hole?Kathryn D. Sullivan: What is it really like to walk in space?Mark McCaughrean: How do you launch a successful space mission?Colin Stuart: The most mysterious objects in the Universe See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.
Adam Rutherford: Can science ever be rid of racism?
Adam Rutherford is a geneticist at the University College London, which has one of the most prestigious population, genetics and evolution departments in the world.However, the university was also the home of ideas such as eugenics and race science.Times have changed, and although our current understanding of genetics and biology should have consigned them to history, these insidious ideas are making their way back into the mainstream.In his new book, How to Argue with a Racist (£12.99, Weidenfeld & Nicolson), Adam wants to show his readers that what we understand as race doesn’t really hold up with the genomic data, why professional sport is not a particularly good data set for studying race, and whether we can ever truly remove racism from science.He speaks to our editorial assistant Amy Barrett.Subscribe to the Science Focus Podcast on these services: Acast, iTunes, Stitcher, RSS, OvercastLet us know what you think of the episode with a review or a comment wherever you listen to your podcasts.Listen to more episodes of the Science Focus Podcast:Marcel Danesi: Why do we want to believe lies?Gaia Vince: What part does culture play in our evolution?Robert Elliott Smith: Are algorithms inherently biased?Caroline Criado Perez: Does data discriminate against women?Angela Saini: Is racism creeping into science?John Higgs: Are Generation Z our only hope for the future? See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.
Ross Barnett: Why should we be interested in prehistoric animals that aren’t dinosaurs?
In this week's episode of the Science Focus Podcast we’re investigating long-extinct animals. No, not dinosaurs, they get plenty enough coverage already. Instead, we’re going to look at creatures that lived in the Pleistocene era, a period of time that covered the last known ice age.During this period enormous creatures roamed the Earth, with some surprising animals making what we now know as the British Isles their home.What makes these often-enormous animals so interesting is that they lived side-by-side humans and other early human species, which means we have more than just fossilised bone fragments to learn from - we have cave art, sculpture, tools and even cooking utensils that we can use to build our understanding.Ross Barnett is a palaeontologist, whose recent book The Missing Lynx: The Past and Future of Britain's Lost Mammals (£16.99, Bloomsbury Wildlife) explores the story of Britain’s lost megafauna.He speaks to our online assistant Sara Rigby about Britain’s biggest beasts, humans’ role in their extinction, and what they can teach us about the future of conservation.Subscribe to the Science Focus Podcast on these services: Acast, iTunes, Stitcher, RSS, OvercastLet us know what you think of the episode with a review or a comment wherever you listen to your podcasts.Listen to more episodes of the Science Focus Podcast:Samantha Alger: What can we do to save the bees?Brian Switek: How did bones evolve?Mark Lynas: Could leaving nature to its own devices be the key to meeting the UK’s climate goals?Brad Lister: Are we facing an insect apocalypse?Steve Brusatte: The truth about dinosaursNeil Gemmell: The genetic hunt for the Loch Ness Monster See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.
Samantha Alger: What can we do to save the bees?
We all appreciate the buzz of the humble bee in the garden, however, not a summer goes past without hearing news that our bee population is under threat, with the finger usually pointing at habitat loss or chemicals containing neonicotinoids.But in reality, there are a whole host of reasons why our vital bee population is in decline.And given they provide pollination services for every one in three bites of the food we eat, their survival is critical to our very way of life.In this episode of the Science Focus Podcast, University of Vermont environmental scientist and pollination specialist Samantha Alger talks about her work uncovering the secret life of bees, what is causing the decline in bee numbers, and what we can do so save them.Subscribe to the Science Focus Podcast on these services: Acast, iTunes, Stitcher, RSS, OvercastLet us know what you think of the episode with a review or a comment wherever you listen to your podcasts.Listen to more episodes of the Science Focus Podcast:Mark Lynas: Could leaving nature to its own devices be the key to meeting the UK’s climate goals?Andrew Hunter Murray and Dan Schreiber: Is there really no such thing as a fish?Brad Lister: Are we facing an insect apocalypse?Nick Lyon: Filming a DynastyNeil Gemmell: The genetic hunt for the Loch Ness MonsterSteve Brusatte: The truth about dinosaurs See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.
Marcel Danesi: Why do we want to believe lies?
We all love a good story, and sometimes a lie is more interesting to hear than the truth, but there is more to it than spinning a good yarn.According to Marcel Danesi, linguist and author of the book The Art of the Lie (£11.95, Prometheus Books), throughout history certain ‘Liar Princes’ have perfected the art of lying to gain fame, fortune and notoriety.In this week’s podcast, he explains what makes them so effective at this so-called ‘Machiavellian intelligence’, what happens in the brain when we twist the truth, and why we’re all liars in one way or another.Subscribe to the Science Focus Podcast on these services: Acast, iTunes, Stitcher, RSS, OvercastLet us know what you think of the episode with a review or a comment wherever you listen to your podcasts.Listen to more episodes of the Science Focus Podcast:Dean Burnett: What’s going on in the teenage brain?Gretchen McCulloch: How has the internet affected how we communicate?Lewis Dartnell: How geology can influence electionsJamie Susskind: How technology is changing politicsJack Lewis: Sin and why we do the things we shouldn'tTrevor Cox: To become Prime Minister, change your voice See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.
Dr Becky Smethurst: How do you actually find a black hole?
By day Dr Becky, is an astrophysicist, unravelling the mysteries of supermassive black holes, but by night entertains science buffs like us on her YouTube channel.In this week's episode of the Science Focus Podcast she explains how to find a black hole (and why they’re actually incredibly bright), what an astrophysicist does all day, and why flooding YouTube with scientists is the best way to counteract disinformation and bogus theories.Her book Space: 10 Things You Should Know (£9.99, Orion), is out now and you can read an extract from it here.Subscribe to the Science Focus Podcast on these services: Acast, iTunes, Stitcher, RSS, OvercastLet us know what you think of the episode with a review or a comment wherever you listen to your podcasts.Listen to more episodes of the Science Focus Podcast:Kathryn D. Sullivan: What is it really like to walk in space?Monica Grady: What is the future of space science?Mark McCaughrean: How do you launch a successful space mission?Kevin Fong: Why is the Moon landing still relevant 50 years on?Bruce Banerdt: What NASA's InSight will tell us about MarsNatalie Starkey" What asteroids can tell us about our Solar System See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.
Hannah Fry: How much of our lives is secretly underpinned by maths?
Hopefully by now the last crumbs of mince pie will be wiped clean and Grandad has woken up from his Christmas day nap.If you’re anything like us, that period between Christmas and New Year means only one thing – lazing in front of the TV and watching the Royal Institution Christmas Lectures. This institution has been sharing the wonders of science and entertaining children and adults alike for generations, and this year’s host hopes this year will be no different.Our editorial assistant Amy Barret sat down with Hannah Fry, only the fourth mathematician to deliver one of the lectures, who’ll be showing the audience how maths secretly underpins much of the world around us in her lecture series called Secrets and Lies, broadcast on BBC Four on 26-28 December at 20:00.Subscribe to the Science Focus Podcast on these services: Acast, iTunes, Stitcher, RSS, OvercastLet us know what you think of the episode with a review or a comment wherever you listen to your podcasts.Listen to more episodes of the Science Focus Podcast:Aoife McLysaght: What makes me 'me'?Adam Kay: Is Christmas really the most wonderful time of the year on labour ward?Chris Lintott: Can members of the public do real science?Jim Al-Khalili: Why should we care about science and scientists?Robert Elliott Smith: Are algorithms inherently biased?Hannah Fry: What's the deal with algorithms? See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.
Adam Kay: Is Christmas really the most wonderful time of the year on labour ward?
If you’re stuffing your face with mince pies this Christmas Day, spare a thought for the hundreds of thousands of people working in the NHS providing vital medical support over the festive period.One person who has seen his fair share of Christmas shifts is comedian and writer Adam Kay, who in a previous life worked as a junior doctor. His new book, Twas the Nightshift before Christmas (£9.99, Harper Collins), is at times, a graphically intimate diary of what happens on a labour ward over the holidays.Our editorial assistant Amy Barrett spoke to Adam over the phone about whether Christmas is more dangerous than other seasons, some of the issues facing healthcare at this time of the year, and life after medicine.Subscribe to the Science Focus Podcast on these services: Acast, iTunes, Stitcher, RSS, OvercastLet us know what you think of the episode with a review or a comment wherever you listen to your podcasts.Listen to more episodes of the Science Focus Podcast:Dean Burnett: What’s going on in the teenage brain?Sarah Harper: What does a world with an ageing population look like?Andrew Hunter Murray and Dan Schreiber: Is there really no such thing as a fish?Matt Parker: What happens when maths goes horribly, horribly wrong?Robin Ince: Inside the mind of a comedianDara Ó Briain: Finding the fun in science See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.