The Naked Scientists Podcast

How do we know that ants count their footsteps? We'll find out in this Naked Scientists Question and Answer show, as well as ask if rubber soles really protect you from electric shocks, if hair will clean itself when you don't, and why a layer of shaving foam stops the mirror from steaming up. Also, the spores that fly on smoke rings, new ways to capture carbon, pain free vaccine patches and the vaginal gel that could block HIV transmission. Plus, Meera investigates vintage computers and in Kitchen Science, Dave discovers how popping candy gets it's pop! Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

We go nuclear this week to investigate the future of atomic energy, the issues surrounding nuclear waste management and how a proposed new breed of hybrid fission-fusion reactors might help to boost nuclear fuel efficiency and minimise radioactive waste. Also, following the 65th anniversary of the first nuclear bomb test, we hear how the accidental wilderness created where "the Gadget" was detonated is now a flourishing example of biodiversity. In Kitchen Science we build a home-made radiation-detector and we get to the bottom of why humans kiss. Plus, news of malaria-proof mosquitoes, turning... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

The role of lasers in biomedicine goes under the spotlight this week as we explore the workings of photodynamic cancer therapy, find out how laser tweezers can be used to force-feed bugs to white blood cells and hear how a new technique uses laser-powered DNA nanoswitches to spot specific genes. Also, why the proton just got smaller, prompting a reevaluation of some trusted laws of physics, how antidepressants in seawater can make shrimps swim towards danger and a novel mechanism for natural selection - beneficial bacteria! Plus, in Kitchen Science, what the patterns produced by laser light... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

We explore the explosive science of volcanoes this week! We find out what you can learn from drilling into a restless volcano, how gravity is used to "weigh" volcanoes and watch them fill with magma, and we explore the theories behind volcano formation. Plus, we hear about the genes that could mean you'll live to be 100, fossil evidence of the earliest multi-cellular organism and the signs that Sabre-toothed tigers packed a mighty punch, as well as a big bite. In Kitchen Science, we get messy with a cola and wallpaper paste eruption! Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Why do we have eyebrows? Can we taste food if we can't smell it? What's a cold sore? This week, we take on your science questions, as well as explore the world of social gaming, and find out how much it costs to fly an England flag from your car. We'll be asking if altitude affects how a football flies, if a large enough fan could propel a spacecraft and how spiders spin webs from one tree to the next. Plus, why size matters in bird beaks, how plant roots cope with competition and building lungs in the lab! Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Seriously small structures are the focus of this week's Naked Scientists, as we look at nanostructures and their role in future energy technologies. We'll find out how nanostructures could enable us to safely store and quickly access hydrogen fuel, and to get the best from our batteries. Also, catching swine flu in the act of mutating, why females are more likely to suffer the effects of stress and weaving bomb proof curtains that expand when they're stretched. Plus, in kitchen science, we find out why soap bubbles create such beautiful colours. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

We celebrate 50 years of Lasers on the Naked Scientists this week, by looking into the history, and future, of laser science. We'll hear how lasers have revolutionised manufacturing and could be the answer to our clean energy concerns. Also, how lasers make the most accurate measurements for high precision industries, and how laser tweezers can be used to manipulate things smaller than a red blood cell, and make tiny tools. In Kitchen Science, Dave launches his bid for world domination by building a home-made laser! Plus, how sharks sniff out a snack, the technology that keeps world cup... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

The science of social species goes under the microscope this week. We hear what radio-tagging individual ants is revealing about the way they organise their nests to decide who goes hunting and who stays at home. Meera explores the growth of urban apiculture, including why city-made honey tastes superior to its countryside equivalent, we find out how bees encountering hostility use a stop signal to deter their fellow foragers from befalling the same fate, and in Kitchen Science we explore the physics of flight to see how bees stay airborne. Plus why not cleaning your teeth could cause a heart... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

In this Naked Scientists Question and Answer show, we find out if bacteria will grow on a bar of soap, why bird poo is white and whether or not a moon can have its own moon. Also, do sweeteners alter your metabolism and can we re-stock the oceans with farmed fish? Plus, we explore the oily threat to Bluefin Tuna, a newly discovered way that blood vessels in the brain clear a blockage, how channels on Mars reveal secrets about the Martian climate, and why shape is essential for H. plyori - a gut bug associated with ulcers and cancer. In Kitchen Science, Ben and Dave recreate a classic... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Cancers you can catch go under the Naked Scientists microscope this week. We find out how a transmissible facial tumour is devastating devil populations in Tasmania and also hear how the Human Papilloma Virus (HPV) causes cancer. Also, Meera looks into the science of cervical screening, and Ben and Dave reveal how carrots can help us to spot cancer cells. Plus, biofuel hope from the burning bush plant, the battle between Staphylococcus species, and the introduction of Synthia - the first microbe with a genuinely synthetic genome. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

We explore synthetic biology in this Naked Scientists Show, finding out how to learn from, and improve on, the structures and systems we find in nature. We'll meet the team of students who designed a biological sensor to win the international genetically engineered machine competition, or iGEM, and find out how to build bespoke proteins. In Kitchen Science, we feed an egg to some enzymes to find out how biological washing powder works. Plus, what the brain does when it sees a familiar face, genetically modified crops boost resistant bug numbers, how to create hair cells, essential for hearing,... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Is there a cure for spots? Why do we cry? Does alcohol really kill brain cells? It's a Question and Answer Extravaganza on this week's Naked Scientists! We find out what makes a Chameleon change colour, why birds fly into windows and how a hair can change colour along it's length. Also, witnessing the birth of stars, the Neanderthal genome and how washing your hands can change the way you think. Plus, Meera dabbles with green gadgets and smell-free toilets in the home of the future, and Dave shows you how to build a hovercraft in Kitchen Science. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Where in the world am I? We're looking at the science of the Global Positioning System, or GPS, this week. We find out how satellites can tell you your location, as well as communicate with the bossy little box that tells you which way to drive. We discover the potential for "spoofing" GPS with a false location, and how this might be the future of cyber-terrorism as well as explore the cosmic reference frame that the satellites themselves rely on. In Kitchen Science, we get back to basics and locate ourselves using a map and compass! Plus, the first amphibian genome helps to fill the... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

We explore the marriage of archaeology and genetics in this week's Naked Scientists, finding out how modern genetic techniques are helping to reveal more about our past. We ask what archaeogenetics can tell us about human origins and migration as well as the diseases that evolved alongside us. We explore the genome of a 4000 year old man, which tells us he had dry earwax! Also, new data that could help to predict the Asian monsoon, why dreams help you to remember and how it feels to be a pill - after you've been swallowed. Plus, why many of us might have a little bit of Neanderthal in our... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

We bring you the highlights from the Royal Astronomical Society's National Astronomy Meeting. We discover the top priorities for the next generation of space exploration, find out what the echoes of the big bang can tell us about the birth of the universe and explore gravitational waves - ripples in the very fabric of space and time. Plus, the importance of understanding the Sun, predicting the weather in space and the biochemical options for alien life. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

We take on your science questions - If there's something that's been puzzling you, on any scientific topic - get them in now! Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Can you steer a hurricane? In this week's weather-focused Naked Scientists, we find out how aeroplanes are creating clouds, get the low-down on how insurance companies size up storm risks and hear how a hurricane works and whether it's possible to control its course. Also, news of how the Asian monsoon sends pollutants skyward, the world's smallest desalination system, why swine flu spared the older generation and where your coronary arteries came from. Plus, in a weather-related Kitchen Science, we explore the workings of a rainbow. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

We dig into the science of farming this week with a look at how agriculture can adapt to a changing climate, how scientists are striving to produce a perfect pea and a new initiative to turn native African fruit trees into the next commercial blockbusters. In Kitchen Science we use chromatography to reveal the colours concealed in chlorophyll, and in this week's news round-up, a new way to finger criminals using the trail of bacteria they leave behind, combating cancer with synthetic lethality, and how scientists have turned mosquitoes into flying vaccinators... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

How do odour-killing insoles stamp on smelly feet? Do submariners' ears pop? How do Portuguese Man o'War jellyfish reproduce? We take on your science questions this week as well as hearing the highlights from the Cambridge Science Festival and making a tornado from flames. Plus, news of octopuses having high definition temper tantrums, why some people are genetically wired to feel more pain, eyeless scorpions that have evolved their way out of a blind alley and how scientists can see what's going in your mind's eye...! Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Shedding some light on new advances in solar technology, this week's Naked Scientists explores how nanotechnology can boost solar cell efficiency and how flexible photovoltaics can be rolled up - and rolled out - to help power military operations. In Kitchen Science we reveal how to make your very own solar cell from some old electronics, and in this week's news, the gene combination that's perfect for tuberculosis, the methane time-bomb ticking off the Siberian coast, the first human writing and how doctors are knocking migraines on the head with a magnet. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists