Instant Genius

This summer has been one of the hottest on record, so we asked climate change researcher Dann Mitchell what has caused the summer heatwave, can we expect more, and is there anything we can do about it? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

What asteroids can tell us about our Solar System Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Geologist Prof Andrew Scott on our complex relationship with wildfires Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Women are underrepresented in science, and some experts are asking whether there are biological reasons why. Meanwhile, racial studies are creeping back into mainstream science. We talk to Angela Saini about the science of gender and race, and about how to even the playing field. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Algorithms are everywhere. They can make our lives easier, by curating our Twitter feeds and Netflix suggestions. But they can also be bad. They lack empathy and we can become too reliant on their logical abilities, putting ourselves and others at risk. Here we talk to mathematician Hannah Fry, who tells us all about the good, the bad and the downright ugly of the algorithms that surround us. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

There are 100 billion stars in our Galaxy – surely we can’t be the only intelligent lifeform out there? In this week’s Science Focus Podcast we speak to Mike Garrett, the Director of Jodrell Bank Centre for Astrophysics, about the search for extraterrestrial life, what we’ll do if we find them, and what it means for us as humans. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Russian space dogs paved the way to sending humans into the cosmos. By studying how space flight affected dogs, scientists could establish whether it was safe to blast humans into space too. In this episode, we talk to Vix Southgate, who has just written a children’s book about the dogs Belka and Strelka – the first two creatures to go into orbit and return safely back to Earth. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Whether it’s cheating on our spouse, slacking off at work, or eating too much junk, we all occasionally do things we shouldn’t. Jack Lewis talks to us about the neuroscience of sin, how we can resist it, and the wacky experiments that test our ability to behave. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

It’s estimated that there are currently more than 6 billion tonnes of plastic waste buried in land fill sites or floating on the surface of the ocean. Clearly something needs to be done but what exactly should we be doing? We speak to materials scientist Mark Miodownik about the growing problem of plastic waste, what we should be doing about it, and why plastic isn’t always bad for the planet. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

We like to think of ourselves as highly evolved, well-adapted creatures, but our retinas face backwards, we have too many bones in our wrists, and at least half our genome is junk. Biologist Nathan Lents explains what we can learn from our flaws. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Chris Hadfield has been to space three times, completed two spacewalks and visited two different space stations, but for many, he is best known for his rendition of David Bowie’s Space Oddity performed aboard the International Space Station. We find out how close the late songwriter’s vision of space was to reality, the life of a retired astronaut, and keeping yourself entertained on the ISS. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The image of dinosaurs as drab, slow-witted reptilians is slowly being overturned thanks to exciting new fossil discoveries and advances in the technology used to analyse them. We talk to palaeontologist Steve Brusatte about palaeontology’s emerging golden age that is revealing what dinosaurs really looked like and why they were much smarter than we used to think. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Your voice – its pitch, intonation and accent – is a huge part of your personal identity. Trevor Cox is talking to us about the full range of human speech, and how technology’s changing the conversation. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Everyone wants to be happy, it’s an inbuilt part of being human, but what exactly is going on in our brains when we feel happy and what can we do to ensure we live as happy a life as possible? We talk to neuroscientist, comedian and science writer Dean Burnett to find out. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

VR can be used for so much more than cheap thrills and casual gaming. Jeremy Bailenson tells us how he is using VR to change the way we perceive racism, highlight the impact of climate change, and help us step into the shoes of our sporting heroes. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

People used to die at home and everybody recognised the process, and now people die in hospital largely with doctors and nurses trying to stop it from happening. So we don’t see how gentle the normal process of a life winding to an end can be. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Ahead of the London Marathon, we talk to Alex Hutchinson, author and former long-distance athlete about what it takes to push the human body to its limits. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

We talk to Mark O’Connell about transhumanism, a movement whose aim is to use technology to control the future evolution of our species – to improve our flawed biology, and to enable us to live forever. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

How much difference can a small change make? When it comes to changing habits, convincing someone to do something or affecting the behaviour of people without them even knowing about it, quite a lot, as we have seen with the recent Facebook scandal, where data firm Cambridge Analytica used personal data influence the way people vote. In this week's Science Focus Podcast, BBC Focus commissioning editor Jason Goodyer speaks to David Halpern, Chief Executive of the Behavioural Insights team, about nudge theory – a psychological tool used in behavioural science to subtly influence peoples’ decisions. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

We talk to Bergur Finnbogason, Development Manager for Project Discovery, which uses players of the Massively Multiplayer Online game EVE Online to help search for exoplanets. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In this episode, we chat to four scientists who spent time with Professor Stephen Hawking, to find out more about his life, his work, and his legacy. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

We talk to professor Brian Sharpless about a little-known sleep disorder called Exploding Head Syndrome and the research that hopes find a treatment. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

This week, we chat to author David Adam about his adventures in brain enhancement, finding out whether smart drugs and electrical brain stimulation could really be a shortcut to a sharper, more focused mind. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

This week, we chat to theoretical physicist Michio Kaku about the future of humanity, how we're going to terraform Mars, why the modern space race will change life on Earth, and why aliens probably won't bother to destroy us. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

This week, we chat to neuroscientist Lisa Feldmann Barrett about what happens in our brains when we create emotions, how to control them, and what this means for the future of artificial intelligence. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

This month, we’re talking about how the Museum of London acquired a piece of the London Fatberg as their new exhibit, and asked them how they’ll keep it “fresh”. We also talk to author Catherine Price about the science that inspired her to break up with her phone. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The world seems to be going ever more nuclear, but what effect could radiation – from bombs or nuclear meltdowns – have on animals and plants? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Since they were launched by Michael Faraday in 1825, the Royal Institution’s Christmas lectures have become as synonymous with the festive season as mince pies and sherry. In this month’s podcast we look back at classic lectures from Christmases past, and catch up with this year’s presenter, neuroscientist Sophie Scott. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

If you love science fiction then you’re in for a treat. This month, we pick the brain of Andy Weir, author of the best-selling novel and film The Martian, about his new creation Artemis and how he crafts believable sci-fi worlds. In Artemis Weir has swapped Mars, NASA and the All-American hero Mark Watney for something a little more realistic: a privatised moonbase that’s home to small time smuggler Jazz Bashira. What the books do have in common is a love for the transformative science that will one day help humans live on distant worlds. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

When she was 19, a stranger saved Dr Abigail Marsh’s life. Because of that moment, Dr Marsh work studies the psychology of people who help total strangers. We talked to her about the real-life superheroes who were the subject of her new book Good For Nothing. Also in the episode, we hear from Dr John Bradshaw, an anthrozoologist, about how deep our connection to our pets really goes… Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In the first half of this episode we ask Dr Stephen Hall, a climate and infrastructure researcher, whether the 2040 petrol and diesel car ban will really clean up the air we breathe. In the second part, we talk to neuroscientist Professor Paul Fletcher about the game Hellblade and how it tried to present a scientifically accurate portrayal of psychosis. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices