Futureproof with Jonathan McCrea

Semiconductor devices are everywhere, with almost 80% of the Irish population having a smartphone - not to mention any number of other computer devices.

And not only is their presence in modern life ubiquitous, but the way in which these devices are produced is also astonishing - being created through a painstaking process requiring single atoms to be removed one by one.

Joining Jonathan to discuss the challenges and solutions involved in making semiconductors is Michael Nolan, Principal Scientist at Tyndall National Institute, where he leads the Materials Modelling for Devices activity in the MNS Centre.

Severe period pain, infertility and even depression - living with endometriosis can have serious effects on quality of life. Will new technologies finally yield therapy for those with the condition? Joining Jonathan to discuss this is Dr Kate Lawrenson, associate professor in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at Cedars-Sinai Hospital in LA.

An injury to the spinal cord can be hugely traumatic and life-changing.

While currently, there are no proven treatments that protect against the consequences of SCI work goes on to change that.

Aleksandra Serafin, a Ph.D. researcher at the School of Engineering at the University of Limerick, is involved in one line of research that looks to be a part of that change - she joins Jonathan to discuss.

The Africanized honey bee has earned itself the nickname of ‘the killer bee’, but how much truth is there to the suggestion that the species was created by an experiment gone wrong?

Joining Jonathan to discuss this is Mark L. Winston, Professor Emeritus and Senior Fellow at the Morris J. Wosk Centre for Dialogue at Simon Fraser University, in British Columbia, Canada.

Catherine McGuinness, Zoologist and Educator & Dr Jessamyn Fairfield, University of Galway physicist join us to go through the top science stories from the week in Newsround.

Think of those greatly-preserved Roman structures like the Pantheon and you might marvel that they are still standing after all these centuries.

So what’s so special about this ancient construction that leaves us with these marvelous buildings?

Linda Seymour, a former MIT doctoral student with a background in civil engineering – alongside researchers from MIT, Harvard, and labs in Switzerland and Italy – has been examining what made Roman concrete so durable - she joins Jonathan to discuss.

The notion of human beings getting to and settling on Mars has been a staple of science fiction for decades.

But what are the social, scientific, and engineering constraints for establishing a colony, and what are the current blueprint and design concepts for the settlement of an entire Martian city?

Justin Hollander, Urban Planning Professor at Tufts University and the author of ‘The First City on Mars: An Urban Planner’s Guide to Settling the Red Planet’ joins Jonathan to discuss.

https://jholla03.pages.tufts.edu/

We would traditionally associate sperm as solitary swimmers but new research suggests that the male reproductive cell can sometimes move into groups.

Joining Jonathan to discuss why this might be the case and what significance this behaviour could have on our future fertility is Chih-Kuan Tung of the Department of Physics at North Carolina A&T State University.

It may come as no great surprise to any of our listeners that it is our goal here at Futureproof to educate and reveal the world of science to you.

In order to do that, we must keep you entertained, and engaged - we absolutely have to hold your attention.

That being said, try as we might, chances are that at least for some of you, your mind will wander.

But in this modern age are we inclined to allow our minds to drift off more than before? Is our attention being stolen?

Johann Hari, author of ‘Stolen Focus: Why You Can't Pay Attention' joins Jonathan to discuss.

Dr. Shane Bergin & Dr. Susan Kelleher also join Jonathan for this week's installment of 'Newsround'.

In this special episode of Futureproof, Jonathan looks back at some of our favourite pieces from throughout 2022.

- Martin Wikelski, Professor at the University of Konstanz & Director at Max Planck Institute of Animal Behaviour explores the idea that animals can detect natural disasters.

- Carl Zimmer, an award-winning New York Times columnist and author of ‘Life’s Edge: The Search For What It Means To Be Alive’ speaks to Jonathan about the myriad ways we define life itself.

- And to sift through some of the most ethically questionable experiments to ever take place is Gina Perry, writer, science historian, and author of ‘Behind the Shock Machine’ & ‘The Lost Boys’.

Our senses are at the heart of how we navigate the world - coalescing in any moment, in any combination, to varying degrees, to relay what is going on around us and within us.

But when you stop to think about the level of complexity involved in making sense of all of this in your brain - it really is quite astonishing.

That being said, are we guilty of doing our senses a disservice by reducing their scope to just five?

Is there more to it than just smell, sight, taste, touch, and hearing? If so, what are the other ways we sense the world and what function do they serve?

Ashley Ward is a professor in Animal Behaviour at the University of Sydney & author of ‘Sensational: A New Story of Our Senses’ - he joins Jonathan to discuss.