Living Biology

In the second of two episodes with plant scientist Ros Gleadow, we explore the complex relationship between cyanide, cassava, climate change and human health.

Cassava is a vital food crop for millions of people, but under drought and other stresses it can become more toxic. Ros explains the causes and consequences of konzo, a debilitating condition linked to consuming insufficiently processed cassava, and discusses the research and international collaboration needed to make cassava safer.

Ros is the founder of the International Safe Cassava Network, which brings together researchers and professionals working to understand and address the problem of konzo. The network welcomes people from different disciplines who are interested in finding solutions - you can contact the network at [email protected].

Podcast host: Poppy Lambert

Podcast editor: Sam Stemp

In the first of two episodes with plant scientist Ros Gleadow, we hear about her unconventional path through science - from studying botany and leaving the lab to raise a family, then returning over a decade later to start a PhD and become a professor emeritus.

Ros also tells us about how one question about plants responding to climate change led her to investigate cyanide-producing compounds in plants, growing a small research project on sorghum into a 20-year programme of research.

In Part 2, Ros discusses her work on cassava, cyanide and global health.

Podcast host: Poppy Lambert

Podcast editor: Sam Stemp

In this episode of Living Biology, Poppy speaks with physiological ecologist Dr Lucy Hawkes about a career driven by curiosity, adventure, and enthusiasm for the natural world. Lucy reflects on how a chance essay about sea turtles sparked an unexpected path into science, leading her from early fieldwork in North Carolina to tracking some of the ocean and sky’s most extraordinary travellers.

She also explores how advances in biologging have opened up a hidden world of animal behaviour, from migration routes and deep-sea journeys to breaching basking sharks and tuna evading killer whales. Along the way, she shares stories from the field that highlight both the chaos and wonder of working with wild animals, and explains how these discoveries are helping to reshape conservation and our understanding of life on the move.

Podcast host: Poppy Lambert

Podcast Editor: Sam Stemp

In this episode of Living Biology, Poppy speaks with plant scientist Declan Perry about his journey through education as someone with severe dyslexia and autism. Declan reflects on the challenges he faced growing up, the teachers and mentors who helped him succeed, and how his neurodivergence has shaped his approach to scientific research.

Declan explains his PhD research at Royal Holloway, University of London, into chloroplast development in plants, why photosynthesis remains a fascinating scientific puzzle, and how understanding it could help improve crop productivity in the future.

Podcast host: Poppy Lambert

Podcast Editor: Sam Stemp

Welcome to Living Biology, the podcast about the people who make science happen.

Living Biology is the official podcast from the Society for Experimental Biology. Through conversations with researchers across experimental biology, the series explores the science they study and the careers they’ve built. From plant science to animal physiology and emerging technologies, it highlights the people behind the research and the ideas shaping the field today.