Naked Scientists

Coming up, we explore an outbreak of meningitis in the English county of Kent. Will a targeted vaccination campaign bring it under control? Plus, a fast diagnostic swab test that may help diagnose schizophrenia, how thousands of old tumour samples could aid our understanding of rising bowel cancer rates in people under 50, and a new study that suggests ultrasound could help save European hedgehogs from road traffic... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

For Endometriosis Awareness Month, we explore a condition which affects 10% of women around the world. Cells that form the lining of the uterus crop up in other parts of the pelvis, and elsewhere in the body. It prevents many patients from being able to carry out everyday tasks, and can also cause infertility. In this episode, we explore the condition, hear the experiences of those living with endometriosis, discuss the science behind it, and find out about the treatments of tomorrow... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

On this week's show, why dogs don't live as long as humans. Also, why do we feel cold when our skin is warm to the touch? Do we all see colours the same way? Do animals experience embarrassment? If photons head towards two small slits, do they only pass through one slit or both? Why does the Middle East have an abundance of oil? And why are our taste buds affected when we have a fever? Dr Chris Smith and Clarence Ford have the answers... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Coming up, we assess the environmental and health impact of conflict in the Middle East. Plus, the gene variants that affect how heavily someone smokes, a medication called ruxolitinib that could help the vitiligo community, and a fascinating new study on interbreeding between Neanderthals and humans... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

This week, we're exploring polio: a highly infectious viral disease that can attack the nervous system and cause paralysis, mainly in young children. Polio has been pushed to the brink of elimination thanks to global vaccination efforts - but it still persists. In this episode, we'll look at what polio is, how vaccines have helped control it, where the virus still exists today, and whether it can finally be eradicated... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

This week Clarence Ford and Dr Chris discuss NASA's DART mission to defect an asteroid, why we can't tickle ourselves, whether lung capacity affects the heart, if white skin transplanted to a black person changes colour, why some people are more ticklish than others, how scientists are able to read ancient DNA codes, why the sea is salty, and what triggers seizures? Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Coming up, we explore how CAR-T cell therapy is revolutionising personalised cancer treatment. Plus, how NASA's DART mission tested Earth's asteroid defence, what we are learning about the benefits of breastfeeding for mother and baby health, and we delve into the physics behind squeaky shoes... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Our Titans of Science series continues with Mike Wooldridge, Ashall Professor of Foundations of Artificial Intelligence at the University of Oxford. He has conducted extensive work in the field of agentic AI, systems comprising multiple interacting AIs. In this episode, he tells Chris Smith what drew him to computers and AI in the first place, the pioneering work of Geoff Hinton, why ChatGPT isn't made to speak the truth, and what's in store for us as AI continues to develop... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

In this episode, how kangaroos alter their postures to store more energy in their Achilles tendons and boost movement efficiency, the moths that make a beeline when they hear plants "talking" to them, tracking how people pick up diseases from their surroundings, the contribution fingerprints make to touch sensation, and some forgotten female scientists are recognised at the Eiffel Tower, in France. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

This week, Dr Chris Smith and Sara Jayne Makwala King get to the bottom of IBS, why women living together often synchronise menstrual cycles, why we get a sudden falling sensation when dropping off to sleep sometimes, and if Earth suddenly stopped spinning, what would happen first? Also, are the faces that crop up in our dreams real people we've seen before, or has our brain created people that don't actually exist? Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists