RAZOR Sounds

On this week’s episode of the RAZOR podcast, Shini and Emma look at a group of researchers studying our sewer system to better manage the COVID-19 outbreak. 

Emma speaks to Dr. Monica Ghandi, an infectious disease expert from the University of California in San Francisco to hear the evidence for wearing face coverings and a hypothesis on how facemasks can work in a similar way to vaccines in fighting COVID-19.  

Sewers4COVID is a collaboration of researchers from Greece, Spain, the Netherlands and the UK who have developed a system of wastewater surveillance to track the spread of COVID-19. Their prototype proves sewer surveillance could be an effective tool in the fight against the pandemic and they are now looking into the feasibility of setting up a Europe-wide monitoring system. 

Shini spoke to Dragan Savic of KWR Water Research Institute to find out more. Savic explains how this technology started and why analysing sewage is a good way to get a picture of a population’s behavior and habits without infringing on individual privacy. He also tells how exactly this technology can help us fight COVID-19 and could be a good predictor of future pandemics.

On what’s exciting us in science this week, Shini explains why staring at a seagull could be the way to help manage their populations. 

Today we’ll be looking at women in Science, Technology Engineering and Mathematics [STEM]. Not too long ago, we interviewed two young women making massive strides in the STEM arena. Michelle Hicks and Inge-Sarah Andersen both work in traditionally male dominated areas, and we wanted to get a take on their experiences in their fields. We interviewed them on international women’s day earlier this year and thought we’d like to share that discussion with you here on the podcast. 

We talk about the importance of role-modelling if we are to inspire young women into entering STEM [04:26]. Michelle and Inge-Sarah also underline the need for representation and why it matters in fields where there’s not always a clear entry-point for young people [16:30]. They also explain who a greater representation of women in the workplace is also advantageous for men, and why we should actively and be more inclusive when considering a greater spectrum of emotions and personalities in the workplace [12:20]. 

At the time of recording, Michelle was a project manager at Merlin Entertainment, which is the job title she gives in the interview. She's since moved on to being a project manager at Michelle Hicks, Managing Director at Firefly Creations.

This episode originally aired on June 03, 2020.

On this episode of the RAZOR podcast we look at a company that's revolutionising food waste. CGTN America correspondent Mark Niu tells us about his visit to Treasure 8 - a company using a drying technique to make food last longer. Niu explains how the technology works and why he was intrigued by the process [06:01].   

He also tells us about the difficulties filming this story during a pandemic, and the precautions he had to take while doing the story [08:30]. Niu explains why he thinks this company will come into its own during the pandemic [13:05]. 

In our what’s exciting us in science this week, Emma Keeling tells us about a surprising link between kittens and autism - and Shini Somara tells us how flies’ eyes could help make us safer. 

Today on the RAZOR Podcast we Emma and Shini revisit one of our most popular stories. 

Back in Episode 13, Emma spoke to us about the anthropause: the worldwide slowing of human activity, which has led to many animals venturing further afield as people retreated inside. 

During that story we played you a clip from Professor Jim Smith from the University of Portsmouth. He  explained to us why the aftermath of the Chernobyl disaster gave us a lot of insight into how animals behave in the absence of humans in an urban environment.

Today on the podcast we share more from Prof Smith as we discuss what humans will have to do to address some of the damage that we’ve done to the planet [02:05].

We also hear from Shini and Emma as they tell us which stories have caught their attention in the world of science this week [06:22]. Remember if you want to watch the stories you can go to https://www.cgtn.com/europe/razor. 

This week on the RAZOR podcast Emma Keeling dives deep into one of our most popular stories over the past year. One New Zealand boss had changed to a four-day working week even before the virus spread, and he said going back to our old ways after the pandemic would be a wasted opportunity. Businessman Andrew Barnes tells us how moving to a four-day working week has helped his business become more productive [01:50]. Andrew tells us how he came up with the idea to move to his company to a four-day workweek and why he believes the way we currently organize our work-lives needs to change forever [06:01].  

We spoke to Andrew in episode 12 of the RAZOR podcast. Keeling also spoke to Andrew’s partner Charlotte Lockhart, who helped set up 4 Day Week Global, a website providing guidance to companies that would like to move to the shorter working week. Lockhart explains why we can’t wait for governments to make these changes and why businesses have to take the lead in helping to facilitate a better work-life balance for their employees [09:49]. 

Today on the podcast we look at the lasting effects that COVID-19 can have on our brains. Emma Keeling talks to professor Robert Stevens from Johns Hopkins Medicine in Maryland. Stevens describes a “secondary pandemic” where we could be struggling with the after-effects of COVID-19 long after we think we’ve recovered [02:02]. 

Only a slightly lighter note, Shini Somara talks to professor Robin Beaman, a scientist at James Cook University. Professor Beaman is part of the The Nippon Foundation-Gebco Seabed 2030 Project, a project committed to mapping 100 percent of the ocean floor. Beaman describes the ocean life he saw on his team’s state-of-the-art camera and he also tells us why he thinks it's important for us to have an accurate picture of what our ocean floor looks like [11:01].  

In a new segment, Shini and Emma talk about some of the biggest stories in science that we might have missed this week. Shini tells us what she thinks of SpaceX’s joint venture with NASA and how excited she is for the next era of space exploration [22:11]. 

Today on the Razor Podcast  Emma and Shini look at how the animal kingdom has responded to the covid-19 pandemic. You might have noticed more wildlife in your garden, parks and even in urban areas. That's because of what scientists are calling the anthropause: the worldwide slowing of human activity, which has led to many animals venturing further afield as we retreated inside. 

Emma talks to  Dr. Chrstian Rutz from the University of St. Andrews to find about the origins of the term. Dr. Rutz tells us why his team came up with the term and what it means for his research [01:55]. Emma also spoke to Professor Jim Smith from the University of Portsmouth who explains to us why the aftermath of the Chernobyl disaster has given us a lot of insight into how animals behave in the absence of humans in an urban environment [05:06]. 

In our second story, Shini tells us about a new technology that could help us detect Covid-19 without doing a test on a human host. In Switzerland a team led by Professor Jing Wang explains how we might be able to detect the Covid-19  in the air around us [12:28]. 

Today on the Razor Podcast we look at life after Covid-19. How we are going to put society back together and continue to our lives after the disruption of lockdown. Our first story looks at the aerodynamics of Covid-19 in airplanes. The airplane industry has been hit particularly hard by Covid-19. With planes grounded all over the world, the question has become how do we restore airplane travel without spreading the virus all over the world. 

Shini spoke to Professor Qingyan Chen who recently published a story about the aerodynamics of Covid-19 in airplane cabins. Professor Chen explains what the risks are for airplane passengers [02:16]. He also tells us how his team has been working with Boeing to make sure that air is filtered in the cabin. [06:30]. 

In our second story we move into the realm of social science and look at how a New Zealand businessman is championing the 4-day workweek. Andrew Barnes tells us how moving to a 4-day workweek has helped his business become more productive [09:50]. Emma and Shini also tell us what they would do if they could move to a 4-day workweek and we learn some surprising facts about what’s happening in Emma’s garden [16:01]. 

Today on the show Emma and Shini are joined by another Razor team member. Over the course of the Razor Podcast we have covered topics by reporter Jo Colan, and on this episode she updates us on some of your favourite Razor episodes. 

The repurposing of drugs or treatments originally used to treat other diseases is common in science and it's happening even more now.  Jo came across an example of this when researchers working to find a universal anti-venom to snake-bites received an unexpected phone call from the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative. Find out how snakebite research relates to HIV/AIDS firstly, and secondly, how does it relate to treating Covid-19 [03:40]. 

Jo also tells us what it was like being there in person for our snakebite story we first mentioned all the way back in episode 1 of the Razor Podcast [09:30]. 

In our second story Jo tells us all about meeting Chris Toumazou from DNA Nudge from episode 3 of the Razor Podcast. DNA Nudge is a DNA sequencing business mostly focused on informing customers of their genetic profiles and helping them make healthier lifestyle choices. During the pandemic, the company has pivoted toward making Covid-19 tests. Jo tells us how this works and why the company is perfectly set-up for this new innovation [14:00]. Jo also tells us what she learned about her own genetic profile when she took a DNA Nudge test back in 2019 [14:44]. 

Today on the Razor Podcast Shini talks to Louis Koizia from Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust in London about mixed-reality headsets that are helping to keep doctors safe while treating Covid-19 patients. Louis explains why these headsets are vital to treating the disease and enforcing the principles of social distancing under very difficult circumstances [01:30]. Shini also shares her adventures with mixed-reality headsets and tells us why it's taken this long for them to finally catch on [10:00]. 

Remdesivir is an antiviral medication originally developed to treat Ebola. While it wasn't effective it did show promise treating SARS and MERS in animal studies. Emma spoke to Dr Neera Ahuja, the principal investigator of the trial at Stanford University School of Medicine. She talks about how the drug might help in the fight against Covid-19. 

Dr. Auhja explains how the drug works and why she thinks the drug shows promise [12:49].