Hear about a fun campaign to save the ‘ugly’ animals. Simon Watt of the Ugly Animal Preservation Society tell us that ugly animals face extinction because the cute creatures, like cuddly pandas, “steal all the glory”. He encourages everyone to vote for their favourite ugly animal.

Follow-up link:

07/09/2013

Tagged biology, Chris Creese, conservation, environment, Roger Frost

You may wonder how today’s farmers are able to grow wheat reliably. We talk with plant scientist Gillian Covey, who explains how different strains of wheat can be bred to make better seeds for farmers. We learn some of techniques available to plant breeders, such as ‘single cross’ and ‘doubled haploids’.

Gillian Covey is a specialist in Spring Wheat at KWS UK, south of Cambridge in the village of Thriplow. KWS UK provide growers with innovative varieties of wheat, maize, oilseed rape, and sugar beet to meet needs of a varied market.

Follow-up link:

Tagged biology, Chris Creese, DNA, plants, Roger Frost, science education, wheat

Long-time beekeeper Steve Poyser tells us how honey bees work and how nectar turns into the stuff we buy. The Science Show’s Roger Frost asks about clear versus creamed honey. He also wonders why honey bees are called social insects when the bee at his last BBQ was more anti-social than social. Steve Poyser is an active member of Cambridgeshire Beekeepers’ Association.

15/06/2013 Tagged biology, chemistry, Chris Creese, Roger Frost

A government initiative to help farmers keep the water supply free of pollutants. We visit a farm in Duxford, England where Andrew Down from ‘Natural England’ explains what is meant by “Catchment Sensitive Farming”.

Environment is such an issue today. ‘Natural England’ is an NGO and they connect with the Environment Agency, Rural Development Programme and with DEFRA – the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.

Follow-up link:

29/08/2013

Tagged environment, catchment sensitive farming, pollution

Professor Alan Tunnacliffe of the Cambridge University Department of Chemical Engineering tells why the bdelloid rotifer has fascinated top biologists. This microscopically tiny invertebrate lives in rain puddles. The creature can survive without water for millions of years, and by now really ought to be extinct. Our scientist tells why it isn’t and how it manages its DNA.

Follow-up link:

23/02/2013

tagged: Chris Creese, DNA, health, Roger Frost, rotifer, science education

We talk to Dr Marcus Yeo about how human cell production benefits drug development. Dr Yeo is from DifiniGEN, a Cambridge company that grows liver cells used to test if new drugs are harmful. Their technology comes from the Nobel Prize-winning work of Cambridge university’s Sir John Gurdon. The ability to grow special cells from stem cells also offers the possibility for organ replacement in the future.

We visit the Centre for Atmospheric Science in Cambridge University and speak to Professor John Pyle about modelling the lower atmosphere using supercomputers.

Follow-up link:

Our guest Anmol Sood of Hildago was on the team that monitored Felix Baumgartner health as he jumped from the edge of space and reached a speed of over 800 mph. Based in Cambridge UK, the company makes the Equivital Lifemonitor and are expert at handling data from sensors.

Follow-up link:

15/12/2012