The Science Show - Full Program Podcast

The biggest science infrastructure requires collaboration. Australia has said no to joining the European Southern Observatory and will not share in the discovery, the experience and many benefits.

The main aim of NASA's Artemis program is to establish a permanent human presence on the Moon — so what will we eat? And can food be actually be grown there?

You can binge more episodes of the Lab Notes podcast with science editor and presenter Jonathan Webb on the ABC Listen app (Australia). You'll find episodes on animal behaviour, human health, space exploration and so much more.

Get in touch with us: [email protected]

Featuring:

• Matthew Gilliham, director the ARC Centre of Excellence in Plants for Space at Adelaide University

This episode of Lab Notes was produced on the lands of the Gadigal and Menang Noongar people.

Carl Smith reports from Falling Walls 2025 and speaks to presenters from Australia and New Zealand who were there sharing their research with the world.

Humans have done experiments on animals for thousands of years — but animal testing has always been controversial because of the concerns for animal welfare. Recently, there have been more and more efforts to find alternatives to lab animals.

So how is this quest going? What's on the horizon – and will we ever get rid of lab animals completely? 

You can binge more episodes of the Lab Notes podcast with science editor and presenter Jonathan Webb on the ABC Listen app (Australia). You'll find episodes on animal behaviour, human health, space exploration and so much more.

Get in touch with us: [email protected]

Featuring:

• Darren Saunders, New South Wales deputy chief scientist and engineer

This episode of Lab Notes was produced on the lands of the Gadigal and Menang Noongar people.

Paul Davies explains some of the weirdness that is quantum physics

It's more than 50 years since humans went anywhere near the Moon — but that's about to change. After a series of delays, NASA's Artemis II mission is set to launch in early April. So what's the aim of the mission, where exactly are the astronauts headed, and why is it happening now?

You can binge more episodes of the Lab Notes podcast with science editor and presenter Jonathan Webb on the ABC Listen app (Australia). You'll find episodes on animal behaviour, human health, space exploration and so much more.

Get in touch with us: [email protected]

Featuring:  

• Jacinta Bowler, ABC science reporter

Extra information:

This episode of Lab Notes was produced on the lands of the Gadigal and Menang Noongar people.

Two ancient Australian possums, thought to be extinct, are now known to survive in Indonesian Papua

A fast-moving strain of influenza known as "Super-K" is circulating in Australia and has been driving up flu numbers around the world. Virologists are constantly tracking strains like this as they come and go. Professor Kirsty Short, shares her anxiety about the flu season ahead, as well as a surprising recent win — and a call to arms about vaccination.

You can binge more episodes of the Lab Notes podcast with science editor and presenter Jonathan Webb on the ABC Listen app (Australia). You'll find episodes on animal behaviour, human health, space exploration and so much more.

Get in touch with us: [email protected]

Featuring:

• Kirsty Short, virologist at University of Queensland

More information:

This episode of Lab Notes was produced on the lands of the Gadigal and Menang Noongar people.

Conventional explanations for how humans became ‘the language animal’ focus on our need to cooperate to hunt, fight or make tools. Now, evolutionary biologist Madeleine Beekman suggests a new idea for origin of language: the need to share childcare.

Australia has the highest melanoma rates in the world — but there's some good news for Aussie kids. The presence of moles is a strong predictor of melanoma and researchers in Queensland have found that the number of moles found on children's bodies has halved in recent decades.

You can binge more episodes of the Lab Notes podcast with science editor and presenter Jonathan Webb on the ABC Listen app (Australia). You'll find episodes on animal behaviour, human health, space exploration and so much more.

Get in touch with us: [email protected]

Featuring:  

• Nick Martin, human geneticist at the QIMR Berghofer Medical Research Institute

Extra information:

This episode of Lab Notes was produced on the lands of the Gadigal and Menang Noongar people.