Madeleine Beekman argues for a new origin of language: the need to share childcare.

New technology is allowing long chains of DNA to be manipulated opening the door for the creation of new life forms. 

A 10% honey solution can stop growth of bacteria. And strong impacts on common fungal infections have also been observed.

Despite the move to sustainable fuel in F1 car racing, the fuel powering cars cannot be tracked easily, and only amounts to 1% of the energy cost in staging a race.

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:

Halving of Australian children's naevus counts during 1992-2016 and change in sun behaviour

Hopes for lower melanoma risk as study finds number of moles on children's bodies halved in 25 years

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

Dr John Bolton, once of the Radiophysics Laboratory in the CSIRO to conduct secret research on radar for the military, also helped pioneer radio astronomy after the Second World War. 

He was invited to Caltech to show them how to build radio telescopes — but then resigned and returned to Australia to build the legendary Parkes Telescope. 

Guest Jonas Zmuidzinas  Professor of physics  Director of Caltech Optical Observatories  Caltech 

PresenterRobyn Williams

Harriet Brettle studied finance, had several varied jobs in leadership, and now heads the Keck Institute for Space Studies at Caltech. 

Like the “professor of everything” Bob May from Australia, who once combined his mathematical physics with the head of the Bank of England, Harriet can take risks with projects based on knowing both what’s worthwhile scientifically and sensible financially. 

Guest Harriet Brettle Executive director of the Keck Institute for Space Studies Caltech 

PresenterRobyn Williams

Erik Petigura is a professor of physics and astronomy at UCLA who specialises in discovering planets smaller than giants like Neptune and bigger than Mars and Earth.

Our Solar System has none of these intermediate planets, so what's the attraction?

Guest

Erik Petigura

Professor of physics and astronomy 

UCLA 

Presenter

Robyn Williams

Once the stuff of science fiction, self-driving cars are now a common sight in some American cities.

Robyn Williams rode in a robot taxi around Phoenix, Arizona.

Guest

Kylie Ahern

Science publisher at STEM Matters and The Brilliant

Presenter

Robyn Williams

When raised lead levels were noticed in Los Angeles last year, Professor Francois Tissot, who usually examines the chemistry of asteroids, quickly saw that the fires that ravaged the region in January 2025 were to blame. 

He reveals the current extent of the concern and suggests Australia inspects its own burned regions too. 

Guest Francois Tissot Professor of geochemistry Caltech 

PresenterRobyn Williams