The Naked Scientists Special Editions
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13.05.17 - What is Random?
We were discussing on the radio today how random numbers are generated, and how could it be proved - to the satisfaction of a mathematician - that the number really is random? Evan Stanbury explains...
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13.05.13 - Science Toys, for Boys?
A campaign has been launched to stop science toys being sold by some stores as "toys for boys". But what does science say on the matter? Introduced here by BBC 5 Live's Dotun Adebayo, Ginny Smith has been investigating...
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13.05.03 - Touching Up On Art Restoration
Continuing from our podcast Restoring the Masters, Sally Woodcock, a PhD student from the Hamilton Kerr Institute talks about how we restore old oil paintings to their former glory.
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13.03.25 - Science In-Situ
This month we explore science 'in action' as we discover how researchers at the synchrotron are experimenting with implants, industrial catalysts and engine materials In-Situ! We discover how manipulating materials as they form can help create longer-lasting body implants and how catalysts are being visualised during their reactions to improve their efficiency. Plus all the latest news from Diamond including new ways to maintain ancient architecture and new materials for stronger buildings...
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13.03.17 - BANG! Naked Science Festival
Breasts, bazookas, bosons and bombs: The Naked Scientists take to the stage for the Cambridge Science Festival 2013. An explosive mix of fertile conversation and kitchen science...
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13.03.12 - Tidal energy, turtle mating habits
This week in the Planet Earth Podcast: a look at the potential to generate up to 20 per cent of the UK's electricity from tidal energy; and why understanding the nuts and bolts of turtles' sex lives could help protect those most at risk.
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13.03.11 - Ice-Quakes in Svalbard
We spoke to Emma Smith, a PhD student with the British Antarctic Survey about her work whilst she was based in the icy noth of Svalbard...
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13.03.06 - Benedict Cumberbatch
Sherlock star Benedict Cumberbatch is the Cambridge Science Festival's guest director this year, meaning he's been assisting the Cambridge University festival team with putting together the programme for the two-week event, which launches on March 11. He spoke with Naked Scientist Ben Valsler about his interest in science and his role in the festival...
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13.02.01 - Pseudomonas aeruginosa - Martin Welch
Researchers at Cambridge University announced the discovery of a new way to attack the bacterial "superbug" Pseudomonas aeruginosa, which accounts for 6% of all hospital acquired infections and can be very hard to treat, particularly for patients with lung diseases like cystic fibrosis. Ben Valsler went to meet the man behind the breakthrough, Martin Welch...
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13.01.05 - Protecting Nerves from Damage
How can we protect neurons from degeradation? In this podcast from Cambridge Cafe Scientifique, we hear how understanding transport of proteins and other chemicals within individual nerve cells may be key to keeping the cell alive after injury...
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12.12.21 - The Best of Synchrotron Science in 2012
This month, we look back at Diamond's ten year anniversary celebrations to discover novel ways to store hydrogen gas, analyse the risks of a toxic mudspill and engineer tissues to prevent premature labour. We also get an overview of science at the synchrotron in 2012 and hear the UK science ministers thoughts on the research taking place at Diamond...
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12.12.18 - Extra Questions - The Science Behind...
How does a radio broadcast work? We must have been on your wavelength this week, as we had more questions that we could fit in Naked Scientists Show! Here are the extra bits...
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12.12.14 - The Genetics of Brain and Behaviour
Could genetics pave the way for developing schizophrenia or Alzheimer 's disease? Is there a genetic link between optimism and obesity? Is it ethical to screen people's DNA? Plus we find out what a nap might do for your memory, how a new study is turning addiction treatment on its head and we unravel what it means to be human. Plus we unzip whether DNA might make for an extremely high IQ!
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12.12.11 - Citizen science projects, plants and...
This week in the Planet Earth Podcast: how you can get involved in any one of the wealth of UK citizen science projects that have taken off recently, and why a little-known gas given off by many trees, ferns and mosses, could be contributing to global warming.
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12.11.27 - Bat calls, weather balloons, telomeres and...
This week in the Planet Earth Podcast: an online tool to identify bats is helping to protect them, and it could make a scientist of us all. Also, an audio diary from a researcher from the National Centre for Atmospheric Science who's on the Isle of Arran in Scotland; and why there's more to ageing than telomeres.
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12.11.15 - Solutions to urban flooding, peatland carbon...
This week in the Planet Earth Podcast: a look at potential solutions to urban flooding, and why scientists are so keen to measure carbon dioxide flow through the UK's Norfolk Fens.
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12.10.13 - Sir John Gurdon, Nobel Laureate
Sir John Gurdon, from Cambridge University, talks to Chris Smith about the set of experiments that resulted in the award on the 2012 Nobel Prize for Physiology and Medicine.
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12.10.03 - Future-proofing forests, noisy gannets,...
This week in the Planet Earth Podcast: the steps scientists are taking to make sure the trees we plant today can cope with tomorrow's warmer climate; tracking gannets to find out how environmental change might affect them; and a tropical Antarctica.
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12.09.18 - Forecasting solar storms, fish personalities
This week in the Planet Earth Podcast: why accurately forecasting solar storms is becoming increasingly important; and how understanding how fish shoal could interest economists.
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12.09.17 - Early tetrapods, upland rivers, North...
This week in the Planet Earth Podcast: what the first creatures to walk on land looked like; the connection between the biodiversity of upland rivers and the ecosystem services they provide; and in an audio diary from Turkey, a University of Leeds researcher on the North Anatolian Fault.
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12.09.10 - Entering the Infra-Red Zone
This month, discover how seeing red can help restore works of art and probe the origins of cancer. We delve into the world of Infra-red spectroscopy to reveal the creation and preservation of ancient pieces of art and the building techniques of ancient civilizations. We also search for cellular fingerprints to enable the identification of stem cells and earlier diagnosis of cancer in the future!
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12.09.07 - BSF 2012 - Subglacial Lakes & Food on the...
In the final of our special series of programmes from the British Science Festival, we find out how researchers will be drilling through over 3 kilometres of ice to find out what's hiding in subglacial Lake Ellsworth. Plus, how a high fat diet may alter the brain...
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12.09.06 - BSF 2012 - Finding Higgs and Mining Heat
In this special edition of the Naked Scientists from the British Science Festival, we get the latest news from the Large Hadron Collider, including their scientific shopping list, and find out how heat pumps could extract household heating from abandoned mines...
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12.09.05 - BSF 2012 - Seeing through Clothes and Water...
In the second special programme from the British Science Festival in Aberdeen, we discover the technology for seeing through your clothes and find out why "Lonely heart" teenage water voles can save whole populations. Plus, wel discover why NASA is returning to the Van Allen Belt, and explore the diet foods of the future, which will make you feel fuller for longer.
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12.09.04 - Monitoring your Mobile Phone
With 40% of adults in the UK now using smartphones, and similar figures worldwide, we discover how easy it is to track and profile peoples' movements using information given away in public by their mobile phones. We learn how hackers can use your phone's wifi connections to track where you go, who you contact and even get images of where you live!
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12.09.04 - BSF 2012 - Caring Technology and Colourful...
In this, the first of a series of special podcasts from the British Science Festival, we discover the Wang Particle, find out how technology can help people stay more able until later in life, and how fossils are revealing their true colours...
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12.09.01 - Saving Satellites
Satellites are essential, and not just for the latest television. Nation states rely on satellites for reconnaissance, navigation and secure communications. But satellites are under threat, from natural phenomenon like Space Weather events through to nefarious attacks from cyber criminals. We visit the UK's Defence Science Technology Laboratory to find out how we keep our satellites safe...
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12.08.26 - The Brain Uncovered: Naked Neuroscience
How nerve cells make decisions, how genes control behaviour, using light to interrogate neuronal circuits, anxiety attacks, deep brain stimulation to bust addiction, how the immune system can cause psychosis, the genetics of behavioural problems and hallucinogenic flashbacks: fact, or a mind playing tricks on you? This week we launch Naked Neuroscience, a new monthly podcast to open your mind...
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12.08.14 - Bees and sex, acid rain's legacy, cold water...
This week in the Planet Earth Podcast: sex and the survival of honey bee colonies; why rivers are still recovering from the legacy of acid rain; and collecting coral from the Atlantic seabed.
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12.08.06 - Mars Curiosity Extra
NASA's David Blake from the Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) Curiosity rover team and the Open University's Cassini-Huygens space probe pioneer John Zarnecki answer your questions about planetary exploration. This special podcast is an addendum to the August 5th 2012 episode of the Naked Scientists Podcast and contains extra material not included in the published programme.
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12.07.31 - Early African dairy farming, seabird...
This week in the Planet Earth Podcast: how dairy farming in Africa 7000 years ago led to the speedy evolution of the gene that lets us digest milk; and how climate change could be having a detrimental effect on seabirds and fish in the Southern Ocean.
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12.07.18 - Brown water, bats and streetlights, plant...
This week in the Planet Earth Podcast: how browner drinking water presents problems for the water companies; the effect of street lighting on bats and their commuter routes; and how ultraviolet light makes plants emit methane.
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12.07.17 - Exciting new technologies that are...
Find out about the exciting new technologies that are revolutionising neuroscience, providing scientists with the tools to unlock the mysteries of the mind and nervous system and paving the way for better treatments for patients.
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12.07.15 - The Naked Scientists strip down the brain in...
The Naked Scientists strip down the brain in Spain - attending the Federation of European Neuroscience Societies conference in Barcelona. We find out how your brain computes information, ask if watching worms can tell us about human social interaction, and we explore how we make up our minds when faced with life's choices.
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12.07.05 - Making a Material World
This month, we get materialistic to discover how X-rays are being used to improve light emitting diodes , how probing piezoelectric materials could provide a less toxic future and how solar cells are being made more efficient, using DNA! We also celebrate the launch of Diamond's annual report and bring you the latest news and events from the synchrotron including new insight into the movements of comets in our solar system...
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12.07.05 - Urban heat, ancient cave art, bold birds
This week in the Planet Earth Podcast: a look at how urban heat islands will alter under climate change, and how these changes might affect your health, as well as our railways, roads and energy supplies. Also: why Europe's oldest cave art might not have been painted by humans at all.
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12.06.19 - Bees, nanomaterials, and methane on Mars
This week in the Planet Earth Podcast: how knowing exactly which bees pollinate which crops may help us grow food more sustainably; and a look at the effects of tiny particles called nanomaterials on the environment and our health.
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12.06.06 - Medical diagnostics, the value of nature
This week in the Planet Earth Podcast: a look at how technology designed to measure air pollution may soon be used to smell disease on a patient's breath; and the steps British researchers are taking to put a value on all the benefits of nature that we often take for granted.
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12.05.08 - How Intelligence Happens
This month, Professor John Duncan explores human intelligence and the neurons and circuits in the brain that enable us to have the thoughts, cognition and problem-solving abilities that set us apart from the rest of the animal kingdom...
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12.05.23 - Cold water corals, meteorites, new greenhouse...
This week in the Planet Earth Podcast - scientists describe why the planet's least understood but most diverse species of coral is under threat. Also, what the meteorite strike that wiped the dinosaurs out would've been like; and why co2 isn't the only greenhouse gas we should be worried about.
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12.05.10 - Drought and record rainfall, indoor avalanches
This week in the Planet Earth Podcast: researchers explain why, despite record rainfall, England is in drought. Later, how scientists are using indoor avalanches to figure out where to put buildings and roads. Finally, news of ice loss in Antarctic, and the benefits of bat dung.
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12.04.25 - Microscopic plants, using volcanic ash for...
This week in the Planet Earth Podcast - we take a closer look at tiny marine plants, which underpin the entire marine food chain and play a vital role in the Earth's climate. Also, how scientists are using volcanic ash called tefra to tell how people may have responded to rapid environmental changes in the recent past.
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12.04.16 - Fungal threats, hydrothermal vents, green...
This week in the Planet Earth Podcast, how fungal infections could threaten our food security as well as the planet's amphibians; work under way to understand the ecosystems around the hydrothermal vents in the Southern Ocean; and how it's people, not buildings, that use energy.
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12.03.27 - Air pollution, dwarf elephants and water...
This week in the Planet Earth Podcast, Richard Hollingham hears about new air-quality monitoring that could help mitigate the effects of bad-air days; the effect of climate change on Mediterranean dwarf elephants; and exactly how many litres of water it took to make his morning coffee.
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12.03.25 - Ten Years of Diamond
This month, we celebrate ten years of Diamond and discover what it takes to get from green field site to functioning synchrotron. We take a look at the wide range of science that's taken place from the probing of viruses to develop vaccines and the exploring of meteorites to understand the formation of our solar system. We also come back to the present day to bring you the latest news and research from the light source...
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12.03.22 - What happens when we screw with our sleep...
Cambridge Neuroscientists Dr Michael Hastings and Dr Akhilesh Reddy spoke at the annual Cambridge Neuroscience Seminar about their work on sleep. They discuss the importance of sleep for learning and memory, preventing cancer, the health of your heart, mopping up toxic waste in your body, winning that Olympic Gold medal and why you shouldn't have that midnight kebab! Dr Hannah Critchlow from the Naked Scientists went along to the seminar to discuss their work with them........
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12.03.14 - Invasive signal crayfish, shags,...
This week in the Planet Earth Podcast: Richard Hollingham finds out why the American signal crayfish is driving out one of the UK's native species; in our latest audio diary, Hannah Grist from the University of Aberdeen talks us through her research on European shags; and what noctilucent clouds tell us about our changing climate.
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12.03.07 - A global classroom brings the oceans alive
Marine biologist Dr Joshua Drew from the Field Museum of Natural History in Chicago is using cutting edge communication technologies to bring the oceans alive in two very different parts of the planet. By connecting teenagers in Fiji and inner city Chicago, he's inspiring the next generation of marine scientists and galvanising them into conservation action.
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12.03.05 - River Thames pollution, Arctic freshwater...
This week in the Planet Earth Podcast, Sue Nelson goes to the River Thames in central London to find out why nitrate pollution has trebled since the 1930s. Later on, she talks to a researcher about an unusual freshwater bulge in the Arctic, and asks if we should be concerned. Finally, we hear a round-up of some of the news from the natural world.
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12.02.28 - Mental Maps in the Brain
What's your sense of direction like? And how good are you at reading a map? It turns out, these skills are down to two particular regions of the brain that keep track of where you are in relation to a destination and how longs it's going to take you get there. And to find out more, we took to the mean streets of Soho in London...
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12.02.21 - Cambridge Cafe Scientifique - Opening up Your...
This Month, Dr Hannah Critchlow opens up the mind to reveal the neurons controlling the inner workings of our brain and how we perceive the world around us...
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12.02.17 - Testing satellites on Earth, hedgerow wildlife
This week in the Planet Earth Podcast: Sue Nelson visits RAL Space at the Rutherford Appleton Laboratory in Oxfordshire to find out how scientists check if the scientific equipment they put on satellites will work properly once in space. Later she goes to Buckinghamshire to hear how simple changes to hedgerow management could significantly improve winter habitats and food supplies for wildlife.
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12.01.31 - Revitalising urban rivers, hot conservation...
This week in the Planet Earth Podcast - Richard Hollingham goes to the River Wandle in south-west London to find out how scientific research is helping to revitalise this heavily-used river; later he goes to Cambridge to hear about some of the hottest conservation topics for 2012.
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12.01.10 - Brain Control of Appetite and Body Weight
This month, Dr Lora Heisler discusses the brain mechanisms controlling our appetite and subsequent body weight. She explores the many drivers behind hunger and appetite control and how these differ from person to person as well as how obesity can be avoided by increasing our energy expenditure...
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12.01.23 - Day to Day Diamond
This month, we step inside to explore what, and who, it takes to run the synchrotron. We meet the people that keep the electrons accelerating to produce light beams 100 billion times brighter than the Sun, every day! We explore the health and safety needed when working with high levels of radiation, the equipment used to ensure every inch of the machine runs smoothly and the industries using Diamond to produce our everyday products. Plus we hear how the facility if run from the top down as...
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12.01.17 - The Hoff Crab, North Sea fisheries, flood...
It's not often that science news goes viral, but when researchers dubbed a new species the 'Hoff Crab' more people than usual seemed to take notice!
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12.01.13 - Discovering the world's deepest deep sea vents
Deep sea researchers Doug Connelly and Jon Copley led the team that discovered the deepest and possibly hottest undersea volcanoes on the planet. In a special edition of the Naked Scientists they talk to Helen Scales about their findings, including the extraordinary chemistry and biology they uncovered 5 kilometers beneath the waves in the Caribbean Sea.
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12.01.09 - Parkour and orang-utans, risks from solar...
This week in the Planet Earth Podcast - Sue Nelson goes to Birmingham to find out how the James Bond film Casino Royale and orang-utan conservation are linked; later she meets a scientist from the British Geological Survey to learn which parts of the UK power grid are most at risk during solar storms.
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11.12.12 - The Thames Barrier, the colour of prehistoric...
This week in the Planet Earth Podcast - Sue Nelson goes to the Thames Barrier to find out how engineers use science to decide whether or not to raise or lower it, helping to stop storm surges from flooding London; while Richard Hollingham meets a scientist who developed a technique that reveals the colour of truly ancient fossilised birds.
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11.12.05 - Chemistry at the Synchrotron
This month, we celebrate the international year of chemistry by exploring the wide range of chemical discoveries and research taking place at Diamond. We investigate the role of chemistry in pitting erosion, photovoltaics and nanowires as well as reveal how Diamond has been used to unearth a new source of mercury poisoning...plus all the latest news and event from diamond including a wake up call revealing the benefits of caffeine!
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11.11.22 - The Biology of Behaviour
Professor Tony Holland provides a window into the biology of behaviour and how genetic syndromes are helping open this window to provide greater levels of insight into violent behaviour, appetite control and Alzheimers disease...
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11.12.05 - How Nicotine Switches the Brain onto Cocaine
How does nicotine open a gateway to cocaine addiction? A new study indicates that nicotine primes the brain for cocaine - by altering the structure of a gene linked to learning, memory and addiction.
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11.11.22 - The Ozone Hole, Starlings in Fair Isle,...
This week in the Planet Earth Podcast - Richard Hollingham talks to one of the scientists behind the discovery of the ozone hole to find why it's still there; how research on starlings on an island famous for its sweaters could help bird conservationists; and why forest fires in North America affect people thousands of miles away in Europe.
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11.11.11 - Contagion Special
In this infectious special podcast, we explore the science behind Stephen Soderburgh's latest film, Contagion, which depicts the series of events that unfold with the outbreak of a new strain of flu. The film has quite serious scientific credentials - Ian Lipkin, Professor of Epidemiology at Columbia univeristy was on hand every step of the way to ensure the film's scenarios were realistic. We find out more about the role of a scientific advisor, and what kind of public health measures we...
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11.11.08 - Treating snakebites, and European shags
This week in the Planet Earth Podcast - Sue Nelson visits the largest collection of venomous snakes in the UK to find out how researchers are developing antivenoms to help African snakebite victims; and what scientists are doing to understand why populations of the European shag are declining.
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11.11.02 - Neanderthal mammoth hunters in Jersey
This week in the Planet Earth Podcast: Richard Hollingham meets scientists and archaeologists who are working to preserve one of the most important Neanderthal settlements in north-west Europe to find out how they lived; later on, he visits the local primary school to find out what schoolchildren make of the Neanderthals.
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11.10.30 - HIV, Haemophilia and Muscular Dystophies
In this final podcast from the BSGT Conference we hear how genes could be targeted to develop a new drug for HIV as well as long awaited treatments for Muscular dystrophies and Haemophilia. We also discover how a good insight into the workings of a virus can help you exploit them to deliver genes more effectively and discuss the research highlights that have taken place over the past few days...
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11.10.29 - Cancer and Ocular Gene Therapies
Today we hear how cancers, retinal degeneration, spinal chord injury and liver disease can all be targeted using gene and stem cell therapy techniques. We also explore a variety of methods to deliver genes to a desired location within our bodies...
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11.10.28 - Respiratory Disorders and Muscular Dystrophies
In today's podcast we hear how gene therapy can be used to target a variety of respiratory disorders such as Cystic Fibrosis and how scientists are trying to grow organs such as lungs in the lab. We also discover how alternative methods of therapy could be used to treat muscular dystophy and how pancreatic cells are being created, by the re-programming of other cells, in a bid to treat diabetes...
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11.10.27 - Public Engagement in Gene therapy
In this first podcast from the 2011 BSGT/ESGCT Conference in Brighton we bring you the highlights from the Public Engagment day including an introduction to gene therapy and stem cell therapy, life from the perspective of a haemophiliac, public opinions on gene therapy and how a DNA race can help teenagers get to grips with DNA fingerprinting...
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11.10.11 - Cambridge Cafe Scientifique - NHS Rationing
Dr. Linda Sharples gives an insight into the workings of the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence and how new medical treatments, drugs and procedures are analysed and assessed for use within the UK National Health Service...
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11.10.11 - The deep sea, ancient proteins, Arctic...
This week in the Planet Earth Podcast - how scientists find out about life in the oceans' deepest trenches; how identifying proteins from 50 milion year old reptile skin could help us store radioactive waste; and studying the effects of climate change in the Arctic.
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11.09.28 - Spreading aliens, Arctic experience, and...
This week in the Planet Earth Podcast, how hikers and walkers could be unwittingly changing the landscape by spreading alien species; what it's like to work as a marine biologist in the Arctic in temperatures of minus 40C; and exactly how stable is the West Antarctic Ice Sheet?
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11.09.19 - Looking into the Light!
This month we look into the light to discover how Diamond's new Imaging and Coherance beamline is helping scientists see with greater clarity than ever before! We hear how the beamline works to provide greater resolution imaging, how rocks deep beneath the earths surface can be analysed for potential storage of carbon dioxide in the future, and how imaging the internal structure of metal alloys could help recycle them on a greater scale. Plus, the latest news and events from Diamond...
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11.09.14 - Engineering the climate to tackle climate...
This week in the Planet Earth Podcast: in a geoengineering special edition, we take a closer look at some of the technologies we may have to resort to using to avert dangerous climate change.
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11.09.08 - Australopithecus Sediba Special
Reader in evolution at Wits University, Lee Berger, made a life-changing discovery when he uncovered the remains of a new species of hominid, Australopithecus sediba, in South Africa. Here, Chris Smith gets to meet the newest addition to the human family tree...
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11.08.23 - Stonehenge, microscopic plants, and baboons
This week in the Planet Earth Podcast, why scientists are working with the National Trust to restore the chalk grasslands around Stonehenge; how researchers are using satellites to study microscopic plants; and the etiquette of dining and bullying in baboons.
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11.08.12 - Where do all the salmon go, and making CO2...
This week in the Planet Earth Podcast, how scientists are using fish scales to figure out why the UK salmon population is falling; and how carbon dioxide emissions from power stations could be used to make household bricks.
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11.07.29 - How Plants Attract Bats
A species of tropical vine attracts its bat pollinators using acoustic signals, rather than bright colours or smells, according to a study published in the journal Science this week. In this special podcast, Dr Marc Holderied discusses this unique discovery.
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11.07.26 - Searching for life in Lake Ellsworth
This week in the Planet Earth Podcast: why scientists are planning on drilling three kilometres beneath the Antarctic ice sheet in one of the most ambitious exploration projects ever undertaken; and how worms that feed on dead whale bones at the bottom of the ocean may be distorting the whale fossil record.
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11.07.12 - Rip Currents and Carbon Capture
This week, why understanding rip currents at Perranporth in north Cornwall could help save lives; how exactly does carbon capture and storage (CCS) work and how can scientists be sure that carbon will be stored forever?
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11.07.07 - Inside Diamond
This month, we venture into the synchrotron along with members of the public to bring you a glimpse of the Inside Diamond open days. We meet the engineers and technicians that design the components of the synchrotron to keep it running smoothly, hear from Diamond CEO Gert Materlik about the main highlights of these open days. Plus, we talk to a scientist working on one of Diamonds latest Beamlines, I-24, that's enabling research that wasn't possible before including new insight in the fight...
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11.07.07 - WWII bunkers, thugs and aliens, and calving...
This week in the Planet Earth Podcast, why weathermen are using a converted World War II bunker to monitor clouds; how thug species such as bramble, nettle and bracken can be just as damaging to woodlands as alien plants; and why scientists are going to Greenland to deploy a network of sensors in some of the country's glaciers.
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11.06.14 - Learning about Sheep Learning
Professor Jenny Morton provides new insight into the cognitive abilities of the supposedly dim-witted sheep and explains how these quick learning animals can be used to model Huntington's Disease...
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11.06.17 - Bumblebee declines, microbes, and amazing...
This week in the Planet Earth Podcast - what UK farmers are doing to protect the country's vanishing bumblebees, butterflies and other pollinating insects; how scientists are trying to figure out how many types of microbes there are on our planet and why they all matter; and why birds are more amazing than we ever imagined.
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11.06.10 - The Pressures of the Deep Sea
Anything in the deep sea, whether that's the microbes that live down there, or the research vehicles sent down to take samples of them face the same challenges from being way down deep. So why study the deep ocean depths? And how do we do it? For this naked scientists special, Sarah Castor-Perry went to Scripps Institution of Oceanography to find out, from Professor of Marine Microbial Genetics, Professor Douglas Bartlett, and engineer extraordinaire Kevin Hardy.
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11.06.03 - Cuckoos at Wicken Fen, snow, and radiocarbon...
This week in the Planet Earth Podcast - the cunning tricks the cuckoo uses to get another bird to do the parenting, why researchers are studying snow in Sweden, and how an improved radiocarbon dating technique may put a few scientists' noses out of joint.
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11.06.02 - Picturing the underwater world
One of the biggest problems when it comes to caring for the ocean realm is that it is out of sight and out of mind. It's hard to care about something you don't know about, and most people, most of the time, don't have a chance to see ocean life for themselves. Underwater photography is helping to bridge that gap between people and the oceans. In this special podcast, Helen Scales chats to National Geographic photographer Brian Skerry to find out about the challenges of taking pictures...
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11.06.01 - Taking a lobster's view on the oceans
How do marine animals hear, see, touch, and smell the world around them? Life underwater is obviously very different to life on land and it can be difficult for us air-breathing humans to imagine what goes on down there beneath the waves. But understanding how animals find their way around the ocean plays a vital role in our efforts to conserve marine life. In this special edition of the Naked scientists, Helen Scales meets sensory biologist Jelle Atema from Boston University to find out...
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11.05.31 - Exploring the wonders of the deep
The saying goes that we known more about the surface of the moon than we do about the deep sea - and that's probably true. But modern technologies are opening up the mysterious depths allowing scientists to venture further than ever before into this alien realm. In this special podcast, Helen Scales explores the wonders of the deep with biologist Tim Shank from the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution in the US. He recently led a pioneering expedition into the deep sea around Indonesia where...
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11.05.17 - Cambridge Cafe Scientifique - Zero Degrees of...
This month, Professor Simon Baron-Cohen explores human empathy and explains what empathy is, how it differs amongst the population and the neurological and environmental causes of these differences...
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11.05.24 - Flood defences, the Southern Ocean, and...
This week in the Planet Earth Podcast, why removing some man-made coastal flood defences might not be such a harebrained idea, what it's like studying gas exchange in the wilds of the Southern Ocean, and, in what could be the first case of 'natural' geoengineering, how forests could be whitening the clouds right above them.
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11.05.06 - Science from a plane, and forecasting space...
This week in the Planet Earth Podcast: how a specially-designed twin turboprop research plane is helping scientists in a huge range of subjects from archaeology to ecology, and why a violent space storm could spell trouble for communications systems across the world.
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11.04.27 - Volcanic ash and sediment time machines
This week in the Planet Earth Podcast, how last year's eruption of the Eyjafjallajkull volcano in Iceland gave scientists an unparalleled opportunity for research, and why sediment from rivers like the Thames can act like time machines to bygone eras.
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11.04.18 - The Power of Magnetism
This month we attract your attention to the power of magnetism as we explore just what magnetism is and how it can be induced. We also explore the role of magnetism in superconductors, as well as a class of materials known as multiferroics! Plus, we bring you the latest news and events from the light source.
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11.04.15 - Um, How Toddlers Learn Language
Traditionally viewed as a poor verbal practise, the ums and ers uttered by parents may in fact play a critical role in helping toddlers to learn new words, as Rochester University researcher Richard Aslin, publishing in the journal Developmental Science, discovered recently...
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11.04.11 - Picturing the oceans
When it comes to protecting the oceans, one of the greatest challenges is that they are out of sight and out of mind. The art of underwater photography is helping to bridge the gap between people and the oceans, giving us a reason to care. Helen Scales speaks with award-winning photojournalist Brian Skerry about his work in capturing the beauty of ocean life while at the same time revealing the problems the marine realm faces today. After thirty years photographing the oceans, he has seen a...
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11.04.08 - The Earth's magnetic field, snow, and...
This week in the Planet Earth Podcast: how scientists plan to measure the Earth's magnetic field from space, why one researcher is in the frozen town of Churchill in northern Canada, and how the Chernobyl disaster still affects Northern Ireland 25 years on.
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11.03.23 - Fish poo, dead whales, and the Japan...
This week in the Planet Earth Podcast: how the famous White Cliffs of Dover could be made of fish poo (at least partially), why one researcher is so interested in dead whales, and why the Japan earthquake was so powerful and devastating. Join Richard Hollingham and Sue Nelson to find out more...
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11.03.10 - Reefs at Risk Revisited
Coral reefs are vibrant ecosystems packed with spectacular underwater life that protect coastlines and provide food and income for millions of people. But coral reefs are at risk. How threatened are reefs today? Why are they in trouble? And what hope is there for the future of reefs? In this special podcast, Helen Scales meets the people behind Reefs at Risk Revisited, a groundbreaking new study that draws a global map of reefs and the problems they face today.
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11.03.09 - Carbon capture and storage, floods, CryoSat-2
This week in the Planet Earth Podcast: how carbon capture and storage works and why it's here to stay, the effect of floodplains on water pollution, and how exactly do you measure the thickness of polar ice from space? A pub isn't an obvious place for a discussion about taking carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere and storing it in rocks deep underground, but the venue for this week's Planet Earth Podcast isn't any old pub. This pub is set into the sandstone rock in the centre of Nottingham...
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11.02.17 - Alzheimers on the Mind
For this month's Cafe, Graham Fraser, from the Medical Research Council, discusses the prevalence and causes of Alzheimers disease as well is his research on the disease and the possible methods of treatment or prevention in the future.
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11.03.01 - Tracking insects with a Big Dish, Australian...
This week in the Planet Earth Podcast: how tracking insects can help scientists forecast summer storms and floods, and the role one of Europe's key satellite missions played in the recent floods in Queensland, Australia.
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11.02.11 - Smart Way to Rehab
Fewer than one third of patients who suffer a heart attack attend rehabilitation sessions, despite evidence that this follow-up support can be vital in reducing the risk of further heart attacks and improving a patient's quality of life. Now Brisbane-based researcher Dr Charles Worringham has pioneered a way to solve the problem, with a preprogrammed smart phone...
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11.02.10 - Romans recycling, dinosaur colour, gravity...
This week in the Planet Earth Podcast - how the Romans recycled glass, dinosaur colour, and what Europe's gravity mission tells us about ocean currents. Did you know that the height of the world's oceans can vary by as much as 200 metres? These huge differences depend almost entirely on very slight changes in gravity across the world. Sue Nelson goes to the National Oceanography Centre in Southampton to find out more. We also hear that even the Romans recycled glass. But were they being...
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11.02.10 - Spectacular Synchronous Coral Spawning
How do you go about finding a mate if you can't go and look for one? This is the problem corals, which are rooted to the seabed, have found a spectacular way to solve - mass spawning. But how do they make sure they all do it at the same time? And what happens after all the eggs and sperm are released into the water? In this Special podcast, Sarah Castor-Perry finds the answers to these questions and more from James Guest of the National University of Singapore.
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11.02.07 - An Optimist's Tour of the Future
What does the future hold for us? Is the future bright, shining and brimming with opportunity, or a dark, dystopian drudgery? Recent scientific advances suggest there may be much to look forward to. In this special postcast, Kat Arney speaks to Mark Stevenson, author of An Optimist's Tour of the Future.
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11.01.31 - Eroding Coastlines and Holy Grails - A look...
This month we look back at Diamond's scientific highlights of 2010 to reveal how microbes are eroding away our coastline and how metal organic frameworks could help find the holy grail of chemistry! We also hear how the synchrotron was improved to provide more beamlines as well as bring you the latest research from these beamlines including stresses on jet engines and the never-ending fight against antibiotic resistance.
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11.01.28 - Noisy coral reefs, melting ice sheets and...
In this latest watery-themed Planet Earth Podcast, Richard Hollingham hears how the underwater world isn't the soundless place you might imagine. From chirping, gurgling and snapping sounds from busy coral reefs to clicking sperm whales, scientists are finding that all sorts of marine life use sounds to find a suitable home, to find a mate, to avoid being eaten or to communicate. First up, we hear from a marine biologist from the University of Bristol who explains how manmade noise might not...
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11.01.12 - Essex coral reefs, malaria in the UK, and...
As the UK winter continues to bite, Sue Nelson tries to escape it all by going to visit a coral reef. Unfortunately for Sue, the coral reef is not in some sunny clime. Instead, it's an indoor coral reef at the brand new Coral Reef Research Unit at the University of Essex. Researchers are using the reef to look at the effects of ocean acidification on coral in a unique experiment. Sue meets David Smith and David Suggett from the Unit to find out exactly what they're up to. Later, Sue talks to...
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11.01.05 - An audio diary special edition
This is a special edition of the Planet Earth podcast, featuring some of our favourite audio diaries from the past year. We've got scientists using cannons to study geese in Ireland, researchers collecting mongoose poo in Uganda, Darth Vader impressions from beneath Antarctic ice and tiger leeches in a researcher's pants. In the first feature, Tim Cockerill from the University of Cambridge gives us an insight into studying insects in pristine rainforests of northern Borneo, describing some...
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10.12.26 - Back in the Saddle: Getting Paralysed People...
In this special episode of the Naked Scientists podcast, we explore the world of Functional Electrical Stimulation (FES), a technology allowing people paralysed from the waist down to row and cycle by using external electrodes to stimulate leg muscles. Michele Vanoncini investigates how it works, what benefits it can bring and meets some of the people who have used it to go for gold...
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10.12.21 - Light Shed on Dark GRBs
Dark gamma ray bursts have puzzled astronomers for over a decade. The energetic gamma ray events, known as Gamma Ray Bursts (GRBs), all have an afterglow visible in the X-ray part of the spectrum, yet only half were visible at optical wavelengths. The half that were not visible in optical light, known as dark gamma ray bursts seemed to indicate that there may be a new class of GRBs not previously understood. Louise Ogden spoke to Dr Patricia Schady of the Max Planck Institute in Munich,...
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10.12.09 - Animal Pathology - National Pathology Week...
In this podcast from National Pathology Week 2010, we join Dr Alun Williams at the Natural History Museum to discover the importance of veterinary pathology. With some incredible examples from the animal kingdom, we'll explore the some of the conditions that animal pathologists help to diagnose, and find out how understanding animal disease can help make humans healthier.
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10.12.09 - Red squirrels and a tropical Antarctica
Red squirrels used to be the most common squirrel in Britain. But since the grey squirrel was introduced from the USA as an illegal immigrant in the late 1800s, their numbers have nose-dived. This is partly because the greys out-compete red squirrels for food: they feed on the ground and can digest unripe acorns, which red squirrels can't. But it's not just food; grey squirrels brought a deadly virus with them, which has hit red squirrel populations hard. Sue Nelson goes to a National Trust...
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10.12.08 - Pathologists in Pregnancy - National...
We explore the role of pathologists in pregnancy and childbirth in this podcast from National Pathology Week 2010. We discover what we can learn from an ultrasound as well as other tests that can be run on an expectant mother. Plus, we discover the importance of newborn screening programmes and the prevention or diagnosis of conditions that can alter the course of a pregnancy.
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10.12.08 - Arctic Expedition Special
In this podcast Richard Hollingham reports from an unusual and somewhat cold location - onboard the British Antarctic Survey's RRS James Clark Ross which was stuck in the ice for two weeks 1000 kilometres from the North Pole. He talks to researchers on the ship about their work, finds out exactly how dangerous polar bears can be and hears what it's like to dive in freezing cold waters. He also learns that the Arctic isn't the desolate, barren place you might at first imagine. No, it's full...
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10.12.07 - Behind the Scenes at Great Ormond Street -...
We go behind closed doors in this special podcast from National Pathology Week 2010, visiting the pathology labs at the world famous Great Ormond Street Children's Hospital. We'll discover the role that pathologists play in diagnosis and treatment of childhood diseases, including how metabolic diseases are identified and the role of newborn screening. Plus, we explore the labs themselves to see pathologists in action.
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10.11.23 - Palm oil plantations, charcoal, and a flea...
Does your shopping basket contain chocolate, biscuits and shampoo? If it does, you may be unwittingly contributing to the destruction of the some of the world's pristine rainforests. Manufacturers now use palm oil in a huge range of products, because it's so cheap. But virgin rainforest in some of the planet's last wildernesses is being destroyed at a dizzying pace to make way for palm oil plantations to keep up with our voracious appetites for the products the stuff is in. Richard...
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10.11.09 - Cambridge Cafe Scientifique - DNA and Cancer
In this month's podcast Professor Ron Laskey discusses the links between our DNA and cancer to reveal how changes to our DNA can cause cells to become cancerous, how DNA can be targeted as a method of treatment and also how we can analyse markers in our DNA for earlier diagnosis. Plus we answer audience questions including the effectiveness of vaccines against cancer and the difference between cancerous and pre-cancerous cells.
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10.11.17 - Science through Structure!
This month we probe down into the world of structural biology to find out just what this field is and the molecules it can enable us to see. We discover how visualising molecules such as DNA and proteins can help us understand the development of our nervous system, the repair of our DNA and find better treatments for conditions like hypertension and pre-eclampsia, as well as bring you the latest news and developments from Diamond.
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10.11.16 - Leeches, earthquakes and weird sea-life
It seems that hardly a week goes by without a major earthquake striking somewhere in the world, which may be why many people have been asking scientists at the British Geological Survey if earthquakes are getting more frequent. Richard Hollingham talks to expert seismologist Brian Baptie from BGS, who uses clever musical software to give us the answer. We also hear from Plymouth Marine Laboratory scientists on a boat off the coast of Cornwall in the UK. They're sampling seawater and sediment...
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10.11.10 - Kew Gardens, Antarctica and ancient trees
In this Planet Earth podcast, Sue Nelson reports from the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew where she finds out that some plants like the Snake's Head Fritillary have enormous amounts of DNA in their genomes. These plants struggle in extreme environments, so how will they cope under climate change? We also hear from the British Antarctic Survey's medical doctor Claire Lehman in one of our unique audio diaries. Claire joins the diving team for a refreshing dive under the Antarctic ice. Later, Sue...
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10.11.08 - Splitting Earth, space weather and robotic...
In this Planet Earth podcast, Sue Nelson hears about the birth of an ocean in the Afar depression in the Horn of Africa. The continental crust is being ripped apart at a phenomenal rate - one metre every year over the last five years. In the not too distant future - well, not too distant in geological terms - we may see a new ocean in that region of Africa. That's if we're still around in ten million years' time. Plus Richard Hollingham goes to Edinburgh to find out about the damage our...
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10.11.04 - Bowerbirds, a yellow sub and measuring CO2
This week, Richard Hollingham finds out that bowerbirds are not just brilliant at making elaborate bowers, they're also good at mimicking other birds and pretty much most sounds they hear - including human voices. He also goes to a Scottish forest to meet researchers from the University of Edinburgh who are using a 220-metre high TV tower to measure greenhouse gas concentrations from across Scotland and all the way to Ireland and even as far as Canada. Lastly, during Richard's recent trip to...
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10.10.19 - Cambridge Cafe Scientifique - Dementia and an...
This month, Professor Carol Brayne discusses the consequences of our ageing population and looks into the symptoms, diagnosis and prevention of dementia and other diseases related to ageing. We also hear how ageing can be studies using populations and find out audience opinions on the event including any information that surprised them from the talk.
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10.10.28 - Barrel jellyfish and supercooled water
Unless you've never seen the sea, you've probably seen a jellyfish. And even if you haven't seen one, you will almost certainly know what they look like. Despite this, scientists know surprisingly little about them. Which is why British and Irish researchers are in the middle of a project to tag them to find out things like where they go during the winter, how long they live and why they congregate around our coasts during the summer months. Sue Nelson goes to Swansea to find out more....
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10.10.21 - The risks of following the herd and banded...
Have you ever noticed that when you cross a busy road, as well as clocking the traffic, you subconsciously follow what your neighbours do? Scientists have recently put a figure on this and worked out that we're 2.5 times more likely to cross if our immediate neighbour makes a move to cross. Richard Hollingham goes to Leeds to meet the researcher behind the study to find out why we have such kamikaze tendencies, and how the research helps us understand shoaling, herding and flocking...
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10.10.18 - Butterflies, buoys and the English Channel
In this Planet Earth podcast, Sue Nelson goes to the Eden Project in Cornwall, southwest England and to the South Downs in southeast England to find out what butterfly research is telling us about climate change. As you might expect, there's some bad news to report, but surprisingly there's also hopeful news - at least for the silver spotted skipper. Meanwhile Richard Hollingham goes to Plymouth - also in southwest England - to hear how long-term monitoring buoys in the English Channel have...
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10.10.15 - Ice clouds and viper venom
Scientists know that fluffy stratocumulus clouds act like a blanket on the Earth - they stop warm air escaping, but also reflect the Sun's energy back out to space. But they have no idea if cirrus clouds, which are high up in the atmosphere and made of ice, do the same. So Dr Paul Connolly makes ice clouds inside the 10-metre-high, three-storey ice cloud chamber - which looks a bit like a giant fridge freezer - to find out. To hear how the chamber works, Sue Nelson goes to Manchester to meet...
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10.10.12 - HIV Treatment in Rural Africa
Sixty percent of all HIV sufferers in the world live in rural Africa, but practical and economic obstacles can prevent many of these people from accessing the anti-retroviral drugs that they desperately need. A recent clinical trial investigated this problem to try and improve HIV treatment in rural Africa. Julia Graham speaks to Diana Gibb from the MRC's Clinical Trials Unit in London to find out more...
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10.10.11 - Orangutans, green buildings and an Antarctic...
With efforts to improve energy efficiency focussed on green transport to sustainable power generation, growing your own food to reducing waste, it's often easy to forget that the very buildings we live and work in could also be made energy efficient. But how do you retrofit old buildings without ruining their architectural character? One researcher from the UK Energy Research Centre explains where you might start. Scientists at the University of Birmingham tell Sue Nelson how they're trying...
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10.10.08 - The Psychology of Shopping
How do supermarkets convince you to part with your money? In this special edition of the Naked Scientists, Smitha Mundasad goes shopping with author on consumer psychology, Philip Graves, to discover the tricks of the trade. We'll find out how special offers, colours, odours and music can all affect your spending behaviour...
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10.10.08 - Plastics in the oceans and tracking satellites
Scientists recently found plastics floating in some of the most remote and inaccessible seas in the world - just off the coast of Antarctica. Although it clearly looks ugly in such a pristine environment, scientists are more concerned about the major role plastics play in moving alien species around the world. Richard Hollingham goes to the north Norfolk coast to speak to an expert on ocean plastics from the British Antarctic Survey to find out more. Later, Sue Nelson goes to the Natural...
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10.10.07 - Breaking the GM Taboo
This is a podcast by the Society for General Microbiology, recorded at a session they sponsored, at the 2010 Times Cheltenham Science Festival. Through genetic manipulation, scientists have created microbes that provide us with medicines, foods and vaccines as well as animals that can be used as model organisms for the study of human disease. The genetic manipulation of organisms and their use is one of the most controversial scientific developments of recent times. We hear about the...
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10.10.05 - Lake Windermere and walking with dinosaurs
British Geological Survey scientists have completed the first full geological survey of Lake Windermere in the English Lake District since the Royal Navy made a survey in the 1930s. Among other things, the survey will help researchers understand how quickly the ice retreated after the last Ice Age, how the lake evolved and which parts the Arctic Charr prefers to live in. Richard Hollingham went to visit scientists on the BGS's research boat the White Ribbon on the lake to talk to the...
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10.10.01 - Earthquakes: Past, Present and Future
The recent devastating earthquakes in Haiti and Chile were reminders of the power of the Earth and what terrible damage can be caused by such tremors. But what do we know about earthquakes? And can we predict when they might occur? A special event was held to discuss these questions at the 2010 British Science Festival in Birmingham, bringing together scientists from across the UK. Julia Graham speaks to quake experts, Professors Roger Musson, Barry Parsons and Ian Main to find out more...
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10.09.27 - Protecting our Environment
In this edition we find out how the synchrotron can be used to understand and clean up our environment. We investigate a new form of solar cell, using plastics, which could make solar power more accessible as well as find out the use of microbes to clean up arsenic contaminated groundwater. We also discover an alternative form of rust which could prove useful in the fight against nuclear contamination and reveal a biological side to weathering! All that plus the latest news and events from...
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10.09.24 - Malaria - The Gorilla's Gift
Where did malaria come from? Analysing over three thousand samples of faeces from gorillas, bonobos and chimpanzees, scientists have found an answer to the origins of a disease that plagues millions of lives each year. But this answer stirs up new questions - why did it jump from the gorilla into us? And will it continue to do so? Smitha Mundasad talks to Professor Paul Sharp to find out more...
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10.09.23 - Rockpools and ocean acidification
Everyone loves a rockpool, and Sue Nelson nearly takes a dive into one in this week's podcast while finding out about the riches they contain. She visits the Anglesey coast of north Wales to learn what these mini marine laboratories can tell us about the value of biodiversity. The effects of climate change range from rising temperatures and higher sea levels to extreme weather and mass extinctions. Richard Hollingham reports from the Plymouth Marine Laboratory where scientists are...
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10.09.16 - Computing with a Quantum Walk
New research into the incredible properties of objects at the quantum scale has brought the aim of quantum computing far closer to reality. Ben Valsler speaks to researchers from Bristol University to find out how "quantum walk" will enable us to understand systems that even the fastest modern supercomputers would find impossible...
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10.09.12 - Antarctica, wild geese and ash plumes
You could be forgiven for thinking the freezing seas around Antarctica are pretty barren and lifeless. But, as Richard Hollingham soon finds out, this couldn't be further from the truth.The Census of Marine Life is building up a picture of the richness and diversity of life in the world's oceans and has so far found thousands of species on shelves around the frozen continent. Incredibly, scientists are still finding new species.At this rate, researchers will soon have documented 17,000...
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10.09.11 - Hi-tech physics, toxic soils and mussel shells
In this week's Planet Earth podcast from the impressively-named Diamond Light Source in Oxfordshire, England, hear how two researchers are using hi-tech physics to study different aspects of the environment.The Diamond synchrotron is like a giant, silver doughnut, is more than half a kilometre around and - according to the blurb - you could fit eight St Paul's cathedrals inside.You might imagine a huge machine like this is used only for physics experiments. But it turns out it's used to...
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10.09.10 - Climate science, Vikings and other invasive...
Look around the English countryside and you'll find animals and plants that shouldn't be there - from Muntjac deer to Mitten crabs, Harlequin ladybirds to Tree of Heaven.So-called invasive species are reckoned to be one of the world's greatest threats to native wildlife. And when you factor in a changing climate, the situation gets even more complicated.Richard Hollingham meets an invasive species expert from the Centre for Ecology Hydrology who tells us not only what we can expect, but also...
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10.09.09 - Oil palm plantations and coral reefs
Coral reefs are among the most beautiful habitats in the world. As well as being rich in biodiversity, they're vital for the local economies that depend on them for fishing, tourism or protection from storms.While most of us are aware that ocean acidification is bad for coral reefs, scientists are now finding that coral communities are facing other threats from climate change.Richard Hollingham meets three coral reef experts to find out more - not in some tropical paradise but in the...
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10.09.08 - Energy crops, CryoSat-2 and bird bling
Willow, palm, miscanthus and other energy crops are being touted as a possible solution to our growing energy security problems. Some people are suggesting that they could help replace fossil fuels, plugging Britain's energy gap and cutting our carbon footprint.But before we go down that route, wouldn't it be sensible to find out how these crops affect the environment?That's the very question David Bohan from Rothamsted Research is trying to answer. He's researching how miscanthus and willow...
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10.09.07 - Geoengineering, wind and sea squirts
This week we talk to two researchers about the technological solutions some scientists say we might have to use to tackle climate change. With average temperatures expected to rise by 2C this century, and efforts to cut greenhouse emissions proving painfully slow so far, scientists are saying it might be prudent to have a plan B. Professor Tim Lenton and Dr Nem Vaughan from the University of East Anglia explain the differences between the two approaches to geoengineering - removing carbon...
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10.09.06 - Teeth, spiders and epic migrations
Mention the word archaeology and you might conjure up an image of Tony Robinson from Channel 4's Time Team getting down to a dig in an ancient burial site in an attempt to find some telling artefacts. But these days, people researching the ancient past have some additional, very sophisticated tools up their sleeves. Richard Hollingham visits the Natural Environment Research Council's Isotope Geosciences Laboratory near Nottingham to find out what isotope geosciences are and why they're such...
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10.09.06 - A New Look for Corneal Transplants
This week we take a closer look at corneal blindness. With corneal transplants in short supply, the recent development of synthetic corneas offers hope in the fight against this leading cause of vision-loss worldwide. Smitha Mundasad speaks to Dr May Griffith about her team's work - creating corneas in a lab.
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10.09.03 - Gold, storms and dinosaurs
In this week's podcast, Richard Hollingham strikes gold - literally - while Sue Nelson finds out why weather forecasters still struggle to predict sudden, violent summer storms. We'll also be hearing why scientists may be a step closer to getting rid of the American mink from the Outer Hebrides and how to run away from a Tyrannosaurus rex. Banks may have collapsed, shares plummeted and currencies faltered over the last couple of years, but if you put your money in gold, you could have made a...
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10.07.22 - The Royal Society Summer Exhibition
This month we bring you the highlights of Diamonds events at the Royal Society Summer Exhibition including hydrogen cars, stressed-out bacteria and science in extreme conditions. We also explore how understanding our gut bacteria could lead to personalised diets in the future as well as hear what the rest of the exhibition is all about!
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10.07.14 - Cambridge Cafe Scientifique - Synthetic...
Synthetic biology goes under the microscope in this month's Cafe Scientifique, as Gos Micklem describes how to build "sick" viruses to act as vaccines, and discusses recent advances in artificial life. We'll explore concerns about releasing modified organisms into the wild, and if synthetic biology is likely to be used for evil.
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10.06.16 - Cambridge Cafe Scientifique - Gambling and...
In this month's Cafe Scientifique, Dr Luke Clarke from the University of Cambridge explores the effect gambling has on our brain. He reveals why gambling is so addictive, how 'near-misses' make us gamble more and how gambling stimulates the same pleasure centres in our brains as chocolate and sex! We also answer audience questions including why gambling on the lottery seems less risky, whether there are differences between regular and internet gambling, and whether there are differences in...
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10.06.18 - The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks
Henrietta Lacks died in 1951, but her cells have gone on to become one of the most important tools in medicine. Rebecca Skloot explains how the story of these cells inspired her to write her bestselling book The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks...
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10.06.04 - Diamond Light Source - Entering the Clinic
This month we enter the clinic to discover how clinicians at hospitals across the UK are using Diamond to investigate a variety of medical concerns. We discover why some women may be prone to pre-term labour, and why metal-on-metal hip replacements cause inflammation in some patients and not others. Plus, we've got the the latest news and events from Diamond!
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10.05.19 - Cambridge Cafe Scientifique - Do Our Genes...
In this months Cafe Scientifique Dr Giles Yo from the Institute of Metabolic Research at the University of Cambridge askes the question: Are my genes to blame when my Jeans don't fit?. He explores the behind our metabolism and fat storage and asks if these play a more crucial role than our environment in determining our weight. We also answer audience questions that reveal how our weight may also be affected by what happens when we're in the womb and how twin studies are crucial in...
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10.04.28 - Cambridge Cafe Scientifique - Ape Research in...
This month we investigate the conservation of apes and the threats they face in the tropical peatland forests of Kalimantan in Indonesia. We look into the issues facing the Indonesian peatlands and how conservation efforts can address these problems.
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10.03.24 - Cambridge Cafe Scientifique - Jumping to...
In this podcast from the March Cafe Scientifique in Cambridge, we investigate how our brain takes shortcuts to understand the world around us and how it jumps to delusions! We meet event speaker Dr Paul Fletcher to find out how our brains process the masses of information coming in from the world around us by using shortcuts and how changes in these shortcuts can lead to delusions . We also answer your questions such as what the scale of these delusions are and whether knowing this about our...
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10.02.24 - Cambridge Cafe Scientifique - Our Place in...
In this podcast from the February Cafe Scientifique in Cambridge, we look out deep into our universe to investigate our place in the cosmos. We meet event speaker Dr Carolin Crawford to find out how astronomers look out into our universe and what they understand about our stars and galaxies so far. We also answer your questions such as how we much of our universe we can see, what dark matter and dark energy are, and we also investigate the likeliness of other life out in space! All that plus...
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10.03.03 - Diamond Light Source - Revolutionising...
This month we investigate the role Diamond can play in industrial research to reveal how synchrotron radiation can help the pharmaceutical industry to enhance the activity of certain drugs, and also how these X-rays can help develop more efficient catalysts to clean up our car exhausts. All that plus the latest news and events from the Diamond Light Source.
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10.01.27 - Cambridge Cafe Scientifique - Pandemics:...
In this podcast from the January Cafe Scientifique in Cambridge, we look into the threat of emerging infections to find out where they come from, how they spread and how they become a pandemic. We bring you the main presentation by virologist Dr. Chris Smith as well as your questions on the threat of pandemics such as SARS returning, concerns about HIV and Tuberculosis, and whether swine flu is something to worry about. All that plus a heads up on what to look forward to at the February...
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10.02.07 - Communicating with Patients in Persistent...
Can brain scanners enable us to open a new channel of communication with patients apparently in persistent vegetative states? Brain researcher Adrian Owen, from the Cambridge MRC Cognition and Brain Sciences Unit, explains how an experiment with fMRI revealed that a head injured, vegetative state patient could communicate: by changing his thoughts...
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10.01.22 - Diamond Light Source - The Machine
This month, we step away form the research and bring you the science behind the synchrotron! We investigate how a machine like Diamond is designed to create X-ray beams that are stable down at the micron level, as well as reveal how the high speed electrons are controlled and manipulated to produce intense beams of light. Plus we bring you the latest news and events, including how scientists are using Diamond for earlier diagnosis of lung cancer!
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09.11.12 - Cambridge Cafe Scientifique - Nanofoods...
This is the archive of the Cambridge Cafe Scientifique Nanofood event. Join us to hear the entire presentation about how nanotechnology gets into your food, as well as your questions on the benefits of Nanofoods, whether Nanofoods have a role in a heathy balanced diet and the problems with classification and testing.
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09.12.15 - Think Heart - Pathology Week 2009
In this 2009 Royal College of Pathologists National Pathology Week podcast we find out why thinking "heart" could save a baby's life. We'll examine three heart conditions - duct-dependent lesions, viral myocarditis and arrhythmias - and find out why these go unidentified in many babies, often with tragic consequences. Parents, nurses and pediatricans join the Royal College of Pathologists to raise awareness and encourage us all to "Think Heart".
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09.12.17 - Heart Transplant - National Pathology Week...
In this 2009 Royal College of Pathologists National Pathology Week podcast we explore the process of getting a new heart. We find out why you may need a transplant, who is involved and why this relatively simple operation needs a team of pathologists, coordinators and surgeons.
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09.12.14 - The Art of the Heart - Pathology Week 2009
In this 2009 Royal College of Pathologists National Pathology Week podcast, we look at the art and ethics of modern healthcare. We hear how the structure of the heart has inspired works of art and we take a dip in the murky waters of medical ethics: who has the right to decide if a teenage boy should be given a new heart?
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09.12.16 - Anatomy of a Heart Attack - Pathology Week...
In this 2009 Royal College of Pathologists National Pathology Week podcast, we get a behind-the-scenes view of a heart attack. Through a virtual autopsy, and dissection of a pig's heart, we learn more about this incredible organ and how it can go wrong. With the help of pathologists and cardiologists we get to the heart of the genetics, biochemistry and anatomy of cardiac disease.
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09.11.11 - Cafe Scientifique - Nanofoods
In this special podcast we join the Triple Helix Society for a Cafe Scientifique. We explore how nanotechnology gets into your food, the benefits of Nanofoods and the problems with classification and testing. The Triple Helix Cambridge Cafe Scientifique is sponsored by the Medical Research Council, and this podcast was produced with support from the Learning Revolution.
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09.11.06 - Diamond Light Source - Engineering our...
This month, we peer into the world of engineering to see how scientists are exploring and improving materials for industry, including how the structure of metals can be modified for greater resilience and how an understanding of corrosion could be crucial for the storage of nuclear waste. Plus, we investigate how to prevent crack formation in aeronautical materials as well as bring you the latest news and events from Diamond.
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09.09.16 - Diamond Light Source - Probing our Cultural...
This month, we dig deep into the world of archaeology to learn how scientists at Diamond are investigating our cultural heritage. We find out how scanning samples of the Dead Sea Scrolls can help decipher them, how probing timber from the Mary Rose can improve its conservation and how studying pigments in paintings could protect major pieces of art!
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09.08.24 - Conversations from the Darwin Festival -...
This week historian Sandra Herbert tells how she retraced Darwin's footsteps to the Galapagos in search of rock samples to prove his volcanic theories were right...
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09.08.13 - WCSJ 2009 - Development Strand
What challenges do science journalists face in the developing world? In this special documentary covering the Development strand of the World Conference of Science Journalists, we discuss the challenges of getting the right coverage for your region, and how to find credible sources without neglecting the trailblazers. Plus, the big issue of Climate Change and how to link researchers with journalists...
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