Podcast Episodes
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Is sunscreen really toxic?
For many of us, slathering on sunscreen to protect our skin in the summer months is a no-brainer. But recently social media has been awash with influ…
1 year, 2 months ago
Summer picks: Where do our early childhood memories go?
It’s a mystery that has long puzzled researchers. Freud called the phenomenon infantile amnesia, and for many years scientists have wondered whether …
1 year, 2 months ago
Summer picks: what is ‘mirror life’ and why are scientists sounding the alarm?
Recently, a group of world-leading scientists called for a halt on research to create ‘mirror life’ microbes amid concerns that the synthetic organis…
1 year, 2 months ago
Summer picks: The science of racism, and how to fight it
In this episode from January 2025, Ian Sample speaks to Keon West, a professor of social psychology at the University of London, whose new book explo…
1 year, 3 months ago
Summer picks: Where did our attention spans go, and can we get them back?
In 2024, the Oxford English Dictionary announced its word of the year was ‘brain rot’. The term relates to the supposedly negative effects of consumi…
1 year, 3 months ago
Why do we age in dramatic bursts, and what can we do about it?
Scientists are beginning to understand that ageing is not a simply linear process. Instead, recent research appears to show that we age in three acce…
1 year, 3 months ago
The babies born with DNA from three parents
Doctors in the UK have announced the birth of eight healthy babies after performing a groundbreaking procedure that creates IVF embryos with DNA from…
1 year, 3 months ago
Two black holes collide, lab-grown organs, world’s first climate visa
Madeleine Finlay is joined by Ian Sample to discuss three intriguing science and environment stories. From a breakthrough in the quest to create orga…
1 year, 3 months ago
Why are parents using melatonin to help their kids sleep?
Guardian feature writer Rhiannon Lucy Cosslett recently wrote about the growing cohort of parents whose children are on the waiting list for an autis…
1 year, 3 months ago
Texas floods and forecasting cuts: a sign of things to come?
In the days since the deadly floods in the Texas Hill Country, speculation has grown about whether cuts to US weather agencies may have contributed t…
1 year, 3 months ago