Whether you’re curious about getting healthy, the Big Bang or the science of cooking, find out everything you need to know in under 30 minutes with Instant Genius. The team behind BBC Science Focus Magazine talk to world-leading experts to bring you a bite-sized masterclass on a new subject each week.Then when you’ve mastered the basics with Instant Genius. Dive deeper with Instant Genius Extra, where you’ll find longer, richer discussions about the most exciting ideas in the world of science and technology. Only available on Apple Podcasts. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.
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How gases shaped life on Earth and helped human beings to prosper
From the oxygen in the air we breathe to the atmosphere that cloaks the Earth and protects us from the Sun’s harmful ultraviolet light, gases are essential for the existence of human beings. But did you know that we’ve also harnessed the properties of these elusive, largely invisible substances to impact almost every aspect of our lives? In this episode, we catch up with material scientist Prof Mark Miodownik to talk about his latest book, It’s a Gas: The Magnificent and Elusive Elements that Expand Our World. He tells us how gases helped us to make our cities safer and more prosperous, how Nobel Prize-winning chemistry led to the invention of neon lights and how we owe our very existence to gases influence in shaping the chemical makeup of the Earth. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Don’t miss the upcoming Peak Performance miniseries special!
Looking to get the maximum possible benefits out of your gym time? Want to find out why what you do to recover outside of the gym is just as important what you do inside it? Or maybe you’d like to learn some of the secret psychological tricks pro athletes use to stay at their best? Why not tune into the Instant Genius Peak Performance miniseries, brought to you from the team behind BBC Science Focus. It's still the same show, with the same great guests. We’ll just be spending a little extra time to go deeper into the science of all things related to sports and fitness. Starting on Monday 22 July, this four-part special series will feature interviews with some of the leading figures in sports research to give you everything you need for science-packed summer of sport. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
How biology has shaped the history of the human race
There are currently more than eight billion human beings living on Earth, occupying nearly every corner of the planet. It’s a remarkable situation to find ourselves in, and there can be little doubt that the story of human progress has, by and large, been a successful one. But how did we reach this point? What sets us apart from other animals? And what is it about our biology that has allowed us to achieve this incredible feat? In this episode, we catch up with astrobiologist and author Prof Lewis Dartnell to talk about his latest book Being Human: How Biology Shaped World History. He takes us on a trip through the evolution of the human race. We talk about how human beings’ ability to form harmonious societies has helped us prosper, why we’re so prone to making errors in judgment despite our great success as a species and how the world we’ve built has ended up influencing our biology back in return. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
How a heating planet is changing sports
We can see climate change in our food, holidays and even day-to-day life, but one area we rarely think about is our sports. And yet, climate change could completely change how we play and experience sports all together. We spoke to Madeleine Orr, the author of the new book Warming Up to learn a little bit more about how sports will be changed by a changing climate. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
How maths can help us to understand the human brain
It’s often said that the human brain is the most complex structure in the known Universe. So how do we go about studying it? You may think that we should leave this to biologists or neuroscientists, but approaching the brain as a mathematical object and investigating its geometry and structure is providing researchers with more and more new insights. In this episode we catch up with mathematician Alain Goriely, professor of geometry at Gresham College, London ahead of his series of free public lectures entitled Mathematics and the Brain. He tells us how the brain’s shape, structure and size relate to intelligence, how mathematical models can help us deepen our understanding of diseases such as Alzheimer’s and how advances in scanning technology have helped us begin to uncover its many mysteries. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Here’s why science says you do have free will
Did you really choose to listen to this podcast? Or was the decision just the product of neurons firing in your brain, used by biochemical reactions, governed by the laws of physics? Today, it’s become almost fashionable to chalk how we think and behave up to nothing more than the physical sum of our parts. But our guest in this episode is bucking that trend, arguing that we humans do have autonomy over our lives. Kevin Mitchell is an associate professor of genetics and neuroscience at Trinity College Dublin and author of Free Agents – How Evolution Gave Us Free Will. He argues that free will isn’t just an illusion, and that evolution proves that we’re more than mere machines simply responding to the world around us. Will you choose to believe him? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
How triangles are hiding everywhere
From tortilla chips and ham sandwiches to teepees and the Great Pyramid of Giza, the world is filled with triangles. But why is this seemingly simple shape so ubiquitous and how do we take advantage of its unique properties? In this episode we catch up with stand-up comedian, mathematician and best-selling author Matt Parker to talk about his latest book Love Triangle: The Life-Changing Magic of Trigonometry. He tells us how triangles can be used to erect the world’s tallest buildings, help spacecraft land on distant planets and create realistic CGI images, and explains how we should all fall back in love with the trigonometry we learned in high school. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
The gene therapy future has arrived
Right now, in hospitals around the world, patients are being cured of diseases once thought untreatable. The reason? A gene therapy revolution means that what was once the stuff of science fiction is now becoming a reality. One person who’s been at the centre of this medical revolution is Dr Bobby Gaspar, a professor of paediatrics and immunology at Great Ormond Street Hospital and University College London, and CEO of Orchard Therapeutics. Bobby guides us through the complex world of gene therapy, explaining what it is, what it can do and where it’s going. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
How to form more meaningful relationships
It’s well established that human beings are social animals who thrive on making connections with others. But did you know that developing and maintaining nourishing relationships is just as vital to our health as eating a nutritious diet or taking regular exercise? In this episode, we catch up with science writer David Robson to talk about his new book The Laws of Connection: 13 Social Strategies That Will Transform Your Life. He tells us how human beings have evolved to crave shared experiences, how lending a helping hand to someone in need can improve our wellbeing and why we shouldn’t be so afraid of speaking to strangers. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Misophonia: Why some of us can’t bear the sound of chewing
It’s a scene many of us will have experienced: we’re at the cinema, the lights go down, the film begins and then suddenly the person behind us starts rustling a packet of sweets or noisily chomping on popcorn. For most of us this is merely an annoyance and after a while we’re able to tune the sounds out and concentrate on enjoying the cinematic experience. But for some, it can be unbearable and engender feelings of distress, anger and even panic. These people are experiencing misophonia. In this episode, we catch up with Dr Jane Gregory, a clinical psychologist and author of the book Sounds Like Misophonia: How to Stop Small Noises from Causing Extreme Reactions. She tells us what’s going on in our brains when we experience a misophonic reaction, how it can trigger our fight or flight response and why it’s surprisingly common. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
How close are we to discovering aliens?
Finding alien life could be just around the corner. At least, that’s if the James Webb Space Telescope and other techniques help us discover their extraterrestrial homes. In this episode, astrophysicist Lisa Kaltenegger and author of new book Alien Earths: Planet Hunting in the Cosmos talks us through the ways she and her team are looking for these planets and the kinds of life they might hold. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
The story of human evolution, from the Big Bang to the advent of consciousness and beyond
Why are we here? Where did we come from? What are we even made from? These must be some of deepest questions humans can ever ask. But that has never stopped scientists throughout the ages asking them. In this episode we catch up with Professor Tim Coulson, a zoologist based at the University of Oxford to talk about his new book, The Universal History of Us: The science of why we exist. He helps us trace the origins of human beings right back to the Big Bang and the beginning of the Universe itself and goes on to investigate whether our existence was inevitable thanks to the underpinning laws of nature or whether we were just extremely lucky. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
How thinking about addiction differently can help us find better treatments
Addiction can be devastating not only for the addict themselves, but also for their loved ones and anyone around them. But what causes it, and how should we treat it? According to Dr Elias Dakwar, a psychologist based at Colombia University, New York, we should be looking beyond the commonly held brain disease model of addiction and deeper into its philosophical or existential underpinnings. In this episode, we speak to Dr Dakwar about the years of clinical research he outlines in his latest book The Captive Imagination: Addiction, reality and our search for meaning. He tells us about his thinking on how addiction stems from our desire for happiness and feelings of meaningless, how it fits in with the notion of personal freedom, and details some of his work with clinical patients in treating addiction in new ways. Warning: Recreational drug use can be dangerous to your health and possession of certain controlled substances in the UK can result in an unlimited fine, prison sentence or both. For more information visit talktofrank.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Why we shouldn’t be afraid of personal data collection
These days, pretty much every move we make online is tracked in one way or another. Whether it’s through our social media accounts or online shopping habits, algorithms are getting better at painting a picture of who we are and how we think. But why do we let this happen? In this episode we catch up with science broadcaster and writer Timandra Harkness to talk about her new book, Technology is not the Problem. She tells us how various online agencies keep tabs on us, whether we should be worried about it, and why sometimes it can be too hard to resist buying that expensive pair of shoes you keep getting ads for. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
The story of black holes, with Marcus Chown
Black holes are surely one of the most fascinating and mysterious phenomena in the known Universe. But few people know that the story behind their discovery, and the cast of dogged, often ignored scientists behind it, is just as interesting. In this episode we catch up with the award-winning science writer and long-time BBC Science Focus contributor Marcus Chown. We talk about his new book A Crack in Everything: How black holes came in from the cold and took cosmic centre stage. He takes us through the gripping story that saw black holes go from being a mere mathematical curiosity to one of the most talked about cosmic objects ever observed. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices