Explore every episode of the podcast Instant Genius

From the neatly curated English country garden to the wild jungles of the Amazon, the Earth is host to a staggeringly diverse range of plant life. One of the key reasons for the great evolutionary success of plants is the wide-ranging versatility and utility of the leaves that grow on them. In this episode we’re joined by Prof Jonathan Silvertown, an evolutionary ecologist based at the University of Edinburgh, to talk about his latest book, Nature’s Magicians – How Leaves Conjure Up Our World. He tells us how plants act as one of the natural world’s master chemists, explains how they contain internal clocks that allow them to track the time of day and even the time of the year, and details how they detect and respond to light, sounds, and even predatory attacks. Take your curiosity further with a subscription to BBC Science Focus magazine. Every issue is packed with fascinating insights into the science behind everyday life, the latest breakthroughs and expert analysis, delivered straight to your door. Receive an extra £5 when you subscribe using the code SF5OFF, (minimum spend £20, see full terms and conditions on our website). https://www.ourmediashop.com/bbc-science-focus-magazine-pod30 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Every built environment we spend our time in, our homes, offices, music venues or sports stadiums – is designed and constructed after hours of consideration about form and function. Oftentimes, less consideration is given to the impact this has on the health of the planet. In this episode, we’re joined by Will Arnold, an environmentalist, engineer, and author, to talk about his latest book, Future Build – How Construction Can Heal Our Planet. He breaks down the huge environmental impact the five most common materials we use to construct the buildings we spend our lives in have on our planet, tells us some of the ways we could be producing these materials more efficiently and using them more thoughtfully, and looks to a future in which we can construct buildings that are more in tune with the environments they’re built in. Take your curiosity further with a subscription to BBC Science Focus magazine. Every issue is packed with fascinating insights into the science behind everyday life, the latest breakthroughs and expert analysis, delivered straight to your door. Receive an extra £5 when you subscribe using the code SF5OFF, (minimum spend £20, see full terms and conditions on our website). https://www.ourmediashop.com/bbc-science-focus-magazine-pod30 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

A late summer sunset, a peaceful, verdant forest, or a Shakespearean sonnet – these are all things that move us emotionally thanks to what we perceive as their beauty. But why is this so, why do environments, art, music, and even ideas move us so emotionally? In this episode, we’re joined by Prof Nicholas Humphrey, an evolutionary psychologist and author, to talk about his latest book, Why Is the World So Beautiful? Our Minds in Search of Nature’s Rhymes. He tells us how our sense of beauty is likely linked to our evolutionary tendency to seek out the patterns found in nature, why the appreciation of beauty seems to be unique to humans, and explains how our sense of beauty is anchored in the way that we try to understand the world we live in. Take your curiosity further with a subscription to BBC Science Focus magazine. Every issue is packed with fascinating insights into the science behind everyday life, the latest breakthroughs and expert analysis, delivered straight to your door. Receive an extra £5 when you subscribe using the code SF5OFF, (minimum spend £20, see full terms and conditions on our website). https://www.ourmediashop.com/bbc-science-focus-magazine-pod30 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Whenever we buy a new product or use a service, we simply expect it to work as advertised, usually without giving much thought to how it came to being in the first place. However, behind the scenes, every piece of technology we use, be it a toaster, a lawnmower or even the aeroplane we travel in when we head off on our holidays, has gone through a rigorous series of tests to ensure its safety and efficacy. This often-overlooked aspect of our everyday existence is carried out by test engineers. In this episode we’re joined by tech journalist and author Alex Davies to talk about his latest book, How to Keep a Plane in the Sky – Tales from the Wild, Unseen World of Test Engineering. He tells us how engineers design the products we rely on to perform well beyond any expected limits of use, how they build in safeguards to account for almost every eventuality and the great lengths they go to to account for human unpredictability. Take your curiosity further with a subscription to BBC Science Focus magazine. Every issue is packed with fascinating insights into the science behind everyday life, the latest breakthroughs and expert analysis, delivered straight to your door. Receive an extra £5 when you subscribe using the code SF5OFF, (minimum spend £20, see full terms and conditions on our website). https://www.ourmediashop.com/bbc-science-focus-magazine-pod30 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Currently, around one in ten of us are living with asthma. For many, the symptoms can be relatively mild, but for others, attacks can be severe, debilitating, and even life-threatening. For the most part, we’ve relied on the same method of treatment to manage the condition for the last few decades. However, new research is showing great promise in helping those who suffer from this often-overlooked condition. In this episode, we’re joined by Dr Samantha Walker, director of research at Asthma + Lung UK. She tells us how asthma occurs in several different forms, why we still have so much to learn about the root causes of asthma, and how new technology can help us to treat this often-misunderstood condition more effectively. Take your curiosity further with a subscription to BBC Science Focus magazine. Every issue is packed with fascinating insights into the science behind everyday life, the latest breakthroughs and expert analysis, delivered straight to your door. Receive an extra £5 when you subscribe using the code SF5OFF, (minimum spend £20, see full terms and conditions on our website). https://www.ourmediashop.com/bbc-science-focus-magazine-pod30 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

These days, supermarket shelves are filled with thousands of different products all vying for our attention; the options are almost endless. However, if we look back in time, we find that our early ancestors simply ate what they were able to hunt and gather and eventually farm. Thanks to the huge number of options we now have available, many of us choose to follow diet plans of various kinds, be it veganism, low-fat, low-carb, or the paleo diet, but what can we learn from evolutionary history about what we should really be eating if we want to live longer, healthier lives? In this episode we’re joined by Prof Daniel Lieberman, an author and evolutionary biologist based at Harvard University, to talk about his latest book, Fed Up – What Evolution Reveals about Food, Diet and Eating Well. He tells us why many of us find it so difficult to eliminate certain foodstuffs from our diets over the long-term, how humans evolved to store more body fat than other mammals, and why the good news is that humans are perhaps nature’s ultimate omnivores. Take your curiosity further with a subscription to BBC Science Focus magazine. Every issue is packed with fascinating insights into the science behind everyday life, the latest breakthroughs and expert analysis, delivered straight to your door. Receive an extra £5 when you subscribe using the code SF5OFF, (minimum spend £20, see full terms and conditions on our website). https://www.ourmediashop.com/bbc-science-focus-magazine-pod30 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Though often thought of as the poor cousin to our other senses, our sense of smell has played a key role in human life since its very beginnings. It helps us to determine whether certain foods are safe to eat, protects us from environmental dangers such as fire, mould and toxic chemicals, and has even been weaponised for use as a form of racial or economic discrimination. Without it, the world would be a vastly different place. In this episode we’re joined by Dr William Tullett, an historian and author based at the University of York, to talk about his new book, Sniff – A History of Smells. He tells us how advances in technology over the last several centuries have resulted in significant impacts on the odours that pervade our everyday lives, how many of us would rather give up our sense of smell than our phones, and explains how we can all reconnect with our sense of smell to widen our experience of the world we live in. Take your curiosity further with a subscription to BBC Science Focus magazine. Every issue is packed with fascinating insights into the science behind everyday life, the latest breakthroughs and expert analysis, delivered straight to your door. Receive an extra £5 when you subscribe using the code SF5OFF, (minimum spend £20, see full terms and conditions on our website). https://www.ourmediashop.com/bbc-science-focus-magazine-pod30 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The possibility that we may be living in a simulation created by a more technologically advanced civilisation has occupied the minds of scientists, philosophers and fiction writers for decades. We may never be able to satisfactorily answer this question, but perhaps the best way of investigating its feasibility is by looking at how we might go about creating a simulation universe ourselves. In this episode we’re joined by Prof Catherine Heymans, Astronomer Royal for Scotland, who investigates this question in her new book, How to Design a Universe – The Science of Real and Virtual Worlds, the royalties of which will be given to the Royal Observatory Trust, which supports astronomy youth projects across Scotland. She tells us what our current knowledge tells us about the way that the universe operates, explains why we’d need an enormous amount of computing power to generate a simulation universe, and investigates the question of why we, or a more advanced civilisation, might attempt to do this in the first place. Take your curiosity further with a subscription to BBC Science Focus magazine. Every issue is packed with fascinating insights into the science behind everyday life, the latest breakthroughs and expert analysis, delivered straight to your door. Receive an extra £5 when you subscribe using the code SF5OFF, (minimum spend £20, see full terms and conditions on our website). https://www.ourmediashop.com/bbc-science-focus-magazine-pod30 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Often in life, we find ourselves being accused of being lazy or accusing others of acting lazily, or maybe even becoming frustrated by what we see as laziness in our own actions. But what do we really mean by the term laziness, why is it viewed as a taboo that transcends cultures, and what effect does considering ourselves or others lazy have on our mental health? In this episode, we’re joined by Prof Katrien Devolder, an ethicist based at the University of Oxford and research leader of Project Lazy. She tells us about the different ways we view laziness in ourselves and others, why working smarter and more efficiently is often misconstrued as laziness, and the impact AI is having on our views of laziness. Take your curiosity further with a subscription to BBC Science Focus magazine. Every issue is packed with fascinating insights into the science behind everyday life, the latest breakthroughs and expert analysis, delivered straight to your door. Receive an extra £5 when you subscribe using the code SF5OFF, (minimum spend £20, see full terms and conditions on our website). https://www.ourmediashop.com/bbc-science-focus-magazine-pod30 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

No matter how gently or politely we live our lives, at one point or another, it’s inevitable that we’ll find ourselves in a situation in which we disagree with another person and find ourselves having to defend our opinion or perspective. For many of us, these situations are hugely uncomfortable, perceived as destructive, and are to be avoided at almost all costs. Why is this, could interpersonal conflicts actually be useful and even healthy in the maintaining of relationships, and what can we do to better negotiate the heated situations we sometimes find ourselves in? In this episode, we’re joined by dialogue facilitator and author Priya Parker to talk about her latest book, The Art of Fighting. She talks us through some of the common situations that are likely to trigger conflict and disagreement, explains the profound effects conflict can have on group dynamics, and tells us about the many benefits we can all gain from developing ‘healthy heat’. Take your curiosity further with a subscription to BBC Science Focus magazine. Every issue is packed with fascinating insights into the science behind everyday life, the latest breakthroughs and expert analysis, delivered straight to your door. Receive an extra £5 when you subscribe using the code SF5OFF, (minimum spend £20, see full terms and conditions on our website). https://www.ourmediashop.com/bbc-science-focus-magazine-pod30 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

When we know a certain fact about the world or hold a certain belief how do we know that others also know this, how do we base our thoughts and actions on our knowledge of what we assume others know, and what impact does this have on the way that society as a whole functions? In this episode, we’re joined by Steven Pinker, a professor of psychology at Harvard University, best-selling author and two-time Pulitzer Prize finalist, to talk about his latest book, When Everyone Knows That Everyone Knows – Common Knowledge and the Science of Harmony, Hypocrisy and Outrage. He tells us about the effects common knowledge has on social norms and the ways in which we all act, the profound effects that the Internet and social media has had on the way that common knowledge is spread and consumed, and how deepening our understanding of the implications common knowledge has on our lives can help us all get along more harmoniously. Take your curiosity further with a subscription to BBC Science Focus magazine. Every issue is packed with fascinating insights into the science behind everyday life, the latest breakthroughs and expert analysis, delivered straight to your door. Receive an extra £5 when you subscribe using the code SF5OFF, (minimum spend £20, see full terms and conditions on our website). https://www.ourmediashop.com/bbc-science-focus-magazine-pod30 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

When most of us think about time our minds likely turn to thoughts of the second hand that ticks around a clock, or maybe the occasions we’ve been late to catch a bus. But if we stop to think about what time actually is things quickly get more subtle and complicated. Does time only exist in our minds as a psychological illusion, does it really only run forwards and not backwards, and how close is modern physics to helping us to figure out its true nature? In this episode we’re joined by physicist, best-selling author and BBC presenter Prof Jim Al-Khalili to talk about his latest book, On Time – The Physics That Makes the Universe Tick. He tells us how thinkers going back as far as ancient Greece have struggled to define what time really is and how it works, how Einstein’s theories tell us that time can run at different rates in different circumstances, and how understanding its true nature maybe key in our search for a theory of everything. Take your curiosity further with a subscription to BBC Science Focus magazine. Every issue is packed with fascinating insights into the science behind everyday life, the latest breakthroughs and expert analysis, delivered straight to your door. Receive an extra £5 when you subscribe using the code SF5OFF, (minimum spend £20, see full terms and conditions on our website). https://www.ourmediashop.com/bbc-science-focus-magazine-pod30 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Whenever a crime is committed, tiny traces of evidence are left behind at the scene, which, if pieced together correctly, can tell us exactly what happened, when it happened and who was responsible. This is the job of forensic scientists. But how exactly does this process work, how accurate are the portrayals of crime scene investigators we see on film and TV, and what happens if when mistakes are made? In this episode we’re joined by science journalist and author Sanjukta Mondal, to talk about her latest book, Forensic Science. She talks through the fascinating history of forensic science, explains how we all leave traces of our presence wherever we go, and tells us about some of the common myths and cliches we often see in TV crime shows. Take your curiosity further with a subscription to BBC Science Focus magazine. Every issue is packed with fascinating insights into the science behind everyday life, the latest breakthroughs and expert analysis, delivered straight to your door. Receive an extra £5 when you subscribe using the code SF5OFF, (minimum spend £20, see full terms and conditions on our website). https://www.ourmediashop.com/bbc-science-focus-magazine-pod30 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Every several years, the surface temperatures of the Pacific Ocean rise, triggering a climate event that has a domino effect on weather patterns across the globe. This is known as El Niño – and this year, meteorologists predict we’re in for a big one. But how exactly do these events occur, how big an effect is climate change having on their frequency and impact, and what can we expect to see in the future? In this episode, we’re joined by Prof Adam Scaife, head of long-range prediction at the Met Office in the UK. He tells us how El Niño events arise in the Pacific Ocean and spread across the globe, how they’ve been occurring cyclically for thousands of years, and why the event this year is forecasted to be the most extreme in decades. Take your curiosity further with a subscription to BBC Science Focus magazine. Every issue is packed with fascinating insights into the science behind everyday life, the latest breakthroughs and expert analysis, delivered straight to your door. Receive an extra £5 when you subscribe using the code SF5OFF, (minimum spend £20, see full terms and conditions on our website). https://www.ourmediashop.com/bbc-science-focus-magazine-pod30 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Though we’re often not aware of it, the ground beneath our feet is teeming with an abundance of life and activity – from the complex networks of fungi and tangled roots put down deep into the Earth by the plants that live on its surface to the staggering variety of organisms that make their homes in the damp and darkness of the soil. This vast, fascinating ecosystem is vital for the health of the planet but remains largely unstudied. In this episode we’re joined by Dr Frank Ashwood, a lecturer in ecology and entomology at Lincoln University, New Zealand, to talk about his latest book, The World Beneath Our Feet – The Hidden Life of Soil and Why it Matters to us All. He tells us how more than half of the planet’s biodiversity is found living within soil, how the animals that live underground have inspired innovations in medicine and technology and how we may be able to use our knowledge of soil biology on Earth to help us in our quest to establish colonies on other planets. Take your curiosity further with a subscription to BBC Science Focus magazine. Every issue is packed with fascinating insights into the science behind everyday life, the latest breakthroughs and expert analysis, delivered straight to your door. Receive an extra £5 when you subscribe using the code SF5OFF, (minimum spend £20, see full terms and conditions on our website).  https://www.ourmediashop.com/bbc-science-focus-magazine-pod30 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

It’s widely documented that during the time of the Third Reich, the Nazi Party employed a legion of scientists to aid them in their goals of military superiority and ethnic cleansing – particularly in their pursuit of eugenics and development of cruel nerve agents and chemical weapons. It’s far less known that Heinrich Himmler, one of the primary architects of the Holocaust, considered himself to be a talented scientist and harboured a long-held, and frequently bizarre, fascination with quackery and alternative medicine. In this episode, we’re joined by physician, researcher, and author Edzard Ernst to talk about his latest book, The Leopard Lily Project – A Story of Nazi Pseudoscience. He recounts the story of a sinister plot to sterilise large swathes of the population using a herbal folk remedy, how this project arose from the wider ideology of the Nazi Party, and explains why, ultimately, the whole enterprise was doomed to failure from its inception. Take your curiosity further with a subscription to BBC Science Focus magazine. Every issue is packed with fascinating insights into the science behind everyday life, the latest breakthroughs and expert analysis, delivered straight to your door. Receive an extra £5 when you subscribe using the code SF5OFF, (minimum spend £20, see full terms and conditions on our website). https://www.ourmediashop.com/bbc-science-focus-magazine-pod30 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Oftentimes in popular culture we’ll hear the term narcissist used to describe a person who has an inflated opinion of themselves, a big ego or someone who tends to overestimate their own abilities. However, in psychology, narcissistic personality disorder is defined as a diagnosable mental health condition that can cause just as many issues for those living with it as it does for those around them. In this episode we’re joined by neuroscientist and best-selling author Dr Dean Burnett, to talk about many of the misunderstandings that surround narcissistic personality disorder. He explains some of potential triggers that can lead to the development of this complex condition, why it’s innately incredibly difficult to diagnose, and how, paradoxically, many narcissists can suffer from profound feelings of self-loathing. Take your curiosity further with a subscription to BBC Science Focus magazine. Every issue is packed with fascinating insights into the science behind everyday life, the latest breakthroughs and expert analysis, delivered straight to your door. Receive an extra £5 when you subscribe using the code SF5OFF, (minimum spend £20, see full terms and conditions on our website). https://www.ourmediashop.com/bbc-science-focus-magazine-pod30 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Parkinson’s disease currently affects more than 160,000 people in the UK. It’s a complex, progressive condition that typically develops slowly over many years and causes issues with movement, balance, and quality of life, and currently has no known cure. In this episode, we’re joined by Prof David Dexter, director of research at Parkinson’s UK, to talk about the latest exciting developments in our knowledge of the disease’s progression and look forward to some cutting-edge treatments that may be available in the near future. He tells us how the different types of Parkinson’s disease affect the brain, talks us through the latest thinking on some potential causes of the condition, and shares some of the latest breakthroughs coming out of Parkinson’s labs around the world. Take your curiosity further with a subscription to BBC Science Focus magazine. Every issue is packed with fascinating insights into the science behind everyday life, the latest breakthroughs and expert analysis, delivered straight to your door. Receive an extra £5 when you subscribe using the code SF5OFF, (minimum spend £20, see full terms and conditions on our website). https://www.ourmediashop.com/bbc-science-focus-magazine-pod30 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

For a large proportion of our lives, our brains seemingly work on autopilot – the many processes the brain controls hum away behind the scenes, helping us to carry out our daily tasks. But in certain scenarios, our attention takes over, giving more conscious control of our actions. These processes, such as memory, planning and our emotional responses to the situations we find ourselves in, are known as executive functions. But how exactly do they work and is there anything we can do to train them to perform more effectively? In this episode we’re joined by the neuroscientist and author Dr Adrian Owen, to talk about his latest book, Think Before You Think – Understanding Your Brain’s Mission Control. He shares his insights into how our brains operate when we’re confronted by different situations, points out some of the pitfalls built into the way we observe and respond to the world, and explains how we can all benefit from paying more attention to why we think and act in the way we do. Take your curiosity further with a subscription to BBC Science Focus magazine. Every issue is packed with fascinating insights into the science behind everyday life, the latest breakthroughs and expert analysis, delivered straight to your door. Plus, save an extra £5 when you subscribe using the code SF5OFF, (minimum spend £20, see full terms and conditions on our website). https://www.ourmediashop.com/bbc-science-focus-magazine-pod30 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

What does it mean to be a living organism? What are the driving forces that motivate our thoughts and actions? Are we all simply acting the way we do thanks to the instructions built into our genes and our automatic responses to the environments we live in? In this episode we’re joined by researcher, broadcaster and author Melanie Challenger to talk about her latest book, Alive: The Hidden Intelligence of the Living World. She talks us through her ideas about how intelligence emerges from living organisms, explores the connection between the bodies and mind, and investigates the possibility of AI developing genuine intelligence. Take your curiosity further with a subscription to BBC Science Focus magazine. Every issue is packed with fascinating insights into the science behind everyday life, the latest breakthroughs and expert analysis, delivered straight to your door. Plus, save an extra £5 when you subscribe using the code SF5OFF, (minimum spend £20, see full terms and conditions on our website). https://www.ourmediashop.com/bbc-science-focus-magazine-pod30 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

When Charles Darwin published On the Origin of Species in the mid-nineteenth century, his theory of evolution by natural selection turned many of the scientific ideas of the day on their heads. The influence of the book was so profound that scientists are still studying its many implications to this day. And it turns out that, if we look closely enough, we find that investigating queerness in nature frequently played a central role in Darwin’s research and thinking. In this episode, we’re joined by historian and author Dr Ross Brooks to talk about his latest book, Darwin and the Queer Origins of Life – A History of Sex and Science. He shares some of the fascinating discoveries he made from poring over the many notebooks kept by Darwin, tells us how Darwin himself frequently proclaimed that all men and women are hermaphrodites, and makes a passionate case for the need for more queer perspectives and inclusivity in science. Take your curiosity further with a subscription to BBC Science Focus magazine. Every issue is packed with fascinating insights into the science behind everyday life, the latest breakthroughs and expert analysis, delivered straight to your door. Plus, save an extra £5 when you subscribe using the code SF5OFF, (minimum spend £20, see full terms and conditions on our website). https://www.ourmediashop.com/bbc-science-focus-magazine-pod30 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Currently there are around one million people in the UK living with dementia. Despite significant advances in our understanding of the disease over the past several decades an effective cure is yet to be found. However, recent breakthroughs made by researchers around the world are showing great promise in the treatment of this devasting condition. In this episode, we’re joined by Prof Selina Wray, a neuroscientist and researcher based at University College London, to talk about the latest developments in the fight against dementia. She explains exactly what’s happening in our brains as dementia progresses, tells us about her own groundbreaking research on using stem cells to study the disease, and talks us through some of the many exciting developments that are showing great promise in our search for more effective treatments. Take your curiosity further with a subscription to BBC Science Focus magazine. Every issue is packed with fascinating insights into the science behind everyday life, the latest breakthroughs and expert analysis, delivered straight to your door. Plus, save an extra £5 when you subscribe using the code SF5OFF, (minimum spend £20, see full terms and conditions on our website). https://www.ourmediashop.com/bbc-science-focus-magazine-pod30 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Way back in 1976, NASA’s Viking landers touched down on Mars to search for potential signs of microbial life that could currently exist on the planet’s surface. Despite the mission making a number of promising discoveries, so far, no further landers have returned to the surface of the Red Planet with the aim of repeating these fascinating experiments. As such, many questions still remain as to what organisms, if any, could potentially be living within the Martian soil. In this episode, we’re joined by astrobiochemist and author Steven A. Benner to talk about his latest book, Meet the Neighbours – Life on Mars and How to Find it. He talks us through some of the scientific debates surrounding the Viking data that continue to this day, tells us how our knowledge of the evolution of life on Earth informs our search for life elsewhere in the Solar System, and explains how recent innovations in the democratisation of spacecraft technology may reignite our search for life on Mars. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Every single day of our lives, we’re exposed to a vast multitude of experiences and interactions with the various people, objects and technologies in the wider world that surrounds us. The chances are that many of us give these moment-to-moment encounters very little thought. But could it be that our desire for convenience, efficiency and productivity has resulted in a widening rift that has ultimately disconnected us from many of the simple pleasures that life can provide? In this episode, we’re joined by Prof Ian Bogost, a computer science and design researcher based at Washington University and author, to talk about his latest book, The Small Stuff – The Sensory Enchantment of Everyday Life. He tells us why he proposes that our lives have been incrementally dematerialised thanks to the relentless technological drive for efficiency, why we find pleasure and gratification in sensory experiences, and how, by paying more attention to the simple act of doing rather than the final outcome of our actions, we can all live more deeply enriching lives. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

While largely viewed as a toxic waste product with no practical use, our urine is actually rich in all manner of valuable nutrients that, with a little effort, can be extracted, recycled and converted into fertiliser for use on food crops, used to make building materials or even used to generate electricity. In this episode, we’re joined by Kai Udert, a researcher based at the Swiss Federal Institute for Aquatic Science and Technology, to talk about the many ways we could be putting our pee to better use. He tells us how our current systems of dealing with wastewater came into being, what happens to our urine once we flush it down the toilet, and talks us through some ways in which we may be able to make more use of this common, overlooked resource. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

It’s clear to all of us that the rapid progress that technology has made over the last century or so has had profound impacts on almost every aspect of our lives. But often, the impact on our emotional well-being associated with these great changes is overlooked, or, if mentioned at all, portrayed in a largely negative light. Why is this? Is it simply down to our innate fear of the new or our natural tendency to see the downsides that accompany change? Could it be the case that this mode of thinking is leading us to miss the many ways in which new technology can help our emotional lives to flourish? In this episode, we’re joined by Pamela Pavliscak, a researcher and author whose work focusses on the intersection of technology and our emotions, to talk about her latest book, All the Feels – How Technology Can Change our Emotional Lives for the Better. She tells us how often the arguments surrounding issues such as screentime and its impact on our emotional lives are lacking in nuance, how the sharing of memes and gifs has given us a new means of expressing our many complicated emotions, and how the advent of AI chatbots is, more than ever, having profound effects on the way we emotionally engage with technology. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

It’s a good bet that if most of us were to glance around our living rooms or offices, we’d quickly spot all manner of electronic devices that are powered by microchips. Since their introduction in the 1950s, chips have become one of the fundamental building blocks of the various digital technologies we rely on in our daily lives. What impact has this had on the development of technology, economics and global politics over the last several decades, and what roles will chips continue to play in our global future? In today’s episode, we’re joined by Prof Rakesh Kumar, John Bardeen Faculty Scholar in the Electrical and Computer Engineering Department at the University of Illinois, to talk about his latest book, The Chip Age – How Chips Shaped Our Past and Will Define Our Future. He tells us about the key role the space race played in the rapid development of microchips, explains how the production of chips involves collaboration between countries in almost every part of the world and talks us through some of the various economic, political and environmental issues that may influence the future of this vital technology. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

For most of us, music has a unique, almost supernatural, ability to trigger our emotions and memories and conjure up evocative images or even fantasies in our minds in a way that few other experiences or art forms can. But what exactly is happening in our brains when we listen to music, is there such a thing as a common musical experience that’s shared by people from different cultures and backgrounds, and can we use any of these powerful effects to help bolster our health and wellbeing? In this episode, we’re joined by Prof Elizabeth Margulis, director of the Music Cognition Lab at Princeton University, to talk about her latest book, Transported – The Everyday Magic of Musical Daydreams. She tells us how, while we may think of listening to music as a highly subjective experience, there are many universal ways people from all walks of life are affected by it, how researchers are studying this fascinating phenomenon, and how we may be able to harness these deeply human effects to help boost our mental health, wellbeing and even creativity. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Most of us think about the liver as simply being the body’s filtration system that acts as a sponge that removes toxins from our bloodstreams. But the truth is it performs many more functions that are vital for our health such as acting as the primary organ in regulating our metabolisms, storing essential nutrients our bodies can draw from in times of need, and even producing proteins that help our blood to clot when we’re injured. However, changes in our lifestyles over the past several decades are leading to an alarming rise in the prevalence of damage and disease to this essential organ. In this episode, we’re joined by Dr Quin Wills, a researcher and CEO of the biotech company Ochre Bio, who specialises in developing innovative new treatments to combat liver disease. He talks us through the many functions the liver performs in our bodies, explains some of the most common causes of the rise in chronic liver disease and looks forward to the future to detail some of the cutting-edge treatments that may be on the horizon to combat this growing issue. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Despite affecting as many as 80 per cent of women by the age of 50, fibroids, lumps of tissue that grow in or around the womb, are not commonly discussed outside of specialist doctors’ offices. However, they can cause a whole host of health issues, such as heavy or painful periods, poor bladder control, chronic constipation, and even affect fertility and complicate childbirth. In this episode, we’re joined by Dr Michelle Griffin, a women's health expert, author and former BBC Science Focus columnist, to talk about her latest book, Fibroids – Everything You Need to Know, From Symptoms to Diagnosis and Beyond. She tells us how the location of fibroids determines the specific symptoms and complications associated with them; the role hormones play in their development and growth and talks us through some of the latest developments in treating this common but overlooked condition. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

It was previously thought that once our brains suffer an injury due to stroke or trauma, the potential for recovery was severely limited. But recent developments in medicine have proven that this isn’t the case; our brains are, in fact, capable of miraculous acts of healing. This is thanks to a process known as neuroplasticity, a concept that’s changing the way that medical practitioners are helping patients suffering from brain injuries regain their health. In this episode, we’re joined by neurologist and author Orlando Swayne to talk about his latest book, How to Use a Fork – Stories of Mending the Broken Brain. He tells us what happens in our brains following injury, how learning new skills can change the structure of our brains, and how we can use this process to help people recover from strokes, aneurysms and other debilitating brain injuries. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

When most of us think of parasites, our minds will likely turn to thoughts of the various icky creatures that can invade our bodies, make their homes there and end up making us ill. But the truth is that parasites make up a hugely significant part of all life on Earth and bring many benefits to the organisms they live in or alongside and the wider ecosystems they are a part of. As part of our Nature’s Unsung Heroes miniseries, we’re joined by Timothy Brown, a researcher based at the University of Leeds and member of the IUCN Parasite Specialist Group who works on the conservation of parasite diversity, to talk about the many ways in which parasites influence life on Earth. He tells us how our own bodies are host to trillions of different beneficial organisms, the key role parasites play in managing the balance of the animal life in the ecosystems they are part of and talks us through the most recent ideas researchers are working on to preserve these overlooked, but ecologically vital creatures. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

When it comes to the effects of ageing on our bodies, there are many more factors at play than simply the number of years we’ve been alive. It turns out, that for some people, there is a huge gap between their chronological age and their biological age – the scientific measure of how well our cells, tissues and organs are functioning compared to the global average. But what are the main drivers of this difference, and what can we do to keep our bodies younger and healthier for longer? In this episode, we’re joined by ageing and longevity expert and research director at Inserm in France, Jean-Marc Lemaitre to talk about his latest book, Choose Your Age – Unlocking the Cellular Science of Longevity. He talks us through the many factors that lead to some of us ageing more quickly than others, tells us what researchers can learn from how the world’s centenarians live their lives, and explains why we still don’t know what the limit for the human lifespan could be. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The truth is, when most of us think of wasps, our minds will likely go to memories of irritating winged pests landing in our drinks when we’re trying to have a nice summer picnic or perhaps one of the times we got a nasty sting when we were out playing in the park as children. It’s fair to say wasps have a pretty bad rap. But if we look more closely, it soon becomes clear that most of us are getting these fascinating insects entirely wrong. As part of our Nature’s Unsung Heroes miniseries, we’re joined by BBC broadcaster, author and entomologist based at the University of Gloucestershire Prof Adam Hart to talk about the many benefits wasps bring to the ecosystems they live in. He tells us how wasps act as the wardens or guardians of our gardens and agricultural land by keeping pests under control, how they act as essential pollinators that help the ecosystems they live in thrive, and how they act as one of the natural world’s most sophisticated architects and engineers. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

These days the supplement industry is booming – supermarket shelves are stacked high with all manner of pills and powders claiming to do everything from helping us to live longer or improving our digestive health to boosting our energy levels or even improving our ability to concentrate and focus. How have we reached this point, why do many of us feel our diets aren’t giving us everything we need to stay healthy and productive, and do these supplements live up to the bold claims that many manufacturers make for them? In this episode, we’re joined by dietician and author Josie Porter to talk about her latest book, How Not to Take Supplements – A Dietician’s Guide to Thriving on Real Food. She tells us how our busy lifestyles are leading more of us to turn to dietary supplements, talks us through the rise in the consumption of protein powders and meal replacement drinks, and explains how, underlying health conditions aside, we can all get everything our bodies need to stay healthy by eating a balanced diet. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Although it often goes unnoticed, plankton is the most abundant form of life in Earth’s oceans, making up 95 per cent of all oceanic biomass. These tiny organisms are responsible for generating around half of the planet’s oxygen, play a vital role in the oceans’ food chains and were around for millions of years before we humans came onto the scene. Simply put, without plankton, the world would be a very different place. As part of our Nature's Unsung Heroes miniseries, we’re joined by senior advisor to the United Nations on oceans Vincent Doumeizel to talk about his latest book, The Power of Plankton – How Plankton Made Life on Earth Possible and Why It’s Key to Our Future. He tells us how these often-ignored organisms played an essential part in the evolution of life on Earth, tells us the many ways plankton acts as the caretaker of the entire planet, and makes a passionate case for why we should be paying more attention to these fascinating, ancient organisms. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Every minute of every day, our bodies are flooded with a complex web of hormones – chemical messengers that travel through the bloodstream, coordinating everything from our blood pressure, body temperature, metabolic rate and even our emotions. When this system is functioning correctly, we barely notice its actions, but if it begins to misfire, it can lead to profound issues in everything from fluctuations in our energy levels or moods to the way our bodies develop as we age and even our appearance. In this episode, we’re joined by Dr Saira Hameed, an endocrinologist based at Imperial College London NHS Trust and best-selling author, to talk about her latest book Signal – The Inside Story of Our Hormones. She tells us how, despite being so tiny, the many hormone-producing glands situated throughout our bodies have a huge impact on our health and wellbeing, the many issues that can arise due to the overproduction or underproduction of hormones, and the new therapies in the pipeline we may be able to use to bring our bodies back into balance. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Becoming a parent is undoubtedly one of the biggest events that can occur in any of our lifetimes – suddenly we have a tiny living being to take care of that demands the majority of our thoughts, time and attention. Of course, this can at times feel overwhelming and often leads us to look for help and advice from our parents, grandparents or close friends. But what strategies do parents in the animal kingdom use to raise their young, and is there anything we humans can learn from them? As part of our Nature's Unsung Heroes miniseries, we’re joined by science writer Elizabeth Preston to talk about her latest book, The Creatures’ Guide to Caring – How Animal Parents Teach Us That Humans Were Born to Care. She tells us how orca grandmothers pitch in to help with the raising of their grandchildren, how in some species of monkeys the father takes on most of responsibility for taking care of their offspring, and how we can learn so much more about ourselves as humans by paying deeper attention to the wider world we live in. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

While the larger, more impressive or charismatic animal and plant species often receive the most attention, the natural world is filled with lesser-known or even misunderstood organisms without which life on planet Earth would look very different indeed. If you’d like to learn how plankton plays a vital role in regulating the health of the entire planet, how, despite being a bit icky, parasites play an essential part in helping the ecosystems they live in thrive, or why we have many fascinating lessons to learn from the different strategies animals use to raise their young, why not check out the four-part Nature’s Unsung Heroes miniseries starting Friday 5th June! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In June of every year, the LGBTQ+ community across the world comes together to celebrate Pride Month – an annual event that began in 1970 to promote awareness, visibility and equality for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer individuals. In this episode, to coincide with Pride Month, we’re joined by Dr Julia Shaw, a broadcaster, best-selling author and psychologist based at University College London, to talk about the science and history of bisexuality. She tells us about the fascinating historical and scientific origins of the term bisexuality, how studies have found that there are likely far more bisexual people than you may think, and how bisexuality isn’t unique to humans. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Whether it’s the swab tests many of us use to help us piece together our family trees, the painstaking detective work carried out by forensic scientists, or its use in medical screening to look for signs of our predisposition to develop certain diseases, DNA science has become a regular fixture in news stories, pop culture and dinner table conversations in many of our homes. But how exactly do these processes work, what can they really tell, or not tell us, and what developments can we expect in the future? In this episode, we’re joined by Prof Turi King, the director of the Milner Centre for Evolution at the University of Bath, co-presenter of the BBC’s DNA Family Secrets and best-selling author, to talk about her latest book, The Secrets of DNA – How Genetics has Changed the World. She tells us about the fascinating stories surrounding the development of fingerprinting techniques that now allow us to identify unique individuals based on their DNA alone, how forensic scientists really use DNA science to solve crimes, and why our DNA is still hiding many more secrets that are waiting to be discovered. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Traditionally, ecologists wanting to take stock of the diversity, health and population levels of animal species within a given environment have needed to tie on their boots, get out in the field and painstakingly record what they are able to observe manually. But the emerging field of ecoacoustics – the use of sound recording to survey the biodiversity within ecosystems – is promising to be a game-changer in the way researchers are able to approach this work. As part of our Science of Sound miniseries, we’re joined by Dr Sarab Sethi, the head of the ecosystem sensing research group at Imperial College London. To talk about his work in this exciting new field. He tells us how advances in technology are providing new methods of monitoring wildlife in greater detail than ever before and why cross-collaboration between engineers and conservationists is vital in the fight against biodiversity loss. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Our world may look vibrant and full of color. But in reality, our human eyes are only picking up the tiniest slice of all the light shining in the Universe. To astronomers this hidden light is just as important as the red greens and blues we can see. We talk to Alfredo Carpineti about what secrets are lying in the Universe beyond human vision, while celebrating another aspect that the rainbow has come to represent - the LGBT+ community. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

When it comes to the sounds we encounter in the natural world, few have the beauty, elegance and variety of birdsong. But these distinctive vocalisations are not simply static calls that are common to all birds of a certain species that are passed on from one generation to the next. They vary from region to region and even evolve in single populations over time in much the same way that the style of music in the pop charts changes over time. As part of our Science of Sound miniseries, we’re joined by Dr Nilo Merino Recalde, a senior conservation scientist at the RSPB, to talk about the fascinating science behind the evolution of birdsong. He tells us about his work on tracking the evolution of birdsong as it passes from place to place and from generation to generation, how advances in AI technology are enabling birdsong researchers to learn more about this process than ever before, and what this research can tell us about the evolution of culture in the animal kingdom as a whole. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Over thousands of years, human beings evolved to walk upright on two legs, efficiently and over long distances. But these days, thanks to changes in our lifestyles, we’re becoming more sedentary than ever, and this is having profound effects on our health and well-being. In this episode, we’re joined by Courtney Conley, a doctor of chiropractic medicine, and Milica McDowell, a doctor of physical therapy and exercise physiologist, to talk about their latest book, Walk – Your Life Depends on it. They tell us why the oft-quoted 10,000 steps rule has no grounding in science, and was in fact originally, dreamt up as a marketing slogan to sell pedometers in the 1960s, explain the many things the way we walk can tell us about that state of our health, and give us some advice on what we should look out for when shopping for shoes that will help us get the most benefit from our daily walks. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Hedgehogs are in decline all over Europe. These prickly little fellas are faced with so many threats – in their rural habitats, in our gardens, and on our roads. But new research about hedgehog hearing could help us protect these adorable creatures from going extinct. As part of our Science of Sound miniseries, we speak to Dr Sophie Lund Rasmussen, a scientist who has dedicated her life to hedgehog research and conservation. Also known as Dr Hedgehog, she’s a research fellow at the University of Oxford, and assistant professor at the University of Copenhagen. Sophie tells us all about hedgehogs – what she loves about them, and how we can do our bit to help them thrive. She also explains her recent study on ultrasound, which she hopes could significantly reduce encounters between hedgehogs and cars. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder, or ADHD, is currently thought to affect around one in 20 of the world’s population, making it one of the most prevalent types of neurodivergence. Despite this, the condition is still surrounded by stigma, misunderstanding and significant challenges in diagnosis. In this episode, we’re joined by Prof Ellie Dommett, a neuroscientist based at King’s College London, to talk about the latest thinking on this common neurodevelopmental condition. She explains why, despite its prevalence, ADHD is still commonly misunderstood, why it’s frequently diagnosed later in life, and also tells us about her work on developing effective non-pharmaceutical treatments to help those living with the disorder. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The vast majority of us take listening to and appreciating music for granted. But for those of us living with hearing loss, continuing to enjoy our favourite songs, symphonies or dance tracks can be something of a challenge. Maybe we find it difficult to distinguish one instrument from another, have a reduced ability to hear pitch, or struggle to make out a song’s lyrics. As part of our Science of Sound miniseries, we’re joined by Prof Trevor Cox, an acoustic engineer based at the University of Salford, to talk about his work on the Cadenza Project – a multidisciplinary research group using the latest technology and thinking to help restore the enjoyment of music for those living with hearing loss. He tells us how most hearing aids currently on the market are optimised for speech, not music, talks about the challenges researchers face in tackling this issue due to the hugely varied frequency and dynamic range of music, and explains the innovative approaches taken by the project to help us all get the most possible enjoyment out of the music we listen to. https://cadenzachallenge.org/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

There’s so much we don’t know about Neanderthals. Our stocky, muscular relatives went extinct around 40,000 years ago, leaving a trail of mystery in their wake – about what they were like, how they lived, and why they disappeared. But, while Neanderthals themselves have gone, fragments of their DNA live on inside us. In this episode, we speak to Prof Chris Stringer, scientific associate at London’s Natural History Museum, and author of several books, including Britain: one million years of the human story (with Rob Dinnis) and Our Human Story (with Louise Humphrey). Chris tells us all about Neanderthals, from what they looked like, to where they lived, and how they might have interacted with Homo sapiens – that’s us. He also explains why so many of us have Neanderthal genes, and what that might be doing to our health. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Would you like to hear about the fascinating new discoveries astronomers are making by listening to distant stars? Learn about the cutting edge tech scientists are using to help the hearing impaired listen to music or get up to date on what the latest research is saying about the nature and purpose of birdsong.  If so, why not check out the four-part Science of Sound Miniseries starting Monday 4th May! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices