Ri Science Podcast – Details, episodes & analysis

What makes a planet habitable? What are we looking for to find Earth 2.0? And how do you get a chunk of an asteroid through airport security? This month, astrophysicist Elizabeth Tasker discusses the latest missions at the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) and explores how our knowledge has progressed since she last spoke at the Ri back in 2018.  

Ri Science Podcast episodes are released on the last Wednesday of every month, and our new ‘From the Theatre’ episodes are released on the second Wednesday of the month. Subscribe to be notified as soon as the next episode is released! 

• Book tickets to upcoming talks on our website 

• Subscribe to our YouTube channel 

• Follow us: @ri_science on Instagram and TikTok 

Producer: Lia Hale 

Music: Joseph Sandy 

Today marks the beginning of the Paralympic Games, and nearly 3 weeks since the end of the Olympic Games in Paris. But what actually happens to your brain when you exercise? What’s the science behind ‘runner’s high’? And why isn’t there enough research on women in sport? This month, we’re joined by exercise neuroscientist Flaminia Ronca, from UCL and the Institute of Sport Exercise and Health. She shares with us which chemical and physiological systems are involved when we exercise, and how regular exercise can decrease our chances of neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s.  

Ri Science Podcast episodes are released on the last Wednesday of every month, and our new ‘From the Theatre’ episodes are released on the second Wednesday of the month. Subscribe to be notified as soon as the next episode is released! 

• Book tickets to upcoming talks on our website 

• Subscribe to our YouTube channel 

• Follow us: @ri_science on Instagram and TikTok 

Producer and presenter: Lia Hale 

Assistant producer: Isla Nakano 

Music: Joseph Sandy 

How do you fight a fungus? In this episode of ‘Tales from my PhD’, Charlotte Collingwood talks to Camilla Molinari about her work in plant pathology, studying the mechanisms and genetics of the rice blast fungus in order to limit its impact on food crops.

• Follow Camilla on Twitter: ⁠@CamilaMolinari3
• Follow Charlotte on Twitter: ⁠@NeuroCharlotte⁠

Ri Science Podcast episodes are released on the last Wednesday of every month, and our new ‘From the Theatre’ episodes are released on the second Wednesday of the month. Subscribe to be notified as soon as the next episode is released! 

• Book tickets to upcoming talks on our website 

• Subscribe to our YouTube channel 

• Follow us: @ri_science on Instagram and TikTok 

Produced by: Charlotte CollingwoodMusic by: Joseph Sandy

How can maths and computational models help us treat anxiety and depression? In this episode of 'Tales from my PhD', Charlotte Collingwood talks to Sophie Shang about her research in the field of computational psychiatry. A hallmark symptom of anxiety and depression is an intolerance of uncertainty. Sophie's work involves designing studies to test people's response to changes in their environment, analysing the data mathematically and then coding computational models in order to reveal patterns in human behaviour and mental health that are otherwise invisible.

• Follow Sophie on Twitter: @Sophie_Shang
• Follow Charlotte on Twitter: @NeuroCharlotte

Please leave this episode a rating and a review to let us know what you think.

• Get tickets for upcoming talks and livestreams: rigb.org/whats-on
• Watch videos on YouTube: youtube.com/TheRoyalInstitution
• Follow us on social media: twitter.com/Ri_Science

Produced by: Charlotte Collingwood

Music by: Joseph Sandy

There are an estimated 5 trillion plastic particles in the oceans, spelling trouble for marine ecosystems. Manta rays are one group of species at risk – how can we protect these animals? In this episode of 'Tales from my PhD', Charlotte Collingwood talks to Jessica Savage about her work analysing the species distribution of manta rays and global plastic pollution maps to aid marine science and conservation.

• Follow Jessica on Twitter: @Jessicasavage29
• Follow Charlotte on Twitter: @NeuroCharlotte

Ri Science Podcast episodes are released on the last Wednesday of every month, and our new ‘From the Theatre’ episodes are released on the second Wednesday of the month. Subscribe to be notified as soon as the next episode is released! 

• Book tickets to upcoming talks on our website 

• Subscribe to our YouTube channel 

• Follow us: @ri_science on Instagram and TikTok 

Produced by: Charlotte Collingwood

Music by: Joseph Sandy

How can we detect massive objects in space when we can't see them by light?

On 14 September 2015, scientists opened a new window to observing the Universe when, for the first time, they directly detected gravitational waves, rippled out through spacetime from the merger of two black holes. 

In this episode, astronomer Tessa Baker explores how Einstein’s theory of gravity predicted the existence of gravitational waves, how delicate experiments eventually confirmed their existence, and how we cantranslate this experimental data into sounds, allowing us to hear the Universe.

This talk was recorded from our theatre at the Royal Institution on 19 May 2023.

• Watch the talk on YouTube: youtu.be/U_J_uJcjQ0I
• Follow Tessa Baker on Twitter: @Tessa_M_Baker

Ri Science Podcast episodes are released on the last Wednesday of every month, and our new ‘From the Theatre’ episodes are released on the second Wednesday of the month. Subscribe to be notified as soon as the next episode is released! 

• Book tickets to upcoming talks on our website 

• Subscribe to our YouTube channel 

• Follow us: @ri_science on Instagram and TikTok 

Produced by: Sarah Dick

Music by: Joseph Sandy

Astrophysicists grapple with the Universe's big questions, but what does their day-to-day research actually entail? In the first of our new mini-series, 'Tales from my PhD', Charlotte Collingwood sits down with Rohan Varadaraj to discuss his work discovering new galaxies billions of light years away.

Ri Science Podcast episodes are released on the last Wednesday of every month, and our new ‘From the Theatre’ episodes are released on the second Wednesday of the month. Subscribe to be notified as soon as the next episode is released! 

• Book tickets to upcoming talks on our website 

• Subscribe to our YouTube channel 

• Follow us: @ri_science on Instagram and TikTok 

Produced by: Charlotte Collingwood

Music by: Joseph Sandy

How did societies develop across the globe and how did gender become so enmeshed in them? In this episode we join award-winning science journalist, Angela Saini, in conversation with former Australian prime-minister, Julia Gillard, as they go in search of the roots of gendered oppression. By looking at cultures throughout human history and in the modern day, they overturn simplistic universal theories to show that what patriarchy is and how far back it goes really depends on where you live.

Get Angela Saini's book: The Patriarchs: How Men Came to Rule

This talk was recorded from our theatre at the Royal Institution on 2 March 2023.

Ri Science Podcast episodes are released on the last Wednesday of every month, and our new ‘From the Theatre’ episodes are released on the second Wednesday of the month. Subscribe to be notified as soon as the next episode is released! 

• Book tickets to upcoming talks on our website 

• Subscribe to our YouTube channel 

• Follow us: @ri_science on Instagram and TikTok 

Produced by: Sarah Dick

Music by: Joseph Sandy

Did you know that there is no widely agreed upon definition of what emotions actually are? After losing his dad to Covid-19 in the early days of the pandemic lockdown, neuroscientist Dean Burnett found himself wondering what life would be like without emotions. In today’s episode, Dean combines his personal story with expert analysis, humour and powerful insights into the grieving process, to uncover how emotions make us who we are.

Get Dean's book: 'Emotional Ignorance: Lost and Found in the Science of Emotion'

Subscribe to Dean's podcast: 'Why does this thing exist?'

Follow Dean on Twitter: twitter.com/garwboy

This talk was recorded from our theatre at the Royal Institution on 30 January 2023.

Ri Science Podcast episodes are released on the last Wednesday of every month, and our new ‘From the Theatre’ episodes are released on the second Wednesday of the month. Subscribe to be notified as soon as the next episode is released! 

• Book tickets to upcoming talks on our website 

• Subscribe to our YouTube channel 

• Follow us: @ri_science on Instagram and TikTok 

Produced by: Sarah Dick

Music by: Joseph Sandy

How could we use shower wastewater to clean our clothes? To celebrate Earth Day and its specific focus on investing in the planet, we wanted to introduce you to ‘Undaunted’ - our partnership with Imperial College London that supports climate-positive startups tackling the climate crisis head on. We hear from Alyssa Gilbert, Director of Undaunted, and Katherine Mathieson, Director of the Ri, about the exciting work Undaunted is doing, alongside a sneak peek into some of the innovations.

Please leave this episode a rating and a review to let us know what you think, and to help more people discover the podcast. 

Contact Katherine: kmathieson@ri.ac.uk  

Contact Alyssa: a.gilbert@imperial.ac.uk  

Learn more about Undaunted: imperial.ac.uk/climate-change-innovation/about-us/

Learn more about Greenhouse startup accelerator: climateinnovators.uk/startup-accelerator/

Ri Science Podcast episodes are released on the last Wednesday of every month, and our new ‘From the Theatre’ episodes are released on the second Wednesday of the month. Subscribe to be notified as soon as the next episode is released! 

• Book tickets to upcoming talks on our website 

• Subscribe to our YouTube channel 

• Follow us: @ri_science on Instagram and TikTok 

Produced by: Lia Hale 

Music by: Joseph Sandy