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16th Dec 2007

The Naked Scientists Christmas Special


Chris Smith

Kat Arney

Helen Scales

Dave Ansell

Ho Ho Ho! This week on the Naked Scientists we’re celebrating the festive season in style, with a party right here in the studio.  From Christmas crackers to Brussels sprouts, we’ll be looking at some of the science behind Christmas.  We’ll be learning about snowflakes and how these sub-zero designs are created, we’ll find out what your choice of Christmas card says about you, and we’ll reveal the best way to cook your sprouts, ensuring your family get all the nutrition they can this Christmas.  Also, in Kitchen science we’ll be getting you to butter bread and throw it off your kitchen counter in the name of science!

 

 

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Science News

 

Clone Alone, and it's the real "macaque-oy"

Researchers in America have produced the world's first primate stem cell clones in a move that could ultimately see patient-specific stem cells on offer in the clinic. Oregon-based researcher Shoukhr...
 

Gotta Lotta Bottle

Diet-conscious New Zealanders may soon be able to tuck into naturally "skimmed" milk thanks to a programme set up to breed a herd of cows that produce milk containing less than a third of th...
 

King of the Swingers

As a famous character in a great Disney cartoon once sang about, it turns out that Orang utans really are king of the swingers because they know just the right way to swing their way through the fores...
 

Earth's oldest rainforest discovered in coal mine and why the plucky T. rex is a bit “chicken”

A 300 million year old fossilized forest has been discovered in a coal mine in Illinois, USA. Covering an area of 10 square kilometres, its the largest fossil rainforest ever discovered and contains a...
 

Space Ships like christmas decorations

A real threat to astronauts are cosmic rays, these are very high energy charged particles originating outside of our solar system which can pass straight through a spaceship and astronauts possibly gi...

Gold, frankincense and myrrh

It may seem unlikely, but the first Christmas gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh have a connection to today’s cutting edge cancer research, according to the science charity Cancer Research UK. For...

Kitchen Science

Butter Side Down


Are you the sort of person who finds that whenever you knock some toast off the table it ends up butter side down. Find out if the toast gods are unhappy with you, or if there is something more scientific going on.

Questions

I understand that AIDS is a disease of the immune system. After watching a TV documentary recently I was surprised to learn that many AIDS sufferers actually die of cancers as well. I couldn’t work out how the two are connected. How does a depleted immune system bring on cancer?


 

When I’ve been watching planets and stars in the night sky, why is it that the stars appear to be twinkling much more than the planet?


Why is it that when you see pictures or photographs of stars they always appear as crosses?


I just noticed when I crouched down or if I’m sleeping on my arms at work that when I wake up I have this pins and needles sensation. Apparently it’s quite normal and many other people have it. I wanted to know what the basis of it is and why does it happen?


Interviews

Nutritious Sprouts and how to keep them that way

Kate Guberg

Quirkology

Professor Richard Wiseman

The Science of Snowflakes

Professor Kenneth Libbrecht

Question of the Week

Power of a Magnet

Where do Magnets get the power to stick or repel?


Does bread always land butter side down? Try it out and go to http://www.thenakedscientists.com/forum/index.php?topic=11906.0...
- Ben - 16th Dec 07

concerning polution:(gas car engines)fuel/air ratio is 14.5 lbs air to 1 lb. gas; air is only 21% 'O' does the nitrogen burn? @20 mpg/gas=10lb/gal.th...
- eel123@nb.sympatico.ca - 16th Dec 07
Whole Thread | Post Reply

The Naked Scientists Christmas Special - More about this podcast

A Christmas treeSeason’s greetings – and eatings!

This week on the Naked Scientists we’re celebrating the festive season in style, with a party right here in the studio.  From magic tricks to Brussels sprouts, we’ll be looking at some of the science behind Christmas.

Quirkology

Professor Richard Wiseman will be joining us to sprinkle a little bit of festive magic over the show.  He’s Professor of Public Understanding of Psychology at the University of Hertfordshire, as well as a member of the infamous Magic Circle.

He’ll be talking about Quirkology, the curious scientific quirks that underpin our daily lives.  So tune in if you’ve ever wondered if your surname has influenced your life, wanted to know if someone is lying, or are searching for scientific tips for seduction.

Professor Wiseman will also be talking about some of his Christmas-based research.  We’ll be finding out if you really do get the best jokes in the most expensive crackers, and if your choice of Christmas cards can reveal your personality.

Brussels SproutsSprout science

No traditional Christmas dinner is complete without Brussels sprouts, and whether you love them or loathe them, they’re certainly good for you.  But what’s the best way to cook them? We sent Ben Valsler off to the MRC Human Nutrition Research Labs to find out whether boiling, steaming or microwaving sprouts preserves their vitamins the best. Unfortunately Ben didn’t come up with a way to make them edible…

natural snow crystalSnow Science

We all secretly hope for a white christmas but have you ever stopped to look at the individual snowflakes that make up our snowmen and lethal snowballs? We've all seen pictures of them on our Christmas cards but theres more to snowflakes than meets the eye. This week Meera talks to Professor Kenneth Libbrecht who not only knows how these tiny yet complex structures form, but also creates designer snowfakes in his lab over in California. Can't imagine theres much snow over there though...
 

Do you feel lucky?

It’s said that bread always lands butter side down when it falls off your plate, but is this really true? Our intrepid Kitchen Science team put the myth to the test with their fearless (and slightly messy) experiments.

And finally, we’ll also be looking back at some of the top scientific stories from last year.  And if you have a favourite story or Naked Scientists moment, please let us know – and pass the mince pies!



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