Naked Science Articles

Breathless: The Nitrogen Story Continued

Fri, 12 Aug 2011 12:56:56 +0000

Disruption of the nitrogen cycle can wreak havoc on ocean ecosystems for which oxygen is in short supply. Robin Fulweiler explores the formation of 'dead zones' in part II of The Nitrogen Story.

Citizen Science: Science Needs YOU!

Mon, 10 Oct 2011 14:38:04 +0000

Everyone can contribute to the work of scientists. Harriet Dickinson explains how you can get involved, and why Science Needs YOU!

Food Date Coding Decoded

Mon, 10 Oct 2011 13:55:30 +0000

Dating codes are placed on food to indicate the food is safe to eat before this date. But how are these dates decided, and what do they really mean? Emma Easton explains...

Making Metals Take the Heat

Fri, 30 Sep 2011 16:40:32 +0000

The inside of a modern aircraft jet engine is a harsh and complex environment, but the drive for ever more powerful and efficient engines means conditions are getting even harsher. Hotter engines are more efficient, so temperatures are going up! Our present day materials are already at their limit, so the heat is on to find the next generation of high-performance metals...

I'm a Civet: Get me out of here!

Mon, 5 Sep 2011 10:51:32 +0000

It's pretty easy to get lost when you venture deep into the Jungle of Lambusango on the Isle of Buton, just off the South East coast of Sulawesi in Indonesia - a fact that I discovered more than once and to the amusement of the local guides with whom I worked during my summer on the Island. The purpose of my trip was to investigate the ranging behaviour of a small carnivore called a Malay civet. This species (and in particular the population I was studying) makes for a very good study model as they are the largest mammalian predator on Buton Island...

Barnacles "mussel" in

Wed, 7 Sep 2011 16:32:09 +0000

Barnacles and mussels have an intimate relationship, but are they welcome house guests or uninvited squatters?

The Wheels on the Bus: The Nitrogen Story

Fri, 12 Aug 2011 11:28:54 +0000

Nitrogen is the element limiting the amount of life on earth. Until 100 years ago the amount was fixed, cycling though the environment, re-used and recycled. Now we have the technology to create plenty more and to support a larger population. But is this without consequence? Robinson Fulweiler explains...

The Doctors who Poisoned Children

Fri, 19 Aug 2011 13:50:37 +0000

Leukaemia is a deadly cancer of the blood affecting over 250,000 people every year, many of which are children. It isn't caused by an infection or virus, but by uncontrolled proliferation of the victim's own cells. How do you poison the cancerous cells without destroying healthy tissue? Professor John Gamel explores the history of the search for a cure...

Pain genes and perception

Thu, 4 Aug 2011 15:26:03 +0000

Rare genetic mutations have been known to abolish pain, or to cause permanent agony. But what if subtle differences in genes mean that everyone has a different pain threshold that is hard-wired into their genetics?

CSI Swansea

Wed, 6 Jul 2011 16:16:52 +0000

CSI has come to Swansea. But rather than solving murders, for a team at the University's Technology Centre (UTC) in Materials it's all about getting young people involved in investigating why materials fail and what makes metals strong. And despite being slightly less sinister than its Miami-based TV counterpart, it can nonetheless exert a powerful pull on prospective undergraduate students, as materials scientist Richard Johnston explains...

Letting the Khat out of the bag

Fri, 13 May 2011 16:23:26 +0000

In 2009, the synthetic stimulant mephedrone became a hugely popular recreational drug for young people in the UK while at the same time it was demonised by the media. Although it was eventually made illegal, drug policy and availability will never be the same...

Making Metals Stronger

Mon, 18 Apr 2011 16:11:40 +0000

Countless atomic recipes and crystal arrangements mean there are literally trillions of possible materials that could be made. So, without hunting for the equivalent of an atom-sized needle in a galactic-scale haystack, how do we find the ones with the properties we want? Materials scientists David Collins and Bryce Conduit are on the case...

The Superalloys

Mon, 28 Mar 2011 15:48:07 +0000

Spinning hundreds of times per second and carrying a load equivalent to the weight of a family car, often at temperatures approaching the melting point of the metal, the blades in a modern jet engine have to withstand what is arguably one of the harshest environments any engineered material must face. So what are the substances that can rise to this challenge, and how do they beat the odds? To find out, materials scientist John Aveson explores the science of the superalloy...

The Ocean's Cleaners

Wed, 12 Jan 2011 16:14:04 +0000

The seabed is surprisingly clean considering the amount of waste, both natural and man-made, that gets dumped in the oceans. So how does the ocean do it?

Evolution Through the Looking Glass

Fri, 21 Jan 2011 11:34:45 +0000

In Lewis Carroll's "Through the Looking-Glass", The Red Queen tells Alice that she has to run as quickly as possible just to stay in the same place. Similarly, biologists coined the phrase "Red Queen Theory" to highlight how all species are in a constant race for survival that ultimately ends with the evolution of a range of new species. Anders Aufderhorst-Roberts finds out how it works.

Photorhabdus luminescens: The Angel's Glow

Thu, 13 Jan 2011 13:28:31 +0000

Microbial warfare is constantly happening all around us, and often humans can reap the benefits if the right bacteria are fighting our corner. One such species, Photorhabdus luminescens, harbours a secret weapon...it glows...

Southern Right Whales

Wed, 5 Jan 2011 14:29:29 +0000

Southern right whales live in the southern oceans that surround Antarctica. In the winter, they move north, settling in the warmer waters around Argentina, Australia and South Africa. Although a major tourist attraction, very little is known about these majestic sea mammals. Richard Lomax, a keen diver and snorkeller from South Africa, tells us about one of his encounters with this elusive whale.

The Magic of Binary

Mon, 10 Jan 2011 11:31:13 +0000

The digital world is all around us, and is becoming evermore layered and integrated into our lives. Technology, computing, the Web and mobile phones, to name but a few, are now accepted parts of our lives, but are not all that well understood. Jeff Zihaly introduces the maths behind your computer screen...

Can Our Oceans Survive the Acid Attack?

Tue, 14 Dec 2010 17:05:23 +0000

As more carbon dioxide is released into the atmosphere, the world's oceans become more acidic, affecting the ability of marine organisms to produce shells. So can these species survive?

Catching Energy From the Sun

Mon, 20 Sep 2010 10:50:20 +0000

Fifty years from now, our kids are going to look incredulously at us and ask - "you burnt things to get electricity?" We'll answer - "yes, but only until we realised how cheap and efficient renewable energy could be." In this article, Niraj Lal looks at a growing part of our electrical future: the solar cell...

Donated to Science

Tue, 11 Jan 2011 13:19:51 +0000

Have you ever wondered why people donate their body to medical science? Or what goes on in the dissection room? Medical student, Katrina Stewart speaks to doctor and film-maker, Paul Trotman, about his new film, Donated to Science. The film explores the journey of body donation from the point of view of both the donors and the students.

How do plants develop?

Thu, 25 Nov 2010 22:18:41 +0000

Plants and animals seem worlds apart, and indeed in many ways they are. Plants don't eat anything more substantial than carbon dioxide, don't move, and even the way they grow and develop is vastly different to us. But despite these differences, in important ways, we are more like plants than we realise, you just have to think about it...

The San Andreas' fault - or ours?

Tue, 7 Dec 2010 11:24:16 +0000

Is earthquake prediction for California truly a problem beyond the powers of science, or is there something that actually can be done, yet isn't? David Nabhan, author and former Earthquake Preparedness Coordinator, delivers a hard-hitting case for determining higher-probability windows for seismic activity on the US West Coast.

Forgotten Knowledge: The Science of Scurvy

Thu, 18 Nov 2010 13:51:49 +0000

Of all the slang names for the British, none is more iconic than 'Limey'. While the the term provokes majestic images of the Golden Age of Sail, scurvy cost countless sailors and seamen their lives. The results of James Lind's work in 1747 led to a cure. Yet in Cherry-Garrard's account of Scott's 1911 expedition to the South Pole, he writes: "There was little scurvy in Nelson's days; but the reason is not clear" So why did Lind's results get forgotten?

The Science of the Supernova

Tue, 9 Nov 2010 21:59:01 +0000

A massive star ends its life with a BANG - a supernova - seen on Earth as bursts of energy in the form of light, including ultraviolet, x-rays and gamma rays. But what can we learn by studying these stellar death throes? Jeannie Moulton ventures into a supernova to find out...

Toxins in Neuroscience Research

Tue, 24 Aug 2010 16:16:26 +0000

Rheanna Sand gives us an insight into how deadly toxins can be used to serve, rather than to harm, humans. She takes a closer look at toxins in neuroscience reasearch and in the development of antivenom...

Donated to Science

Mon, 16 Aug 2010 16:10:48 +0000

Have you ever wondered what happens to a body when it is donated to a medical school? Have you ever wondered what it would be like to be a medical student and to take somebody apart to see how they worked? Now is your chance to find out, thanks to a film from New Zealand...

Lise Meitner: The Nucleus of Fission

Mon, 27 Sep 2010 14:34:44 +0000

Lise Meitner's name is to many an unfamiliar one, occasionally found somewhere amid the pages of a text on nuclear physics and seldom with great acclaim. In truth Lise Meitner was the mother of nuclear fission explaining the process by which atoms may be split to release huge quantities of energy - knowledge which has been harnessed to develop both nuclear reactors and nuclear bombs.

When the Immune System Fails

Mon, 27 Sep 2010 11:02:39 +0000

Unless you're shot in the head or hit by a bus, your immune system has a major and direct influence on your life span! Here, Helen Carter explains what can happen when your immune response goes awry...

No need to change the lightbulb - we already have

Wed, 29 Sep 2010 14:51:16 +0000

First came fire. Cavemen rubbed sticks together and there it was, a source of 'artificial' heat and light, giving us freedom from the night and control over our days. Torches, candles, lanterns and kerosene lamps have each played their part in the evolution of human-controlled light over the last two millennia. In some respects though, the problems with the ways in which the world gets its light, haven't changed since ancient times.

Archimedes: The Original Naked Scientist

Mon, 27 Sep 2010 15:18:41 +0000

The tale of antiquity's greatest mathematician, Archimedes, leaping from his bath and bustling naked through the streets shouting Eureka! endures as a symbol of scientific inspiration. But what insight sent Archimedes on his infamous run? The traditional answer is almost surely wrong.

Humble Honey Bee Helping National Security

Mon, 27 Sep 2010 14:36:40 +0000

Honeybees are being trained to detect drugs and explosives, sometimes at concentrations equivalent to a single grain of salt dissolved in an Olympic-sized swimming pool. But how and why are they being trained? Anna Khot finds out...

Where has all the Antimatter Gone?

Thu, 4 Mar 2010 08:54:45 +0000

Antimatter can make anything - even anybody - vanish merely by touching it. But at the moment antimatter itself appears to have been the victim of an elaborate plot that has led to its own near-complete disappearance. So where are the anti-electrons, the anti-protons, the anti-people and their anti-cups of tea? Veronique Page hunts for clues to explain the absence of antimatter

What is Love?

Thu, 11 Feb 2010 20:45:23 +0000

"Love is the drug and I need to score," sang Bryan Ferry in the seventies, earning him a smash hit and a small fortune. But apart from being a catchy song lyric, this line is also looking like a scientifically-accurate fact of life. So what is the real chemistry that happens when two people click? Chris Smith finds out...

Don't Worry, be Happy!

Thu, 24 Dec 2009 10:38:50 +0000

We're all searching for happiness, but do we really know what this is or where to find it? Douglas E. Richards gives an introduction to the science of happiness and argues that this is a vitally important topic that we, as a society, should be teaching our children...

Silencing Our Science: SOS

Sun, 18 Oct 2009 18:41:08 +0000

It is the stuff of nightmares - a society so wound up in the legal system that no-one is allowed to tell you the truth, or that those with money control state censorship. However, this isn't some John Grisham novel, this is the unfortunate state of the UK libel system today. Here, Harriet Dickinson finds out how it's impacting on the ability of scientists to state the facts...

The Large Hadron Collider (LHC)

Tue, 1 Dec 2009 08:48:37 +0000

The Large Hadron Collider (LHC) at CERN in Switzerland is now back in operation. By smashing particles together at close to the speed of light, it promises to deliver dramatic new insights into the fundamental nature of the matter. Here, Harry Cliff explains how the LHC works and what scientists hope to reveal as they unpick the fabric of the Universe we live in...

Tripping over Psychoactive Toads

Sat, 3 Oct 2009 21:51:02 +0000

For anyone fresh out of frogs and tempted to kiss a toad instead, this article has a word of warning. Although certain species of toads do make hallucinogenic chemicals linked to a lively "trip", many produce a lethal cocktail of cardiotoxic compounds that could turn such a trip into a once in a lifetime experience, en-route to the mortuary. So which toads should you watch out for...?

Deconstructing Chomsky - Re-writing the Innate Rules of Grammar

Sat, 15 Aug 2009 14:27:53 +0000

Noam Chomsky, a rookie professor at MIT, published a ground-breaking book called Syntactic Structures, which set out a theory of Generative Grammar. He suggested that a Universal Grammar (UG) of basic linguistic principles and a Transformational Grammar of rules responsible for putting sentences together was hard wired into all of us. Some don't agree including one Linguist who lived in the Amazon to learn more, as Andrew Caines explains...

Pandemic! - Where do new viral infections come from?

Sat, 15 Aug 2009 14:55:31 +0000

Swine flu, SARS, Bird Flu, HIV, Dengue, Hepatitis C, Ebola - the human race is awash with new infections - but where did they come from and what else may be waiting to pounce? In this article Cambridge University virologist Chris Smith looks at the origins of emerging viral infections...

Once a Knight is Not Enough

Mon, 15 Jun 2009 10:35:15 +0000

Sure, he was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II and has received a number of other honours, but has Sir Tim Berners-Lee yet received his due? Douglas Richards argues that for a man who brought into being a tool - the hypertext language around which the Internet is based - that will have as profound an impact on human civilization as the wheel or electricity, the answer is an emphatic no...

To sit or not to sit

Sun, 17 May 2009 21:33:06 +0000

Is urine bad? Yes, when it ends up on the bathroom floor. What can be done to avoid these unaesthetic accidents? As with many of the challenges confronted by humanity over the millennia, scientific insight might save the day, but the solution will demand a paradigm shift in our excretory habits, as John Gamel explains...

Banana medicine

Sat, 25 Apr 2009 13:18:29 +0000

What will the vaccines of tomorrow look like? Recent advances in crop technology mean that we are able to produce vaccines in plants. But would you eat a vaccine? Harriet Dickinson looks at the pros and cons of this novel method of drug delivery and asks whether this technology will be turning up on the menu any time soon...

What is the Weirdest Experiment Ever?

Mon, 19 Jan 2009 21:49:40 +0000

What happens when a human child grows up with a chimpanzee brother? Does a dog think that a robot dog belongs to the same species? If three men meet who all think they are Jesus, how do they decide who is right? The answers to these questions you can find in by peer reviewed scientific research. Swiss science writer Reto U. Schneider collected them for years and published them in the "The Mad Science Book". Now he is wondering: which one is the weirdest of them all?

Turn on, Tune in, Drop out

Fri, 10 Apr 2009 08:46:13 +0000

In 1943 a chemist working in Basel became the first person to experience the effects of LSD, albeit by accident. But how did he made the drug, where did it originate and how does it work? Philip Strange explains...

What is Dark Matter and Dark Energy?

Mon, 19 Jan 2009 22:05:32 +0000

Physics is full of surprises, but none so great as the discovery that 95% of the mass of the Universe is invisible to us. This is the so-called "Dark Matter" and "Dark Energy", but what are they, and how can we find out...?

Putting the coke in Coke

Tue, 21 Oct 2008 06:56:57 +0000

Surprising as it sounds, one of the world's top tipples a century ago was laced with cocaine. And although the manufacturers have changed the recipe in recent years, Coca Cola is still a market leader, but why was the cocaine there in the first place, and where does the drug come from?

The Ion Channel: Through the Keyhole

Tue, 15 Jul 2008 15:52:10 +0000

Ion channels are miniature pores in the membranes of cells. They're the gatekeepers controlling which ions can move into and out of cells, meaning that they control almost every aspect of life itself. This also means they're important drug targets. But to develop effective and selective agents to hit just the right channel means that scientists need to understand the precise structure and workings of each of them. A daunting task, but now new technology has provided a way to do just that...

Flies are creatures of habit

Thu, 29 May 2008 15:16:04 +0000

Flies are creatures of habit - at least that's what the latest research on the fruit fly Drosophila has found. In this article Bjoern Brembs explains how a marine snail started him on the road to uncover the brain basis of learning...

It Don't Necessarily Glow, Bro!

Wed, 16 Jul 2008 07:51:29 +0000

Simpsons fans will know only too well the opening sequence to the cartoon in which Homer discovers, during his commute, that he's taken some of his work home with him - in the form of a radioactive fuel rod from the nuclear power plant! Unsurprisingly, the lump of material he subsequently throws out of the car window is glowing an ethereal green colour. But therein lies multiple myths of atomic-powered proportions, because most radioactive substances don't really glow at all, let alone light up green!