Science Podcasts

Twenty years ago, gene therapy was a great hope for the future of medicine - progress has been slow but things may now...

What causes itching? Can parasites manipulate our behaviour? Why do we yawn?

This week a program reportedly passed the 'Turing test'. But what does this actually mean?

Brian Clegg holds his nose to examine one of the real workhorses of the organic chemistry lab: Pyridine

The neuroscience of chewing, sleeping sickness, the proteins that move molecules around cells, skin cancer, and the...

We investigate how scientists are designing new ways to preserve vaccines, probiotic bacteria, enzymes in washing...

How to build a the ultimate spaceship, what it's like to drown in space and Google's new satellite.

Would a scattering of your beloved's ashes be good for plant growth?

Did violence shape our faces? Study shows skulls evolved to protect against punches...

Are we one step closer to finding extra-terrestrials? Astronomers have just discovered the 'Godzilla of Earths...

Are mothballs poisonous? How do chameleons change colour? Why do people open their mouth when they apply mascara? What...

Gannets are using fishing boats as fast-food outlets, as Thomas Bodey explains...

Does Nicolas Cage cause swimming pool deaths? Does margarine consumption cause divorce? Tyler Vigen explains why...

Nathan Adams investigates some of the most important molecular machines within our cells, the cytochrome p450 enzymes

This week, the 'Godfather of ecstasy', who made and tested over 200 psychoactive substances, died peacefully...

Making brainwaves: how the baby brain develops, how the teenage mind differs and ways to improve your memory...

What does coffee do to my heart rate? Why are hailstones round? How do you avoid getting seasick? Are energy drinks bad...

Brian Clegg reminisces about indoor fireworks and Vesuvian fire with this week's compound: Ammonium dichromate

In a special ethics show, we discuss how we decide which drugs our health services can afford and what are the limits...

Are there antimatter galaxies out there? What would they look like? And how would we tell they exist? We find out!

What sort of star is the Sun? How are calories in food calculated? What gives water its colour? What is sleep paralysis?

Meet melatonin, the 'Dracula of hormones', essential in regulating the body's natural circadian rhythm

This week, a farm worker in Argentina stumbled upon a bone belonging to the largest dinosaur to have ever walked the...

Do environmental pollutants play a role? Is it simply extreme male behaviours? And can we diagnose babies before they...