logo
episode-header-image
Sep 2017
53m 2s

Fidget Spinners in Space?

THE NAKED SCIENTISTS
About this episode
In the latest Q and A show from The Naked Scientists, we answer your questions with the help of an expert panel - plant scientist Beverley Glover, mathematician James Grime, physicist Jess Wade and Angel investor Peter Cowley. What makes plants carnivorous, what's the highest prime number we know of, and how do WWII coding machines work? Plus, how long would a fidget spinner spin for in space, what's the best way to water a plant, and what happened to Google Glass? Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists
Up next
Jul 4
The "Nanny Plate" debate, and the Neanderthal fat factory
In the news, counting the calories: The UK government want shops to help us put 100 fewer calories in our baskets to beat obesity. So will it work? Also, archaeologists uncover the world's oldest fat factory - it turns out that Neanderthals were processing bones for their grease ... Show More
33m 32s
Jul 1
Why proteins matter
This episode was produced and presented by Dr Marushka Soobben, a scientist from South Africa who's been taking part in an internship here at the Naked Scientists. And this week, a journey into the world of proteins. What are they? why do they matter? And why did predicting their ... Show More
29m 30s
Jun 27
Weight loss jab concerns, and crafty bribing caterpillars
In this edition of The Naked Scientists, weight loss jabs being prescribed by GPs in England, but do we know enough about the side effects? Also, a new simple test to replace endoscopies for patients with Barrett's oesophagus. And we hear from one of the engineers at the Vera Rub ... Show More
35m 31s
Recommended Episodes
Aug 2020
What If We Had to Evacuate Earth? - Guest: Bill Nye
Sign up for the Great Courses Plus today and enjoy the first month for free: https://bit.ly/podcast-great-courses-plus We know the history of this planet and asteroids isn't good...just ask the dinosaurs. So, what if we were faced with the same situation now? How much time would ... Show More
34m 10s
Aug 2020
What If You Lived on a Super Earth? - Guest: Dr. Jack Madden
Sign up for Policy Genius today: https://bit.ly/policy-genius-what-if-discussed The Hubble telescope has helped discover over 4100 exoplanets in recent years, some of those being categorized as "Super Earths". But what exactly does that mean? What makes them so "Super"? Are they ... Show More
29m 28s
Nov 2020
What If We Lived in a Closed Biosphere? - with Jane Poynter
In 1991, 8 people walked into the first ever biosphere project, committed to live there, grow their own food, recycle their waste and sustain themselves on limited amounts of oxygen for 2 years. So who better to ask "What If we lived in a closed biosphere than Jane Poynter, one o ... Show More
39m 1s
Mar 2021
Why is it hard to get our head around fungi? (part one)
Our colleagues from The age of extinction, Phoebe Weston and Patrick Greenfield, are back with two new episodes. We often talk as if we know what species exist in the world – but we don’t. Could misclassifying the notoriously cryptic fungi have broader implications for what we kn ... Show More
25m 37s
Nov 2023
Massive mysterious blasts // Colliding neutron stars // Juice | S26E142
The Space News Podcast. SpaceTime Series 26 Episode 142 *Discovery of massive mysterious blasts in the distant universe Astronomers are baffled by a mysterious series of massive explosions in the distant Universe which are emitting more energy than hundreds of billions of stars l ... Show More
35m 48s
Sep 2021
Why Does Cheese Give Us Nightmares?
Why are we seeing more spiders? How do touch screens work? Author of Everything Under the Sun and QI Elf Molly Oldfield joins us on the podcast to uncover the answers to some amazing science questions and we learn all about the deadliest and cutest creature there is!See omnystudi ... Show More
25m 52s
Dec 2020
What If We Settled on an Exoplanet? - with Didier Queloz
Go to www.greenchef.com/WHATIF90 and use code WHATIF90 to get $90 off, including free shipping. It's been a long strange journey for Nobel Prize winning astronomer Didier Queloz. In 1995, he and his team discovered the first "Exosolar Planet" i.e. an Earth-like planet orbiting a ... Show More
34m 49s
Dec 2020
The Space Burrito
Is there a point in space where the Sun could heat a burrito perfectly? asks Will. The doctors tackle this and a plethora of other conundrums from the Curious Cases inbox.Featuring expert answers from astrophysicist Samaya Nissanke, cosmologist Andrew Pontzen, and cognitive neuro ... Show More
27m 28s