Yesterday

Old faces and big spaces in small places

The 2025 Nobel prizes are announced this week – how did Science in Action’s predictions fare? Science author and thinker Philip Ball judges.Also, a new “Human Disease Blood Atlas” gets a boost, as described by Mathias Uhlén of SciLifeLab.Meanwhile Nozair Khawaja of Free Universit ... Show More

31m 57s

Oct 2

A mystery satellite has been jamming GPS in Europe

Scientists detect for the first time an unknown source of GPS interference coming from space. Also, as AI begins to design more and more DNA sequences being manufactured synthetically, how can those manufacturers be sure that what their customers are asking for will not produce t ... Show More

36m 3s

Sep 25

Autism and the epigenetics of early brain development

Epigenetic changes during early brain development, and the complexities of autism. Also, how bacteria learn to parry antibiotics, the subterranean burp that shook the Island of Santorini, and new guidance for sharing land between farming space and living space for the pollinators ... Show More

36m 15s

Dec 2021

Omicron’s rapid replication rate

A study from Hong Kong university shows Omicron replicates 70 times faster than two earlier variants of the SARS-Cov-2 virus. Virologist Malik Peiris, explains how tests using cells from the wind pipe showed the dramatic difference, which supports observations of increased transm ... Show More

1h 3m

Dec 2021

Initial Omicron Lab Data, Creative Naps, and Fishy Sounds.

T-Cells in vaccinated people may be holding the fort, or at least fighting serious illness, against the latest SARS CoV2 variant. Also, how the briefest of sleeps aids creativity.Prof Penny Moore, of South Africa’s National Centre for Infectious Disease and Witwatersrand Universi ... Show More

30m 42s

Mar 2023

How to build a virus-proof cell

00:47 An edited genetic code that prevents viral infectionResearchers have engineered bacteria with synthetic genomes to be immune to viral infection. The team streamlined the bacteria’s genetic code, and re-engineered the protein-producing machinery to insert the wrong amino aci ... Show More

31m 38s

Nov 2021

What We Know About the Omicron Variant

The story of the Omicron variant began a week ago, when researchers in southern Africa detected a version of the coronavirus that carried 50 mutations. When scientists look at coronavirus mutations, they worry about three things: Is the new variant more contagious? Is it going to ... Show More

20m 50s

Mar 2023

Our Microbes and Our Health

We are a teeming mass of interconnected microbes and the impact of this microscopic universe on our health, our minds, even our moods, is profound.Made in collaboration with Wellcome Collection, Claudia Hammond and an expert panel explore one of the fastest moving areas of scienc ... Show More

49m 28s

Sep 2021

New evidence for SARS-CoV-2’s origin in bats

Researchers studying bats in Northern Laos have found evidence that brings us closer than ever to understanding the origin of Covid-19. Since the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic scientists have tried to pin-point the exact origin of SARS-CoV-2. But recent evidence from the ... Show More

1h 3m

Jan 2022

Have we got it wrong on Omicron?

Studies using swabs from coronavirus patients seem to contradict earlier findings from cell cultures which showed Omicon replicated faster than earlier variants. As Benjamin Meyer from the centre for Vaccinology at the University of Geneva, explains there may be other reasons why ... Show More

57m 34s

Apr 2024

Inside Your Microbiome

Microbiomes are a multi-million-pound industry. Every week, many people send off poop samples to be examined so we can learn about our own ecosystems of bacteria, virus and fungi that live in our guts, with a view to improving health. But how accurate are these tests? Microbiolog ... Show More

28m 10s

Jan 2022

Why Omicron Is Counterintuitive

The Omicron variant is fueling record-breaking cases across the world and disrupting life. But it may not present as great a danger of hospitalization and severe illness as earlier variants. We explore why this is and what it means for the next stage of the pandemic.Guest: Carl Z ... Show More

26m 54s

May 2024

Dad's microbiome can affect offsprings' health — in mice

In this episode:00:46 Using genomics to explain geographic differences in cancer riskThe risk of developing cancer can vary hugely depending on geographic region, but it’s not exactly clear why. To get a better idea, a team has compared the genomes of kidney cancers taken from pe ... Show More

25m 14s