logo
episode-header-image
Feb 2024
52m 41s

Whale songs, fake fossils and "Forever C...

Bbc Radio 5 Live
About this episode

Dr Chris Smith and the Naked Scientist team present the latest science news, analysis and breakthroughs,

In this week's episode...scientists unveil prehistoric cases of Down’s syndrome, but how did they find them? How whales really produce whale songs and the famous fake fossil that foxed palaeontologists for the best part of a century. Plus we’re taking a look at the so called “Forever Chemicals”…what are they? And how they might be damaging for us and the environment.

Get the podcast from the BBC Sounds app.

Up next
Jan 2025
Titans of Science: Marc Abrahams
Dr Chris Smith and the Naked Scientist team present the latest science news, analysis and breakthroughs.Including the news that the US has recorded their first human death from bird flu, and should we be concerned? Plus a new drug to treat drug resistant prostate cancer, and new ... Show More
51m 30s
Jan 2025
Titans of Science: David Baker
Dr Chris Smith and the Naked Scientists look at the year ahead, and asking leading experts from the world of science what we can expect to hear about in 2025.Plus, a conversation with the 2024 chemistry Nobel laureate David Baker, about his pioneering working on proteins. 
51m 17s
Dec 2024
Titans of Science: Jocelyn Bell Burnell
Dr Chris Smith and the Naked Scientists look back at the year in science, and ask leading experts in the fields of health, AI, space, marine science, and archaeology for their standout moments that defined 2024.Plus, Titans of Science returns with a look at pioneering astrophysic ... Show More
51m 45s
Recommended Episodes
Dec 2024
'They Might Be Giants' Sings About Science
As part of Science Friday’s 33rd anniversary show, we’re revisiting our listeners’ favorite stories, including this one from 2009.In the album “Here Comes Science,” the band They Might Be Giants tackled the scientific process, plasma physics, the role of blood in the body, and th ... Show More
26m 44s
Jan 2025
Titans of Science: Antje Boetius
Titans of Science continues with the microbiologist who discovered how an extraordinary relationship between two methane-eating seafloor species has shaped the world we know today. To explain that and much more is the ocean aficionado Antje Boetius... Like this podcast? Please he ... Show More
30m 49s
Dec 2021
Top Human Origins Discoveries of 2021
2021 was a big year in science! Fossil discoveries introduced new relatives to our family tree, new findings added fascinating twists to the human story, and breakthroughs in research methods opened new worlds to explore. In this episode, five scientists discuss their favorite hu ... Show More
31m 16s
Sep 2023
Embryo Model, Sweat, Whale Vocal Fry. September 8, 2023, Part 1
Scientists Develop Human Embryo Model Without Sperm Or EggsThis week, research published in the journal Nature detailed a model of a 14-day old human embryo created without using sperm or eggs. The hope is to shine a light into a previously unavailable window of an embryo’s devel ... Show More
47m 7s
Aug 2023
Old Things Considered: La Brea, Megalodon, Dino Footprints, Surviving History. Aug 25, 2023, Part 2
How Early Humans May Have Transformed L.A.’s Landscape ForeverJoin us on a time traveling adventure, as we go back 15,000 years to visit what’s now southern California. During the last Ice Age, saber-toothed cats, wooly mammoths, and dire wolves prowled the landscape, until … the ... Show More
47m 16s
Mar 2024
Laboratory-Grown Meat
Professor Ben Garrod guest presents. As a new 'meaty rice' is created and Fortnum & Mason launch a scotch egg made with cultivated meat that they hope to have on sale as early as next year, we investigate the world of laboratory-grown meat. Mark Post made the first ever synthetic ... Show More
28m 10s
Aug 2024
Mpox crisis deepens, and liquid water on Mars
In the news, we speak to the WHO about the rise in cases of the new variant of Mpox. Also, the final piece of Stonehenge is traced back to its origin, and Nasa's InSight lander finds evidence of liquid water on Mars. Plus, how horses almost deceived scientists into believing they ... Show More
32m 23s
Jan 2023
Top Human Origins Discoveries of 2022
2022 was another exciting year in human origins research! New fossil discoveries and ancient DNA research expanded our understanding of the past. We learned something surprising about the evolution of human speech, and new methodologies and showed promising potential to improve t ... Show More
35m 5s
Aug 2024
The not-so-secret life of plants
From the perspective of Western science, plants have long been considered unaware, passive life forms; essentially, rocks that happen to grow. But there’s something in the air in the world of plant science. New research suggests that plants are aware of the world around them to a ... Show More
35m 49s