Fuzzy Logic Science Show

Month by month, we continue to break climate records with a run of heatwaves in Australia, with 46 degrees C in Adelaide this week. Meanwhile in the US, changing climate patterns is allowing cold air to leak southwards resulting in insane conditions in cities such as Chicago. So how do we talk about this without inflicting mass depression? How do we reach those who say that climate change is a socialist hoax or just a bunch of lab coats feather bedding their research grants? These are questions occupying our guest today, Nic Badullovich (@geo_nic), who's re recently launched into his PhD at @ANU_CPAS. Interview by Rod @FuzzyLogicSci

Here's a scientific problem: how can you learn about a situation where the data is unreliable, the system is really complicated, and the outcome is hard to measure? This is what researchers such as Prof Panagiotakos face when they study the health effects of nutrition. People are inclined to give untrustworthy answers about what they eat; the human body is an extremely complex physical and chemical system, even before we talk psychology. And if that's not enough, how do you measure health? Prof Panagiotakos is the Dean of School of Health Science & Education, at Harokopio University in Athens. In this interview with Rod, he describes the huge ATHLOS worldwide study into aging.

What does it mean to have a Big Australia? Kelvin Thomson was the Labor member for Wills in Victoria from 1996 to 2016, and was outspoken on the issue of population. In this 2012 interview with Rod, he reflects on his life in politics, the environment, and what population growth is doing to the planet and Australia. Australia's population 2012:  22.9 million  2018: 24.7 million  - ie growth almost the population of Perth  

This week, Broderick talks about all the latest in science news from whale song to dust storms, cubic poos to fake news. There's plenty to hear including the scat scat!

Fuzzy is doing some fieldwork this week! We head out with Cale Matthews, an honours student from Flinders University, who shares some tales from the field catching bees in Fiji. We also discuss cuttlefish, native tarantulas and coincidental birthdays on this day. This episode presented by Broderick and Jill.

What would you do with a really big computer? It's an interesting thought but it almost misses the point because - what we do without one? The super computer at the NCI in Canberra is about far more than intellectual curiosity. Models that give us a seven-day weather forcast are developed on this computer. Weather leads to climate, and climate leads to the environment, water, and productivity in agriculture. Now of all times, this provides crucial information for our future. Then there's health research in fields such as genetics. Our guest today is NCI Director, Professor Sean Smith whose own research history is in nanomaterials - a field that offers the prospect of clean hydrogen fuel. Read more about Raijin and weather forcasting in our Ask Fuzzy column in Fairfax. Interview by Rod. @FuzzyLogicSci

So who says you're unwell? A doctor? Your insurance company? You? Your boss? What makes a disease is a slippery slope of definition, and not for the faint hearted (which could itself be a disease). It makes a vast difference to how - or whether - you're treated. Do you get a day off work? Will you insurance company cover you? Just as important perhaps, it affects your own well-being, and your perception of whether it's okay to feel crap. Or whether you're a shirker, a malingerer and a sponge bunging on a sickie. This is no trivial question if you've been told to get over it, come back tomorrow. Mike McRae is author of Unwell, What makes a disease a disease. Recommended. We are joined by first year medical student, Eliza who gives us her perspective on childbirth and pain relief. Interview by Rod.  

Worried about having enough vitamins and minerals in your diet? Easy! Here's a pill. Problem solved....maybe. The vitamins and supplements industry is huge: this year, global sales will be about $100 billion, and almost a billion of us take one regularly. Think about what all that clever marketing does for sales. Dr Derek Muller digs into this tangled pile in the new documentary, Vitamania. He travels the world, speaking to experts in every country. Along the way he learned what too much vitamin D can do, nuts in space, and...rotten fish. Interview by Rod, via phone. Derek Muller will appear on stage for his debut Australian tour, along with the premiere of Vitamania: . 30 July in Perth . 2 August in Sydney . 3 August in Melbourne . Or watch it on Sunday, August 12 on SBS at 8.30pm;  and then on SBS On Demand www.VitamaniaTheMovie.com

The idea of the 'greenhouse effect' goes back to the mid 1800s but back then, it was a theory. Now we know it's real. The evidence has been clear for a long while, so what's happening? We are playing fast and loose with the climate system. To help us navigate this maze, we are joined by Professor Mark Howden, Director of the ANU Climate Institute and Dr Liz Allen, a demographer. We talk about what's happening while human population is climbing rapidly. How are we going to feed ourselves? But is it all gloom - what can we actually do? And how do we connect with....political...leadership? Interview by Rod  

As you're reading this text, or listening to this podcast - you're paying attention. That's the skill you need to absorb critical information in a dense, overcrowded world. Filter the noise, ignore the distractions and focus on the thing that's going to earn you your lunch. Or help you evade the huge, pointy teeth and becoming some one else's lunch. Rebecca Lawrence is in her 3rd hear PhD research at the ANU where she's probing into our ability to focus attention. During the show she mentions a visual illusion that tells us something about how cultural background affects what we see  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/M%C3%BCller-Lyer_illusion If you want to be part of Rebecca's research, contact her at Rebecca.Lawrence@anu.edu.au.  It'll take about half an hour and have some fun along the way. You're eligible if you're •    18 – 40 years of age •    Have normal or corrected to normal vision •    Identify as being from an East Asian, or Western cultural background. Interview by Rod, with guest Caitlin Roy

Want to see the future of medicine? Then tap into a conference such as the New Investigator Forum run each year by Australian Society for Medical Research. We visited last week to see what they're up to on a wide range of research areas including immunology, personalised medicine, and nuclear imaging technology. In this podcast you'll hear   Dr Benjamin Beobrajdic   Dr Bahar Miraghazadeh   Christine Lee   Zhija Yu   Dr Si Ming Man   Josehine Wong   Dr Farzarneh Kordbacheh   Tasneem Rahman Interviews by Rod  @FuzzyLogicSci  

Single photons? It's surprising but yes, that's what this imaging technology uses. SPECT - Single Photon Emis­sion Com­puted Tomo­graphy - is a type of nuclear medicine that helps diagnose conditions such as cancer.     Tasneem Rahman is a  postdoctoral research fellow at the UNSW is researching the use of L-SPECT which offers considerable improvements in the technology. If you've ever needed a body scan, you can thank people such as Tasneem who make this possible. Watch her TEDx talk where she describes her interesting background and motivations. Tasneem loves cricket. In this episode we talk about the physics of cricket and our Ask Fuzzy on the subject. Brought to you by Madeleine and Rod.  @FuzzyLogicSci   Register for the AMSR New Investigator Forum: asmr.org.au/asmr-mrw/canberra 7th June 2018 John Curtin School of Medical Research      

Regeneration, reproudction, recreation. Jill and Broderick talk about all these and more on today's show which is bound to reenlighten you!

This week on Fuzzy Logic Andy and Broderick discuss the world of insects from how it feels when they bite us, bite each other and when we bite them!

Want to peer into the depths of space? It's kinda handy if you don't have a bunch of atmosphere in the way but space telescopes are expensive. Cheaper to use a ballon. Ryan Ridden-Harper is researching this for his PhD at the ANU. And...why did Einstein get a paper rejected? Brought to you by Andy and Rod. @FuzzyLogicSci

On a windy Canberra day we grabbed a quick interview with speakers at the Canberra March for Science. Professor Frank Bowden, Dr Emma-Kate Potter and Dr Wendy Elford. Fuzzy Logic is an enthusiastic supporter of #MarchForScience.  Read about the march in the Canberra Times. #MarchForScienceCBR  @ScienceMarchAu   Interviews by Rod    @FuzzyLogicSci

What's science ever done for us? We could be here all day answering that question, but one place to start is your breakfast. Today we look at some of the good things science is doing, especially around our marine and coastal environments. Grab shell, dudes. Andrew Leach's qualifications include marine science as well as conversation programs to protect species such as turtles and fish. We celebrate science leading up to the March for Science. Look out for events near you (14 April in Canberra) #MarchForScience   @FuzzyLogicSci With Andy & Rod  

Some diseases get a lot of attention but it's easy to lose site of the big killers. Malaria has been around for at least 4,000 years and a Chinese medical document from 2700 BC describes the symptoms. The name mal-aria literally means 'bad song'. It has proven a tough customer with its ability to sidestep the body's immune system. Harry Sutton is researching ways to combat malaria as part of his PhD at the John Curtin School of Medical Research @JSCMR. You can read his account in our Ask Fuzzy. Brought to you by Andy Leach and Rod. @FuzzyLogicSci        

On the surface, Toby Hendy and Tom Body are working on wildly different fields...but both are interested in walls. Or barriers. To invade a plant cell, a pathogen has to punch its way through the cell's wall. One way they do that is by physical force. Toby studies how cells respond to something pushing on their surface. Hint: it involves needles. Very. Small. Needles. Tom is all so studying walls - but for him the walls are a fusion reactor. How do you put the Sun in a bottle? Hint: it's tricky and a bit like an air bag. Tom is about to head off to the presitgious Max Planck institute. So what's a day like on Fuzzy Logic? Keep an eye out for Toby's Youtube. Brought to you by Rod @FuzzyLogicSci with Andrew Leach.

On this weeks episode, Jill and Broderick talk about the science behind all those things that typically happen in summer. Why does sunburn peel? And how can going for a jog bring down the US military? Tune in to find out more!