Shirtloads Of Science

When Nature magazine published the top 10 researchers of 2017 there was one Australian. A radio astronomer ? no.  A paleontologist? no. She is a professor of Molecular Oncology working with the "the Post-Truth Initiative". Doctor Karl interviews our world leading researcher on how she beat fake science. "Seek and Blast" is the software she helped develop in her spare time. An uplifting story on beating the cheats.

Hypersonic space injection is different. It's fast like a Kangaroo, Air breathing like a lungfish and reusable like a keepcup. UQ's Professor Michael Smart takes Dr Karl through an Australian development that could jumpstart the space program downunder. It has been part of a research program spanning 30 years and Hypersonics could be ready to fly in 5 years says Professor Michael - (with an injection of money).

Dr Karl and Dietetics Professor Claire Collins measure popular weight-loss supplements against the scientific literature. She finds one supplement you could easily overdose on. She finds another that has only ever worked in Japan. How much actual evidence is there ? Save your money and Listen. Proven and affordable solutions are here. 

Infrared Invisibility from Polar Bears, Secret Elephant Sounds and Tentacle Camouflage.

Before the Space Race there was a race to find and name new elements. Atom smashers and reactors were the tools to make new super-heavy metals - unknown on earth. Who leaked the announcement of two new radioactive elements on a Children's Quiz show ? Transfermium wars - What were they ? Who died getting Einsteinium ? Chemistry World journalist and author, Kit Chapman, tells Dr Karl about the people behind the unpronounceable names with big atomic numbers at the bottom of the table and the race that is still running. 

Before the Space Race began there was a chemistry race - the hunt for new elements. The Russians may have organised the periodic table but it was the Americans that began filling in the blanks. These heavy elements could not be found in nature, you had to create them in cyclotrons and reactors. Chemistry World journalist and author, Kit Chapman, tells Dr Karl about the people behind the 20 or so unpronounceable names at the bottom of the table. In this podcast we count up from atomic number 93. Who wrote a personal letter to Stalin urging a soviet atomic program ? What was the Frankenstein-like moment in San Francisco (just before Pearl Harbour) that changed the war? Which superhero prompted the raid on the offices of DC Comics ?

Lose weight by drinking special Tea - that sounds easy... but is it good ? Dietetics professor Clare Collins, takes Dr Karl through seven Botanical tinctures that make this claim. Snake Oil or Science ?   http://theconversation.com/science-or-snake-oil-do-skinny-teas-boost-weight-loss-87353 https://www.newcastle.edu.au/online-learning/moocs/the-science-of-weight-loss

The stars at night are only a fraction of what we know should be there. So where are all those missing bits from our universe? This is a lifelong quest for Professor James Green from Colorado University in Boulder. Since his student days, he has been designing payloads for NASA rockets (and the Hubble space telescope) looking at invisible stuff. So how do you see in the cold black soup of space? What is a Sounding Rocket?  Why do Wimps beat Macho's ? These and many more questions are answered in Dr Karl's latest podcast. 

What would a biohacked future look like ? What would stop Supervillians creating seceret labs ?  Who polices the Cyborgs ? What is the controversial 5th pillar of biohacking ? Doctor Karl and Australia's most famous biohacker discuss.

Imagine visiting a doctor in the not too distant future. Afterwards she sends off data to a local gene lab to give your body a small upgrade. This is the world of biohacking. A place where biololgy is being controlled and shaped to our will - just like we have mastered computers. This episode bounces from In-Vivo to In-Silico and back again, visits the Last Universal Common Ancestor and involves a real human cyborg. Doctor Karl and Mr Meow Meow (Australia's most famous biohacker) explain this brave new world. Part One of a two part podcast.

Doctor Alice on Interstellar Chemistry. Doctor Karl answers the vital question "Do Fish Drink?". Dr Almost Jessica on where it is best to listen to podcasts.  A Deep edition. The Shirtloads podcast Team back for 2018.

Doctor Karl takes the Healthy Eating Quiz followed by a dietary checkup with Professor Claire Collins. Have you tried being Flexetarian ? 24 minutes of simple, healthy, free and inspiring suggestions. For maximum effect take the quiz before the podcast and compare your score with the Doctors.  healthyeatingquiz.com.au

From Floppy Hats, to Firebirds, The Dark Knight and the Broken Escalator Phenomenon. Doctor Karl is joined by Alice and Jessica as the explore the science behind three observed phenomena. The fire carrying birds of Northern Australia, the dark orbiter that will not die and why people brace themselves when there is no apparent danger.

Econobabble is an invented language that deliberately obscures what you think words describe. Words like "unemployment" and "subsidy" are simple at first glance. Wait till you find out what they really mean ! Are you wasting your time looking for certain jobs, investing your savings in the wrong place or voting against you best interests? Are your definitions up to date? 1962, William S. Burroughs suggested that language could be a virus in his book "The Ticket That Exploded". This 30 minute podcast might be the inoculation you've been looking for.  Note: Statistics and examples are for illustrative purposes only. Some are out of date and possibly wrong. The interview was recorded this in late 2017 before the Queensland state election. 

August 17 2017 will go down in in Astrophysics history . A LIGO event triggered a 50 telescope 24 hour 360 degree operation which yielded astronomy gold.  Prof Tara Murphy was at ground zero when the results came in but she would have to be patient for the ripples to show up on Australian Radio Telescopes. In the data was the solution to a Cold war mystery. A compelling first hand account of a new frontier of discovery. 

If every death was a good death, then euthenasia would be widespread. Today most countries ban it. Why? Professor Linda Shields has unearthed some of the reasons and they are within living memory. She is a Professor of Rural Health and has written of an under-reported genocide.  One-third of a million disabled people (adults and children, male and female, physical and intellectual)  were killed during the Nazi regime and the people who did that killing were nurses. Her book is Nurses and Midwives in Nazi Germany: The "Euthanasia Programs. 

Dietitian, Care Collins gives Dr Karl a full 360 on a diet that is getting researchers pumped up. Imagine a menu that stimulated the blood brain barrier, made you think you were full early and might starve cancer cells. Sounds good but there are dangerous side effects in the long term. Ketogenic is a medical diet, is difficult to stick with and may actually have no long term weight loss benefits.  

We are what we eat. Organic, low fat, pesticide-free, High Fibre ; Consumers pay extra for foods with health benefits like these. But when food is packaged, how do you know what is really inside ? Welcome to the world of Food Fraud. This Shirtloads podcast stars two British Scientists who have investigated and written about it in their book "Sorting the Beef from the Bull". Bio-Geo-Chemist Richard Evershead and Biologist Nicola Temple expose food criminals with forensic science. (first podcast in 2017)

Marine biologist, diver and author Dr Helen Scales takes Dr Karl deep beneath the waves to share her passion for the ocean. Helen talks about the secret life of molluscs (shellfish). Hear about ‘clacking’ oysters, the legend of the Golden Fleece (sea silk) and a creature resembling a pinecone crossbred with a slug. There’s maths in the spirals, slave trading in the cowrie and just imagine a Harry Potter golden snitch of the sea… it’s real and plays an incredibly important role.

  Dr Karl and Dr Alice put their heads together to discuss the latest research into hairy leaves and burning plants?  Dr Karl’s amazing fruit and veggie classification system. What do killer kangaroos have to do with sleeping in an unfamiliar bed? And, if you talk to dogs (like Dr Alice does) there’s an experiment you might just want to try. Listen up as two Doctors tackle these and more. (First Podcast in 2016)