Synopsis
Jonathan McCrea brings you the latest developments from the world of Science and Technology from robotics in warfare to artificial lifeforms and beyond
Episodes
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Creating Toothpaste Made From Hair
31/08/2025 Duration: 35minGuests:Dr Sherif Elsharkawy, Senior Clinical Lecturer in Prosthodontics, at the Faculty of Dentistry, Oral & Craniofacial Sciences at King's College LondonDr Shelley Brady of DCUProfessor Oran Kennedy of the RCSI
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Extra: Eirsat-1 and The Future of Irish Satellites
26/08/2025 Duration: 15minWith Dr David McKeown, Assistant Professor at the UCD Centre for Space Research.
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Attacking Cancer: CAR T-Cell Therapy
26/08/2025 Duration: 36minWith Dr Larry Bacon, Consultant Haematologist from St James’s Hospital, and Dr Nicola Gardiner, Chief Medical Scientist at the Cryobiology Laboratory Stem Cell Facility at St James’s.Newsround with Dr Ruth Freeman from Research Ireland and science communicator Fergus McAuliffe.
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Extra: Is slowing down ageing possible?
19/08/2025 Duration: 12minGuest: Eamonn Mallon, Professor of Evolutionary Biology at the University of Leicester
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The science behind memory distortion
17/08/2025 Duration: 38minGuests:Ciara Greene, Associate Professor in the School of Psychology at UCD, where she heads up the Attention and Memory LaboratoryDr Lara Dungan, ImmunologistDr Tara Shine of Change By Degrees
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Extra: Advances In Ophthalmic Medicine and Eyecare
12/08/2025 Duration: 11minGuest: Patrick Condon, former Consultant Ophthalmic Surgeon at University Hospital Waterford and author of ‘Eye Healthcare – 90 Years of Progress’
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Can brain stimulation cure addiction?
11/08/2025 Duration: 38minGuests:Yale Neuroscientist Vaughn SteeleDr Shane Bergin, UCDSciene Writer Dr Claire O'Connell
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Could colour be the answer to reviving marine life?
03/08/2025 Duration: 27minGuests:Holly CunninghamScience Communicator Eoin MurphySusan Kelleher, DCU
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Extra: The role of mitochondria in why we need sleep
29/07/2025 Duration: 13minGuest: Gero Miesenböck of Oxford University
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What determines the birth sex of a child?
27/07/2025 Duration: 32minGuests:Siwen Wang, Harvard UniversityDr Ruth Freeman, Research IrelandDr Susan Kelleher, DCU
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Extra: Why newborns feel pain differently to adults
22/07/2025 Duration: 13minGuest: Professor Lorenzo Fabrizi, Professor of Developmental Systems Neuroscience at University College London
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Biggest human imaging study completes scan of 100,000 people
20/07/2025 Duration: 37minGuests:Kevin O'Sullivan of The Irish TimesCatherine McGuinness, Science CommunicatorProfessor Naomi Allen, Chief Scientist at UK Biobank and Professor in Epidemiology at the University of Oxford
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Extra: Diabetes - could there be a cure?
15/07/2025 Duration: 14minGuest: Dr Simon Piggott, Clinical Research Fellow with the Diabetes Complications Research Centre at the Conway Institute, UCD
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Why are some species better at fooling predators?
13/07/2025 Duration: 32minGuests:Science Communicator Eoin MurphyDCU's Shelley BradyDr Tom Reader, Evolutionary and Behavioural Ecologist, University of Nottingham
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Extra: How Does Pure Mathematics Shape Our World?
08/07/2025 Duration: 13minIs maths just about numbers and equations? Not even close. Today we’re exploring the hidden power of mathematical thinking with Junaid Mubeen, mathematician and author of Think Like a Mathematician. From decoding conspiracy theories to escaping political echo chambers, calculus and dimensionality shape the way we see the world, even if we don’t realise it.
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Extra: Did black holes create dark matter?
02/07/2025 Duration: 14minWe recently got an email in from a listener to the show about a topic they thought we should cover, and we’d encourage you to get in touch too if there is something you’d like to learn more about – science@newstalk.com. The email was from Dr John Regan, the Royal Society - SFI University Research Fellow in the Department of Theoretical Physics at Maynooth University.He said: “One of the postdocs in my group recently published a paper on Primordial Black Holes left over from the Big Bang being possible ‘seeds’ for super massive black holes. The JWST (James Webb Space Telescope) has, over the last two-three years, been discovering way more and way more massive black holes than was expected.In short, the results from the very early Universe being returned from JWST are both puzzling and electrifying. Primordial black holes may explain some of these results (as well as possibly being a candidate for dark matter)! I think this would be a very cool topic for Futureproof. I would be delighted to discuss these r
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Can we programme life like software?
02/07/2025 Duration: 31minCan life be programmed like software? Synthetic biology says yes. We’re entering an era where DNA is code and biology is becoming a programmable platform. You can now order synthetic DNA online and use AI to design brand-new proteins. Today, we’re diving into the frontlines of this biotech revolution — and joining us is microbiologist, geneticist, and futurist Andrew Hessel to explore what’s possible now and what’s coming next.Also featured in Newsround are Dr Shelley Brady of DCU and Dr Shane Bergin of UCD.
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Extra: How do new planets form?
24/06/2025 Duration: 16minGuest: Dr Christian Ginski, School of Natural Sciences at the University of Galway
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Vacuuming DNA & Is the ocean darkening?
22/06/2025 Duration: 29minGuests:Dr David Duffy, Assistant Professor of Wildlife Disease Genomics at the University of FloridaDr Thomas Davies, Associate Professor of Marine Conservation at the University of Plymouth