Naked Scientists Special Editions Podcast

This week the UK science minister, Jo Johnson, was in Cambridge where he announced an initiative to pump 21 million into seven key research programmes intended to tackle some of the leading scientific and engineering challenges facing the world. The funding will come from the UK's Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council, the EPSRC. Professor Philip Nelson is the EPSRC's chief executive, and he spoke to Kat Arney about how the projects were selected... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

You know when after a run you feel great? Well previously scientists thought this runners' high was down to endorphins, but this may not be the case. Johannes Fuss from the University of Heidelberg found that mice that ran around all day felt less pain and less anxiety - key features of a runner's high. However, this feel good sensation wasn't down to endorphins, but endocannabinoids - the same chemicals that come from smoking cannabis! Rosalind Davies jogged on over to find out more... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

The Human Connectome Project has collected data of hundreds of individuals ranging from brain imaging to genetic and lifestyle information. Now researchers from the University of Oxford have used this information to see how much our lifestyle choices and personality traits are reflected in our brains. Karla Miller explained their findings to Connie Orbach. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Every day millions of people are moving around the world by air, land and sea, but they may be bringing with them more than just their luggage. For example, during last year's ebola outbreak, there were concerns that air travel would spread the disease from west Africa to other countries, sparking a global pandemic. But were these worries justified? By studying the patterns of 187 diseases in 225 countries, Kris Murray and his team at Imperial College have discovered that it's geography, rather than air travel, that's the most important factor, as he explained to Kat Arney. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Fossils have long been used to help us piece together the size and shape of extinct animals, but the colours of these animals has, until now, been something of a mystery. Now researchers from the University of Bristol have detected the chemical signatures of the original melanin pigments in ancient bat fossils. Charis Lestrange spoke with Jakob Vinther to hear how... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

This week, with the Rugby World Cup in full swing, the sports chief medical officer, Martin Raftery has called for changes to be made to the rules in order to cut the number of concussions suffered by players. Concussion occurs when the brain is shaken around inside the skull. This damages nerve cells and blood vessels, and the effects of the damage are worse if a person is already suffering from a prior concussion. Finding ways to spot who is concussed, and when it's safe for them to play on, is a priority. Ginny Smith spoke to two scientists studying concussion. First, Michael Grey, from the... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Solar power is growing in popularity around the world, with huge solar farms springing up all over the place. Obviously, solar panels need as much sunlight as possible, but this also means that they heat up, limiting their efficiency at converting sunlight into electricity. This conundrum may now be solved, thanks to a clever coating designed by Aaswath Raman and his colleagues at Stanford University. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Sitting for long periods of time has long been associated with negative health effects and is thought to slow down your metabolism. However new research suggests that the movements linked with fidgeting could offset these negative effects. Charis Lestrange spoke with Professor Janet Cade about how fidgeting could potentially prolong your life. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Earmarked for 2024, the European- Extremely Large Telescope will be the biggest telescope in the world. The primary mirror is 39 metres across and capable of collecting as much light at once as all the other telescopes that mankind has ever built put together. The University of Oxford have been awarded the contract to build the telescope's new spectrograph, an instrument called HARMONI. Connie Orbach spoke to HARMONI'S principal investigator Niranjan Thatte to find out what it will do. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Scientists have announced a revolution in 3D printing. Rather than building things up layer by layer, which is the traditional approach, University of Florida scientist Tommy Angelini prints things inside a gel material using a hollow needle. The gel contains tiny particles that mean it moves easily when pushed by the needle but otherwise remains as a solid, supporting whatever has been printed inside it. Right now it reproducibly prints tumours for testing anti-cancer drugs; long term, entire human organs look likely. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

You may never have heard of the disease lymphatic filariasis, but it affects 120 million people in 70 countries around the world, causing dramatic swelling of the limbs and other parts of the body, known as elephantiasis.It's caused by tiny parasitic worms, transmitted between people by mosquito bites, which can lie low in the body for many years, hiding from the immune system.But how do they do that? Kat Arney spoke to Michael Kimber from Iowa State University to find out. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Scientists in America have helped a paralysed man to take his first steps in over 5 years. They've done it by developing a system that eavesdrops on the patient's brainwaves and can detect when he wants to walk. The computer then activates a stimulator system that can signal the patient's leg muscles to move, enabling him to stand, and then walk unaided. The device, which is the first of its kind, provides a way for patients paralysed by spinal cord injuries to bypass the roadblock preventing the flow of instructions from the brain to motor nerves and muscles and recover their ability to move.... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Does being a good parent shorten your lifespan? It turns out the answer is yes, at least if you're a burying beetle. Results from researchers at The University of Cambridge published this week show that beetles can sacrifice their own fitness for the good of their offspring. Rosalind Davies went to speak to Professor Rebecca Kilner to find out more. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

It has been found that endangered Asian elephants age faster and have fewer offspring if their mothers are stressed when they are born. Researchers at the University of Sheffield measured a hormone associated with stress to determine the time of year that the elephants most feel the pressure. Charis Lestrange spoke with lead author Hannah Mumby to find out more. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

People can spend their lives looking for love. We go on awkward dates and let our friends set us up with complete strangers. All in the hope of finding 'the one'.But what's the point of it all? Why do we bother? If all we're supposed to do is continue our species surely we're better off just picking someone half-decent and making do.Now scientists in Germany have found that, for zebra finches at least, there is a point to love... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Early intervention is likely to be critical for preventing many age-related diseases; but detecting these diseases at a sufficiently early stage to make a difference is often problematic. Now this may be about to change, because scientists in the UK have identified a molecular signature present in our cells that corresponds to our biological age - in other words, how well "lived in" our bodies are. Joanna Kerr spoke with researcher James Timmons to hear how it works... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

A well known benefit of growing up on a farm is the reduced chance of developing allergies. Evidence shows that children who are exposed to a dusty farm environment from an early age have fewer allergies than those who don't. Now researchers have discovered that it is a special property of the dust found on dairy farms which protects the lungs from allergies. Sam Mahaffey spoke to Professor Bart Lambrecht from Ghent University to find out more Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

This month, Cambridge based company Innovia Technology have taken charge of the "Mission Zero Corridor Project". This project aims to make a 12 mile stretch of highway in West Georgia completely sustainable, with no carbon footprint! This will be the first road of its kind, and hopefully will encourage others to jump on the carbonneutralbandwagon. The project is inspired by Ray C Anderson, the late CEO of a carpet manufacturing company in the USA. He aimed to reduce the carbon footprint of his company to zero a target they are on track to achieve by 2020. Andy Milton from Innovia Technology,... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Getting accurate clocks is really important for all kinds of technologies, especially when monitoring the distant heavens. But even if the clock itself is accurate, how do you know that the right time is being transmitted across to other devices, so for example telescopes? David Gozzard from the University of Western Australia has found a new way to make sure that disturbances in the transmission from a clock are accounted for, meaning that multiple high-precision clocks aren't needed. He was speaking about his work at the Perth Science Festival, and Georgia Mills wasted no time in finding out... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

It's long been known that traumatic memories forged in stressful situations can lie buried in the subconscious, yet they can bubble to the surface unexpectedly, triggering strong reactions, flashbacks and more serious psychological problems such as post-traumatic stress disorder, or PTSD. Researchers have discovered that memories made under such conditions - or under the effects of drugs or alcohol - tend to only be recalled when a person is back in that state again: something known as state-based learning. By putting mice under the influence of a drug called gaboxadol, a team of scientists... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists