Science Shambles

There are over 6000 confirmed exoplanets and billions more predicted in just our Milky Way galaxy alone. So what types of planets are these, how do we detect them, how are they different from those in our solar system and could any harbour life? Three astrophysicists sit down to discuss it all. Dr Larissa Palethorpe, Dr Hannah Wakeford and Dr Matt Bothwell to be precise. This panel was recorded on...

In today's age of social media algorithms and AI finding accurate and reliable health information online can feel like a losing battle. Someone who has recently published a masters research paper on this is Alanna Smith. Not just a Stanford psychology graduate, but also one of the top basketball players on the planet. Our producer Trent was lucky to sit down with the WNBA's reigning Defensive Play...

We opened up Latitude 2026 on the Thursday night and as Latitude celebrated its twentieth festival, and Shambles celebrated its twentieth year at Latitude, we took a look back at some of the biggest scientific discoveries of that time. Robin Ince is joined by physicist and oceanographer Prof Helen Helen Czerski, geneticist Prof Turi King, particle physicist Dr Clara Nellist and geologist Prof Chri...

Now that Channel 4's 'documentary' has aired we've got our panel of experts back to discuss if the show was better or worse than expected. Hint: It's not the first one. 'The Great ADHD Myth?' is reviewed from a scientific point of view in this podcast by Professor Gina Rippon, Dr Camilla Pang, Dr Sarah Turner and Dr Dean Burnett chatting to Robin Ince. Support the work of Cosmic Shambles at patreo...

Channel 4 recently announced a new documentary titled 'The Great ADHD Myth?'. The announcement came with a press release that, to put it mildly, raised some questions. So we put together a panel of experts to talk about the damage already done by this apparently agenda led documentary before it's even been broadcast. While the documentary claims to be 'just asking questions', our panel has some po...

Comedians and Bibliophiles Robin and Josie are back together for a Book Shambles live special with award winning musician and author Kadiatu Kanneh-Mason. Her latest book, To Be Young, Gifted and Black has just been released in paperback and it focuses on what it means – and how it feels – to grow up as a Black artist in today’s turbulent times. This was recorded live at the Latitude Festival 2026...

We really need to stop burning so much stuff. Sustainable energy needs to drive our future and batteries are going to play a big part in that. The advancement of battery technology has come a long way but there are still issues that need solving. To talk about all things lithium, sodium and a rechargeable future are Everything Electric founder Robert Llewellyn, material chemist and battery researc...

The ocean is an all too often overlooked part of our natural world, yet it is the blue engine that drives everything. And it is changing in many ways, at an alarming rate. Rising sea levels, warming oceans, increased acidification, plastic pollution... Physicist and oceanographer Dr Helen Czerski will discuss this with oceanographer Professor David Ho and geologist Professor Chris Jackson, looking...

What if being a bit weird is actually entirely normal? What if sharing our internal struggles wasn't a sign of weakness, but strength? Let some experts help you wade through the 'neurotrash' to talk about the science of neurodiversity. Gina Rippon is a Professor of Cognitive NeuroImaging and author of The Gendered Brain and The Lost Girls of Autism. Dr Camilla Pang is the Royal Society Book Prize...

Recorded live at Latitude 2025, join Dr Clara Nellist of CERN, and two astrophysicists, Sky at Night co-host Dr Maggie Aderin-Pock and Sky at Night regular Dr Jen Gupta alongside Dr Helen Czerski to discuss what we know about Dark Matter, and how we're trying to actually find it. Support the show at patreon.com/cosmicshambles and watch the video version of this panel on our YouTube channel at yout...

AI is in the news everywhere you look at the moment. But amongst all of the sensationalist headlines, what’s really going on, and what should we actually be worried about when it comes to AI? Prof Kevin Fong recently took a look at medicine in AI for a BBC series and Elizabeth Black is a Professor of Artificial Intelligence at King’s College. They join Dr Suze Kundu to chat about it all. Recorded...

Recorded LIVE at the 2022 Latitude Festival, Dr Helen Czerski and Prof Kevin Fong sit down to talk about the merits of space travel in a time where the Earth is gripped by a pandemic and climate change. Should we still be focussing on space travel? What can it teach us that helps with life on Earth? And why are we so enamoured with space, when the oceans are still so ignored? Support the podcast a...

Dr Kit Champman is a life long motorsport fan and as a scientist, he previously worked with Virgin Racing's Formula E team on the chemistry and material science of their cars. Many innovations, first developed for racing, have been incorporated into everyday life across fields of healthcare, fluid dynamics, climate and, obviously, road cars. His latest book is, Racing Green, and looks into these d...

The mantra of 'We're not vaccinated against COVID until the whole world is vaccinated' is now more prevalent than ever. At last year's British MotoGP round at Silverstone Robin Ince went along to meet up with Andrea Coleman and 13 time Grand Prix winner Randy Mamola, founders of the charity Two Wheels for Life. The charity uses motorcycles to deliver healthcare, and now, COVID vaccines to hard to...

Recorded live at the 2021 Norwich Science Festival, Dr Helen Czerski is joined by Chris Lintott, co-host of The Sky at Night and Professor of Astrophysics at the University of Oxford to talk about the year in astronomy so far. They chat about the discovery of new planets, the Drake equation, missions to Mars and whether Elon Musk is a force for good... Support the show and get all sorts of bonus g...

Dr Stuart Clark is a science writer and journalist with a PhD in astrophysics. He is a Fellow of the Royal Astronomical Society and his latest book, Beneath the Night: How the Stars Have Shaped the History of Humankind is out now in paperback. Order signed and dedicated copies of Robin's new book The Importance of Being Interested: Adventures in Scientific Curiosity at cosmicshambles.com/shop Supp...

Michio Kaku is a theoretical physicist, futurist, and popular science author and speaker around the world. He is a Professor of Theoretical Physics at the City College of New York and his latest book The God Equation: The Quest for a Theory of Everything has just been released. Order signed and dedicated copies of Robin's new book The Importance of Being Interested: Adventures in Scientific Curios...

Harry Cliff is a particle physicist at the University of Cambridge working on the LHCb experiment at CERN. He chats to Robin Ince about his new book, How to Make an Apple Pie from Scratch, an exhilarating search for the most basic building blocks of our universe, and the dramatic quest to unlock their cosmic origins. If you’d like to directly support what we do at the Cosmic Shambles Network visit...

Nichola Raihani is a Professor of Evolution and Behaviour at UCL. Her research focuses on the evolution of cooperation in nature. Her first book, The Social Instinct, is out now. She joined Robin Ince to talk about it. Support the podcast and Shambles in general by subscribing at patreon.com/cosmichshambles Order Nichola's book The Social Instinct : How Cooperation Shaped the World via Hive or you...

Hosted by Robin Ince and Dr Helen Czerski this episode of the Science Shambles podcast is an audio recording of our weekly Sunday Science Q and A show that goes out at 10am BST on our YouTube channel. This week it's a Helen special as Robin pitches all the leftover Helen questions at Dr Czerski from jam to bubbles to climate to poo... Watch them on our YouTube channel at youtube.com/cosmicshambles...

Hosted by Robin Ince and Dr Helen Czerski this episode of the Science Shambles podcast is an audio recording of our weekly Sunday Science Q and A show that goes out at 10am BST on our YouTube channel. This week Robin and Helen are joined by Professors Christina Pagel and Sheena Cruickshank to talk of COVID, masks, antibodies and the Loch Ness monster... Watch them on our YouTube channel at youtube...

Science Shambles is a science QnA show hosted by Robin Ince and Helen Czerski. Helen is away this week so Robin is doing a live Science Book Shambles with special guest Professor Johnjoe McFadden. Watch them on our YouTube channel at youtube.com/cosmicshambles and get bonus content and extended conversations with guests by subscribing at patreon.com/cosmicshambles

Hosted by Robin Ince and Dr Helen Czerski this episode of the Science Shambles podcast is an audio recording of our weekly Sunday Science Q and A show that goes out at 10am BST on our YouTube channel. This week Helen is joined by Michael Marshall and Deborah Hyde to talk about why people believe in conspiracy theories, anti-science and superstition. Watch them on our YouTube channel at youtube.com...

Hosted by Robin Ince and Dr Helen Czerski this episode of the Science Shambles podcast is an audio recording of our weekly Sunday Science Q and A show that goes out at 10am BST on our YouTube channel. This week Robin and Helen are joined by Professors Alexandre Antonelli and Juliet Brodie to talk plants, seaweed and general botany. Watch them on our YouTube channel at youtube.com/cosmicshambles an...

Hosted by Robin Ince and Dr Helen Czerski this episode of the Science Shambles podcast is an audio recording of our weekly Sunday Science Q and A show that goes out at 10am BST on our YouTube channel. This week Robin and Helen are joined by Dr Karl to talk of COVID, climate and kangaroo poo... Watch them on our YouTube channel at youtube.com/cosmicshambles and get bonus content and extended conver...