Lost in Science

It's the Lost in Science summer series, featuring tales from the Laborastory! This week, dietitian and molecular biologist Matt Snelson tells the story of Henrik Dam, who discovered vitamin K; and ecologist and science communicator Lynette Plenderleith tells the story of herpetologist Grace Olive Wiley.

May your science be merry and bright

Claire find out that some humans have mitochondria from their father as well as their mother, Stu Listens to the music of the planets, and Chris finds out the science behind the sensation of having an answer on the tip of your tongue

This week, Chris digs into the controversy over the claim of babies born with genes edited by a rogue scientist using CRISPR technology; and Stu answers the question of why the side of the Moon facing us has so many craters with the Earth in the way.

This week we look to the skies for mutating space bacteria, delve in the deep with mysterious local sea creatures, and wonder what it's like to wonder when you're a brain in a jar. 

Claire tells us how the tiny crustaceans that are Antarctic krill may be more resistant to ocean acidification than thought; Stu explains the change to the definition of the kilogram that has just been agreed; and Chris shares the revelation of how wombats produce cubical faeces.

This week, Claire speaks to ecologist Erinn Richmond from Monash University about pharmaceutical drugs entering our waterways and the effect they may have on the environment; Stu tells us about the interstellar object ʻOumuamua and the chance that it's aliens; and Chris shares the startling discovery that gut bacteria may be living in our brains.

Stu talks about a potential way to sequester atmospheric carbon dioxide in minerals that doesn't take the usual thousands of years, and Claire talks to Vicki Hallett about her work in acoustic ecology. 

Our annual Lost in Science Fiction episode takes us back to the 70s for Soylent Green, Back to the 60s for 2001 a Space Odyssey, and back to the incorrectly identified Jurassic period for some more Jurassic World science. 

This week, Chris reads yet another of Stephen Hawkings final papers, this one on the black hole information paradox; Claire speaks to Amelia Formby, who is planning a micro-light plane journey in honour of migratory shorebirds; and Stu tells us about astronomer Cecilia Payne, who worked out what stars are made of but didn't get enough credit for it.

Stu talks about Donna Strickland, winner of the 2018 Nobel Prize for Physics, and the third female winner of that prize in history. Claire talks to Chris Gerbing about the upcoming Environmental film festival, and Chris examines the governments latest greenhouse gas emissions figures and finds they are way off target. 

This week on the show Claire checks in with the biggest lizards in the world, The Komodo Dragon and gives the low down on the weird and wonderful dragon science. And with the recent landmark USA ruling over the possible link between the herbicide RoundUp, also known as glyphosate, and cancer, Stu looks more closely at the recently published research claiming glyphosate has a negative impact on hon...

This week, Chris tells the stories of two great but under-appreciated women of science: Émilie du Châtelet, who brought Newton's work to Europe, and Mary Somerville, 19th century polymath and technically the world's first scientist. And Stu finds out how ivory poaching is putting selection pressure on African elephants causing them to evolve to be smaller in size and tuskless.

Claire looks into new research abotu probiotics which tests their claims of health benefits, while Chris and Stu take a trip to the 28th 1st annual Ig Nobel prizes to find out who are their favourite winners from this year. 

This week, Chris finds out how venomous animals like snakes and poisonous animals like the poison dart frog avoid harm from their own toxins; and Claire speaks to science communicator and bat whisperer Micaela Jemison about vampire bats, naked mole rats and other marvels at the Smithsonian Institution.

This week on the show Claire gives a round up of the highlights of the Eureka Prizes for science, or as we like to affectionately call them, the 'Archies'. Chris brings a tasty scientific question into the studio that has been plaguing physicists for years - why does spaghetti break in 3 parts? And Stu talks about a new neuron that has just been discovered, the rose-hip neuron!

This week Claire talks to David Farmer, a neurophysiologist at the Florey Institute about the brain stem and how it keeps us going, and Stu brings National Threatened Species Day on the 7th of September to the table to talk about why it's important.

This week, Chris talks about how artificial intelligence and deep learning so complex that researchers have to do experiments to figure out how they work; Stu tells us about a new theory that our hominin predecessors, Homo erectus, may have gone extinct due to laziness; and Claire shares the discovery of ancient Egyptian cheese that's over 3 thousand years old and probably poisonous.

It's another Lost in Science Triple Creature Feature! Claire talks to Vincent Raoult from the University of Newcastle about using magnets to repel sharks and rays from fish traps. Stu tells us about the fungus Massospora cicadina, which uses psychedelics to hijack cicadas before replacing their abdomens (pictures at https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-018-19813-0, but be warned, they're disgust...

Our Lost in Science Week special to connect listeners to science week eventa all around the country, we talk to ethicist Chris Gyngell abotu the Humans 2.0 event, as well as cover other events all over Australia. To find events near you go to the Science week website and put in your postcode to discover something in your neighbourhood. 

This week, Chris shares how physicists have finally explained why water makes a plinking sound when it drips, and potentially how to stop it; Stu tells us about the discovery that the galaxy is filled with organic grease molecules; and Claire looks at new research into how bacteria spread on public transport, and how they get more mixed up throughout the day.

This week on the show Stu interviews Dr Paul Carnell about the testing he has just done on Victorian wetlands and why they are so good at capturing carbon from the atmosphere. Also this week Claire looks at the science behind community green spaces. Do they just look good, or are they good for health as well?

Stu looks at new analysis of past warm periods on earth to figure out how climate change may affect us in future. Claire asks why we haven't returned to the moon in 45 years. Chris looks further into space to find out about PDS 70 a recently discovered exoplanet and what it can tell us about our own solar system.