Sister Doctor Squared

After a very busy and big year, sisters Aleena and Janine return from their hiatus for a shorter episode to say hi... and bye... for now... Listen in to hear what they've been up to this year, their biggest lessons learned through five years working on Sister Doctor Squared, and what's next for both of them. Of course there are some final inner square moments to share and one more important thing...

It's that time of year again: it's muck up day at Sister Doctor Squared HQ! Tune in to hear what happens when Aleena and Janine do minimal prep and have maximum fun: reflections around space junk; Janine's progress with fighting bedtime procrastination; the perils of running on hardwood floors in socks; intentionally reduced news consumption; what happens when you rush healing from major surgery;...

Melanoma is a rare but incredibly lethal form of cancer. Although melanoma accounts for only 2% of skin cancers, it accounts for 80% of skin cancer deaths. How does melanoma develop? Why is UV light so dangerous? What role does genetics play? In this episode we explore these questions and highlight some of the latest targeted therapies for melanoma. Plus, we look at whether artificial intelligence...

Having babies! It’s a part of so many people’s life plans. But for those who want kids, when is the ideal time to start trying? Our knowledge of fertility (our ability to conceive a pregnancy) and of how age affects fertility has a real impact on our aspirations and plans for family. But how much do we really know? And what could be skewing our knowledge? In this episode we cover some super import...

Would you believe us if we told you that humans have left a bit of a mess in outer space? Orbiting Earth right now are tens of thousands of human made objects with no purpose – they are simply floating around as space junk. Why does this matter and what should we do? We’re telling you all about it! Plus, surprise! Janine introduces a brand new segment (and its incredible theme music – you gotta he...

Janine introduces the episode by outlining her nightly ritual of bedtime procrastination: cleaning, journalling, compiling lists, listening to podcasts, embroidery, meme harvesting, party planning, and bingeing on Portlandia! Just a few of the things she got up to last night. Help. (Thanks to science, we have some answers!) Full show notes at the Sister Doctor Squared website: https://sisterdoctor...

As we come to the end of another year, Aleena and Janine take things down a notch and bring back muck up day! Muck up day in Australia is the last day of school for the year where there are much laughs, huge pranks, and minimal productivity. Tune in for a very loose episode where you'll be treated to some insights, a *SURPRISE* or two, and much randomness: memes, rabbits, mullets, candles, plus mo...

What is all this fuss about blue light? You've probably heard about it having something to do with the backlighting on your smartphone or other electronic device. But what actually is blue light? What's it doing to your brain? Is it really that bad? In episode 20, Aleena and Janine are keen to see what the science says. They also have the final installment of the ever-popular segment: How's Aleena...

Engaging with music, whether it’s listening to it, or creating it, is one of life’s great joys. Neither Aleena nor Janine could get through a whole day without listening to some music. Humans have a deep emotional connection with music. But just how does music affect our mood, and how does our mood affect the music we listen to, or the music we create? In episode 19, Aleena and Janine get into the...

How amazing is it to sit around a campfire? Watching those beautiful, flickering flames; listening to the gorgeous crackle of firewood. It's mesmerising. Humans are innately fascinated by fire, but our relationship with fire is complex. Sometimes, fire fascination turns into something more dangerous. Sometimes, humans intentionally set fires. And guess what? It seems that some birds do this too! I...

Have you ever had a really strong gut feeling about something? You don't know why. You don't know where it's coming from, but it's telling you something very clearly. Should you trust it? In this episode, Aleena and Janine delve into the science behind gut instincts. Aleena then hijacks the inner square segment to update everyone on the latest kitchen renovation dramas, while Janine introduces a w...

Tourette Syndrome Awareness Week is running from 2 - 8 May 2022! So, Janine and Aleena are raising understanding and busting some myths around Tourette Syndrome, especially as Janine's little boy has this condition. The sisters are joined by their first ever guest - Seamus Evans! Seamus is an awesome TV and radio broadcaster and now passionate public speaker. As an ambassador for the Tourette Synd...

WARNING: This episode contains discussion related to traumatic experiences that may be distressing for some listeners. Janine excitedly shares details of her new pet dog Calli (#RescueGreyhound), who massively inspired this episode, since Calli displays a very strong "freeze response" in times of stress. Aleena and Janine take a look at some research into the freeze response, which is distinct fro...

Welcome to 2022! You might have mixed feelings about what is to come in the year ahead... a new year often brings a lot of hope, excitement and promise, but with so much uncertainty in the world at the moment, many are feeling quite despondent, and justifiably so. It follows that many of us have been less successful with attaining resolutions and goals over the past few years, mostly due to Covid-...

In the spirit of the traditional 'muck up day' on the last day of school in Australia, Aleena and Janine mix things up a bit in this episode... They reflect on Sister Doctor Squared turning 1, the many random and interesting things they've learned during the first year, and conduct the first ever Sister Doctor Squared Awards Ceremony, complete with lame and inexpensive sound effects - you don't wa...

With vaccination rates currently a topic of daily conversation, Aleena and Janine have been looking into what factors might be behind poor vaccination rates in some settings. They are surprised to find that fear or phobia of needles could be an important contributor to vaccine hesitancy. They also got their square on when voluntary primary-school level maths practice took over at their recent lunc...

Aleena and Janine investigate how the passage of time can often feel slower or faster even when, objectively, we know that time is always passing at a constant rate. Why do some days drag on while others disappear in a flash? How is it possible that things can feel like they are happening in slow motion during traumatic events? Aleena also shares the latest scientific experiments involving knives...

Janine was helping some students with high school genetics when she came across some fascinating research suggesting that whales and other cetacean mammals hardly ever get cancer. She and Aleena were super intrigued and just had to know why, especially as there is such a strong history of cancer in their family. Meanwhile, Aleena tells us how she spent a recent Friday night exploring the ins and o...

Aleena was recently offered antibiotics by a doctor, for a situation where antibiotics were completely inappropriate. She immediately called Janine and it was decided that they just needed to do an episode about this massive issue. Meanwhile, Aleena has been partnering with her cat and doing some citizen science experiments, while Janine is stuck in another research rabbit hole: this time about co...

Janine and Aleena kick off by summarising the well-established 'placebo' effect, before focusing in on the lesser-known 'nocebo' effect. What's the difference? How might these effects play a big role in treatment effectiveness? Can these effects be minimised? Janine also confesses to sub-par performance on a university assignment and Aleena shares some long-overdue pool noodle wisdom.  Full show n...

Aleena and Janine respond to a listener request for an episode about their own scientific research. They're happy to oblige! They kick off with Janine's past research into satin bowerbirds and explain just why males collect, hoard, and steal so much random blue stuff! Meanwhile, Aleena discusses her own peculiar past habit of collecting local bus tickets, and Janine is trying to do a self-portrait...

In this episode, Aleena and Janine get stuck into the research around human crying. Why do we do it? How did this bizarre behaviour even evolve? Why are humans the only animals shedding tears due to emotion? Should we hold in the tears or let them flow? Meanwhile Aleena then shares her newfound appreciation for protective eyewear for doggos and Janine explains how she is attempting to keep her new...

In this episode, Aleena and Janine respond to a listener question (#exciting!): Deepak got in touch to ask them to explain the La Niña weather cycle that he keeps hearing about in the news in Australia this Summer. They start by breaking down the science that causes La Niña (and El Niño) weather patterns across the globe. Then they go deeper into some research showing how this global weather syste...

Aleena and Janine open this episode by chatting about how physics may partly explain your messy house. They go deeper into the scientific literature about clutter in your home - how bad is it really? And what can you do about it? Do Marie Kondo's methods really work? What does 'sparking joy' even mean?! They are well placed to chat about all of this as they recently (and finally) cleared their rem...

WARNING: This episode contains discussion related to violent crime that may be distressing for some listeners. In episode 3, Aleena and Janine admit to spending countless hours engaging in true crime media. They really want to get to the bottom of why they, and so many of us, are so obsessed with this stuff! The research they present sheds light on the psychology and evolutionary biology that migh...