Question of the Week, from the Naked Scientists

Charlie asked us to field the question, "what is the minimum area required to sustain one human being in terms of oxygen and food?" Marika Ottman brought this cultivation conundrum to Marco Springmann, the Senior Researcher on Environmental Sustainability and Public Health at the University of Oxford... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Tuomo asks, "Does your brain respond differently when you're listening to an audiobook compared to when you're reading a book? And does this affect how much information you can retain?". Isabelle Cochrane put this to Dr Matt Davis, Programme Leader in Hearing Language at Cambridge's MRC Cognition and Brain Sciences Unit... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Theo and Simon Hall asked Why do humans get bored? And what is the evolutionary advantage of boredom? Adam Murphy put this question to Dr. Brian Little at the University of Cambridge to get his less than boring answers... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Chris Taylor wonders how astronauts can weigh things in space. Marika Ottman asks Michael Foale, a former NASA Astronaut and Commander of the International Space Station, to weigh in and assess the gravity of the situation... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Eamonn asked us to chew over this alien question: If some-day we managed to travel to another planet and discovered aliens, what is the likelihood that we could eat them? We turned to Gareth Corbett, gastroenterologist at Addenbrooke's Hospital in Cambridge, to see if he had any food for thought... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Listener Mike asked us to sniff out an answer to cold conundrum... When I cycle my bike in cold weather my nose runs, it doesn't happen in warm weather and is their anything I can do to help with it? We took this snotty situation to Ears nose and throat specialist, Neil Donelly, from Addenbrookes hospital. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Matt asked how big an animal or human has to be before a fall would kill it. Katie Haylor put this perilous pondering to physicist Stuart Higgins from Imperial College London... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Switzerland has now banned boiling lobsters live. Do they experience pain; how do we know? Georgia Mills asked Professor Bob Elwood from Queen's University, Belfast, for his take on this hot topic. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Izzie Clarke's been chilling out with this Question of the Week from Trent... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Martin wanted to know why fresh pasta rises to the surface of the pot when it's ready. We asked Dr Chris Brock from London South Bank University. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

The Waite family wanted to know if fish yawn, so Heather Wark spoke to Iain Barber from Nottingham Trent University, to find out. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Anthony wanted to know if firing space rockets out of giant guns would be a better way to blast off. Heather Wark spoke to Dr Stuart Grey of Strathclyde University to find out... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

This week we answered the sticky query, Why do people pick their noses?. Lewis Thomson put it to Liverpool GP Dr Laura Wark. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Elizabeth wanted to know whether she'd be safe if her car was hit by lightning or whether the engine would cut out. Izzie Clarke spoke to Philip Garsed from Cambridge University to spark up the debate on this electrifying question. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

In the 1940's there was a chicken who survived for 18 months without a head, how long can humans survive for without a head? Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Jayson wanted to know if living near a cell phone tower could be affecting his and his family's health. Stevie Bain spoke to physicist Tony Kent from the University of Nottingham to shed some light on the situation. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Jon wanted to know whether approaching a fly slowly would make it easier to swat. With the help of animal vision specialist Kate Feller from Cambridge University, Michael Wheeler's been swotting up on swatting flies. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Zettie wanted to know how much alcohol stays behind in food when you cook with it. Alexandra Ashcroft asked Vayu Maini Rekdal, from Harvard University, to turn up the heat on this question... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

David wanted to know how our pet dogs compare to other animals, such as primates and dolphins, when it comes to intelligence. Stevie Bain spoke to Ben Ambridge from the University of Liverpool, and author of 'Are You Smarter than a Chimpanzee?', to find out more. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

This week, we aired out Norm's question: if water is a solid, as ice, below 0 degrees Celsius, a gas above 100 degrees Celcius and a liquid between this range, why does washing dry when the air temperature is below 100 degrees Celsius. Alexandra Ashcroft asked Dr Thomas Ouldridge, from Imperial College London, to hang Norm's question out to dry... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting th...

This week, Mark has a conundrum about chloroplasts: If we could go green and harvest energy from the sun, like plants, how big would our skin need to be to sustain a normal level of activity? Georgia Mills recruited Christopher Mason, associate professor at Weill Cornell Medicine to shed some light on the answer. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Caitlin asked whether detergent residues left on crockery and cutlery could be bad for our health. Katie Haylor spoke to Rob Chilcott from the University of Hertfordshire to find out. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Is it possible to create noise-cancelling headphones, but for an apartment? Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Jim asked whether being in a warm room - like in a hot yoga class - really does help your muscles to warm up quicker. Katie Haylor spoke to Christof Schweining from the University of Cambridge to find out. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Like physical activity, can we exercise our brain to improve at difficult mental challenges? Izzie Clarke spoke to Duncan Astle from Cambridge University about this tiring task... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists