The Naked Scientists Podcast

This week, we look at UK Alzheimer's drugs and the latest debate over whether new treatments are a genuine breakthrough or overhyped, alongside a striking HIV case from Oslo that has raised fresh questions in medical research. We also explore new findings on gut health and its link to hormones and modern disease in industrialised societies, before turning to the skies for the Lyrid meteor shower 2026 and when to see it in the UK... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

This week, we are exploring the oil and gas industry, literally from the ground up: what's the geology of oil formation, how does a petrochemist go from crude to highly refined, can the UK solve its energy price problem by actually using the oil on its own doorstep, and what lies downstream of oil as we transition to alternatives? Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

This week, we find out how space travel is likely to affect the bodies of the Artemis II astronauts. Plus, how conflict and other adverse events during childhood influence young lives, what is the link between chronic pain, stress and the brain, and how male octopuses use a specialised arm to find mates... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Time waits for no one, but what exactly is it? Is it just a human construct, or something far deeper, flowing through our minds and bodies? In this episode, we examine the very fabric of time: how we created it, how we perceive it, the hidden rhythms of our body clocks, and what the future might hold as science and technology bend the boundaries of time... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Artemis II begins its mission to take humans farther into space than ever before, scientists in London unveil the first lab-grown oesophagus, the dangers of physical inactivity and why we urgently need to tackle it, and brain cells on a chip learn to play video games like humans... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Across our planet, natural archives preserve the biological footprints of species long gone, from woolly mammoths at the macro scale, through plants and seeds, to dormant bacteria and viruses at the micro end of the spectrum. And one environment that safeguards some of this material in the best condition of all is the cold - in other words, in ice. So, this week, we're going to look at what is sitting in nature's deep freeze... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

This week: social media's role in user harm and the plausibility of app addiction, a sunken Soviet sub revealing how nuclear materials behave deep underwater, a hidden "magnetic shadow" on the Moon that could improve space travel safety, and the science behind the famous "waggle dance" performed by honeybees.... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Coming up, we explore the race back to the Moon. Why are we going? How will we get there? Can we live and work on its surface? And what can we grow when we get there? We explore the science, the engineering, and the possibilities of humanity's next giant leap... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Coming up, we explore an outbreak of meningitis in the English county of Kent. Will a targeted vaccination campaign bring it under control? Plus, a fast diagnostic swab test that may help diagnose schizophrenia, how thousands of old tumour samples could aid our understanding of rising bowel cancer rates in people under 50, and a new study that suggests ultrasound could help save European hedgehogs from road traffic... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

For Endometriosis Awareness Month, we explore a condition which affects 10% of women around the world. Cells that form the lining of the uterus crop up in other parts of the pelvis, and elsewhere in the body. It prevents many patients from being able to carry out everyday tasks, and can also cause infertility. In this episode, we explore the condition, hear the experiences of those living with endometriosis, discuss the science behind it, and find out about the treatments of tomorrow... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Coming up, we assess the environmental and health impact of conflict in the Middle East. Plus, the gene variants that affect how heavily someone smokes, a medication called ruxolitinib that could help the vitiligo community, and a fascinating new study on interbreeding between Neanderthals and humans... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

This week, we're exploring polio: a highly infectious viral disease that can attack the nervous system and cause paralysis, mainly in young children. Polio has been pushed to the brink of elimination thanks to global vaccination efforts - but it still persists. In this episode, we'll look at what polio is, how vaccines have helped control it, where the virus still exists today, and whether it can finally be eradicated... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Coming up, we explore how CAR-T cell therapy is revolutionising personalised cancer treatment. Plus, how NASA's DART mission tested Earth's asteroid defence, what we are learning about the benefits of breastfeeding for mother and baby health, and we delve into the physics behind squeaky shoes... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Our Titans of Science series continues with Mike Wooldridge, Ashall Professor of Foundations of Artificial Intelligence at the University of Oxford. He has conducted extensive work in the field of agentic AI, systems comprising multiple interacting AIs. In this episode, he tells Chris Smith what drew him to computers and AI in the first place, the pioneering work of Geoff Hinton, why ChatGPT isn't made to speak the truth, and what's in store for us as AI continues to develop... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Today, how the brain harnesses immune cells to clear burned out fats during sleep: does this protect from Alzheimer's disease? Also, the nutrient-rich guano of seabirds that shaped society in ancient Peru, fast footage reveals how kangaroos hop faster at no extra energy cost, and how horses whinny! Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Our Titan of Science this week is leading light in the field of malaria, Jane Carlton. The first to sequence the genome of malaria parasite Plasmodium vivax, she also helped sequence the deadlier Plasmodium falciparum. Jane tells Chris Smith the ins and outs of malaria, her journey to become Director of the Malaria Research Institute at Johns Hopkins, and how stealing her brother's genetics textbook when she was just 8 years old led her to where she is today... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

This week, we look into the science behind Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny's death, caused by dart frog poison, and why Russia resorted to such an exotic means of dispatch at all. Also, how cat cancer genomics can provide new insights into human malignancies, and - more with a whimper than a bang - how a dying star skipped the supernova and became an instant black hole. Plus, Barack Obama's stance on aliens sends conspiracy theorists into a frenzy... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

This week, in partnership with British Heart Foundation, we explore heart failure. Leading experts from the UK's largest independent funder of cardiovascular research tell us about the condition, the symptoms to look out for, what happens when a heart fails, how heart failure has traditionally been managed, and whether it is possible to regenerate a damaged heart... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

This week, we discuss a new antibody-based nasal spray that protects against the flu: how does it work? Plus, the tiny self-replicating molecule that may give clues to the origins of life on Earth, whether we should regulate "mirror life" research, and how bacteria protect oak trees from drought and other stresses... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Coming up, we explore the tremendous impact mosquitoes have had throughout their evolution. In this episode, we break down what mosquitoes are, how they track down a meal, the diseases they carry, and the strategies that scientists are currently deploying to control them... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists