80 years of nuclear weapons

This week, we examine a herpes zoster vaccination that can reduce or delay dementia diagnosis. How does it work? Plus, the BBC's Zoe Kleinman explains a social media site for AI chatbots, the discovery of microplastics in remote parts of the Pacific Ocean, and why the Artemis II launch has been delayed once more... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

6 Feb 29min

Today, we take a closer look at motor neurone disease (MND), a progressive neurodegenerative disorder affecting the motor neurones that control voluntary muscle movement. This programme explores the clinical features of MND, what it is like to live with the condition, how it is diagnosed, and the current approaches to treatment and management... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

3 Feb 29min

Coming up, a world-first gene cancer database is launched. How might it help us gain a better understanding of how disease develops? Plus, the link between vitamin D deficiency and respiratory infections, Austria's back-scratching cow, and SpaceX carries out its latest launch of Starlink satellites... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

30 Jan 34min

Titans of Science is back with John Zarnecki, a towering figure in the UK's space community. He has played a crucial role in designing instruments for groundbreaking space missions, and has also helped shape Europe's planetary science programme. In this episode, John shares compelling stories from his career with Chris Smith - including the significance of the Cassini-Huygens mission to Titan, the value of the Hubble Space Telescope, and his early work on rockets in Australia... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

27 Jan 31min

This week, a blood finger-prick test has been developed to detect Alzheimer's disease before symptoms arise. But how accurate is it? Plus, tracking space debris reentry from their sonic booms with earthquake-detecting seismometers, what happens in our noses when we are infected by the common cold, and the plants that use heat to get pollinated by beetles... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

23 Jan 31min

This week, we're looking at a major study that is following the development of children born in the UK in 2026. It's called Generation New Era, and in this episode we hear from the team leading the research: how they plan to run it, what earlier cohort studies have revealed, and what they hope to discover this time around. The study has been funded by public investment from UKRI, and their Economic and Social Research Council... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

20 Jan 31min

This week, China's attempts to build a new "mega-embassy" in London, but are there security risks? Plus, the UK plans to build a record number of offshore wind farms for cleaner energy, the impact of TV screens and tablets on speech development in toddlers, and NASA's first-ever medical evacuation from the International Space Station... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

18 Jan 28min

This week, we've partnered with Frontiers as they aim to push science to the top of the agenda at the World Economic Forum in Davos. It comes as the publisher's Frontiers Science House prepares to welcome some of the most influential voices in fields like healthcare, sustainability, and energy to their gathering in Switzerland. In this programme, we hear from them, and find out why it's time for leading policy-makers to fully engage with the best that science has to offer... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

13 Jan 31min