Flu season starts early, and staving off hungry seagulls

We celebrate 50 years of Lasers on the Naked Scientists this week, by looking into the history, and future, of laser science. We'll hear how lasers have revolutionised manufacturing and could be the answer to our clean energy concerns. Also, how lasers make the most accurate measurements for high precision industries, and how laser tweezers can be used to manipulate things smaller than a red blood cell, and make tiny tools. In Kitchen Science, Dave launches his bid for world domination by building a home-made laser! Plus, how sharks sniff out a snack, the technology that keeps world cup... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

12 Jun 20101h

The science of social species goes under the microscope this week. We hear what radio-tagging individual ants is revealing about the way they organise their nests to decide who goes hunting and who stays at home. Meera explores the growth of urban apiculture, including why city-made honey tastes superior to its countryside equivalent, we find out how bees encountering hostility use a stop signal to deter their fellow foragers from befalling the same fate, and in Kitchen Science we explore the physics of flight to see how bees stay airborne. Plus why not cleaning your teeth could cause a heart... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

5 Jun 201056min

In this Naked Scientists Question and Answer show, we find out if bacteria will grow on a bar of soap, why bird poo is white and whether or not a moon can have its own moon. Also, do sweeteners alter your metabolism and can we re-stock the oceans with farmed fish? Plus, we explore the oily threat to Bluefin Tuna, a newly discovered way that blood vessels in the brain clear a blockage, how channels on Mars reveal secrets about the Martian climate, and why shape is essential for H. plyori - a gut bug associated with ulcers and cancer. In Kitchen Science, Ben and Dave recreate a classic... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

29 Mai 20101h 7min

Cancers you can catch go under the Naked Scientists microscope this week. We find out how a transmissible facial tumour is devastating devil populations in Tasmania and also hear how the Human Papilloma Virus (HPV) causes cancer. Also, Meera looks into the science of cervical screening, and Ben and Dave reveal how carrots can help us to spot cancer cells. Plus, biofuel hope from the burning bush plant, the battle between Staphylococcus species, and the introduction of Synthia - the first microbe with a genuinely synthetic genome. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

21 Mai 201057min

We explore synthetic biology in this Naked Scientists Show, finding out how to learn from, and improve on, the structures and systems we find in nature. We'll meet the team of students who designed a biological sensor to win the international genetically engineered machine competition, or iGEM, and find out how to build bespoke proteins. In Kitchen Science, we feed an egg to some enzymes to find out how biological washing powder works. Plus, what the brain does when it sees a familiar face, genetically modified crops boost resistant bug numbers, how to create hair cells, essential for hearing,... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

15 Mai 201056min

Is there a cure for spots? Why do we cry? Does alcohol really kill brain cells? It's a Question and Answer Extravaganza on this week's Naked Scientists! We find out what makes a Chameleon change colour, why birds fly into windows and how a hair can change colour along it's length. Also, witnessing the birth of stars, the Neanderthal genome and how washing your hands can change the way you think. Plus, Meera dabbles with green gadgets and smell-free toilets in the home of the future, and Dave shows you how to build a hovercraft in Kitchen Science. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

8 Mai 20101h 2min

Where in the world am I? We're looking at the science of the Global Positioning System, or GPS, this week. We find out how satellites can tell you your location, as well as communicate with the bossy little box that tells you which way to drive. We discover the potential for "spoofing" GPS with a false location, and how this might be the future of cyber-terrorism as well as explore the cosmic reference frame that the satellites themselves rely on. In Kitchen Science, we get back to basics and locate ourselves using a map and compass! Plus, the first amphibian genome helps to fill the... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

1 Mai 201056min

We explore the marriage of archaeology and genetics in this week's Naked Scientists, finding out how modern genetic techniques are helping to reveal more about our past. We ask what archaeogenetics can tell us about human origins and migration as well as the diseases that evolved alongside us. We explore the genome of a 4000 year old man, which tells us he had dry earwax! Also, new data that could help to predict the Asian monsoon, why dreams help you to remember and how it feels to be a pill - after you've been swallowed. Plus, why many of us might have a little bit of Neanderthal in our... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

24 Apr 201055min