What can ancient DNA reveal about the past? - with Pooja Swali

What can ancient DNA reveal about the past? - with Pooja Swali

How can ancient DNA help us understand how diseases spread? This month, geneticist and pathogen genomics expert Pooja Swali explains how samples of DNA from the past can reveal how diseases have spread across the world over time. We explore the what, where, how, and why of ancient DNA research, and what doors these questions have opened for the future of the field. Pooja has worked extensively on Yersinia pestis, the bacteria responsible for plague, and uncovered the existence of plague thousands of years earlier than previously anticipated.


Ri Science Podcast episodes are released on the last Wednesday of every month, and our new ‘From the Theatre’ episodes are released on the second Wednesday of the month. Subscribe to be notified as soon as the next episode is released!

Producer and presenter: Lia Hale

Music: Joseph Sandy

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Avsnitt(124)

From the PhD Lab: How do biofilms help keep bacteria alive? - with Josh Horton

From the PhD Lab: How do biofilms help keep bacteria alive? - with Josh Horton

Microorganisms are constantly adapting to evade human-made interventions such as antibiotics and sanitisers. One of these adaptations is to use their strength in numbers and form a biofilm. One bacter...

14 Okt 26min

The PLATO mission: Discovering other planets fit for life - with Ana Heras and Alistair Winton

The PLATO mission: Discovering other planets fit for life - with Ana Heras and Alistair Winton

The PLATO mission from the European Space Agency is set to launch next year, and is hoping to identify thousands of exoplanets in our galaxy which could have the right conditions to support life. Lead...

30 Sep 44min

From the Theatre: How AI is redesigning the battery - with the Faraday Institution

From the Theatre: How AI is redesigning the battery - with the Faraday Institution

For this month's From the Theatre episode, we explore how AI could actually be a force for good in the world of batteries. In collaboration with the Faraday Institution, we hear from three experts to ...

16 Sep 44min

The science of heatwaves, health, and wildfires: Why was the summer of 2026 so hot? - with Clair Barnes, Gary Konstantinoudis and Alisha Fuller-Armah

The science of heatwaves, health, and wildfires: Why was the summer of 2026 so hot? - with Clair Barnes, Gary Konstantinoudis and Alisha Fuller-Armah

Why have so many people died during the heatwaves spread across Europe this summer, and is it a direct result of climate change? And what technology is being developed to help us prevent damage from w...

26 Aug 39min

From the Theatre: What is a solar eclipse? - with Frank Close

From the Theatre: What is a solar eclipse? - with Frank Close

What is a solar eclipse? How is it safe to watch? And what other types of eclipses are there?This month, we revisit Frank Close's talk from the theatre where he explored what causes solar eclipses, an...

12 Aug 38min

Quantum field theory, AI, and the future of theoretical physics - with Ross Jenkinson

Quantum field theory, AI, and the future of theoretical physics - with Ross Jenkinson

Quantum physics has gone through two major revolutions over the past century, which has transformed how we understand and practise theoretical physics. But what has still been left unanswered through ...

29 Juli 39min

From the Theatre: How biomechanics is optimising human movement - with Eline van der Kruk

From the Theatre: How biomechanics is optimising human movement - with Eline van der Kruk

Eline van der Kruk takes us on a journey to the world of biomechanics, a place where computer simulations and smart sensors are being developed to push the boundaries of human movement. The Karl Luybe...

8 Juli 30min

Cell signalling, heart disease, and the hidden physics of light - with Izzy Jayasinghe and Alfredo Carpineti

Cell signalling, heart disease, and the hidden physics of light - with Izzy Jayasinghe and Alfredo Carpineti

This pride month, we hear from two exceptional queer scientists about their research and journeys in STEM. Izzy Jayasinghe is the Head of Molecular Medicine at UNSW in Sydney, and her research investi...

24 Juni 41min

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