Fitter fat cells, and Earth spins slightly faster

This week, we look back at more of the very best bits of Naked Science. We find out why scientists are swollen with success after discovering spider venom with Viagra-like properties, We meet a cow that produces skimmed milk straight from the udder, we remember a way to improve brain function and ask if a hot mint will still taste cold? Also - It's curtains for us! Joel Veitch explains why we should measure hazardicity in 'Curtains', we hear about some very clever birds who make plans for the future and we probe the hole in the ozone layer. Plus, we have two of the best kitchen science... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

25 Aug 200756min

This week, we look back at some of the juiciest bits of Naked Science from the last series. We find out how an iPod became an iRod to conduct lightning, discover an electrifying bikini and find out why teenagers feel so misunderstood, not that they're 'bovvered' about the answer. We discuss wine as an essential part of an healthy diet, find out about the people who feel no pain and explore why you can immediately tell an Aussie from an American or a Londoner from a Liverpudlian, just by learning about the way accents are formed. Plus, in Kitchen Science we find out how to turn an oven shelf... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

18 Aug 200756min

This week, do diet foods make children fat? Could a space screw save us from catastrophe collisions? Have we seen the last of the Yangtze river dolphin? And should we look to the Simpsons for our science? Writer Al Jean explains that, despite the three eyed fish and three fingered hands, it's one of the most science literate shows on television. Also, as it's our Summer Special Question and Answer show we tackle your questions ranging from rising cakes to rising heart rates, why the moon looms larger on the horizon and why magnets make bad television. Plus, in kitchen science we investigate... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

11 Aug 200757min

This week, mind reading children, scientists find a new gene in the lung cancer cocktail, and satnav or map-nav - what's greener? Plus we become biological weapons inspectors and explore nature's arsenal of venoms, poisons and toxins, including a scorpion's sting that can highlight cancer, how funnel web spiders are helping farmers fight off insect pests, the marine cone snail that harbours a painkiller ten thousand times more powerful than morphine, and how a snake bite can help to prevent a heart attack. Meanwhile, in Kitchen Science, Ben samples a more everyday toxin - by making stinging... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

4 Aug 20071h

This week, clean coal technology - how to get the energy from coal without digging it up, why GM goats are helping to combat nerve gas attacks, and how scientists have found the 'itch' gene. We also find out why smog causes heart disease, how seafood in space can help to heal astronauts, and the weight of leaves on an average tree. Plus Drs Chris and Phil take a look at your science questions including 'tasting' music, the best way to dry your washing and can the moon affect the shapes of weather systems? In Kitchen Science Ben and Dave explain how to make a lens with a plastic bottle and some... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

28 Juli 200758min

This week, we find out about survival in extreme environments. We find out how free divers descend hundreds of feet underwater without air, how life thrives beneath the ice in Antarctica, how fighter pilots combat G-forces to avoid blackouts, and how the body copes with exercising at the top of Everest. Also, discover the benefit of breaks between bouts of exercise, how geckos hold the key to underwater post-it notes, and a gene that lets you chat whilst listening to the radio. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

21 Juli 20071h 1min

This week, from iPod to iRod as a man's taste for music turns him into a human lightning conductor, why penguins are picky eaters, and better biopsies - why doctors are attracted to a new magnetic cancer detection system. Also a fuel made from fructose that packs a punch like petrol, we find out how to make hydrogen on demand using aluminium, and grow your own gas - do we have enough land to grow our energy in future? Plus, in Kitchen Science, we turn vegetable oil into biodiesel and ask a white van man to test it... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

14 Juli 200759min

This week news that men talk as much as women, cosmetics from jellyfish, songbirds "greatest-tits", a breathtaking asthma breakthrough and a gene-screen for bowel cancer. We also uncover the cause of contagious yawns, probe the brain basis of epilepsy and manic depression, and uncover a brain region responsible for out of body experiences. Plus, in Kitchen Science, Ben and Dave find out why the raisins always rise to the top of the cereal box. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

7 Juli 200759min