CrowdScience Podcast
We take your questions about life, Earth and the universe to researchers hunting for answers at the frontiers of knowledge.
Episodes to download
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Will the Earth ever lose its Moon?
Friday
Anand Jagatia is joined by a panel of experts to answer listener questions about the Moon
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Why does pain sometimes feel good?
Fri 13 Dec 2024
What makes people seek out unpleasant or painful sensations, like eating chilli?
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Why am I good at jigsaw puzzles?
Fri 6 Dec 2024
What skills do you need to complete a jigsaw puzzle? And why do we enjoy them?
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Can I improve my sense of direction?
Fri 29 Nov 2024
Why some people get lost while others have a great sense of where they are
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Why can't my dog live as long as me?
Fri 22 Nov 2024
And how do some animals tackle the ageing process head on?
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What does my voice say about me?
Fri 15 Nov 2024
What shapes the sound of your voice? And is everybody’s voice unique?
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Why is my house getting sunnier?
Fri 8 Nov 2024
A mysterious shift in sunshine through one listener’s window requires investigation
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Why do languages fade from us?
Fri 25 Oct 2024
Can learning multiple languages make us forget our native tongue?
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Why do my armpits smell?
Fri 18 Oct 2024
Deodorant hasn’t been around forever, so is there any evolutionary reason for body odour?
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Why don’t sunflowers fall over?
Fri 4 Oct 2024
With huge heads on spindly stalks, how do sunflowers defy gravity to stay standing?
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How did the Moon affect the dinosaurs?
Fri 27 Sep 2024
The Moon was once much closer to Earth. How did its gravity affect a dinosaur’s weight?
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Are we mature by 18?
Fri 20 Sep 2024
Why is 18 considered the start of adulthood in many places? Does science back this up?
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Is the car an apex predator?
Fri 13 Sep 2024
The car is a killer but does that make it top of the food chain?
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What is the voice inside my head?
Fri 6 Sep 2024
What’s the science behind the silent inner voice many of us experience?
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Why am I symmetrical?
Fri 23 Aug 2024
Why is one side of the human body pretty much a mirror image of the other side?
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Can we improve the shipping container?
Fri 16 Aug 2024
This simple metal box enables so much global trade. But could we make it more efficient?
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How do fish survive in the deep ocean?
Fri 9 Aug 2024
What allows fish to cope with the immense water pressure of the ocean depths?
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Why is my handwriting so messy?
Fri 2 Aug 2024
Alex Lathbridge explores the genetics, culture and neuroscience of handwriting
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Why is a ship a ‘she’?
Fri 26 Jul 2024
Why are nouns coded as male or female in some languages but not others?
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Why am I afraid of this building?
Fri 19 Jul 2024
How do buildings affect our emotions – whether fear or sadness, wonder or joy?
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What is the weight of the internet?
Fri 12 Jul 2024
Simple question, tricky answer. To weigh the internet, what should we put on the scales?
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How does a snake climb a tree?
Fri 5 Jul 2024
What gives snakes their gravity-defying climbing skills?
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How many flies have ever existed?
Fri 28 Jun 2024
Flies are everywhere. But just how many have ever lived?
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Is every atom unique?
Fri 21 Jun 2024
Are atoms as individual as snowflakes – and if not, where does uniqueness begin?
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Why are the seas salty?
Fri 14 Jun 2024
How does salt get into the world's oceans, and is melting ice making them any fresher?
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How fast can a raindrop cross the globe?
Fri 7 Jun 2024
Could a raindrop from the UK travel all the way to New Zealand?
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Why does wine taste better over time?
Fri 31 May 2024
What chemistry makes some wines age well, while others turn to vinegar?
