Lab Notes: Why Did NASA Spend A Billion Bucks On Lucy? The Science Show

14:01

Hate getting needles? You're in good company — one in five people in Australia have needle fear.

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The wonder of sharks surviving for 500 million years 53:50

7 days ago53:50

53:50

Sharks have survived 500 million years while mass extinctions have wiped out other species. Now, sharks are under threat.

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Lab Notes: Why did NASA spend a billion bucks on Lucy? 13:00

11 days ago13:00

13:00

Somewhere out past Mars in the early hours of Easter Monday, a space probe called Lucy whizzed by an asteroid named Donaldjohanson. Lucy then sent back images showing Donaldjohanson is about five kilometres wide and shaped like a peanut. It's one of a handful of asteroids on Lucy's 12-year itinerary. So what does the billion-dollar mission hope to achieve?…

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The power of palaeontology 52:38

14 days ago52:38

52:38

Palaeontology helps reveal why some animals are in desperate need of help while others thrive.

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Lab Notes: Why sprinting sensation Gout Gout is so fast 12:49

18 days ago12:49

12:49

Gout Gout is fast becoming the face of Australian athletics, regularly clocking blisteringly quick times over 100- and 200-metre sprints. And he's only 17. Many think the best is yet to come. So what is it about Gout that makes him such an impressive sprinter at such a young age?

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New findings show how genetic mutations drive autoimmunity. 54:05

21 days ago54:05

54:05

A protein in the immune system, DECTIN-1 - primarily responsible for defending the body against fungal infections, has been found to control the severity of autoimmune diseases such as irritable bowel disease (IBS), type 1 diabetes, eczema, and other chronic disorders.

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Lab Notes: How to decommission a nuclear power plant 13:47

25 days ago13:47

13:47

We've been hearing a lot about a certain proposal to get nuclear power up and running in Australia, but little's been said about what happens when plants reach the end of their life. Decommissioning a single nuclear power plant can cost hundreds of millions of dollars and take decades. So what's involved, and why is the process so long and expensive?…

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A new approach for democracy, tracing ancient dead stars and does the soil have a biome? 54:07

28 days ago54:07

54:07

Soils are too often neglected but caring for them brings many benefits for plant nutrition, human health and a boost for the farm economy.

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Lab Notes: Should we be putting pig parts in people? 13:27

5 weeks ago13:27

13:27

Hearts, kidneys and now livers — over the past couple of years, surgeons have taken all these from gene-edited pigs and put them in people.

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Net zero carbon emissions – a review of progress 53:17

5 weeks ago53:17

53:17

Nick Rowley reviews out progress towards net zero carbon emissions, Jared Diamond proposes mining the sea floor, and California’s legacy of Albert Einstein.

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Lab Notes: Why have Saturn's rings 'vanished'? 11:48

6 weeks ago11:48

11:48

As far as planets go, they don't get much more iconic than Saturn. A huge golden ball encircled by gigantic rings. But those distinctive rings — the very things that give Saturn its pizzazz — have seemingly disappeared. So what’s going on, and when will they be back?

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Landscape and islands 54:06

6 weeks ago54:06

54:06

Lord Howe Island may appear an island paradise, but its ecology has been under intense pressure from invasive species such as rats and pigs. Now birds are being found with stomachs full of plastic.

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Lab Notes: The extreme conditions F1 drivers face in a race 13:33

7 weeks ago13:33

13:33

They might be the epitome of cool, but Formula 1 race car drivers can get hot — really hot. An F1 cockpit can heat up to 60 degrees Celsius, and this affects cognition — the last thing you want when you're fanging around a track at 300kph. This year, a new rule was introduced to give F1 drivers a bit of relief from that heat … which is just one of the risks of F1 racing. Because we often hear about the performance of the cars in the race, but what about the humans behind the wheel?…

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Your exposome, Kavli awards and more improbable research 52:12

7 weeks ago52:12

52:12

80% of diseases are impacted by environment or lifestyle described as your exposome. Thomas Hartung expects information from studying the exposome will bring benefits on par with those brought by studying the human genome.

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Lab Notes: 1 in 3 women get this infection. To cure it, treat men 13:05

8 weeks ago13:05

13:05

For women who get bacterial vaginosis or BV, a common condition that can cause a fishy-smelling discharge, many will get it again (and again). Why some people were prone to recurrent BV was a mystery … until now. Australian researchers have shown that BV-related bugs can be sexually transmitted, and treating male partners significantly cuts recurrence rates.…

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A crisis, an opera, and one of the greatest photos in history - The AAAS rides again. 54:06

8 weeks ago54:06

54:06

America’s top research institutions face an uncertain future.

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Lab Notes: How Ozempic stops food cravings

9 weeks ago

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A weekly injection that stops that hankering for hot chips and donuts? Many people on Ozempic and similar medications report this phenomenon, saying they no longer have incessant thoughts about sweets and fried food. So how do these drugs, known as GLP-1 agonists, work in the brain to dial down "food noise" and help people lose weight?…

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Naomi Oreskes The Big Myth and a new theory for the origin of black holes 54:05

9 weeks ago54:05

54:05

Naomi Oreskes talks about Donald Trump and her latest book The Big Myth ahead of her visit to Australia in early March.

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Lab Notes: Are we on the brink of another pandemic? 13:24

10 weeks ago13:24

13:24

The H5N1 strain of avian influenza is currently ripping through the US, infecting wild animals, livestock and people. One person has died, and around 70 more infections have been confirmed. Meanwhile, the Trump administration has made massive cuts to the nation's leading science and health agencies, and announced plans to withdraw from the World Health Organization. As the risk of another pandemic rises, what does all this mean for us in Australia?…

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Scope for all as some cities leap ahead with green initiatives 53:03

10 weeks ago53:03

53:03

San Antonio Texas has restored the San Antonio River encouraging plants and animals back to the city.

The Science Show - Full Program Podcast

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Lab Notes: What history can teach us about ‘city-killer’ asteroids 13:11

11 weeks ago13:11

13:11

An asteroid dubbed 2024 YR4 is causing a stir among the space community and a frenzy in the media. It currently has a 2.3 per cent chance of crashing into Earth three days before Christmas in 2032. But this is not our first asteroid rodeo. Get in touch with us: labnotes@abc.net.au

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Vale Felicia Huppert 54:05

11 weeks ago54:05

54:05

Vale the Professor of Happiness Felicia Huppert

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Lab Notes: Varroa is here but honey bees strike back 13:30

12 weeks ago13:30

13:30

Varroa is the parasite responsible for destroying bee colonies all around the world and is regarded as "the greatest biological threat to Australia's honey bee population." The good news is that some honey bees can fight back. And they're being helped by breeders, scientists and artificial insemination on the tiniest scale. Learn more on Lab Notes, the show that brings you the science of new discoveries and current events. Get in touch with us: labnotes@abc.net.au…

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The wonder of Australia’s deserts 54:04

12 weeks ago54:04

54:04

Unlike other deserts, Australian deserts experience occasional high rainfall. It supports a unique ecology.

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Lab Notes: Why the Australian sun has a real sting to it 13:33

13 weeks ago13:33

13:33

Australia's summer UV levels are high enough to cause sunburn in as little as 11 minutes. Yet the summer sun in the Northern Hemisphere rarely feels that full on. So why does our sunlight have that extra "bite"? Spoiler: it's not the hole in the ozone layer. Learn more on Lab Notes, the show that brings you the science of new discoveries and current events. Get in touch with us: labnotes@abc.net.au…

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Old rocks, old humans, old sharks, and links to today 54:04

13 weeks ago54:04

54:04

Opals, ancient humans and sharks dating back 465 million years. This week we see how today’s world has been shaped from the distant past.

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Lab Notes: More than whale food — krill are climate heroes 13:19

14 weeks ago13:19

13:19

Antarctic krill (Euphausia superba) do much more than fill whales' bellies. These tiny crustaceans also play a huge role in Earth's carbon cycle. They sequester around 40 million tonnes of carbon each year, mostly in their poo — that's the equivalent of taking 35 million cars off the road. Yet there's plenty we don't know about these thumb-sized critters. Now a new study has revealed what they get up to under the Antarctic winter sea ice, and how this behaviour affects carbon calculations. Dive into the secret life of krill on Lab Notes, the show that brings you the science of new discoveries and current events.Get in touch with us: labnotes@abc.net.au…

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Science Show Summer - Australia’s “Indiana Jones” and the lost Age of Mammals 53:50

14 weeks ago53:50

53:50

Opalised fossils previously overlooked at the Australian Museum have overturned our understanding of the origin of mammals with the emergence of a whole new age of mammals: The Age of Monotremes.

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Lab Notes: A debunked vaccine theory rears its ugly head — again 13:15

15 weeks ago13:15

13:15

Robert F Kennedy Jr is tipped to lead the US Department of Health and Human Services. Over the years, RFK Jr has repeatedly pushed the claim that childhood vaccines cause autism spectrum disorder — a theory that's been well and truly debunked. So where did this idea come from? What's bowel disease got to do with it? And what might the US expect with an anti-vaxxer at the helm of health and human services? Learn more on Lab Notes, the new show that brings you the science of new discoveries and current events. Get in touch with us: labnotes@abc.net.au…

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Micronesian community and scientists unite to protect remote Ulithi atoll 54:03

15 weeks ago54:03