Ask the Naked Scientists - podcast cover

Ask the Naked Scientists

How many organs could you donate and remain alive? How many planet Earths could fit inside the Sun? How high is a giraffe's blood pressure? Why is the sea blue? To find out, Ask The Naked Scientists!
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Episodes

How does seedless fruit reproduce?

Will we ever be able to record dreams? Why did our brains grow over time? How much water do you need to boil an egg? How does seedless fruit reproduce? Can a damaged chromosome be repaired? Can we synthesise water? Does whiskey make soft drinks better for you? Plus, how cracking your knuckles works... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Apr 17, 201521 minEp. 307

Can you use sound to control dreams?

Do photons have mass? Can you control someones dreams? Can you get your kidney back after donating it to someone? What determines the colour of the sea? Plus, how the moon was formed... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Apr 10, 201522 minEp. 306

Live and Naked at 702

Chris Smith and Victoria Gill appear at 702 in the flesh to answer questions from the audience and to conduct some illuminating experiments... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Apr 01, 201546 minEp. 305

Why do we get goosebumps?

What causes goosebumps? How close does lightning need to be to hurt you? Where is Voyager? What causes yawning? How do we perform automatic behaviour? Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Mar 27, 201520 minEp. 304

What causes thunder and lightning?

What causes thunder and lightning? Are some people resistant to HIV? Are vitamin supplements good for children? What does crystal meth do to your brain? Why do phones only give you nine minutes to snooze? Can you compress light? Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Mar 20, 201524 minEp. 303

What is the sun made of?

How do satellites stay in orbit? Why do my fingernails grow at different speeds on each hand? What is the sun made of? Where did the liquid in my cans go? Why do some children turn mute after trauma? Plus, why people smell their fingers after shaking hands... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Mar 13, 201522 minEp. 302

Can candles give you cancer?

Is it safe to feed livestock to meat? What happens to the rubber that wears off from car tyres? Does water go down the drain in different directions? Can you rewind the radio? Why is the ocean salty? Can candles give you cancer? Plus, the ancient Homo jaw bone... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Mar 06, 201523 minEp. 301

Why do I get a stitch when I exercise?

Why do I get a stitch when I exercise? What determines our body temperature? How quickly do fruit and vegetables lose nutrients after they are picked? Why do ropes get tangled up in knots? Can you get stuck together during sex? Plus, news of an edible gene therapy to control insect pests... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Feb 27, 201519 minEp. 300

Why does stress give me knots in my stomach?

Why does stress give me knots in my stomach? Why don't I gain weight when I eat? How does sun cream work? Why does wheat give me gas? If we were to compress air to the pressure of water could we then swim in air? Do any planets stay still? Plus the science of popcorn. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Feb 20, 201524 minEp. 299

Can animals predict the weather?

Can we manufacture water? Should women eat uncastrated meat? Can animals predict the weather? Is there a loss of vitamin content in tinned food? If you're in an aeroplane traveling at the speed of light, could you walk to the front of the plane? What causes chronic flatulence? Plus, counting chickens! Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Feb 06, 201518 minEp. 298

Why do we get brain freeze?

Why do we get brain freeze? What happens to your arm when it goes to sleep? Why do clouds form? Do we really only use 10% of our brain? If we evolved from apes how come there are still monkeys? Plus, how to "unboil" an egg. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Jan 30, 201521 minEp. 297

How do phantom limbs work?

How do phantom limbs work? Can power stations affect local weather? Plus, how to avoid jet lag and the snails that have weaponised insulin. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Jan 23, 201524 minEp. 296

Is there such a thing as a 'baby brain'?

Should I let my child run up and down stairs? Is crocodile bile deadly? Why don't animals in the wild bleed to death during child birth? Will there come a time where we stop breaking any new sport records? Is there such a thing as a "baby brain"? Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Jan 16, 201523 minEp. 295

Is there a cure for vertigo?

Can we make longer lasting phone batteries? Is there a cure for vertigo? Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Jan 09, 201523 minEp. 294

Why do pigeons bob their heads?

How do chameleons change colour? Why do pigeons bob their heads when they walk? How do railguns work? Can you freeze dry a body? What causes localised hair-loss? What's the best way to cool down beer? Plus, an update on Ebola... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Jan 02, 201521 minEp. 293

How do you get an old pen to work?

Why does scribbling on paper get a pen to work? Why can't mules reproduce? How soon will they be able to lessen the effects of Multiple Sclerosis? When you burn wood, where does the weight go? How do touch screens work? Plus, why feeling your age might be bad for you... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Dec 19, 201425 minEp. 292

How do birds make eggs?

How do birds make eggs? Why do we cry for both happiness and sadness? Can neutrinos go faster than the speed of light? Why is it so hard to lose stomach fat? Why do some babies smile in their sleep? Can you get oxygen from the water you drink? Plus, how life began, and the science of opera singing... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Dec 12, 201423 minEp. 291

Why do banana peels go brown?

Can you feel two pains at the same time? How can bottled water freeze instantly? Can a migrant dog understand his new neighbours? What is the pith inside an orange? Does eating the in-flight meal alter an aeroplane's weight? Why do skins of bananas blacken faster after you peel them? Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Nov 28, 201421 minEp. 290

Can comets reveal the future?

What is the latest on Ebola? Which human sense was the strongest in more primitive times? Can comets tell us about the future? How did our ancestors discover that the Earth is round? Why are electric kettles so loud? How can grey hair go black again? Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Nov 21, 201422 minEp. 289

Why aren't there any flying spiders?

Is it possible to regrow brain cells? Why can't spiders fly? Can you survive with three kidneys? What causes a migraine? Plus, why lightning is striking twice... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Nov 14, 201413 minEp. 288

What causes cataracts?

Why do my fingernails grow quicker than my toenails? Why are yawns contagious? Do people with longer legs use less energy to run? What causes cataracts? How important is your sense of smell? Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Nov 07, 201422 minEp. 287

Are Ebola survivors immune for life?

Can a new stomach be grown in a dish? Are Ebola survivors immune from future infection? Why do injuries seem to hurt more later? Are there homosexual dolphins? How do muscles make energy? How do ants home in on food? Can dogs judge human character? Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Oct 31, 201419 minEp. 286

Why do people talk to themselves?

Why do people talk to themselves? Can cats cut your risk of a heart attack? Does salt help water boil quicker? Do women have an Adam's Apple? Plus, an update on Ebola and a rapid paper-based test for the virus... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Oct 24, 201420 minEp. 285

Can the radio control my dreams?

Why do I sneeze in bright light? Can the radio control my dreams? Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Oct 10, 201421 minEp. 284

Do flies have blood?

Why did dinosaurs grow so large? Do flies have blood? Can chemotherapy get into the brain? Why do scorpions glow in UV light? Did we interbreed with Neanderthals? Plus, news of how your sense of smell can indicate how long you have left to live... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Oct 03, 201421 minEp. 283

Why do some people sleepwalk?

How is sea-level defined? What makes some people sleepwalk? How are barometers calibrated? What is an acquired taste? How much of the body is water? Do we really use only 10% of our brain? Why does red wine stain your lips? Why to I talk in my sleep? What happens if you drink petrol? Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Sep 26, 201421 minEp. 282

Can you be born circumcised?

How do people catch ebola? Why do brothers and sisters look different if they have the same parents? Can we mine the moon for fuel? Why should you not re-freeze meat? What causes birth marks? What is a curve of pursuit? Can you be born circumcised? Dr Chris answers more of your questions, on Talk Radio 702... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Sep 19, 201421 minEp. 281

Why does spaghetti break into 3 pieces?

Can we rear people in a germ-free environment? Can you be born with only one kidney? Why does spaghetti always break into 3 pieces? What exactly is temperature? When you add more water to the bath and then pull the plug - what water goes down the drain first, the new or the old? Why do birds live longer than their size would suggest? Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Sep 05, 201421 minEp. 280

Can you get sunburn through a glass window?

Can you get sunburnt through a glass window? What are white holes? If everything is made from atoms, and atoms are largely empty space why can't we phase through walls? Can chlorophyll help body odour? What causes ringing in your ears? Can you train a child to be ambidextrous? Plus, an update on Ebola. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Aug 15, 201419 minEp. 278
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