The Science Show
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| Last updated Fri, 02 Jan 2009 14:00
RN's science flagship: your essential source of what's making news in the complex world of scientific research, scandal and discovery. The Science Show with Robyn Williams is one of the longest running programs on Australian radio.
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The Science Show: Science Show - 2009-01-03
Download Now · | Sat, 03 Jan 2009 16:12
The astonishing Dr Joseph Needham - Part 1 of 3 These days everybody knows that the Chinese invented practically everything hundreds of years ago. What people don't realise is that this understanding is so new; in the early 1950s, nobody, not even those in China were aware of this amazing fact. Then Dr Joseph Needham of Cambridge embarked on an exploration of China and the beginning of his massive work Science and Civilisation in China and in 2008 Simon Winchester's book Bomb, Book and Compass reminded the world of this achievement. Today in part 1 we talk to Simon Winchester but also hear once...
The Science Show: Science Show - 2008-12-27
Download Now · | Sat, 27 Dec 2008 23:32
Murray Darling water forum In 2008 Catalyst ran a moving special on the rare flooding that reached the outback this year. Flocks of birds numbering over 20,000 sprung up, as if from nowhere. The Catalyst team presented their research and feelings in a forum recorded at the ABC Ultimo Centre on our Open Day in August and this features today on The Science Show.
Download Now · | Fri, 19 Dec 2008 14:00
Steven Chu energy secretary for Obama Steven Chu, Nobel Prize winner in 1997, director of the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory has been chosen as President elect Obama´s energy secretary. He spoke with Robyn Williams in 2007 on implications of the growing climate problem. Disabling stolen credit cards A small spark applied to silicon causes oxidation and the release of energy. The silicon oxygen bond is very strong. The conversion of weak bonds to strong bonds releases energy. The release of energy in this reaction can be controlled and used for various applications. One might be deployment...
Download Now · | Fri, 12 Dec 2008 14:00
Boost for biodiesel potential The search is on to develop materials for biodiesel which don´t use crops best used for food, and which don´t use farmland on which crops for food could be grown. Tallow is the fat produced when animals are processed in abattoirs. The Materials and Energy Group at Flinders University has developed technology to ensure biodiesel blended with tallow remains liquid at usual operating temperatures. This technology can also be applied to jetfuel biofuel which needs to remain liquid at temperatures as low as 50°C. The question of global warming In an article in The...
Download Now · | Fri, 05 Dec 2008 14:00
What is autism? Of all the mental states being reassessed in 2008 autism and Asperger's must come near the top. Wendy Barnaby visits the Royal Society in London to hear from international experts - and she also meets a brilliant young pianist with Asperger's who explains how he performs so well but needs help for everyday living.
The Science Show: The Science Show: The Science Show: Science Show - 2008-11-29
Download Now · | Mon, 01 Dec 2008 04:52
University enrolments in IT halve in Australia John Harvey says while information technology is ubiquitous its role in industry is not widely appreciated. Unlike law and medicine, education in IT can be used for employment anywhere in the world. Traditional Indian farming encourages biodiversity Tropical forests used to cover large parts of India, especially along the Malabar Coast in Karnataka State. Modern tropical agriculture doesn´t support biodiversity. The human population is predicted to grow to 9 or 10 billion people. So how can food be supplied while maintaining biological life support...
Download Now · | Sun, 23 Nov 2008 03:56
Supernovae and the fusing of elements Researchers at The University of Sydney have discovered an extremely young supernova, the corpse of a star that exploded around 1,000 years ago. Supernovae are the result of stars like our sun exploding at the end of their life. When they do, light is emitted equivalent to half a trillion stars. The last supernova in our galaxy was in 1604. Records exist of an extremely bright sky at that time. But it's a mystery as to why we've not seen one since. All elements heavier than iron were made in supernovae. Bryan Gaensler describes the fusing of elements in the...
Download Now · | Mon, 17 Nov 2008 19:28
Daylight saving and energy consumption Nicky Phillips reports on the results of a United States survey on changes in energy consumption as daylight saving is introduced. Worms help remediate soils Earthworms can eat thirty times their body weight of soil each day. Metals in the soil are taken in and change in form, often becoming inert. Mark Hodson is investigating the use of earthworms to help remediate sites degraded by metal contamination. Carbon dioxide in New Zealand waters The waters around New Zealand are cold, and carbon dioxide dissolves in cold water more readily than warm water. This...
Download Now · | Sun, 09 Nov 2008 18:48
Science in the United States as Barack Obama is elected President Excerpts from the Horizon television documentary The President´s Guide to Science, plus comments from Freeman Dyson and Paul Ehrlich. The fat gene In the past 10 years, people have become heavier. Carrying more weight causes disease later in life. The best advice is to eat less and run more. But achieving this is difficult. So work is underway to find a pill which controls a recently discovered gene which controls weight. Presently it is unknown how the gene controls body weight. Bad Science - Ben Goldacre part 2 Ben Goldacre...
Download Now · | Mon, 03 Nov 2008 02:20
Bad Science - Ben Goldacre part 1 Ben Goldacre discusses stories from his book, Bad Science. He cites examples of the media overplaying stories which can scare the public, before data has been published in scientific and medical journals. Patenting fraud Korean scientist Hwang Woo Suk was found to have submitted fraudulent research, claiming a series of remarkable breakthroughs in the field of stem cell research. Now he is applying for patents in Australia. Nicky Phillips reports. Primate communication Gillian Sebestyen-Forrester has developed a novel method of recording, coding and analysing...
Download Now · | Sun, 26 Oct 2008 00:40
New record for silicon solar cell energy conversion efficiency to UNSW Martin Green A milestone of 25% energy conversion efficiency has been set by researchers at the University of NSW using silicon solar cells. 25% of incoming energy is converted to electricity. Of the remaining 75%, some is reflected and some is lost in heat. Appointment of the first NSW Chief Scientist Mary O´Kane has been appointed the first NSW Chief Scientist. O´Kane is a former vice-chancellor of the University of Adelaide and a former member of the Australian Research Council, the CRC Committee and the board of the CSIRO. Women...
Download Now · | Mon, 20 Oct 2008 16:12
Prime Minister´s Prizes for Science 2008 Ian Frazer was awarded the Prime Minister´s Prize for Science 2008. He created four vaccines to fight cervical cancer. Two of them-Gardasil and Cervarix-are now on the market. Both prevent infection with the virus responsible for most cervical cancers. The other two vaccines are in clinical trials and are designed to treat women who have already been infected. Electric cars on the move Developments in batteries mean the heavy lead batteries of the past are being replaced by lighter lithium batteries. These supply power and speed, seen as essential for...
Download Now · | Sat, 11 Oct 2008 07:32
Galaxy Zoo Galaxy Zoo uses the power of the internet and allows interested amateurs to assist in classifying the millions of galaxies in the universe. So far around 900,000 galaxies have been identified. Nobel Prizes 2008 Wendy Barnaby reports on the Nobel Prizes for chemistry, physics and medicine announced this week. Light used to monitor nerves of flies Gero Miesenböck studies the nervous system of flies by using light as a tool rather than the more cumbersome electrode. The optical signals record the activity of neurons. The neurons being studied are those which react to smell. These...
Download Now · | Sat, 04 Oct 2008 14:40
New wave technology a potential major source of energy The CETO process consists of hundreds of underwater buoys, each attached to a pump. Movement of the buoys sends pressurised water to shore for use in generators or desalination plants. Tim Sawyer estimates 35% of Australia´s energy needs is practically and economically extractable now. Ketone bodies - a new food on the way Kieran Clarke is working on a new fuel source for the human body, ketone bodies. These chemical are present in our bodies already, made by the liver from fat when glucose is in short supply. But until now they have not...
Download Now · | Thu, 30 Oct 2008 01:04
New wave technology a potential major source of energy The CETO process consists of hundreds of underwater buoys, each attached to a pump. Movement of the buoys sends pressurised water to shore for use in generators or desalination plants. Tim Sawyer estimates 35% of Australia´s energy needs is practically and economically extractable now. Ketone bodies - a new food on the way Kieran Clarke is working on a new fuel source for the human body, ketone bodies. These chemical are present in our bodies already, made by the liver from fat when glucose is in short supply. But until now they have not...
Download Now · | Thu, 30 Oct 2008 01:04
Lawrence Krauss - The LHC, going to Mars, and the US Presidential campaign Studying the fundamental structure of the universe won´t replace studying climate change and other important areas as has been suggested recently. Lawrence Krauss says sending people to Mars is crazy as so much of the venture is spent on keeping the astronauts alive rather than from doing science. Too little of the US presidential campaign mentions science, says Krauss, considering its importance. Measuring sea level and the Earth The Earth isn´t a sphere. It is flattened at the poles. These days, the Earth is measured...
Download Now · | Sat, 27 Sep 2008 22:12
Lawrence Krauss - The LHC, going to Mars, and the US Presidential campaign Studying the fundamental structure of the universe won´t replace studying climate change and other important areas as has been suggested recently. Lawrence Krauss says sending people to Mars is crazy as so much of the venture is spent on keeping the astronauts alive rather than from doing science. Too little of the US presidential campaign mentions science, says Krauss, considering its importance. Measuring sea level and the Earth The Earth isn´t a sphere. It is flattened at the poles. These days, the Earth is measured...
Download Now · | Mon, 22 Sep 2008 13:48
Chimps consol each other after fighting Orlaith Fraser has studied post-conflict behaviour in chimpanzees, looking at how friendly interactions after a conflict can mitigate the costs of aggression. Hugging and embracing by chimps after fighting reduces their stress levels and calms them down. In chimps, this is indicated by the degree of scratching and grooming. Her research was conducted at Chester Zoo. The behaviour also occurs in the wild. The next 50 years The next 50 years, next 100 years and beyond will be unique in history in that one species, us, will have the power to affect the future...
Download Now · | Sat, 13 Sep 2008 04:48
Living with Asperger´s What do Einstein, Beethoven, Andy Warhol, Bill Gates, Bob Dylan, Peter Sellers, Woody Allen, Van Gogh, Mozart and Thomas Jefferson have in common? They all have suffered from Asperger´s syndrome. How is it that so many brilliant people are successful while suffering from this form of autism? Filmmaker Stephen Ramsay applied the test to himself and with a positive result, went in search of others who live their lives with Asperger´s syndrome. Today's Science Show presents the soundtrack to Stephen Ramsay's film, Oops, Wrong Planet. Green at work - Aunty Jack Aunty Jack...
Download Now · | Sat, 06 Sep 2008 11:52
A punt on the Cam This week on The Science Show Cambridge virologist Chris Smith takes us punting along the Cam River. As he weaves around the old stone colleges, scientists jump on and off the punt, discussing their work as they go. A local guide describes the intriguing history of Cambridge, its colleges and the beautiful bridges across the river. The punt traverses The Backs, a one-mile stretch of river that supports some of finest examples of architecture in England. Eruption of Sumatra´s Mt Toba Martin Williams found volcanic ash in India. It came from Mt Toba in Sumatra 73,000 years...
Download Now · | Mon, 01 Sep 2008 03:04
Primates - threats and research Most primates are under extreme threat. Some from hunting, as in bonobos, while the Ebola virus threatens most primates. At the Adelaide Zoo, Carla Litchfield is planning a program where primate trainers and others stay for long periods in cages with their animals. There are some comforts, but other environmental factors are a challenge, like extreme ranges in temperature. Attacking chytrid, the killer frog fungus Of 6,300 amphibians in the world, New Zealand´s Archey's Frog Leiopelma archeyi is recognised as the most endangered. The main threat is chytrid fungus....
Download Now · | Sat, 23 Aug 2008 20:12
Eureka Prizes 2008 Nicky Phillips reports on the Australian Museum´s Eureka Science Prizes awarded this week. Hagfish Hagfish are blind, like big slimy eels. They predate fish and clean up the ocean bottom. Rebecca McLeod has looked at energy flows in New Zealand´s Fiordland ecosystems and discovered that hagfish actually derive energy from forests. Rain washes forest material into the water and, through bacterial decomposition, makes its way through the food chain to hagfish. Rebecca McLeod is New Zealand´s Young Scientist for 2008. Flushing the Great Barrier Reef The body of water between...
Download Now · | Mon, 18 Aug 2008 11:56
Black rats - brilliant adaptors Black rats were responsible for the death of 75 million people in the 13th century during the Black Plague. Today they cost the US grain industry $19 billion a year. But black rats also happen to be brilliant at adaptation and survival. Feeling squirmish? Well the south Vietnamese aren´t, with their rat meat industry producing 10,000 tonnes of rat meat every year. They can be traced to Southeast Asia they have spread throughout every continent and if you think they're not in your house.... think again! Saving Denmark's Houting fish The draining of rivers and the...
Download Now · | Sun, 10 Aug 2008 11:28
Minke whales - mutual interest Alastair Birtles reports on results of his study of whale-human interaction in the waters off Cairns and Port Douglas. The minke whales are quite curious and can swim around people for many hours. Northern Queensland is the only known area where this interaction takes place. Green turtles in northern Australia These turtles grow as large as one metre. They feed on sea grass and algae. The northern Great Barrier Reef green turtle population is the largest group of its kind, with a population of around 50,000 individuals. It´s thought global warming is affecting turtles,...