Shirtloads Of Science

Dinosaur Love - What drove them to sex ? Dr. Alice reports that there may be hints in a distant relative. Test Tube Meat ? The cost of manufactured protein will come down says Almost Dr. Jessica. Plus Dr. Karl on Animal Families. They can have kids from different fathers in the same litter. They're not twins. What are they and Why? 

Imagine laying a sheet of smart film on a masterpiece like "Starry Starry Night". Without contaminating the surface, you can lift off chemical signatures. Discover what paint Van Gogh used, what drugs he might have been taking and even if he was suffering from a recognisable disease. Dr Alice has the story plus Dr Karl on the growing rubbish dump above our heads and (almost) Dr Jessica on those one-off intergalactic tweets called FRBs - what are they ? 

Bacteria are more like submarines than fish. They have propellors and motors. This is one of the extraordinary discoveries that Sydney researcher Dr Matt Baker has been part of. In fact he has gone deeper and is looking inside the different motors bacteria species have. What powers these micro machines ?  How they are made ? His stories of life at a micron level are almost beyond belief.

What discovery deserves to be the biggest of the 2016? We say Gravitational Waves and the LIGO team. Einstein said they were theoretically possible a hundred years ago and this story is so big it'll is worth two podcasts. Welcome once again Professor Geraint Lewis from the School of Physics at Sydney University.

LIGO - Laser Interferometer Gravitational Wave Observatory was the detector. It has found the most elusive of all cosmic vibrations. One hundred years ago Einstein said they were possible - so mind-bending he changed his opinion twice. A mathematician in the WWI trenches confirmed their theoretical existence and then ... Well this story is so big it'll take two podcasts. Welcome to our Shirtloads "Gravitational Wave Special Part One" and the Associate Head for Research at the School of Physics, Sydney University, Professor Geraint Lewis.  Dark energy, gravitational lensing, galactic cannibalism - our Shirtloads of Science" guest eats them for breakfast.

Searching for other habitable planets, looking for medicines inside deadly poisons and pushing poverty (and wealth) to the limit. A Shirtloads Planet Earth 2017 health check.

Cholesterol is a waxy, fat-like substance that your body needs. When you have too much in your blood, it can build up on your artery walls. Too much cholesterol puts you at risk for heart disease and stroke, two leading causes of death. Prof. Claire Collins has 5 simple changes to your diet - that may improve your life and beat these notorious killers.

Doctors (Karl, Alice & Jessica almost) Talk about the Chemicals you may find on new Planets, a new way to breed endangered birds and why has the Doomsday Clock started ticking again ?

Dr Karl's Shirtloads takes you to where Water-Ice is rock, salty Geysers blow (just like earth's underwater Hydrothermic jets) and the prospects for life in our own Solar System are tantalisingly close. Dr Linda Spilker has been with NASA's Jet propulsion Lab since 1977. Her work spans Voyager missions and the current Cassini mission. With 40 years of exploration experience, enjoy our extended edition of Shirtloads. Also find out why you should put September 15th in your diary and how Australia may play a vital role in decoding Saturn's rings. (Warning: Contains Physics, Chemistry and traces of Biology). 

Planets are popping up everywhere but what about that new Continent on Earth - Why has it taken us so long to find it ? Which part of the human brain is revealing a relationship with Autism .... and why did we have to ban a certain type of soap ? Surely something as simple as soap can't be that bad ? Dr Karl, Dr Alice and Dr (almost) Jessica discuss the latest.

"Fake News" was 2016's word of the year (according to the Macquarie Dictionary). Can "fake news" make you sick ?  Doctor Karl meets a fact-checking scientist. Ben Goldacre reviews articles in medical Journals. Ben is "Senior Clinical Research Fellow" at the Center for Evidence-Based Medicine at Oxford University and he says there are reasons to be concerned. (His Dead cat is a professional member of the American Association of Nutritional Consultants - proof that fancy titles means nothing.) 

Dr Alice talks about Tickling and why brain researchers are so interested in it - (did you know there are professional Rat Ticklers ?). Dr Jessica reports on the latest evidence of the origin of our moon. Doctor Karl on why we keep on adding leap seconds to our clocks - what is going on.

Meet Dr. Marlene Kanga. She is about to become president of an international governing body looking after 2 million professionals. Our future depends on innovation and the creative heart is Engineering. She talks with Dr Karl of the value Engineers bring to society, which specialties are attracting female engineers and what Australia can do to catch up with some of the leading nations.   

Karl, Alice and Jessica choose and discuss their top 4 Scientific discoveries of 2016. Astronomy, Biology, Computer Science, Physics and more. But there is one breakthrough they all agree on (and it has an Australian connection). Listen and find out.

We rarely get to hear "insider's"  stories of extraterrestrial discovery. Doctor Karl meets Warwick Holmes - avionics systems engineer on the Rosetta mission that orbited comet seeking the chemical signatures of life. He gives us a blow by blow account of extraterrestrial exploration in the 21st Century. How do you test hardware to fly by the sun and withstand comet dust. How does a lad from South Australia land the best job on earth ? Beam us up Warwick !

Three Doctors (almost) - with Dr Karl's report on his expedition to see the Great Barrier Reef coral spawn . Dr Alice on why morning sickness may be good 4 U and how ear-worms work. Plus Dr Jessica (almost) on the physics of the ponytail.

Dr Alice reports on "open source pharma" for malaria, Dr Karl on space nation #3 - China. Dr Alice on Australian Budgerigars and the traffic control of drones. How Diet is the new highway to human development and is your brain tricking you into making bad choices ? 2017 New Year resolution advice from Shirtloads

Self-described ‘professional space history nerd’ Amy Shira Teitel joins Dr Karl to talk about spaceflight before NASA in her book ‘Breaking the Chains of Gravity’. Hear about cutting edge rocket planes like the X-15 (and its surprising link with tractor seats), the team of seamstresses behind the launch of high-altitude balloons to the edge of space, and how paper plates inspired the engineering of early spacecraft. Tune in for extraordinary, intimate stories from a time that is often forgotten in space-age literature.    

Dr Alice has been shark hunting in the Arctic waters (i.e. through scientific papers) and discovered the oldest vertebrate in the world is at least 272 years old. Meanwhile, back on the land, why are two scientists riding a roller coaster holding a bag with an artificial kidney and stones? Dr Karl is considering a ‘fusion’ breakfast after hearing that spicy food may be good for your health. Fruit salad with chilli anyone? And why does the Zebra finch sing a different song to its eggs just before they hatch?

Marine biologist, diver and author Dr Helen Scales takes Dr Karl deep beneath the waves to share her passion for life in the ocean. Helen talks about her new book ‘Spirals in Time’ on the secret life of shells. Hear about ‘clacking’ oysters, the legend of the Golden Fleece (sea silk) and a creature resembling a pinecone crossbred with a slug. There’s mathematics in the spirals of shells, slave trading in the history of the cowrie shell and just imagine a Harry Potter golden snitch of the sea… it’s real and has an incredibly important role to play in ocean life.