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Welcome to BioAudio: The Teaching Podcast. After many years teaching biology in universities in the UK and in Canada I've come to the conclusion that we can do better than text books. I always want something more flexible, that can be updated with new topics and new discoveries. After years avoiding textbooks… I've created BioAudio a collection of discussions to accompany lectures in university biology courses . So let's ditch the textbook and just listen. 

Elizabeth Clare


    • Feb 23, 2025 LATEST EPISODE
    • monthly NEW EPISODES
    • 26m AVG DURATION
    • 34 EPISODES


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    Latest episodes from BioAudio

    Fossils, Rocks and Radioactive Clocks: How to date the ancient past

    Play Episode Listen Later Feb 23, 2025 37:22


    Send us a textToday on the BioAudio podcast, it's all about dating! (no not that kind). Have you ever wondered how we figure out when things happened way in the past? When a scientist says "it's 100 million years old..." just how did they figure it out?Today I'm talking to Dr. Matthew Jones. He's a paleontologist at Arizona State University and his specialty is fossil mammals (though he admits he was a dinosaur kid). It's often his job to figure out just how old is this rock and he's going to tell us about the science of dating ancient things. Stratigraphy, radioactive clocks, iridium rain and a commit that slammed into the earth. Who knew dating was so risky. 

    What is a phylogeny for?

    Play Episode Listen Later Feb 10, 2025 20:42


    Send us a textIn this episode I"m joined by Bahar Roohshad, an undergraduate student from one of my classes to talk about phylogenetics. What are they? what are they for and how might we use on? 

    Biodiversity and Insect Declines

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 30, 2025 32:34


    Send us a textWe keep hearing that biodiversity is in decline. But what does this mean? How is biodiversity distributed and what does "decline" look like? In this episode PhD student Hadil Elsayed talks to us about her experience tracking insects in some of the most protected habitats in Canada. 

    Beaver, Otters and Wolves: Ecosystem Engineers and Trophic Cascades

    Play Episode Listen Later Apr 3, 2024 24:17


    Today on the BioAudio podcast Prof Alex Mills returns to talk about how we recognize and describe an "ecological community" and the unique roll of keystone species, ecosystem engineers and apex predators. We will also talk about three famous trophic cascades, where the removal or introduction of a species has consequences that rebound across the entire system. 

    Disease Ecology: Parasites in Community Ecology

    Play Episode Listen Later Mar 28, 2024 34:21


    This week on the BioAudio podcast we are talking about disease ecology with Prof Dan Becker. It's a field that combines mathematical modeling, ecology, evolution, medicine, veterinary science... and he actually got into this as a cultural anthropologist interested in social justice. How do you get from social justice to the fate of vampire bats in a fragmented ecosystem? tune in to find out in this episode of the BioAudio podcast where we explore community disease ecology in wild populations. 

    Natural vs Sexual Selection: Darwin's two great ideas

    Play Episode Listen Later Mar 8, 2024 24:28


    In this episode of the BioAudio podcast we revisit Natural Selection and Sexual Selection. I am joined by Professor Alex Mills and we are going to compare and contrast these two ideas. We talk about what kept Darwin up at night and how he solved the problem of the peacock's tail. 

    The Tangled Bank: Evolution and Species Interactions

    Play Episode Listen Later Feb 29, 2024 27:19


    In this episode Prof. Gordon Fitch explains the ways that individuals from two different species can interact in the wild, and the evolutionary consequences of this for species evolution and the stability of ecosystems. We cover competition, predation, mutualism, commensalism and the co-evolution of species... we even manage to work in Darwin and Taylor Swift! This is what Darwin referred to as the "tangled bank", complicated to unravel and critical to survival. 

    How to read a scientific paper

    Play Episode Listen Later Feb 14, 2024 18:45


    In this episode Prof. Erin Fraser joins me for part two of our introduction to primary scientific literature. This time... did you know most of us don't read these "papers" from start to finish? in this episode we try to demystify the process and we admit... we have to look up words just like everyone else! 

    What is scientific literature?

    Play Episode Listen Later Feb 12, 2024 28:39


    Today in the BioAudio podcast part one of a two part session on scientific literature. Today Prof. Erin Fraser joins me to talk about what we mean by "primary scientific literature". We will go through the basic structure of a scientific "paper" and what each section is for. We are out to demystify the world of scientific writing on the BioAudio podcast. 

    Reproductive isolating barriers and modes of speciation

    Play Episode Listen Later Feb 2, 2024 24:14


    In this episode of the BioAudio podcast I'm joined by Christian Nakla, a former student in my senior evolution class, someone who always had a good question for me. Now i'm flipping our roll and he's going to help explain how barriers to reproduction can lead to speciation. It's all about isolating barriers today on the BioAudio podcast. 

    What's a species? How do we define biological diversity

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 26, 2024 23:30


    What is a species?  A simple question that just about anyone can answer, and yet has been the source of endless debate for decades. Biological diversity just doesn't fit in nice neat little boxes no matter how much we search for a universal species concept. In this episode of the BioAudio podcast Prof. Eryn McFarlane is back to talk about some of the most commonly used definitions of a species, and why they all seem to fail in the end.  The diversity of life defies definition. 

    Darwin's evidence for natural selection - an Encore Presentation

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 19, 2024 30:05


    This is an encore presentation of the third episode I made of the BioAudio Podcast. I am re-posting the first three episodes form season 1 because they also set the stage for new content in Season 2. So before we get into new conversations, please follow along with my conversation with Dr. Dave Hone on the evidence used by  Charles Darwin to argue that natural selection was the mechanism driving evolution. Next week we start with new content on BioAudio, but for now continue on with this encore presentation. 

    Charles Darwin: the making of a scientific theory - an Encore Presentation

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 12, 2024 30:56


    This is an encore presentation of the second episode I made of the BioAudio Podcast. Season 2 is an introduction of Evolution and Ecology. So before we get into new content, I am re-posting a conversation with Dr. Dave Hone on the life of Charles Darwin and what led him to write one of the word's most famous books. 

    Evolution before Darwin - an Encore Presentation

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 6, 2024 29:16


    This is an encore presentation of the first episode I made of the BioAudio Podcast. Season 2 is an introduction of Evolution and Ecology. So we will start with an encore presentation of a discussion I had with Prof. Mark Vicari on the sorts of debates and discussions about evolution that happened before Charles Darwin came along.  Many students mistakenly think Darwin "invented" evolution but the question of whether species were fixed or changed through time was discussed and debated for thousands of years before he was born. This is a quick overview of some of the past ideas about the nature of species. 

    Season 2 Introduction

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 6, 2024 1:14


    An introduction to season two of the BioAudio podcast. Welcome.

    Evolution inspires technology - of bird legs and heat pumps

    Play Episode Listen Later Nov 29, 2023 31:25


    In the final episode of this season of the BioAudio podcast we talk about counter current exchange - a low energy system used by birds, fish, diving mammals etc. to recycle heat, move oxygen out of water and into blood and even make it possible to drink salt water. But the same system is used in industry, most recently in the news in heat pumps which move heat along gradients to both heat and cool your home. Inside a heat pump is a clever counter current exchange system which sounds a lot like the legs of a bird legs. We'll compare these two technologies - it's evolution in parallel with climate saving technology on the BioAudio podcast. Thanks to Dr. Kevin Kerr, Silas Barrette and Dr. Leif Einarson. 

    Evolutionary Medicine: rethinking why we get sick

    Play Episode Listen Later Nov 27, 2023 34:52


    In this episode of the BioAudio podcast we take a look at the emerging field of evolutionary medicine. This discipline asks not "how should we cure X?" but "why are we susceptible to X in the first place, what adaptation has gone wrong?" and these new types of questions are leading to interesting ideas about treatment of common problems. Evolutionary medicine asks us to rethink the question of why we get sick. 

    Hybridization - when species mix

    Play Episode Listen Later Nov 13, 2023 28:32


    In this episode of the BioAudio podcast Prof. Eryn McFarlane and I discuss the role of hybridization in evolutionary ecology, what they are, how they persist and what the consequences might be. Along the way we will talk about the influence of human behavior in hybridization, some of the threats to populations and the existence of "magic traits" which can cause rapid speciation under gene flow. 

    Conservation genetics: how to use molecular tools in management

    Play Episode Listen Later Nov 9, 2023 40:03


    In this episode of the BioAudio podcast Professor Christina Davy and I discuss (and sometimes debate) the role of genetic tools in applied conservation. We will talk about what information we can gain, how we might use it and how these methods interact with policy decisions. We also look at the recent population history of the little brown bat, who's population has undergone one of the largest bottleneck events due to disease ever recorded. We will talk about how molecular tools have been used to understand the crash, the survivors and can inform correct conservation action now to try and preserve the remaining populations. 

    What's a species, the strange case of the salamanders

    Play Episode Listen Later Nov 3, 2023 26:03


    The Ambsystoma salamanders of the great lakes region have the most peculiar mating system.. they are all females, but they steal the genomes from other related species to aid in reproduction. This "kleptogenesis" is ancient, probably originating 5 million years ago. This makes it a stable reproductive strategy but it defies everything the text books tell us about species boundaries. In this episode Prof Katty Greenwald and I talk about what makes a species and how vague the term can really be.

    The genetics and rapid evolution of invasive species

    Play Episode Listen Later Oct 25, 2023 24:17


    What makes a species invasive? Today on the BioAudio podcast my guest is Dr. Thais Bernos who is an expert in the genetics and genomics of invasive fish species. Her study subject is the tench fish introduced three times to Canada staring in the late 1800s but also introduced around the world as human populations moved and brought a favourite food with them.  Join us to hear about what makes an invasion successful and how their evolutionary and population structure informs management. 

    Transposable Elements: half your genome, hardly understood

    Play Episode Listen Later Sep 23, 2023 23:14


    Did you know that about half your genome is made of small bits of DNA called transposable elements? These "genomic parasites" are not genes, and they are not there to help run your body... they are small selfish elements out only to replicate themselves. They can cut themselves out of your genome, duplicate and re-enter you genome... and they can disrupt things as they go. Some of them appear to be ancient viruses, now there almost like fossils, some are highly dynamic bits of DNA. They are fascinating selfish elements ... and you are crammed full of them.

    The RNA world hypothesis and the origin of life

    Play Episode Listen Later Sep 22, 2023 33:11


    After many episodes about evolution, you might wonder... how did this all get going? Where did life come from? How did life itself start? In this episode Jacob Fine, a graduate student with a passion for RNA biology, takes us on a journey more than 4 billion years into the past... to explore what life might have looked light at the very start. We will talk about the "Darwinian threshold",  LUCA, the last universal common ancestor and just what spark might have started evolution. 

    Life Histories and Alternative Reproductive Tactics

    Play Episode Listen Later Sep 18, 2023 28:57


    In this episode Prof. Charlyn Partridge and I talk about the evolution of reproductive tactics in sunfishes. 

    Evolution of the Genome

    Play Episode Listen Later Sep 4, 2023 32:55


    We normally talk about evolution of species - and the genome as a sort of inert and hardly changing thing... but the reality is quite different. Your genome is an amazingly complex things that also evolves. Here Prof. Ryan Gregory and I talk about evolution of the genome itself. 

    How to read a scientific paper Part 2: Co-evolution of bats and pitcher plants

    Play Episode Listen Later Aug 29, 2023 18:46


    This is part 2 of a two part lesson on how to read a scientific paper. In part 1 Prof Joanna Coleman and I talked about the parts of a scientific paper and we compare our approaches to actually sitting down and trying to understand scientific publications. We also introduced the topic of "co-evolution". In this episode Prof. Coleman and I actually read a paper together and we talk about it as we go.  What we liked, what was important, what did we both get from this paper. The paper we are going to read is a short, reasonably easy to read report on how bats and pitcher plants may have co-evolved. Grafe TU, Schöner CR, Kerth G, Junaidi A, Schöner MG. A novel resource-service mutualism between bats and pitcher plants. Biol Lett. 2011 Jun 23;7(3):436-9. doi: 10.1098/rsbl.2010.1141.If you are a university professor and would like a suggested assignment that goes along with this two part episode feel free to email the podcast and i'll explain the different assignments I have used as a follow up in different classes. EASTER EGG - this paper inspired the cover art for BioAudio. The wonderful image that I was given permission to use by Wren Bailee. 

    How to read a scientific paper Part 1: Co-evolution

    Play Episode Listen Later Aug 28, 2023 15:03


    If you are a university professor - how often do you ask your class to read a paper... and how often do you actually explain how they should do it?  As a student, how often has someone actually walked you through how to understand scientific publications.... my guess is not enough!Teaching from scientific publications is great, but they take practice to get onto the style of writing. As scientists, we read and write so many, sometimes we forget how steep that learning curve is. I was  surprised when a student stopped me after class last year and said "but, how do I read the paper you gave us, what am I supposed to get from it? It's like a different language". The student was quite correct. Reading scientific literature is a skill we all need to learn and practice. So Professor Joanna Coleman and I sat down and created this two part episode on how to read a scientific paper. In part 1 we talk about what goes into the different sections of a scientific paper,  and we compare how each of us would approach reading a paper. We also introduce the topic of co-evolution (which is what we are going to read about). In part 2 we actually read a paper together. 

    Cooperation, altruism and kin selection

    Play Episode Listen Later Aug 16, 2023 30:44


    On this episode of BioAudio, Prof. Gerry Carter and I talk about the complexity of understanding the evolution of cooperation in animals groups 

    Mate Choice, Parental Investment, Competition and Sexual Selection

    Play Episode Listen Later Aug 15, 2023 31:27


    In this episode Prof. Ryan Gregory of the University of Guelph and I discuss how sexual selection explains the evolution of traits that seem to have a cost to an individual's survival. It's the battle of the sexes on the BioAudio podcast. 

    Types of selection

    Play Episode Listen Later Aug 14, 2023 20:32


    In this episode of the BioAudio podcast I talk to 3rd year undergraduate student Ghazal Hooshyar and she's going to explain to me what she's learned about different types of selection. 

    Darwin's evidence for natural selection

    Play Episode Listen Later Aug 13, 2023 29:01


    Dr. Dave Hone from Queen Mary University of London returns to talk about what evidence Darwin presented to argue for Natural Selection as the mechanism of evolution in nature. 

    Charles Darwin: the making of a scientific theory

    Play Episode Listen Later Aug 12, 2023 29:55


    In this episode Dr. Dave Hone from Queen Mary University of London joins me to talk about the life of Charles Darwin and how he developed natural selection as a mechanism for evolution. 

    Evolution before Darwin

    Play Episode Listen Later Aug 11, 2023 28:26


    In our first full episode Dr. Mark Vicari and I look at the sorts of discussions about evolution that happened before Charles Darwin came along.  Many students mistakenly think Darwin "invented" evolution but the question of whether species were fixed or changed through time was discussed and debated for thousands of years before he was born. This is a quick overview of some of the past ideas about the nature of species. 

    Trailer: Welcome to BioAudio the teaching podcast

    Play Episode Listen Later Aug 10, 2023 3:11


    Trailer - where I explain just what it is I'm doing!Welcome to the BioAudio Podcast. I'm Professor Elizabeth Clare a biologist who has taught in both the UK and Canada. X (formerly twitter) @Dr_bat_girlMastodon @ProfBatGirl@ecoevo.social

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