Inside The Petri Dish

From telling your tits apart to badgers in your garden, wildlife expert George Cook takes us through getting into bird spotting and supporting our local wildlife species.

Behind the scenes of a museum is a mystery to most. Brittney Elizabeth Stoneburg, Collections Manager at the Western Science Centre in California, takes us into the meticulous world of museum collection – from discovering mammoths in construction sites to 3D models uncovering new species.

Ageing isn't only skin deep. Our brains also age. Dr Dani Beck tells us about the structural changes we see in our brain throughout our lifespans, as well as what lifestyle choices can age our brains faster.

At a time of year where we normally gather our family around, the pandemic is bringing up some difficult decisions about how to keep our families safe whilst we mark the holiday. This is a Christmas Special Episode with a difference – Dr Amber joins us again to talk us through the Covid-19 guidelines at Christmas … Continue reading "A Merry Covid Christmas"

With the breaking news that the UK will be rolling out Covid-19 vaccines before the New Year, the global effort for solving this global pandemic comes into questions. We are at risk of wealthier countries hoarding the vaccines and gatekeeping them from other countries. Dr Farah joins us to explore how we can combat vaccine … Continue reading "Vaccine Nationalism | We aren’t safe until we’re all safe"

When deployed to the ebola outbreak, Dr Janet Scott worked with patients experiencing long-term health problems after recovering from the virus. In the current global pandemic, we are also seeing many people suffering from a multitude of issues after recovering from coronavirus – known as Long Covid. Dr Janet Scott has been working to investigate … Continue reading "From Ebola to Long Covid"

Despite their role in community-focused medicine and their intimate knowledge of their patients, GPs were left behind during the COVID pandemic. Dr Amber Wheatley tells us about life in general practice during the coronavirus crisis and why this has been a downfall in tackling the virus for the UK’s most vulnerable patients.

Given the global pandemic and wide circulation of misinformation, experts will be joining the Inside the Petri Dish team (virtually – for socially distancing) to get to grips with COVID19. Yesterday, Boris Johnson announced the UK is on lockdown. This can be a scary thought for pregnant people or those with newborns. Tay speaks to Dr … Continue reading "Pregnant and in Social Isolation"

Given the global pandemic and wide circulation of misinformation, experts will be joining the Inside the Petri Dish team (virtually – for socially distancing) to get to grips with COVID19. Alice speaks to a close friend, Dr Harry Ferguson, who is staffing a coronavirus ward in Wales, about what symptoms we should look out for, … Continue reading "Working on a Coronavirus Ward | Dr Harry Ferguson"

Tay, Vicki and Alice return to Cardiff Science Festival to host another live podcast, this time they tackle the science of sex. Joined by Sian Jones, from Scarleteen, Inside the Petri Dish examines everything from the misconceptions of sex to HPV and contraception. Join them for a less-than-serious chat about the down-belows.

BONUS EPISODE: Jordan Harrod cracks the algorithmic code behind the most popular dating apps. From hook-ups to finding the one, she tells us about how different dating apps are designed to encourage different dating behaviours.

BONUS EPISODE:  How do men and women make their dating decisions? How are dating profiles influencing our dating behaviours? Psychologist Dr Martin Graff tells us about the psychological processes involved in online dating and relationships.

One third of marriages are now the result of dating apps. With dating apps becoming the baseline for finding a new beau, what’s going on behind the swiping left and right? Tay and Vicki tear out the algorithms behind dating apps by setting up a profile for Alice. To explain how it all works, they … Continue reading "Swipe Left? Swipe Right? | AI & Dating Apps"