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In this episode of The Psychedelic Podcast, Paul F. Austin is joined by renowned neuroscientist Dr. Robin Carhart-Harris and microdosing policy advocate John Downs for a replay of a live event originally held on June 10th, Microdosing vs. SSRIs: What's Happening in the Brain and Why It Matters. Find full show notes and links here: https://thethirdwave.co/podcast/episode-312b/?ref=278 Together, they explore the scientific distinctions between SSRIs and psychedelics, focusing on neuroimaging, brain entropy, emotional processing, and the REBUS model. Dr. Carhart-Harris shares key insights from landmark studies on psilocybin therapy and discusses the evidence (and limitations) around microdosing. John Downs closes the conversation with an update on the Microdosing Collective's efforts to shift policy and expand access. Robin Carhart-Harris, PhD is a neuropharmacologist, psychologist, and Ralph Metzner Distinguished Professor in Neurology and Psychiatry at the University of California, San Francisco. He leads the Psychedelics Division at UCSF's Neuroscape and formerly founded and led the Centre for Psychedelic Research at Imperial College London. John Downs is Executive Director of the Microdosing Collective, advocating for responsible policy reform and legal access to microdosing. With 25 years' experience in sales, business development, and emerging markets, John helps individuals optimize mindset, performance, and purpose. Episode Highlights: Why SSRIs blunt, while psychedelics reset emotional processing How psilocybin compares to antidepressants in clinical trials Brain entropy, plasticity, and the REBUS model explained The role of the default mode network in mental health Why microdosing research is still so limited Ketamine vs. psilocybin: differences in brain mechanisms Is serotonin syndrome a real microdosing risk? Can psychedelics reverse long-term SSRI effects? The Microdosing Collective's mission for policy reform What Robin Carhart-Harris' upcoming book will explore Episode Links: Robin's lab & upcoming book Microdosing Collective Join Dr. Robin Carhart-Harris at our Practitioner Intensive (November 5–10, Costa Rica) Episode Sponsors: Golden Rule Mushrooms - Get a lifetime discount of 10% with code THIRDWAVE at checkout Psychedelic Coacing Isntitute's Intensive for Psychedelic Professionals in Costa Rica - a transformative retreat for personal and professional growth.
As a new warning is released by scientists that trying to offset our carbon emissions by planting trees alone won't work, we investigate the role the Earth's forests are playing in the fight against climate change.Marnie Chesterton is joined by Mark Maslin, Professor of Earth System Science at University College London, to help answer our top five questions about trees and CO2. We also speak to science writer and New York Times columnist Carl Zimmer about his new book ‘Air-Borne: The Hidden History of the Life We Breathe', and what it tells us about what we're breathing into our lungs each day. After we reported on the plight of some of our UK wild bird species earlier this year, many listeners got in touch wanting to know more about one species in particular: house sparrows. To look at why their numbers have been declining so sharply, and what we might be able to do about it, we hear from Imperial College London's Dr Julia Schroeder, who has been studying the birds for 15 years.And Marnie is joined in the studio by Lizzie Gibney, Senior Reporter at Nature, to explore some of the fascinating research from around the world in this week's science journals.Presenter: Marnie Chesterton Producers: Clare Salisbury, Dan Welsh and Jonathan Blackwell Editor: Martin Smith Production Co-ordinator: Jana Bennett-Holesworth
In this episode, I'm joined by Tommaso Barba from Imperial College London to explore how psychedelics are transforming mental health research. We break down what these compounds are, how they work in the brain, and why they offer hope for conditions like depression, anxiety, OCD, and addiction. Tommaso also shares insights on the future of psychedelic therapy — and the importance of safety, integration, and realistic expectations.Find Tommaso:Instagram: @tommaso.barbaWork: https://profiles.imperial.ac.uk/tommaso.barba20LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tommaso-barba-88220a177/?originalSubdomain=ukStay Connected with Hurt to Healing:Instagram: instagram.com/hurttohealingpodTikTok: tiktok.com/@hurttohealingpodLinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/hurt-to-healingSubstack: substack.com/@hurttohealingWebsite: hurttohealing.co.uk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Scientists in the UK want to send a tiny space probe to Venus to search for signs of life in its clouds. Imperial College London's Dave Clements spoke to Corin Dann.
There is an experience some of us (but not all) are able to have called autonomous sensory meridian response or ASMR. It can be triggered by a soft monotonous voice explaining something as well as other triggers. Sounds weird, right? Listen as I explain how it works, why science doesn't recognize it as a real thing but for many of us, it is a wonderful sensation, and I will tell you how to experience it. https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/53220/listening-soft-voices-can-cause-brain-orgasms The YouTube video link mentioned is: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CHiKxytbCWk Difficult conversations are never fun, but they are necessary. Whether you are negotiating for a raise or having a tough conversation with your spouse or friend, there are ways to make these conversations go better for you and everyone involved. Here to offer some expertise on this is Ryan Dunlap a former police detective and hostage negotiator. He has been involved in a lot of high stakes negotiations in his career and he is author of the book How to Untie a Balloon: A Negotiator's Guide to Avoid Popping Under Pressure (https://amzn.to/3Ia2c72) What are the best practices for living a long and healthy life? There are many theories on this but here to discuss the science of longevity is John Tregoning who explains that living a long life may best be accomplished by living a good life. John is Professor of Vaccine Immunology at Imperial College London and has published over sixty academic papers. He is author of the book, Live Forever?: A Curious Scientist's Guide to Wellness, Ageing and Death (https://amzn.to/4kc9B2J). How do you write a good business email? Interestingly, there are some common mistakes people make that water down the message in business emails by making them sound more like personal emails. Listen as I reveal how to avoid that. https://www.inc.com/geoffrey-james/7-common-habits-that-kill-credibility.html#ixzz3c6aUXNnN PLEASE SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS!!! SHOPIFY: Shopify is the commerce platform for millions of businesses around the world! To start selling today, sign up for your $1 per month trial at https://Shopify.com/sysk INDEED: Get a $75 sponsored job credit to get your jobs more visibility at https://Indeed.com/SOMETHING right now! QUINCE: Stick to the staples that last, with elevated essentials from Quince! Go to https://Quince.com/sysk for free shipping on your order and 365 day returns! HERS: Hers is transforming women's healthcare by providing access to affordable weight loss treatment plans, delivered straight to your door, if prescribed. Start your initial free online visit today at https://forhers.com/something DELL: The Black Friday in July event from Dell Technologies is here. Upgrade for a limited-time only at https://Dell.com/deals Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
John Tregoning is a leading immunologist, researcher, and author, dedicated to making the complex world of science accessible to everyone. He is the author of Live Forever?: The Curious Scientist's Guide to Wellness, Ageing and Death in which he explores aging and what we can do about it. He previously published Infectious: Pathogens and How We Fight Them, which describes the history and science of infectious disease.As a professor at Imperial College London, John specializes in vaccine immunology, focusing on how the body defends itself against infectious diseases.Follow To Dine For:Official Website: ToDineForTV.comFacebook: Facebook.com/ToDineForTVInstagram: @ToDineForTVTwitter: @KateSullivanTVEmail: ToDineForTV@gmail.com Thank You to our Sponsors!American National InsuranceWairau River WinesFollow Our Guest:Official Site: Dr. John TregoningInstagram: @A_Curious_ScientistLinkedIn: John TregoningFollow The Restaurant:Official Website: The Hidden Hut - Cornwall, EnglandFacebook: The Hidden HutInstagram: @HiddenHut Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
'n Nuwe studie het bevind dat die ernstige Europese hittegolf van 23 Junie tot 2 Julie vanjaar na raming 2 300 sterftes in 12 stede veroorsaak het. Dit is volgens die studie deur Imperial College London en die London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine. Van die sterftes word sowat tweederdes toegeskryf aan aardverwarming, met 88 persent van die slagoffers ouer as 65. 'n Omgewingsepidemioloog, Pierre Masselot, het aan The Independent gesê die wêreld moet ophou om fossielbrandstowwe te verbrand:
Một nghiên cứu mang tính bước ngoặt từ Imperial College London đã quy - 1.500 ca tử vong trong đợt nắng nóng ở châu Âu tuần trước - cho biến đổi khí hậu do con người gây ra.
A landmark study from Imperial College London has attributed 1,500 deaths during last week's European heatwave directly to human-induced climate change. It's the first rapid attribution study to go beyond linking climate change to weather events, and instead ties it directly to human deaths.
Die onlangse rekord-hittegolf in Europa het die dood van 2 300 mense veroorsaak, volgens 'n wetenskaplike studie. Die studie het 12 stede ondersoek en bevind dat sowat 1 500 van die sterftes toegeskryf kan word aan die uitwerking van klimaatsverandering. Friederike Otto, 'n professor in klimaatswetenskap aan die Imperial College London, het meegewerk aan die verslag en sê dit onderstreep die behoefte aan verandering.
‘Heatwaves are silent killers', according to Dr Gary Konstantinoudis, lecturer at the Grantham Institute for Climate Change and the Environment, at Imperial College London.Summer heatwaves caused 263 deaths in London. This data comes as a week-long heat health alert for the capital kicks in.A new generation of foldable phones has been unveiled by Samsung.The CEO of X, Linda Yaccarino, has resigned.And chimpanzees have been observed copying quirky social behaviours from one another, even though they offer no apparent practical benefit.For more, we spoke to senior author Dr. Jake Brooker from the Department of Psychology at the University of Durham. Also in this episode: -Microsoft Outlook users have reported issues using the platform-AI surgery could be trialled on humans within a decade-Why cats prefer predictable outcomes instead of surprising events Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Timestamps:3:30 - Teaching a made-up course on London Business School13:29 - Should we be wary of AI?16:00 - It's never been easier to hack software27:38 - Gandalf came out of a hackathon38:38 - Differences between the US and SwitzerlandThis episode was sponsored by infinity.swiss, Switzerland's most advanced AI accounting tool. Save 25% by entering code SWISSPRENEUR at checkout.Click here to order your copy of “Swiss Startups” today.About David Haber:David Haber is the co-founder and CEO at Lakera AI, a real-time GenAI security company. He holds a MEng in Computer Science from Imperial College London and founded Cognitir, a startup providing in-person and on-demand AI education for Fortune 500 companies and world-leading universities, before co-founding Lakera AI in 2021. Co-founded by former Google, Meta, and aerospace engineers, Lakera's team combines cutting-edge AI research with real-world expertise in deploying AI systems that can't fail — at the scale of a billion flight hours. Lakera's mission is to enable enterprises to focus on building the most exciting AI applications securely by protecting them in the world of AI cyber risk.To accelerate secure adoption of AI, the company created Gandalf, an educational platform where more than one million users have learned about AI security. Lakera uses AI to continuously evolve defenses, so customers can stay ahead of emerging threats.The cover portrait was edited by www.smartportrait.io.Don't forget to give us a follow on Instagram, Linkedin, TikTok, and Youtube so you can always stay up to date with our latest initiatives. That way, there's no excuse for missing out on live shows, weekly giveaways or founders' dinners.
The actor recently posted a photo of himself undergoing a £10,000 procedure at a London clinic that claims to remove microplastics, forever chemicals and herbicides from the blood. But how settled is the science around the health risks of microplastics? To find out, Ian Sample speaks to Dr Stephanie Wright, associate professor of environmental toxicology at Imperial College London's school of public health. She explains what we know so far about the effects of microplastics in the body, why the science is still evolving, and what we can do to reduce our exposure. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/sciencepod
Today's episode features guest host Michael Upshall (guest editor, Charleston Briefings) who talks with Stephen Webster, Director, Science Communication Unit, Imperial College, London. Stephan began his career by studying biology and the life sciences and attended Cambridge University where he studied the philosophy of science, and became interested in how science is understood and taught. He spent several years as a secondary school science teacher in London and eventually led one of the first science communication master's programs, and is currently a senior lecturer at Imperial College. Stephen believes that engaging and listening to the public is very important with science communication to build trust, and to see the public as partners who could be very knowledgeable. He also says that good science is built on well-supported scientists. The video of this interview can be found here: https://youtu.be/yG6kJtvfx7A Social Media: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mupshall/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/stephen-webster-36723853/ Twitter: Keywords: #SciComm, #ScienceCommunication #PublicEngagement #ScienceEducation #HigherEducation #OpenScience #ResearchCulture #EthicsInScience #CommunityEngagement #LibraryInnovation #Innovation #LibraryJobs #career #collaboration #scholcomm #ScholarlyCommunication #libraries #librarianship #LibraryNeeds #LibraryLove #ScholarlyPublishing #AcademicPublishing #publishing #LibrariesAndPublishers #podcasts
This is the latest episode of the free DDW narrated podcast, titled "UK Spotlight: Innovation and discovery”, which covers three articles written for DDW Volume 24 – Issue 4, Fall 2023. They are called: “Where is the drug discovery expertise happening in the UK?”, “From the top: Dr Martin Main, Medicines Discovery Catapult”, and “Meet the Researcher: Molly Stevens, Oxford University and Imperial”. In the first article, I highlight the research taking place and where this is happening in the UK, a long-established hub for drug discovery expertise worldwide. In the second article, I spoke with Dr Martin Main, Chief Scientific Officer, Medicines Discovery Catapult, in the From the Top series. In the third article, I spoke with Molly Stevens, John Black Professor at Oxford University and Research Director for Biomedical Materials at Imperial College London, as part of the Meet the Researcher series.
Será que a reforma, como a conhecemos, tem os dias contados? Neste episódio, Diogo Mendes e Filipa Galrão falam sobre o impacto da longevidade e do envelhecimento da sociedade na economia portuguesa, e mundial. Uma conversa obrigatória, para enfrentar o futuro com tranquilidade.A reforma representa, para a maioria dos cidadãos, uma merecida fase de descanso depois de uma vida de trabalho. Mas... será que estamos preparados para viver uma reforma sem preocupações financeiras? 81% dos portugueses espera financiar a reforma com os descontos que faz para a segurança social durante a vida ativa. No entanto, numa época em que a longevidade é cada vez maior e em que o envelhecimento da população não pára de aumentar, a sustentabilidade do sistema público de pensões está seriamente em risco.Mais do que nunca, é preciso agir cedo para garantir, mais tarde, uma vida confortável. Neste episódio, o especialista Diogo Mendes aponta caminhos alternativos para complementar as reformas convencionais. Já ouviu falar em ‘fundos de pensões corporativos'? Conhece o conceito de ‘juro composto'? Sabe quais são as vantagens, e desvantagens, de fazer um Plano Poupança Reforma?Não perca o próximo episódio de [IN]Pertinente e descubra porque é que a reforma é um tema para se debater na juventude.REFERÊNCIAS E LINKS ÚTEIS«Índice de envelhecimento e outros indicadores de envelhecimento» (Pordata)«A Long-Lived Bet» (Science)«Gross pension replacement rates» (OCDE)«Pensões arriscam cair para 38,5% do último salário em 2050, segundo Bruxelas» (ECO)«Pensões: sistemas de repartição vs sistema de capitalização» (Instituto BBVA)«3 soluções para uma boa reforma» (Deco PROteste)«O que é a nua-propriedade?» (Idealista)«Hipoteca reversa em Portugal: o que é e como funciona» (SuperIdeal)«Regra dos 4%: Ainda faz sentido nos dias de hoje?» (Doutor Finanças)BIOSDiogo MendesProfessor de Finanças na Stockholm School of Economics. Doutorou-se em finanças pela Nova School of Business and Economics, tendo passado pela London School of Economics e Imperial College London. Tem investigação nas áreas de literacia financeira, finanças da empresa e economia do desenvolvimento. Faz parte da equipa de coordenação do programa “Finanças para Todos” com o intuito de promover melhores práticas financeiras em Portugal.Filipa Galrão A Filipa vive no campo, mas é à cidade que vai quando precisa de euforia, seja em festivais de música ou no Estádio da Luz. Estudou Comunicação Social e Cultural na Universidade Católica. Em pequena, gravava o diário em K7, em graúda agarrou-se aos microfones da Rádio. Depois da Mega Hits e da Renascença, é agora uma das novas vozes da Rádio Comercial. Já deu à luz 1 livro infantil - Que Estranho! - e 2 filhos.
In an interview last weekend, Iran's ambassador to the UN said his country's nuclear enrichment ‘will never stop' because it is permitted for ‘peaceful energy' purposes. It is the latest development in an escalation of tensions over Iran's nuclear programme, which erupted when Israel targeted the country's nuclear facilities in June. To understand why enrichment is so important, Madeleine Finlay talks to Robin Grimes, professor of materials physics at Imperial College London. He explains what goes into creating a nuclear weapon, and why getting to the stage of weaponisation is so difficult. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/sciencepod
This is a special episode I recorded in collaboration with Joe Moore from Psychedelics Today at the largest conference in the field "Psychedelic Science 2025" in Denver last week. It very early in the morning, at 8am, and it was fabulous. Our guests: Tommaso Barba, Neuroscientist from Imperial College London and Dee Dee Goldpaugh, therapist, author and clinical consultant, me and Joe were talking about Sex, Intimacy and Psychedelics! Check out this episode, it's fun and very insightful.IG: @Tommaso.barba @deedeegoldpaugh @psychedelicstoday Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
A technology transfer expert and biotech spin-out founder explain the steps involved in moving discoveries from the lab to the market. Most academics want their work to have an impact and one route to achieving this is by commercialising their findings. By partnering with an existing company to bring a product to market or by establishing a new spin-out enterprise, scholars can develop technologies, products and solutions that can revolutionise whole sectors, whether in healthcare, construction, farming and more. But this is a far from easy or simple process requiring tenacity, adaptability, collaboration and high level problem solving. For this week's podcast, we speak to two people with extensive experience in what it takes to commercialise research and become an academic entrepreneur. Mairi Gibbs is CEO of Oxford University Innovation – the university's technology transfer unit - where she has worked since 2002. With extensive practical experience in partnership management, formation of spinout companies, licensing and patent portfolio management, she explains the initial steps to commercialisation, what investors look for and what can be done at an institutional level to support more spin out activity. Andrew Hammond is co-founder and head of R&D at Biocentis – an Imperial College London spin out founded in 2022. With a background in molecular biology, Andrew's 10-year academic career at both Imperial and Johns Hopkins University involved advancing gene editing technology for use in insects. The resulted in the development of gene drive technology designed for use on malaria mosquitos and the later development of Biocentis. For more advice and insight on this topic, read our spotlight guide on how to work well with industry.
Veja o vídeo em expresso.pt/podcasts/45-graus Luís M. A. Bettencourt é físico, professor na Universidade de Chicago, e um dos investigadores mais reputados a nível mundial na ciência dos sistemas complexos, sobretudo aplicados ao estudo das cidades. Licenciou-se em Engenharia Física pelo Técnico, em Lisboa, obteve o doutoramento em Física Teórica no Imperial College London e acabou por se dedicar à investigação na Biologia evolutiva e na chamada “ciência urbana” É actualmente professor na Universidade de Chicago, de Ecologia e Evolução, onde é também membro associado do Departamento de Sociologia e Professor Externo no Santa Fe Institute. A nível de investigação, destacou-se sobretudo por desenvolver teoria quantitativa e preditiva da dinâmica urbana, ao identificar leis de escala que ligam a dimensão da população de uma cidade à sua infraestrutura, inovação, riqueza e criminalidade, juntamente com autores como Goffrey West (autor de um livro de 2017 “Scale” precisamente sobre estes temas). _______________ Bilhetes para o 45 Graus ao vivo _______________ Índice: (0:00) Início (5:00) O que são Sistemas Complexos; percurso do convidado (24:12) Porque há cada vez mais pessoas a viver em cidades? (27:37) Paralelos entre Biologia e Urbanismo | Lei de Zipf (35:10) Esta Ciência ajuda-nos a compreender a evolução das cidades e dos países? (50:49) Leis de “scaling” nas cidades (58:04) Leis de velocidade de crescimento das cidades (1:00:31) Pode esta Ciência ajudar-nos a resolver problemas colectivos? | Habitação: o caso de Viena. O caso de Singapura | Livro sobre emergência da democracia em Atenas (1:12:57) História: o que explica que alguns países melhorem e outros piorem? (1:29:03) Internet e redes sociais: Why the Internet Must Become More Like a City (1:34:53) De que precisamos para criar uma Silicon Valley na Europa? | O caso de Israel.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
“When you're building something at the edge of science, it's crucial to start with the problem, not the solution. My team has created 15 pharma startups using this approach, and 14 are still alive.” – Kerstin Papenfuss, Director of Pharma at Deep Science VenturesKerstin Papenfuss serves as the Director of Pharma at Deep Science Ventures, where she leads the creation and development of novel therapeutics for unmet medical needs. With a PhD in Tumour Immunology from Imperial College London and an MBA from Bayes Business School, Kerstin brings over a decade of experience in oncology, signal transduction, and pharmaceutical markets to her role building science-based startups from scratch.Kerstin explains why traditional approaches to biotech startup creation often fail and how working from first principles can lead to more successful, impactful ventures. Her experience spans working with entrepreneurs, academics, pharmaceutical companies, and disease charities to build companies that solve fundamental challenges in healthcare.Read the full article:https://pharmasource.global/content/podcast/building-biotechs-from-first-principles-deep-science-ventures-formula-for-science-based-innovation/
Khalid Saad is a seasoned venture capitalist and FinTech entrepreneur with a proven track record of launching new ventures and accelerating existing ones. Over the years, he has partnered with startups and established companies on digital strategy, business development, partnerships, and market-entry plans—spanning payment systems, remittance services, crypto platforms, open banking, and more .He is the Founder & Managing Partner of Bunat Ventures, a Bahrain-based regulated venture-builder VC focused on nurturing and investing in high-growth startups across the GCC.Khalid serves on the board of CoinMENA, a Central Bank–regulated crypto-asset exchange, and is a board member of Oqal – Bahrain Chapter, the region's largest and most active angel investment network . Additionally, he advises 01 Systems, a leading regional financial technology and digital transformation firm, and contributes to the Finance, Insurance & Tax Committee of the Bahrain Chamber.Until recently, Khalid was the Founding CEO of Bahrain FinTech Bay (BFB)—the largest FinTech hub in MENA, recognized by S&P Global Ratings as one of the region's two most advanced FinTech ecosystems . Under his leadership, BFB united ~100 public and private stakeholders (regulators, banks, telcos, asset managers, family firms, educational institutions, etc.) and hosted around 50 companies working across payments, blockchain, crypto assets, data analytics, robo-advisory, crowdfunding, and AI .Before BFB, Khalid was a Business Development Manager at the Bahrain Economic Development Board, where he promoted the financial services sector and attracted major institutions—from banks and wealth managers to FinTechs and insurers—to Bahrain . Prior to that, he worked with Ernst & Young, conducting feasibility studies, market research, and implementing a governance, risk & compliance platform in Bahrain, and with SEI Investments in London managing UK and European equity portfolios .Khalid holds an MSc from Imperial College London and a First Class BSc from the University of Exeter .LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/khalidesaad/
Several Australian universities have earned spots among the world's top 100 in two surveys — the US News and QS Global Rankings. Leading the charts are US institutions like the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Stanford, and Harvard, while UK universities such as Cambridge, Oxford, and Imperial College London continue to hold strong positions. A global rankings expert weighs in if these rankings matter, especially for international students considering their options.
With the blistering temperatures that most of India is suffering under, it should come as no surprise that May 2025 was the second-warmest month of May since records began. But what is of greater concern now, is how this heat is going to affect our future generations -- a new study has found that India recorded an average of six additional days of dangerously high temperatures for pregnant women every year over the last five years. What is this extreme heat doing the bodies of mothers to be? How does heat affect pregnancy outcomes? What will it mean for the near future, as India continues to experience heat waves? Guest: Prof Jane Hirst Chair in Global Women's Health, The George Institute for Global Health, Imperial College London and Visiting Professor in Global Women's Health, University of Oxford Host: Zubeda Hamid Edited by Sharmada Venkatasubramanian Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
ICYMI, I'll be in London next week, for a live episode of the Learning Bayesian Statistics podcast
Imagine we could have a digital version of our entire body which could help us, and our doctors, decide what life style is good for us, predict which diseases we might get, and how to best treat them? In short, what if we could all have our very own digital twin? The idea isn't quite as sci-fi as it sounds. A gigantic scientific effort called the Physiome Project is about piecing together a mathematical description of the entire physiology of the human body. Once this has been achieved to a sufficient level digital twins will be a spin-off. In this podcast we revisit an interview we did back in 2019 with Steven Niederer, who was then Professor of Biomedical Engineering at King's College London but has since moved to a new position at Imperial College London as Chair of Biomedical Engineering. Niederer told us about the physiome project, about how the fitbits many of us own are a very first step towards a digital twin, and about how you can model individual human organs such as the heart. We also challenge ourselves to explain differential equations in one minute. You can find out more about maths and medicine, differential equations and mathematical modelling on Plus. We met Niederer in 2019 when he helped to organise a research programme at the Isaac Newton Institute for Mathematical Sciences in Cambridge. The music in this podcast comes from the artist Oli Freke. The track is called Space Power Facility. This podcast forms part of our collaboration with the Isaac Newton Institute for Mathematical Sciences (INI) – you can find all the content from the collaboration here. The INI is an international research centre and our neighbour here on the University of Cambridge's maths campus. It attracts leading mathematical scientists from all over the world, and is open to all. Visit www.newton.ac.uk to find out more.
Claudia de Rham has rather an unusual relationship with gravity. While she has spent her career exploring its fundamental nature, much of her free time has involved trying to defy it - from scuba diving in the Indian Ocean to piloting small aircraft over the Canadian waterfalls. Her ultimate ambition was to escape gravity's clutches altogether and become an astronaut, a dream that was snatched away by an unlikely twist of fate. However, Claudia has no regrets - and says defying gravity for much of her life has helped her to truly understand it. As Professor of theoretical physics at Imperial College London, she now grapples with deep mathematics, where the fields of particle physics, gravity and cosmology intersect, on a quest to understand how the universe really works. She is a pioneer of the theory of massive gravity, a theory which could take us beyond even Einstein's theory of relativity and shed light on why the universe is expanding at an ever-increasing rate.Presented by Jim Al-Khalili Produced by Beth Eastwood
Message our hosts, Kieran and Jose.Our Animal Heartbeat live panel discussion in 2025 covers the topic of artificial intelligence and its use in veterinary and human patients. Our panel review topics such as how to validate AI tools, where AI fits in current medicine and how opportunities for its use are evolving, and should we worry about AI?Our hosts Kieran and Jose are joined by a fantastic panel of guests:Professor Virginia Luis Fuentes; Professor of Veterinary Cardiology, Royal Veterinary CollegeProfessor Anurag Agarwal; Professor of Aeroacoustics, University of CambridgeDr Matthew Shun-Shin; Consultant Cardiologist, Imperial College LondonCatherine Stowell; Imperial College London and founder of The Animal Ultrasound AssociationThis episode was recorded live at Emmanuel College, Cambridge, as part of the 2025 Cambridge Festival of podcasts.
Daniel M. Davis is a world-renowned immunologist and Professor Immunology at Imperial College London. He is an acclaimed author and researcher and released his latest book ‘Self Defence: A Myth-busting Guide to Immune Health' on 5th June 2025.In part one, Dan joins Dr Alex George to unpack the endless myths we hear about our immune health, how stress can impact our immune system and reveals how much of our immune health is actually predetermined by genetics.Plus, Dan discusses the ways in which the immune system can fight off cancer and why it's so important to be skeptical of anything that sounds ‘too simple' when talking about immune health…Buy Dan's latest book ‘Self Defence: A Myth-busting Guide to Immune Health' through our affiliate bookshop and you'll help fund Stompcast by earning a small commission for every sale. Bookshop.org's fees help support independent bookshops too!Follow the podcast on Instagram @thestompcastGet the new, pocket guide version of The Mind Manual nowDownload Mettle: the mental fitness app for men Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
In this episode, Robin Carhart-Harris, PhD joins to elucidate the intersection of psychedelics and neuroplasticity. Dr. Carhart-Harris is the Ralph Metzner Distinguished Professor in Neurology and Psychiatry at the University of California, San Francisco. Robin founded the Centre for Psychedelic Research at Imperial College London in April 2019, was ranked among the top 31 medical scientists in 2020, and in 2021, was named in TIME magazine's ‘100 Next' – a list of 100 rising stars shaping the future. Dr. Carhart-Harris begins by discussing the impact of psychedelics on neuroplasticity and mental health. He explains neuroplasticity as the brain's ability to change, emphasizing its role in mood disorders and substance use and describes how stress atrophies the brain, leading to mental illness. Dr. Carhart-Harris differentiates between neuroplasticity and neurogenesis, noting that while neurogenesis is limited in adults, neuroplasticity can be influenced by psychedelics like ketamine, psilocybin, and MDMA. In closing, he also discusses the entropic brain hypothesis, suggesting that increased brain entropy leads to richer subjective experiences. In this episode, you'll hear: The relationship between neuroplasticity and “canalization” Why homeostatic neuroplasticity may promote mental wellbeing Differences between ketamine, MDMA, and serotonergic psychedelics in terms of neuroplasticity The details of the entropic brain hypothesis Psychedelics' effect on the default mode network The frontiers of research into psychedelics and neuroplasticity Quotes: “So changeability is what plasticity is. And neuroplasticity—that's the ability of the brain to change. Okay, and how is neuroplasticity related to mood disorders like depression and anxiety or substance use disorder or something like that? Well, that's a great question cause we don't have it entirely nailed down. But one of the most reliable findings in biological psychiatry is that stress atrophies the brain.” [2:47] “The main thing with ketamine is that the window of increased plasticity is brief… That makes sense because that reflects how ketamine seems to work therapeutically—that it provides relief somewhat short-term, unless it is twinned with, say, psychotherapy or you do repeat administration and get someone out of the rut they were in.” [22:15] “We've seen in people with depression, brain networks can become quite segregated from each other—they are ordinarily, they're quite functionally separate and distinct—but that modularity might be a bit elevated in depression. But what we've seen with psilocybin therapy is that separateness between systems, that segregated quality of organization of brain networks, brain systems actually decreases after psilocybin therapy for depression. I'll put it another way: the brain looks more globally interconnected after psilocybin therapy for depression and the magnitude of that… correlates with improvements.” [39:19] Links: Carhart-Harris Lab website Dr. Carhart-Harris on X Dr. Carhart-Harris' 2025 article: “Neuroplasticity and psychedelics: A comprehensive examination of classic and non-classic compounds in pre and clinical models” Dr. Carhart-Harris' 2012 article: “Neural correlates of the psychedelic state as determined by fMRI studies with psilocybin” Dr. Carhart-Harris' 2010 article with Karl Friston: “The default-mode, ego-functions and free-energy: a neurobiological account of Freudian ideas” Psychedelic Medicine Association Porangui
40 years ago scientists in Antarctica discovered a hole in the Ozone layer. The world acted quickly, phasing out harmful CFCs or chlorofluorocarbons. Evidence suggests the hole has been getting smaller. But in 2025, there are new pollutants threatening to slow progress. Eloise Marais is Professor of Atmospheric Chemistry and Air Quality at University College London and tells Victoria Gill about her work monitoring the impact of space travel on the Ozone layer.It's the first day of the traditional ‘bathing season' when wild swim spots are regularly tested throughout the UK summer. Victoria asks Professor of Environmental Microbiology and Health at Lancaster University, Roger Pickup to break down the science behind our water quality classifications. And May also means wildflowers. Dr Sarah Scott is pollinator ecologist and toxicologist at Cambridge university. She has a warning that planted in the wrong place, wildflowers could be harming bumble bees.Gareth Mitchell, broadcaster and lecturer in science communication at Imperial College London is in the Inside Science studio to bring Victoria new scientific findings which will shape our future.Presenter: Victoria Gill Producers: Clare Salisbury, Dan Welsh, Jonathan Blackwell Editor: Martin Smith Production Co-ordinator: Jana Bennett-Holesworth
Will mosquitoes soon be a thing of the past? Guest: Dr. Federica Bernardini, Research Associate at Imperial College London and Target Malaria Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
In healthcare, some of the most meaningful innovations happen when the right people are brought together in the right place. True progress depends on systems and infrastructure designed to connect ideas, people, and expertise across sectors. Citylabs 4.0, now open in the heart of Manchester's Knowledge Quarter on the Oxford Road Corridor, was built with exactly that goal in mind. Bringing the NHS, academia, and life sciences organisations into close, purposeful proximity, providing a structural foundation for collaboration at scale. In this special live recording of the pharmaphorum podcast, developed in association with Bruntwood SciTech, Bruntwood SciTech's CSO Dr Kath Mackay, Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust T's Dr Katherine Boylan, and Dr Gillian Dalgliesh from QIAGEN join Deep Dive editor Eloise McLennan onstage at the opening of Citylabs 4.0 to discuss innovation in life sciences and the role of Greater Manchester in accelerating research, industry collaboration, and real-world evidence generation. Join us as we examine how this deliberate integration of healthcare stakeholders in Manchester is establishing new standards for collaboration and advancing patient outcomes through structured knowledge exchange. About the interviewees Dr Kath Mackay Kath Mackay is Chief Scientific Officer of Bruntwood SciTech - a JV between leading property developer Bruntwood, Legal & General, and Greater Manchester Pension Fund - the UK's leading creator and developer of innovation districts driving growth of the UK science and technology sector. She has a keen interest in growing businesses and infrastructure within the sector, ensuring the UK is the best place to establish and scale a science and tech organisation. Dr Mackay joined Bruntwood SciTech from the executive board of Innovate UK where she led the team responsible for growing businesses working in the biomedical, health, agriculture, and food sectors, creating and delivering a £800m portfolio of infrastructure, Catapults, grant and loan investments. She is also non-executive director of the Northern Health Science Alliance, the North of England's health partnership, and an elected fellow of the Royal Society of Biology. Dr Katherine Boylan Katherine is Director of Innovation at Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust (MFT), a position she has held since April 2020. This role involves overseeing innovation activities within MFT, as part of the wider Research and Innovation function. Innovation at MFT supports the whole pipeline from ideation, through to evidence generation, and ultimate implementation. She has been a member of the NICE Medical Technologies Advisory Committee since September 2020. Prior to this position, Dr Boylan worked in the University of Manchester for a number of years, most recently as Operations Director for the MRC funded Molecular Pathology Node, and the Trust-funded Diagnostics and Technology Accelerator. Dr Gillian L Dalgliesh, PhD Global Technical lead, Precision Diagnostics Gillian Dalgliesh has worked for QIAGEN for nine years and is based at their Manchester site, which is the global centre of excellence for molecular diagnostic development. QIAGEN partner with many drug companies to develop companion diagnostic (CDx) tests that enable clinical trials and subsequently launches of novel precision medicines. In recent years they have seen a real move beyond oncology into other disease areas such as immune, neurological and metabolic disorders. Dr Dalgliesh's role as global technical lead allows her to leverage her oncology precision medicine experience across the portfolio to bring precision diagnostic products to more patients. She has built her experience in precision medicine/oncology through not only her QIAGEN role but also through seven years working in precision medicine in AstraZeneca and prior to that working as part of the cancer genome project at the Sanger institute. Dr Dalgliesh is also an honorary senior lecturer at University of Manchester where she coordinates and delivers lectures for a QIAGEN sponsored BSc final year elective module ‘The Role of Diagnostics in Medicine'. This is part of a wider outreach role with the University and our NHS hospital. Through these roles she is keen to impact the local UK science community. About Bruntwood SciTech Bruntwood SciTech is the UK's largest dedicated property platform serving the growth of the nation's knowledge economy to become a global science and technology superpower. It is also the leading developer of city-wide innovation ecosystems and specialist environments, helping companies - particularly those in the science and technology sectors - to form, scale and grow A joint venture between Bruntwood, Legal & General and the Greater Manchester Pension Fund (GMPF), Bruntwood SciTech provides high quality office and laboratory space and tailored business support, offering unrivalled access to finance, talent and markets, an extensive clinical, academic and public partner network and a sector-specialist community of more than 1100 companies. Bruntwood SciTech is experienced in creating and developing strategic partnerships with UK regional cities, universities and NHS Trusts to drive economic growth. Its unique structure and funding vehicle more easily deploys long-term patient capital in innovation infrastructure, ensuring local economic benefit and growth. Valued at £1.5bn, Bruntwood SciTech has a portfolio of 5.2m sq ft across 11 campus locations and 31 city centre innovation hubs in Manchester, Cheshire, Birmingham, Leeds, Liverpool, Cambridge and London. It has plans to create a £5bn portfolio by 2033 and has a 2.3m sq ft secured development pipeline. Its campus locations include Alderley Park in Cheshire; West Village in Leeds; Innovation Birmingham; Birmingham Health Innovation Campus in partnership with the University of Birmingham; Melbourn Science Park in Cambridgeshire; Liverpool Science Park as a shareholder in Sciontec Liverpool; White City Deep Tech Campus in partnership with Imperial College London; and a cluster in the heart of Manchester's Oxford Road Corridor knowledge quarter - Manchester Science Park, Citylabs in partnership with Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust (MFT), Circle Square - a joint venture with Vita Group; and the £1.7bn JV partnership with The University of Manchester - Sister, formerly known as IDManchester. Its city centre innovation hubs include Bloc, Bond, 111 Piccadilly, Pall Mall and Manchester One in Manchester; Platform in Leeds; Cornerblock and Centre City in Birmingham; and The Plaza in Liverpool. Website / Twitter / LinkedIn / Instagram
How can we improve hospital wait times? Guest: Emmanuelle Faubert, Economist at the Montreal Economic Institute and Author of the Report Should MLAs be able to hold local office? Guest: Misty Van Popta, Conservative MLA for Langley-Walnut Grove Will mosquitoes soon be a thing of the past? Guest: Dr. Federica Bernardini, Research Associate at Imperial College London and Target Malaria Can coffee make you live longer? Guest: Dr. Sara Mahdavi, Adjunct Professor in the Faculty of Medicine and Department of Nutritional Sciences at the University of Toronto How is the provincial government fighting discrimination? Guest: Niki Sharma, Attorney General of BC How will Vancouver improve Granville St.? Guest: Sarah Kirby-Yung, ABC Vancouver City Councillor Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
ZOE's menopause research shows that perimenopause and menopause symptoms can be reduced through nutrition. Thousands of women took part in their research and the findings show that changing food habits may reduce the chance of having a particular menopause symptom by up to 37% for some women, and this includes women taking HRT. It's no surprise that what you eat can impact how you feel In this interview you'll learn more about the research and specific food and lifestyle modifications that make a difference. My two guests are: Dr. Federica Amati, who works as Head Nutritionist for science and nutrition company, ZOE and holds a PhD in Clinical Medicine Research from Imperial College London, has a masters in Public Health and is an Association for Nutrition (AfN) accredited Nutritionist. Alongside her research and nutrition work, Federica has written two books, Recipes for a Better Menopause and Every Body Should Know This, which was recently released in the UK. Sarah Berry is a Professor at King's College London and has run more than 35 human nutrition studies. Notably, she is the Chief Scientist at ZOE, the science and nutrition company. She's the lead nutritional scientist for the ZOE PREDICT study — the world's largest in-depth nutritional research program and leads research across menopause, microbiome and sleep. This is a deep dive into how to use nutrition to manage menopausal symptoms so be sure to share it with your friends! RESOURCES MENTIONED JOIN MICHELE'S NEWSLETTER + Receive A Free Curated List of 52 Self-care Tips Michele on IG GUEST INFORMATION Website: zoe.com/menoscale Instagram: Zoe Sarah on IG Federica on IG If you enjoyed this interview, please take a moment to rate and review it on Apple podcasts. Your reviews are so appreciated! Not sure how to do it? Instructions are below. XO, Michele Rate + Review: 1. Click on this link 2. Click “View in iTunes” button 3. Click “Subscribe” button 4. Click “Ratings and Reviews” text 5. Click to rate and leave short review and you're done!
We're following up on our recent episode on Google's AI Co-Scientist with a special crossover episode from the Podovirus podcast. Hosts Dr Jessica Sacher and Dr Joe Campbell speak with José Penadés and Tiago Costa, scientists at Imperial College London who made a surprising discovery that Google's AI Co-Scientist later put forward as a hypothesis entirely on its own. The episode explores the fascinating world of bacteriophages (viruses that infect bacteria) and phage-inducible chromosomal islands (PICIs) - DNA sequences that hijack virus reproduction to spread themselves as a bacterial defense mechanism. The key mystery was how capsid-forming PICIs, which only encode virus heads without tails, managed to spread across different bacteria. The surprising answer, which eluded human scientists for years but which Google's AI Co-Scientist discovered through literature analysis, is that these capsids evolved to connect with various virus tails in the environment. This episode demonstrates how AI can now contribute to frontier scientific research beyond just grunt work - providing unbiased perspectives and key insights that accelerate discovery. It's a vivid example of science fiction becoming reality in our lifetimes. SPONSORS: Oracle Cloud Infrastructure: Oracle Cloud Infrastructure (OCI) is the next-generation cloud platform that delivers better, cheaper, and faster solutions for your infrastructure, database, application development, and AI needs. Experience up to 50% savings on compute, 70% on storage, and 80% on networking with OCI's high-performance environment—try it for free with zero commitment at https://oracle.com/cognitive NetSuite by Oracle: NetSuite by Oracle is the AI-powered business management suite trusted by over 41,000 businesses, offering a unified platform for accounting, financial management, inventory, and HR. Gain total visibility and control to make quick decisions and automate everyday tasks—download the free ebook, Navigating Global Trade: Three Insights for Leaders, at https://netsuite.com/cognitive Shopify: Shopify powers millions of businesses worldwide, handling 10% of U.S. e-commerce. With hundreds of templates, AI tools for product descriptions, and seamless marketing campaign creation, it's like having a design studio and marketing team in one. Start your $1/month trial today at https://shopify.com/cognitive PRODUCED BY: https://aipodcast.ing CHAPTERS: (00:00) About the Episode (04:37) Welcome to Podovirus Podcast (04:58) Introducing the Special Guests and Topic (06:30) Exploring Mobile Genetic Elements (13:20) The Role of AI in Phage Research (16:48) Mechanisms of Gene Transfer (Part 1) (20:10) Sponsors: Oracle Cloud Infrastructure | NetSuite by Oracle (22:43) Mechanisms of Gene Transfer (Part 2) (23:36) Insights and Discoveries (28:45) Future Directions and Applications (Part 1) (32:35) Sponsors: Shopify (34:32) Future Directions and Applications (Part 2) (41:22) Unbiased Systems and Conjugation (42:35) Google's Excitement and Experimental Evidence (45:39) Benchmarking AI Systems (49:29) Manuscript Revisions and Future Plans (51:53) AI as a Collaborator in Scientific Research (54:52) Challenges and Hypotheses in Phage Biology (57:58) Future of AI in Scientific Research (01:05:52) Concluding Thoughts and Future Collaborations (01:12:07) Outro
Michael Ringel is the Chief Operating Officer of Life Biosciences, a biotechnology company pioneering cellular rejuvenation therapies to reverse and prevent multiple diseases of aging. Michael became COO of Life just a few months ago, but he's been advising the company since 2018. Prior to this year, he was managing director and senior partner at Boston Consulting Group (BCG), where over a 25-year career he focused on R&D and innovation initiatives across the private sector and government. He earned his PhD in biology at Imperial College London and a JD from Harvard Law, and has become an active and highly respected member of the global longevity biotech community.In this episode, Chris and Michael explore Life Biosciences' groundbreaking approach to partial epigenetic reprogramming - the "holy grail" technology that could transform how we age at cellular, tissue, and organism levels. They discuss how this approach taps into the same biology that makes babies young, Life's lead therapeutic candidate ER-100 for eye diseases, and the "pipeline in a pill" concept at the core of the geroscience hypothesis: the idea that enable single interventions based on longevity science could treat multiple age-related diseases simultaneously.The Finer Details:The biology behind partial epigenetic reprogramming and how it differs from full reprogramming to pluripotencyWhy Michael considers partial reprogramming the "holy grail" of longevity interventionsLife Biosciences' lead candidate ER-100 for glaucoma and NAION (non-arteritic anterior ischemic optic neuropathy)The innovative inducible system that allows the therapy to be turned on and off with doxycyclineWhy the eye represents an ideal starting point for reprogramming therapiesThe "pipeline in a pill" concept and geroscience hypothesis - how single interventions could treat multiple age-related diseasesParallels between the emerging longevity field and the massive GLP-1 drug market that many pharma companies missedThe role of philanthropic investment in advancing fundamental longevity researchEvolutionary theories of aging and why aging should be easily manipulableTimeline expectations for moving from single disease treatments to whole-body rejuvenationLinksLife Biosciences company websiteMichael Ringel's ARDD talk
We are delighted to host Sarah Tilley on the Mangu.tv podcast. Sarah is a healthcare entrepreneur, psychedelic guide and founder of a Dutch-based legal psychedelic company, Beautiful Space. She is the creator of the Beautiful Space Method of Relational Therapy, a new model of psychedelic-assisted therapy, resetting couples and individuals addressing loss of desire in romantic relationships. A mother, healer, educator and musician, Sarah has been working with plant medicine and altered states for over 20 years. Originally trained in alternative medicine, she most recently studied with Esther Perel and Betty Martin.An advocate for healthcare equality and safe psychedelics, Sarah continues to build a legacy of research, ethics, therapy and training programs contributing to the emerging field of psychedelic wellness. Beautiful Space is in collaboration with Imperial College London on the first study on psilocybin, couples and relationship wellbeing with psychological support.Sarah shares the story of her upbringing in the greenbelt of the UK, where music provided solace amidst a challenging environment. She speaks about her early curiosity in spirituality, lucid dreaming and philosophy, and her journey into the world of plant medicine. Sarah shares the struggles of her divorce and the effects of divorce on children, as well as her work in psychedelic-assisted therapy for relationships and as an alternative to divorce. Giancarlo and Sarah discuss sexuality, pleasure, and Sarah's introduction to working with sexuality. They discuss psychedelic-assisted therapy for couples, they delve into consent, non-monogamy and the intricacies of both in the modern-day world.
Have you ever wondered how much of your success is down to luck? What if the world is far less fair and predictable than we'd like to think? On this episode, I explore the complex and fascinating role of luck in our lives and decisions with Dr. Chengwei Liu, Associate Professor of Strategy and Behavioural Science at Imperial College London. Chengwei shares how his research challenges our assumptions about skill, effort, and fairness – and why the outcomes we see are often far more random than we'd like to believe. We discuss why many successful strategies and best practices are built on shaky ground, and how our tendency to downplay luck creates illusions of control and reinforces unfair systems. Chengwei explains how beliefs in fairness – like the ‘just world' hypothesis – shape everything from business cultures to political systems, and how luck and misperceptions of it can create cycles of privilege or disadvantage. Chengwei also shares practical insights on how to become a smart contrarian: someone who can harness the power of randomness and serendipity while avoiding the pitfalls of bias and overconfidence. From the dangers of blindly following the ‘successful' to the need to look inward and embrace uniqueness, it's a thought-provoking conversation that will change the way you think about risk, decision-making, and what it really means to get ahead. Guest BiographyDr. Chengwei Liu is an Associate Professor of Strategy and Behavioural Science at Imperial College London. He describes himself as someone fascinated by how luck, randomness, and human biases shape success and failure – both in business and in broader society. Chengwei's work challenges mainstream management thinking and explores how much of what we attribute to skill is actually the result of random factors. His book, Luck: A Key Idea for Business and Society, examines these dynamics and how we can learn to navigate them. Beyond his academic roles, Chengwei has also worked as a management consultant, drawing on his experience in both research and practice to uncover how to harness luck and uncertainty. AI-Generated Timestamped Summary[00:00:00] Introduction[00:02:00] Chengwei explains his research focus on randomness and variance in firm performance [00:04:00] The overlooked 50% of variance in outcomes: luck and randomness [00:06:00] Defining luck as what lies beyond our control and foresight [00:08:00] The conflict between fairness beliefs and the reality of luck [00:10:00] Luck's societal implications: why fairness perceptions differ across countries [00:11:00] Skill versus luck – how we confuse the two in our narratives [00:13:00] Why successful people over-attribute their success to skill [00:15:00] Managers vs entrepreneurs: how they differ in acknowledging luck [00:17:00] The challenges of researching an elusive concept like luck [00:18:00] Using mathematical models to understand Black Swan events [00:20:00] Why successful predictions of Black Swan events don't indicate forecasting skill [00:23:00] The problem with best practices from ‘successful' firms [00:26:00] Selection bias in business books and the danger of survivor bias [00:29:00] The ‘too good to be true' heuristic as a guide [00:31:00] Contrarian thinking as a survival strategy for uncertainty [00:33:00] The replication crisis and the problem with social science predictability [00:35:00] Human curiosity: the power of moderate surprises [00:37:00] The difference between luck and serendipity [00:39:00] How to encourage serendipity in our lives [00:41:00] Embracing uniqueness and avoiding conformity [00:44:00] Lessons for the age of AI and human creativity [00:46:00] The dangers of ignoring randomness: when biases become destructive [00:48:00] Exploiting others' biases for strategic advantage [00:50:00] Why ‘smart contrarian' thinking is more important than ever [00:53:00] Testing contrarian ideas like a scientist [00:56:00] The limits of trial and error: learning from mistakes [00:58:00] Chengwei's ongoing research: minority decision-making in venture capital [01:00:00] How passion and variance link to VC investment strategies [01:02:00] Wrapping up with reflections on luck, curiosity, and human creativity LinksDr. Chengwei Liu's book, Luck: A Key Idea for Business and Society: https://www.routledge.com/Luck-A-Key-Idea-for-Business-and-Society/Liu/p/book/9781138094260? Chengwei Liu's Imperial College faculty webpage: https://profiles.imperial.ac.uk/c.liu
Listener Christine wants to understand one of the strangest phenomena in the universe. But to get to grips with it, she'll need a crash course in the bizarre behaviour of the very small. Here, things don't act the way you might expect — and it's famously hard to wrap your head around. Anand Jagatia has assembled some of the sharpest minds in the field and locked them in a studio. No one's getting out until Christine and Anand know exactly what's going on. Or at least, that's the plan. On hand to help are Kanta Dihal, lecturer in science communication at Imperial College London; James Millen, King's Quantum Director at King's College London; and particle physicist Harry Cliff from the University of Cambridge. Prepare to enter the world of the very small—and the very weird—where particles can be in two places at once, influence each other across vast distances, and seem to decide what they are only when observed. Hear how these once-theoretical oddities are now driving a technological revolution, transforming everything from computing to communication. Presenter: Anand Jagatia Producer: Harrison Lewis Series Producer: Ben Motley
We are excited to host Tommaso Barba for this episode on the Mangu.tv podcast series. Tommaso Barba is a PhD candidate at the Centre for Psychedelic Research, Imperial College London, exploring the brain effects of short-acting psychedelics such as DMT and 5-MeO-DMT. Under the supervision of Dr. David Erritzoe, Prof. David Nutt and Dr. Chris Timmermann, his work focuses on the potential to treat depression and enhance well-being. He authored the first scientific paper on psychedelics on sexual functioning, published in Nature Scientific Reports and compared psilocybin to antidepressants. With a background in neuroscience and psychoanalysis from Maastricht University, Tommaso also investigates psychedelics' impact on romantic intimacy. A passionate science communicator, he engages audiences via LinkedIn and X.Tommaso shares the story of his upbringing in Bologna, Italy. He speaks about his fascination with psychoanalysis from a young age, his early confusion with sexuality, and rise in popularity due to his social media presence. He speaks about his disenchantment with the world he was in, and the superficiality of some of his relationships, as well as the cathartic moment, and subsequent fascination in mind and altered states. Giancarlo and Tommaso discuss expanded states and the mind's capacity to go beyond the subconscious. They speak about holotropic breathwork, the internal family system, and the varying acceptance of wisdom and madness depending on perspective and place. Tommaso shares upcoming and current projects, and speaks about his various trials with psychedelics, relationships and the mind, at Imperial College London.
This spring, are you bombarded by wellness trends promising miraculous results? From detox juices to the surprising popularity of beef tallow, it's easy to get swept up in the hype. But what if some of these "healthy" habits are doing more harm than good? Join us as we dive into the science behind spring's most talked-about health fads. To explain these trends, journalist, health entrepreneur and bestselling author Liz Earle, joins us to share insights from her 40 year career in the wellness industry. Alongside Liz is Dr. Federica Amati, a scientist from Imperial College London, ZOE's Head Nutritionist, and author of the bestseller "Every Body Should Know This." Together, we'll put five popular trends under the microscope: detox drinks, red light therapy, beef tallow for skin, creatine, and high-cost probiotics. Discover what's fact and what's fiction, empowering you to make evidence-based choices. Finally, we'll share practical ZOE-approved tips for embracing spring with genuine, science-backed wellness strategies, helping you navigate the season of renewal with confidence.
Hello and welcome back to The Golfing Mind, where we delve into the mental, physical, and emotional facets of the game we all cherish. Today, we're privileged to have a guest whose expertise bridges the worlds of medicine and golf. Dr. Omar Malik is a distinguished Consultant Neurologist at Imperial College London. Beyond his medical credentials, Dr. Malik is a passionate golfer with a profound understanding of amateur and professional play. Notably, he has served as the Captain of the esteemed Royal St George's Golf Club. Dr. Malik's contributions to the sport extend beyond the fairways. He has been instrumental in pioneering research on golf's health benefits, co-authoring influential studies that highlight how the game can enhance physical and mental well-being. His work has been recognised internationally, underscoring golf's positive impact on overall health. Today, he joins Robin for an informal interview where they discuss all things golf. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Dr. Matt Wall is a psychologist, neuroscientist, and fMRI specialist at Perceptive and Imperial College London, where he researches the neurological dimensions of cannabis, psychedelics, sex hormones, addiction, and more. Today we talk about various aspects of his work, including the current state of brain research on psychedelics, the promises and limitations of fMRI and related technology, what's “really” going on during the psychedelic experience, and more. You can find Matt here:https://profiles.imperial.ac.uk/matthew.wallPrimal Nature is a podcast and center for psychedelic therapy in rural Spain. We offer mind-body training and therapy for individuals and couples, as well as workshops, retreats, and expeditions in select locations throughout Europe, the Americas, and Africa. www.primalnature.euInsta: @existential.hormesis
Even if I needed two to three allergy medications. For over 6 years! And looked like something from a horror movie due to my allergies!WAS IT REALLY ALLERGIES - or just symptoms of something else going on? What are allergies? ------------In this episode of BodyHacking – Build a Better You, Michaela opens up about her personal battle with allergies that began after the birth of her second son. From seasonal sniffles to full-blown cross-allergies that made her react to almost every fruit and vegetable, she found herself dependent on multiple antihistamines a day.But what if allergies aren't just allergies? What if they're actually signals that your immune system needs help?Join Michaela as she breaks down:• What allergies really are and why your immune system overreacts• The link between gut health, leaky gut, and food/environmental sensitivities• How heavy metals and nutrient deficiencies contribute to allergic conditions• The role of Omega-3s, beta-glucans, and local bee pollen in calming the immune system• How processed foods and AA buildup can trigger long-term inflammation• Her transformation from histamine overload to a life without symptoms—even in peak pollen seasonThis episode is packed with personal insight, scientific studies, and practical tools for anyone struggling with allergies, asthma, or chronic inflammation.
China was declared malaria free in 2021 - and we'll hear how persistence was key to their success, and what new technologies are available to help the rest of the world become malaria free, from Regina Rabinovich, director of the Malaria Elimination Initiative at the Barcelona Institute for Global Health. Sonia Saxena, professor of primary care at Imperial College London, and Miguel O'Ryan, dean of the medical faculty of the University of Chile join Kamran to talk about what broke academic medicine, and why it's time for a revolution. New research shows that data from retracted papers is still having an alarming effect on clinical practice. Chang Xu, Hui Liu, and Fuchen Liu from the Naval Medical University in Shanghai, and Suhail Doi from Qatar University, join us to talk about their study which has maped retracted papers impact on systematic reviews and clinical guidelines. Reading list Malaria control lessons from China Vision 2050: a revolution in academic medicine for better health for all Investigating the impact of trial retractions on the healthcare evidence ecosystem (VITALITY Study I) - An example of the BMJ's approach to updating metaanalysis after a study retraction
Dr. Lauren Kim speaks with Dr. Andrea Rockall, Clinical Chair of Radiology at Imperial College London, about the growing movement toward sustainable practices in radiology. They explore global collaboration, innovative technologies, and the power of data in reducing the environmental impact of medical imaging. Sustainability in Radiology: Position Paper and Call to Actionfrom ACR, AOSR, ASR, CAR, CIR, ESR, ESRNM, ISR, IS3R,RANZCR, and RSNA. Rockall et al. Radiology 2025; 314(3):e250325. RSNA's online resources for environmental sustainability in imaging
Before launching Gridraven, Georg led digitalization at Estonia's national grid, Elering. He spearheaded the digitalization task force, crafted the digital strategy, and guided IT investments. As head of the Smart Grid Unit, Georg also helped build a Europe-wide energy data platform. Before that, Georg was the CTO and co-founder of Sympower, which now manages 1.5GW of grid flexibility and a team of 200+. He holds a Master's degree in Sustainable Energy from Imperial College London. Georg is passionate about pushing the limits of the grid to power a brighter future.https://www.gridraven.com/https://www.nexuspmg.com/
Ambitious climate policies may overlook practical constraints. Kleinman Center Visiting Scholar Niall Mac Dowell explores what deliverable paths to net zero might require. --- The Earth’s average temperature surpassed the 1.5°C threshold for the first time in 2024—a milestone driven in part by El Niño, but also a stark warning about our broader climate trajectory. While temperatures may moderate slightly in 2025, the world remains far from taking the decisive action needed to avoid the most severe impacts of climate change. The obstacles to meaningful progress are complex, spanning economics, politics at local and global levels, and questions of technological scalability. The good news is that these are solvable challenges. Yet, despite our collective capacity, we’ve struggled to overcome the headwinds that continue to slow decisive climate action. On the podcast, Niall Mac Dowell, visiting scholar at the Kleinman Center and professor of Future Energy Systems at Imperial College London, takes stock of where we are now. His work focuses on the transition to a low-carbon economy, with recent research exploring the feasibility of clean energy development projections and the role negative emissions could play in achieving net-zero goals. He shares his perspective on what it will take to move more decisively toward a sustainable energy future. Niall Mac Dowell is Professor of Future Energy Systems at Imperial College London. Related Content Has Europe’s Emissions Trading Scheme Taken Away a Country’s Ability to Reduce Emissions? https://kleinmanenergy.upenn.edu/research/publications/has-europes-emissions-trading-scheme-taken-away-a-countrys-ability-to-reduce-emissions/ Closing the Climate Finance Gap: A Proposal for a New Green Investment Protocol https://kleinmanenergy.upenn.edu/research/publications/closing-the-climate-finance-gap-a-proposal-for-a-new-green-investment-protocol/ Climate Action in the Age of Great Power Rivalry: What Geopolitics Means for Climate https://kleinmanenergy.upenn.edu/research/publications/climate-action-in-the-age-of-great-power-rivalry-what-geopolitics-means-for-the-climate/ Energy Policy Now is produced by The Kleinman Center for Energy Policy at the University of Pennsylvania. For all things energy policy, visit kleinmanenergy.upenn.eduSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
The advice to eat 30 different plants a week is gaining huge momentum. You might have seen it on social media, heard it mentioned by health experts, or even spotted ‘Plant Points' on food packaging, but what does it actually mean? And why is everyone talking about it? We're joined by Dr. Federica Amati, a Registered Nutritionist and Nutrition Topic Lead at Imperial College London's Faculty of Medicine, to unpack it. Dr. Amati explains what eating 30 plants actually means, how it works, and the biggest benefits of plant diversity in your diet. She also shares practical steps to help you start incorporating more plants into your meals. In This Episode, We Cover: What eating 30 plants a week actually means The difference between 5-a-day and 30 plants The benefits of plant diversity in your diet What 30 pants a week looks like Three simple steps to get started today Dr. Federica Amati is the author of Every Body Should Know This: The Science of Eating for a Lifetime of Health Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices