Podcast appearances and mentions of victoria gill

Progress has been made in our search for alien life. So announced a team of scientists from Cambridge university last week who, using a powerful space telescope, have detected molecules which on Earth are only produced by simple organisms. All in all, it's been a busy week for space science. And all against a backdrop of a US government request to cut NASA's funding. The proposals would need to be approved by the Senate before any cuts are made. But scientists and journalists are asking what it could mean for the future of space science around the world. Science journalist Jonathan Amos and space researcher Dr Simeon Barber discuss.Professor of Planetary Sciences at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Richard Binzel updates the programme on plans to learn from an asteroid called Apophis, due to fly past us in four years time. Back on Earth, or rather in it, Victoria Gill gets up close to Roman remains which show that gladiators once fought lions. And Tim O'Brien, Professor of Astrophysics at the University of Manchester joins Victoria Gill in the studio to discuss the week's other science news. Presenter: Victoria Gill Producers: Clare Salisbury, Jonathan Blackwell, Debbie Kilbride Editor: Colin Paterson Production Co-ordinator: Josie Hardy

Axolotls are only found in the wild in one place in the world; an area of wetland just outside Mexico City. They are one of the world's most endangered, and arguably most adorable, amphibians. Not just meme-worthy, they are also scientifically fascinating - they don't really age and they can regrow body parts, including their brains. Very few are left in the wild, but now scientists have released captive-bred axolotls back into the wetlands and found that they not only survived, but even put on a bit of weight. BBC science correspondent Victoria Gill talks us through the study and explains what scientists can learn from these amazing creatures. And Assistant Professor Prayag Murawala from the MDI Biological Laboratory in the US, describes what we know about how axolotls regenerate their own body parts. Instagram: @bbcwhatintheworld Email: whatintheworld@bbc.co.uk WhatsApp: +44 330 12 33 22 6 Presenter: Hannah Gelbart Producers: Chelsea Coates, Emily Horler and Julia Ross-Roy Editor: Harriet Oliver

It's 2025 and Katy Perry has officially gone to space. On Monday 14th April, she strapped herself into the Blue Origin rocket and blasted off like a “Firework” with five other well-known women. The rocket is owned by Amazon billionaire Jeff Bezos and his fiancé Lauren Sanchez was also on board. The women claimed this all-female mission was to “take up space” but the reaction to the trip has been “Hot N Cold“. Some argue this wasn't a win for feminism, only for the “Roar“ of capitalism.But what is space tourism? And are regular people going to start flying to space and become “‘E.T.“?The BBC's Science correspondent Victoria Gill explains what the reaction has been and the impact space travel can have on the environment.Instagram: @bbcwhatintheworld Email: whatintheworld@bbc.co.uk WhatsApp: +44 330 12 33 22 6 Presenter: William Lee-Adams Producers: Emily Horler and Emilia Jansson Editor: Julia Ross-Roy

In this episode of Inquiring Minds, we are joined by Drs. Stephanie Abraham, Sarah Donovan, Victoria Gill & Darius Phelps. This episodes special guests discuss poetry and its application to the literacies field.

We look back on 2024 in science, from billionaires in space, to record-breaking heat here on Earth, and the meteoric rise of new weight-loss drugs. From the biggest stories to the unsung and the plain fun, Inside Science presenter Victoria Gill hosts a special panel, featuring: - Libby Jackson, head of space exploration at the UK Space Agency - Penny Sarchet, managing editor of New Scientist - Mark Miodownik, a materials scientist from University College London Presenter: Victoria Gill Producers: Gerry Holt Editor: Martin Smith Production Co-ordinator: Jana Bennett-Holesworth  To discover more fascinating science content, head to bbc.co.uk search for BBC Inside Science and follow the links to The Open University.

More species infected than ever, an uptick in human cases, and some concerning biological modifications. How close are we to a bird flu pandemic? We digest the last year of bird flu changes with virologist Tom Peacock and public health journalist Melody Schreiber. Also this week, we address the absurd problem of transporting something that can't be touched, we find out how animals make their epic migratory journeys, and Victoria Gill visits a town which has learnt to ward off a fearsome predator, polar bears.Presenter: Victoria Gill Producers: Ella Hubber & Gerry Holt Editor: Martin Smith Production Co-ordinator: Jana Bennett-Holesworth  & Josie HardyTo discover more fascinating science content, head to bbc.co.uk search for BBC Inside Science and follow the links to The Open University.

As authored by Victoria Gill.

In 1824, 200 years ago, Megalosaurus was the first dinosaur to ever be described in a scientific paper. William Buckland studied fossils from Stonesfield in Oxfordshire in order to describe the animal. In this episode, Victoria Gill visits palaeontologist Dr Emma Nicholls at the Oxford University Museum of Natural History, who shows her those very fossils that launched the new science of palaeontology. Danielle Czerkaszyn then opens the archives to reveal the scientific illustrations of Megalosaurus by Mary Morland, which helped shape Buckland's description.But this was just the beginning. Over the coming decades, remains kept being discovered and scientists were gripped with dinosaur mania, racing to find species. Now, in 2024, we're finding new dinosaurs all the time. Victoria travels to the University of Edinburgh to meet Professor Steve Brusatte and Dr Tom Challands as they start extracting a dinosaur bone from a piece of Jurassic rock - could this be a new species? Together, they reflect on how palaeontology has changed over the last 200 years and ponder the ongoing mysteries of these charismatic animals.Presenter: Victoria Gill Producers: Alice Lipscombe-Southwell and Hannah Robins Production Co-ordinator: Jana Bennett-Holesworth  Editor: Martin Smith

Switzerland has submitted a proposal to create a United Nations expert group on solar geoengineering to inform governments and stakeholders. The idea was discussed at the UN Environment Assembly in Nairobi, Kenya, this week. Professor Aarti Gupta shares how, after tense negotiations, the different member states could not agree, and the proposal was withdrawn. Why is solar geoengineering a controversial issue? How would dimming the sun even work? And should we consider it a genuine option in our fight against climate change? Dr Pete Irvine and Professor Joanna Haigh join presenter Marnie Chesterton in the studio to discuss. Animal welfare charities have been celebrating a ban on donkey skin trade, agreed to this month by 55 African countries. This will make it illegal to slaughter donkeys for their skin across the continent, where around two thirds of the world's 53 million donkeys live. Victoria Gill tells Marnie that the demand for the animals' skins is fuelled by the popularity of an ancient Chinese medicine called Ejiao, believed to have health-enhancing and youth-preserving properties and traditionally made from donkey hides. Lastly, Dr Jess Wade, physicist and science communicator at Imperial College London, discusses Breaking Through: My Life in Science. It's the memoir of Nobel Prize-winning biochemist Dr Katalin Karikó, whose passion and dedication to mRNA research led to the development of the life-changing COVID mRNA vaccines. Presenter: Marnie Chesterton Producers: Florian Bohr, Louise Orchard Assistant Producer: Imaan Moin Editor: Martin Smith Production Co-ordinator: Jana Bennett-HolesworthBBC Inside Science is produced in collaboration with the Open University.

More than 171 trillion pieces of plastic are estimated to be floating in the world's oceans. We've touched on the extent of the plastic problem before on the pod, but this time we're looking into how exactly its affecting marine creatures. Researchers say hermit crabs are increasingly using plastic waste instead of shells for shelter and they are not the only wildlife being affected by our rubbish. Our Science Correspondent, Victoria Gill, gives us a deep dive into that. Plus, the world's largest cruise ship set sail from Miami on its maiden voyage, but there are concerns about the vessel's emissions. That's despite the ship running on liquefied natural gas, which burns more cleanly than traditional marine fuels. So why are environmentalists worried? Jaidaa Taha, from the What in the World team, explains that for us. Email: whatintheworld@bbc.co.uk WhatsApp: +44 0330 12 33 22 6 Presenter: Alex Rhodes Producers: Jaidaa Taha, Baldeep Chahal and Emily Horler Editors: Verity Wilde and Simon Peeks

Marnie Chesterton & Victoria Gill embark on a science-themed version of the classic Christmas song ‘The 12 Days of Christmas' in this festive edition of BBC Inside Science. Twelve of the biggest moments of the year in science include discussion about a very special treefrog discovered in the Ecuadorian Andes. We also hear about two new promising drugs for Alzheimer's disease. An astronomer and visualisation scientist tells us about three new sonifications of space data. There's more on the discovery of a 476,000 year-old wooden structure found earlier this year in Zambia and how it has changed archaeologists' understanding of ancient human life. The year has also seen 5,000 new species discovered in a deep ocean abyssal plain. Saturn has 62 new moons and is now the planet with the most moons in our solar system. A report was published deeming 75% of UK rivers as posing a risk to human health. We gathered together experts from Natural Resources Wales, Cardiff University, Bangor University and the Wye and Usk Foundation who discussed why the help from citizen science is essential for their work. And a new record has been set which is really worrying scientists - the highest average global ocean surface temperature, which reached 20.98 degrees centigrade. Other notable moments from the year include: a Japanese twelve-legged robot, eighteen video-calling parrots, proposals for the 10km long Einstein telescope and the theory behind why one player in every football team views the world slightly differently. To help us along the journey the BBC's Radio Drama Company put all the science together into a brand-new rendition of the well-known 12 days of Christmas song. Presenter: Marnie Chesterton & Victoria Gill Producer: Hannah Fisher Assistant Producer: Emily Bird Editor: Richard Collings Production Co-ordinator: Jana Bennett-Holesworth  BBC Inside Science is produced in collaboration with the Open University.

Vagrant birds are those that appear in locations where they are not usually found. They might have been blown off course by a storm or have been affected by changing weather patterns due to climate change. Although a treat for birders, these visitors can also have a big impact on their new environments as Victoria Gill finds out when she heads to Burton Mere Wetlands on the Dee Estuary with Dr Alexander Lees, reader in biodiversity at Manchester Metropolitan University.As former Prime Minister Boris Johnson gives his testimony, we hear the latest from the UK Covid-19 Public Inquiry with BBC Health Reporter Jim Reed. A new study reveals that, contrary to a commonly-held view, the brain does not have the ability to rewire itself to compensate for the loss of, for example sight, an amputation or stroke. This is despite what most scientists believe and teach. Moreover, the assumption that it has this ability has led to all manner of erroneous treatments for amputees, stroke victims and other conditions, the study suggests. We're joined by the study's authors, Professor John Krakauer from Johns Hopkins University and Professor Tamar Making of the University of Cambridge. We'll also hear from one of Tamar's key case studies, Kirsty Mason, an amputee from the age of 18 who advanced the scientists' experiments exponentially.   Presenter: Victoria Gill Producers: Hannah Robins and Louise Orchard Editor: Richard Collings Production Co-ordinator: Jana Bennett-Holesworth  BBC Inside Science is produced in collaboration with the Open University.

Under the mighty radio Lovell Telescope at Jodrell Bank, Victoria Gill brings together some of the UK's leading experts who were visiting the recent ‘bluedot' science and music festival. They discussed the ongoing hunt for extraterrestrial life. We hear from Karen Olsson-Francis, a microbiologist who focuses on the tiny living things that have managed to occupy Earth's most hostile environments. Her research is helping shape space missions that are looking for evidence of life elsewhere in our solar system. Also on the panel is Libby Jackson, head of space exploration at the UK Space Agency, who specialises in preparing humans for the extremes of interplanetary travel. Finally, we hear from Tim O'Brien, associate director of the Jodrell Bank Centre for Astrophysics. He's explored parts of the Universe that no human can travel to by making the most of the radio telescopes based at Jodrell Bank. Get the latest ‘inside' scoop on how the UK is assisting with the search for life beyond Earth. Presenter:  Victoria Gill Producers:  Alice Lipscombe-Southwell, Harrison Lewis Editor: Richard Collings Production Co-ordinator: Jana Bennett-Holesworth BBC Inside Science is produced in collaboration with the Open University.

In this week's episode Victoria Gill speaks to Nida al-Fulaij, conservation research manager at the People's Trust for Endangered Species, about the UK's new State of Nature report. Climate change, habitat loss and intensive agricultural practices have been blamed for the decline in species. But all is not lost. Victoria pays a visit to an eco-friendly farm and finds out how innovative agricultural practices can boost wildlife in the UK's fields. We're kicking off our series of programmes covering The Royal Society Trivedi Science Book Prize. Chair of the judges is Alain Goriely, Professor of Mathematical Modelling at the University of Oxford. He gives us a rundown of this year's shortlisted entries. This week, scientists at CERN in Switzerland announced they have observed how antimatter behaves in the presence of gravity. Particle physicist Jeffrey Hangst, who led the Alpha experiment, tells us why this is a big deal. We also have the latest on OSIRIS-REx mission, the first NASA mission to return a sample of an asteroid to Earth. The capsule parachuted down into the Utah desert this week. It contained a precious cargo of rock and dust samples taken from an asteroid named Bennu. Jon Amos, the BBC's science correspondent is in Utah and witnessed the return. He tells Victoria all about it. BBC Inside Science is produced in collaboration with the Open University. Presenter:  Victoria Gill Producers: Hannah Robins, Harrison Lewis, Alice Lipscombe-Southwell Editor: Richard Collings    Production Co-ordinator: Jana Bennett-Holesworth

Our phones are powered by teeny tiny semi conductors. Taiwan produces over 60% of them. Huawei recently unveiled a phone with a chip made in mainland China. Chris Miller is an expert on this subject. He tells us why the United States is wary of this move.We know our phones have a chip in them, but what's it made of? And what else is in our phones? They're built with metals and materials from some of the poorest countries in the world. They're also designed to be difficult to recycle, leading to lots of technology waste. The BBC's Science Correspondent, Victoria Gill, explains why our phones are made this way and what their life cycle is.Email: whatintheworld@bbc.co.uk WhatsApp: +44 0330 12 33 22 6 Presenter: Alex Rhodes Producers: Emily Horler, Benita Barden and Julia Ross-Roy Editors: Verity Wilde and Simon Peeks

Two plucky spacecraft, one Russian and one Indian, are currently blasting towards the Moon's South Pole. Both Russia's Luna-25 and India's Chandrayaan-3 are due to touch down next week. They're heading to that particular region of the Moon in order to hunt for water, the presence of which could have huge implications for our further exploration of the Solar System. Victoria Gill talks to Dr Becky Smethurst, an astrophysicist at the University of Oxford, to find out more. Victoria then heads to the Lake District to witness the release of water voles into the ecosystem. Next up, Professor Lewis Griffin, a computer scientist from University College London, tells us how bad we are at distinguishing between real and deepfake voices. He then reveals what implications this might have for scams. Finally, Dr Helen Pilcher tells us all about the intriguing ways that animals can bend time. You can find out more in her book, How Nature Keeps Time. Presenter: Victoria Gill Producer: Hannah Robins Content producer: Alice Lipscombe-Southwell Research: Patrick Hughes Editor: Richard Collings

After decades of exploitation, time is running out for the Amazon rainforest. Eight South American nations came together this week for the first time in 14 years in an attempt to draw up a plan for a more sustainable future. The BBC's South America correspondent Katy Watson sends us an update on the summit from Belém, Brazil. We also hear from Brazilian scientist Joice Ferreira who tells us why the Amazon is so important for the entire planet. Next up Victoria Gill finds out more about how British Sign Language is adding key scientific concepts to its dictionary in order to open up science communication to a broader community of people. There are still many words and phrases that have not yet been ‘signed'. Now did you know that the inhalers used by asthmatics emit a tiny amount of greenhouse gas with every puff? Victoria speaks to Dr Veena Aggarwal, a GP registrar and former member of Greener NHS, about whether the government's new plan for environmentally friendly inhalers will help. Finally Victoria catches up with palaeoanthropologist Lee Berger. He's written a book that tells a harrowing tale about his trip into a labyrinth of underground tunnels to find out more about an ancient human-like creature called Homo naledi. Presenter: Victoria Gill Producers: Hannah Robins and Harrison Lewis Content producer: Alice Lipscombe-Southwell Research: Patrick Hughes Editor: Richard Collings

This week the UK government announced that around 100 new oil and gas licences for the North Sea will be issued. At the same time the Prime Minister said the government would back two new carbon capture and storage plants, one in Aberdeenshire and one in the Humber. Victoria Gill speaks to Angela Knight, former chief executive of Energy UK, about what this decision means for the UK's aim of reaching net zero carbon emissions by 2050. She then discovers more about the capabilities of carbon capture and storage from Paul Fennell, a professor of clean energy at Imperial College London. Next Victoria travels to the sunnier shores of Spain where orcas have been ramming fishing boats. She speaks to one of the sailors who witnessed an attack. To find out more about the orcas' behaviour, she interviews Dr Luke Rendell, a whale and dolphin expert from the University of St Andrews. We then move to Skomer, off the coast of West Wales. This important seabird colony has recently recorded an avian flu outbreak. Reporter Roland Pease speaks to Lisa Morgan from the Wildlife Trust for South and West Wales. To finish the show Dr Stuart Farrimond is back with the final instalment of his science of gardening series. Presenter: Victoria Gill Producers: Alice Lipscombe-Southwell, Hannah Robins Research: Patrick Hughes Editor: Richard Collings

Noise from the ocean raises hopes of a rescue. Adam is joined by BBC science correspondent Victoria Gill and Dr Joe MacInnis, who was among the first to dive down to the wreck of the Titanic and knows one of the five people on board well, to discuss the complex search to find the missing Titanic submersible. Also, interest rates are expected to rise again after UK inflation remained much higher than expected for the fourth month in a row. Economics editor Faisal Islam and the FT's Claer Barrett are in the studio to explain what this could mean for the government, our wallets and our mortgages. You can join our Newscast online community here: https://tinyurl.com/newscastcommunityhere Today's Newscast was presented by Adam Fleming. It was made by Tim Walklate with Madeleine Drury, Adam Chowdhury and Alex Collins. The technical producer was Dafydd Evans. The senior news editor was Sam Bonham.

The Royal Society is the oldest scientific academy in the world. Since being established in 1660, it has painstakingly archived thousands of papers, letters, manuscripts and illustrations from some of science's most enquiring minds. In this episode, Victoria Gill takes a trip to the society to pore over some of the most intriguing artefacts within its vaults. While there, she finds out more about the formation of the Royal Society and how science has been shaped over the centuries. Along the way, she considers the role of women in science, and asks whether their contributions have been historically overlooked. She is joined by the Royal Society's Louisiane Ferlier and Keith Moore, along with Prof Uta Frith, a Royal Society Fellow and psychologist, and Dr Stephen Webster, a senior lecturer in science communication at Imperial College London. As part of its Science in the Making project, the Royal Society is currently digitising all of its collections, for everyone to browse through and enjoy. You can find out more on the Royal Society website. Presenter: Victoria Gill Producers: Harrison Lewis, Hannah Fisher Content Producer: Alice Lipscombe-Southwell

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When was the last time you had to use your negotiating skills? Did you walk away satisfied? This week junior doctors are half way through their 4 day walkout, with senior NHS figures suggesting the cancellation of between 250,000 and 350,000 appointments/operations. Victoria Gill is preparing to debate her way through the science of disagreement and identify what qualities make for the perfect negotiator. Associate Professor Sunny Lee, Deputy Director of Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion at University College London helps guide Victoria through the basic building blocks that help resolve conflict, with expert commentary from Camilla Born peeking behind the curtain of COP26, and finally negotiating with elephants? Dr Josh Plotnik at City University of New York suggests that some animals may be actively seeking out conflict with humans. Presenter: Victoria Gill Producer: Harrison Lewis

Former Health Secretary Matt Hancock disputes claim he rejected care home Covid advice. Adam is joined by Chris and BBC media editor Katie Razzall to discuss Matt Hancock's Whatsapp messages at the height of the pandemic, which were leaked to the Daily Telegraph. Also, Justin Webb from Americast and the BBC's Victoria Gill examine FBI Director Christopher Wray's comments that Covid-19 most likely originated in a Chinese government-controlled lab. Today's Newscast was made by Tim Walklate with Madeleine Drury, Cordelia Hemming and Peter Cooke. The technical producer was Philip Bull. The editor was Damon Rose.

The UK's first satellite launch faced several delays in 2022, but Virgin Orbit's Cosmic Girl is prepped for imminent take off. BBC science correspondent Jonathan Amos has been following the activity in Newquay and, alongside Melissa Thorpe head of Spaceport Cornwall, describes the potential this launch has to promote and bolster the UK's space industry. Is laziness a particularly human trait? Apparently not according to Dr Daniella Rabaiotti from the Zoological Society of London. Her research shows many animals engage in behaviour akin to laziness even within groups where others might be very active. There's evidence for this from animals as diverse as wolves, frogs and pheasants. Dani says it's a factor worth considering in animal behaviour studies, simply are we biased towards the more active and outgoing animals as they are the ones we tend to see? Victoria Gill speaks to the founder and CEO of Nature Metrics Dr Cat Bruce and Katie Critchlow about the tools they use to help companies measure biodiversity at their worksites. From taking water or soil samples it's possible to detect the DNA of a multitude of organisms from large animals down to microbes. The technique should help map the biodiversity of a given area and inform decisions on development and conservation. BBC Inside Science is produced in collaboration with the Open University

As the COP27 environment summit draws to a close we look at some of the issues still to be resolved. BBC Environment correspondents Victoria Gill and Georgina Rannard join us from the meeting. And we head to the houses of parliament in the company of a group of teenagers who are putting their concerns over climate change to a panel of politicians. Julia Ravey went to meet them. We hear from author Nick Davidson about how the discoveries of 3 unlikely characters in the 19th century formed the basis of geological science. His book The Greywacke is shortlisted for the Royal Society Science Book Prize. And a scientific analysis of the Winchcombe meteorite gives us some clues as to the possible origins of life on earth. Natasha Stephen from Plymouth University is one of the many scientists who analysed the composition of the rock fragments.

The ecosystems of the land and ocean absorb around half our our planet warming emissions. But these are being destroyed by human activity. At the same time, climate change is a primary driver of the destruction of these habitats and biodiversity loss. If biodiversity is our strongest natural defence against climate change (as it's been described), what's stopping us from doing more to protect it? As the big global biodiversity conference (COP 15) gets underway in Montreal, Canada, presenters Sophie Eastaugh and Luke Jones are joined by: Victoria Gill, BBC Science Correspondent at COP 15 in Montreal Felipe Zapata, a Columbian botanist at UCLA Marcela Fernandez from Cumbres Blancas Akanksha Khatri, Head of Nature Action Agenda at the World Economic Forum Email us: theclimatequestion@bbc.com Producer: Georgia Coan Researcher: Frances Read Production Coordinators: Helena Warwick-Cross, Siobhan Reed, Sophie Hill Series Producer: Alex Lewis Editor: Richard Fenton-Smith Sound engineer: Tom Brignell

Recorded in front of an audience at Bradford's National Museum of Science and Media, we're delving into the next 100 years of broadcasting, examining the science and technology behind what we'll watch and listen to. And what the seismic technological shifts mean for all of us. Victoria Gill is joined on stage by four people who give us an audio tour of that media future. Lewis Pollard the curator television and broadcast at the museum. Dr Karen Thornton programme leader teaching film and television production at the University of Bradford. Bill Thompson technology commentator. Gemma Milne writer and researcher interested in how science and technology impacts all of us. And author of Smoke and Mirrors - how hype obscures the future and how to see past it. BBC Inside Science is produced in partnership with the Open University

ESA announce that Shaun The Sheep will fly around the moon this month aboard Artemis-1 mission. Philippe Deloo tells Gaia Vince what's in store for the woolly astronaut this month. Philippe is the team lead on the European Service Module, the part of NASA's Orion spacecraft which will be the workhorse of the new moon missions, ferrying four astronauts at a time to the moon and perhaps even beyond one day. This first Artemis mission, slated for launch 29th August, will check all the engineering bravado of the new launch and orbital systems ready for subsequent human passengers in a couple of years. Christiana Scheib, of the Universities of Cambridge and Tartu, is part of a team who seem to have pinpointed in time the moment the Herpes virus that causes cold sores first spread across human populations. By obtaining genomes of HSV1 from four individuals who died between the iron age and medieval times, their analysis suggests an initial emergence sometime in the Bronze age. The intriguing hypothesis that accompanies the discovery is that the variant's emergence was facilitated by a new trend among bronze age folk of romantic kissing. But as she describes, it's hard to be certain for "there is no gene for kissing". One way of restricting the spread of many viruses is of course various forms of PPE. The last few years have seen billions more items of PPE used on our planet, often without a clear plan for their disposal, and they get accidentally dropped and even deliberately dumped all over the world. Alex Bond of the Natural History Museum at Tring observes and catalogues rubbish affecting wildlife. He took the BBC's Victoria Gill on a walk down a canal in Salford to discuss the issues with the tissues. Presented by Gaia Vince Produced by Alex Mansfield

In this week's programme we are going to be sharing some science highlights - sci-lights, if you will - going in depth with some of the latest science news from the past month plus some fascinating science stories. We ask researchers what policies need to be in place to protect biodiversity as we enter a descivie decade for nature and take a look at the species living in the UK which are currently at risk. New resesearch from the week also gives us more clues about if life exists on venus and we hear how singing lava inside a volcano could help us better predict future eruptions. Plus, with... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Victoria Gill and guests ask why does scientific communication matters in society and how it might be done better, with Sam Illingworth, Berry Billingsley and Ozmala Ismail. The climate crisis and Covid-19 have shown over the recent years the importance of reliable, relatable, transparent and trusted science communication. But just like science itself, it comes in different forms and takes different approaches. Always keen to keep you up to date, BBC Inside Science takes a moment to discuss good practice and how it might be done better. Dr Oz Ismail is a dementia researcher who also finds time to do stand-up, public engagement and a podcast called Why Aren't You A Doctor Yet? Sam Illingworth is an Associate Professor at Edinburgh Napier University who investigates science and communication between disciplines. He is also a poet and writer, and has a podcast called The Poetry of Science. And Berry Billingsley is Professor in Science Education at Canterbury Christchurch University. Erstwhile science broadcaster, she looks at ways science education could be enhanced through building what her team call Epistemic Insight - transforming the nature of science education in society's younger members. Presented by Victoria Gill Produced by Alex Mansfield and Samara Linton

The Russian invasion of Ukraine has been met with harsh financial sanctions. These have come from North America and Europe. The US and Canada have also banned Russian oil and gas, but Europe has found itself unable to do so - even as natural gas prices soar. The EU receives 40% of its natural gas from Russia, and for many countries, if they turn it off, the lights will go out and they'll be unable to keep themselves warm. As a result European money continues to pay Russia for its natural gas resources. This episode looks at the short term plans for European countries, dependent on Russian gas, to remove it from their energy systems and ask if this could be the perfect moment to turn away from fossil fuels, including natural gas, and turn toward a much improved renewable energy network? Presenters Jordan Dunbar and Kate Lamble are joined by: Victoria Gill, BBC Science and Climate Correspondent Simone Tagliapietra, Senior Fellow specialising in European Union climate and energy policy at think tank, Bruegel Bernice Lee, is Hoffmann Distinguished Fellow for sustainability, Chatham House Team: Producer: Dearbhail Starr Reporter: Alessia Cerantola Researcher: Natasha Fernandes & Frances Read Series Producer: Alex Lewis Editor: Nicola Addyman Sound Engineer: Tom Brignell

Written into many of the promises made by countries about how they intend to achieve their UN climate pledges to reduce emissions is an assumption that technology will help them make this happen. But this technology either does not currently exist or is in its infancy. This includes schemes to take carbon out of the air via carbon capture and storage or direct air capture and to replace our dependency on fossil fuels with green hydrogen. We visit the world's largest direct air capture plant in Iceland and speak to the person in charge of Namibia's grand plans to become the green hydrogen production hub of the world - can both really be scaled up in order to meet our current needs? Presenters Kate Lamble and Jordan Dunbar are joined by: Zeke Hausfather, Director of Climate and Energy at the Breakthrough Institute, Victoria Gill, BBC's Science Correspondent, Christoph Beuttler, Head of Climate Policy at Climeworks, and Jane Olwoch, Executive Director of South African Science Service Centre for Climate Change and Adaptive Land Management (SASSCAL) Producer: Dearbhail Starr Researcher: Tatyana Movshevich and Zoe Gelber Reporter: Magnús Geir Eyjólfsson Series Producer: Alex Lewis Editor: Emma Rippon Sound engineer: Tom Brignell

Victoria Gill hears of ancient DNA evidence for an unrecognised mass migration from continental Europe 3,000 years ago that may even have brought the Celtic languages with it. In a paper in the journal Nature, an international team of researchers have gathered hundreds of middle-late Bronze Age DNA samples to identify a moment in pre-history when half the ancestry of people living in southern Britain became continental European. Sometime around 1000 BC, continental Europeans living in Kent spread rapidly into what is now England and Wales. As Prof Ian Armit tells Vic, the spread need not have been one event, and likely spanned around 200 years, but by the start of the Iron Age, Britons' DNA was 50% changed. The researchers suggest further that this may have been the time when Celtic languages spread from the continent into the islands too. Data are starting to be published that suggest the Omicron variant of SARS CoV-2 may be a little less awful than was first feared, though it clearly is still a lethal foe. Prof Penny Moore, one of the scientists in South Africa who helped alert the world to the new virus is very tentatively relieved that death and hospitalisation numbers there and in the UK are beginning to show clinically some of the resilience that earlier strains and vaccines may have bestowed on populations. Three "Glimpses of Spike", either through prior infection and survival or vaccination and boosting seem to be accompanied by improved survival rates. Gaia Vince has been to the Arctic Circle to talk climate change and reindeer. Sami language and culture in Lapland is under strain as climate change rapidly changes alters the predatory threats reindeer farmers face, increasing numbers of wolves and even sea-eagles that prey on young reindeer calves. And over at UCSC in California, recordings of elephant seal pups have been played to maternal harems to ascertain how well mothers recognize their own. Caroline Casey and colleagues report in Royal Society journal Biology Letters, how they can spot their own offspring from their call alone in as little as two days after birth. But if they can do that, why then do so many lactating females feed pups that aren't their own? Elephant seal mothers fast throughout lactation and lose a huge percentage of their own body weight, quite what the evolutionary driver is for this behaviour remains uncertain, but it can't now be a case of mistaken identity. Presenter Victoria Gill Producer Alex Mansfield Assistant Producer Emily Bird Made in Association with The Open University

This week London's Ultra Low Emission Zone was extended to 18 times its previous size. In an effort to cut levels of various nitrogen oxides and other gases dangerous to humans from urban air, cities encouraging lower emission vehicles is a trend soon stretching across the UK and other European countries. But some are sceptical as to their efficacy. Dr Gary Fuller of Imperial College London is author of The Invisible Killer, and has been studying the air in London and elsewhere since these zones began. As COP26 begins in Glasgow, a wealth of climate science is being published and publicised. Victoria Gill describes a couple of stories this week that point out quite how complex the science is, let alone the diplomacy and economics. Whilst the world's forests taken as a whole undoubtedly still capture more CO2 than they release, research this week shows that ten of Unesco's World Heritage Forests - making up for an area twice the size of Germany - have in the last ten years actually moved from being a carbon sink to a carbon source. There are several reasons, land use pressure being one of them, but also extreme climate events like wildfires (and even a hurricane in one instance) have tipped the balance, and show what how sharp the knife edge is for natural resilience. Meanwhile, the Financial Times reports that scientists have found an unexpected outflow of methane into the atmosphere from a site very close to the COP26 conference centre in Glasgow, highlighting just how great a challenge net zero will be. Alongside some of humans' most earth-changing achievements, the domestication of the horse stands as something outstanding in human history. Without it, war, traded and culture would be unrecognizable. But quite when and where the modern horse originated has been something of a mystery. In Nature this week, researchers have published an extensive study into ancient DNA that seems to pinpoint finally a moment and a place where this happened, 4,200 years ago. Geoff Marsh takes Marnie for a canter through the mystery. Presenter: Marnie Chesterton Producer: Alex Mansfield Made in association with The Open University

In this special episode ahead of the COP26 climate summit in Glasgow, Liz Bonnin puts your questions to the BBC's environment correspondent Matt McGrath, science correspondent Victoria Gill, and energy policy expert Professor Jim Watson. With contributions from Sir Ranulph Fiennes, Mya-Rose Craig and Chris Packham, questions tackled include how much carbon does it take to melt a cubic metre of sea ice, why is a new coal mine in Cumbria even up for discussion and how will we make sure countries stick to the pledges they make at the talks? We also bust some jargon and give you a complete rundown on all the key issues ahead of the critical climate summit.

A quick hello from the team of ‘What Planet Are We On?' to tell you about a special episode we're making this autumn to answer YOUR climate questions. We'll be back with our host Liz Bonnin alongside the BBC's environment correspondent Matt McGrath and science correspondent Victoria Gill. Plus, we'll be joined by Professor Jim Watson from UCL's Institute of Sustainable Resources. So send us your question about climate change or the UN's major conference, COP26, to what.planet@bbc.co.uk and we'll try to answer as many of them as we can. What do you want to ask the experts?

Many of us love putting out bird seed and watching birds feast away, and feel we're doing a good deed too, but a new paper out of Manchester Metropolitan University suggests we may actually be doing more harm than good. Eva Higginbotham spoke to BBC science correspondent Victoria Gill, who spoke with lead author Alex Lees previously... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Many of us love putting out bird seed and watching birds feast away, and feel we're doing a good deed too, but a new paper out of Manchester Metropolitan University suggests we may actually be doing more harm than good. Eva Higginbotham spoke to BBC science correspondent Victoria Gill, who spoke with lead author Alex Lees previously... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Victoria Gill talks to Professor Damian Bailey who's leading research at the University of South Wales into the potential risks to brain health in contact sports players, from impacts to the head and body sustained during play. His latest study found that over the course of a 31 game season, the brains of members of a professional rugby union team underwent measurable changes, particularly the forward players who sustained most tackles, knocks and falls. The findings may help to identify why professional players of some contact sports are at an increased risk of dementia later in life. Also in the programme: How food waste may help with the development of a more sustainable generation of batteries, with Imperial College chemist Magda Titirici. Professor Titirici was awarded this year's Kavli Medal by the Royal Society for her research on new sustainable energy materials. The bones of people who died in 79 AD during the eruption of Vesuvius have revealed in extraordinary detail what the citizens of Herculaneum ate, and how the diets of men differed from those of women in the town. With bioarchaeologist Oliver Craig of the University of York. How the babbling of baby bats is comparable to babbling in human babies. Both are about learning the skills of communication, according to zoologist Ahana Fernandez of the Museum of Natural History in Berlin.

Indian authorities have approved the world's first DNA-based Covid vaccine for emergency use. Not all the data that has led to the opening of the phase 3 trials is yet publicly available, but as public health policy expert Chandrakant Lahariya explains to presenter Roland Pease, it could be a real help in India's, and the world's, fight to get things under control. WHO Wuhan expedition The origins of the Covid virus were investigated last winter by a WHO team sent to Wuhan – where the first cases were discovered – earlier this year. Their work has since become the subject of intense political scrutiny and some criticism. This week, members of the team including Marian Koopmans have written a rebuttal, setting out the original terms of the investigation and urging the continuation of the process, as she explains to Victoria Gill. Decolonise Science Most of the science written by people from or about the African continent is written in English. Many local African languages do not currently have a meaningful vocabulary for many of the scientific terms and concepts researchers use. This week a team of scientists, journalists, and translators are completing the launch of a project called Decolonise Science, which will take 180 nominated papers posted on the website AfricaArxiv, translate them into 6 African languages including isiZulu, Sothu, and Hausa, and then use Machine Learning methods to build resources for science communication and education in people's home languages. Project partner Sibusiso Byela explains the thinking. Royal Society Africa Prize winner This week the UK's Royal Society announced its annual awards. Kenya's George Warimwe has taken the Africa Award for his work creating vaccines for a virus that creates disease in livestock and humans – Rift Valley Fever. His promising approach stems from years of working with adenovirus technology akin to the AstraZeneca Covid virus. But as he explains, his One Health approach is to learn from the immune response in humans and apply it to animals, and vice-versa. The grant associated with the award should also help him and his team pick- up on research left-off before the coronavirus pandemic. How did our ancestors sleep? How we sleep is a topic of endless fascination and for some can, ironically be quite exhausting. Modern life has allowed us to invade the night, and those pesky late night work emails, social media and TV all conspire to limit our sleep or simply prevent us from a truly restful night. But if we travel back in time, did our ancestors master sleep any better? No air-con or electric fan for them on hot humid nights, and only smoky fires to keep them warm on cold, snowy nights. What if we go way back into our pre-history, to our ancient human ancestors? No interruption for them from an unwanted work email, however perhaps a ravenous lion gave them more reason for those night time worries. CrowdScience listener Tom asks our sleep deprived presenter Datshiane Navanayagam to investigate how our sleep has changed over history and pre-history. She talks to Professor Russell Foster, Head of the Sleep and Circadian Neuroscience Institute at the University of Oxford and Neanderthal expert Dr Rebecca Wragg Sykes about slumber habits in days of yore, and in doing so, she uncovers some top tips from our ancestors that may give us all a better nights rest. (Image: Getty Images) Presenters: Roland Pease and Datshiane Navanayagam Producers: Alex Mansfield and Alexandra Feachem

Virologist Marion Koopmans is one of the independent researchers appointed by the World Health Organisation to investigate the origins of the coronavirus pandemic. The team visited China in January this year as a first step to answer how, when and where SARS-Cov-2 first infected humans. Professor Koopmans tells Victoria Gill that time is beginning to run out to launch the next phase of studies, to trace the first people in China to be exposed and identify the animals from which the virus jumped the species barrier. Also in the programme: Is the practise of feeding the birds in our gardens creating losers as well as winners, and causing the numbers of some woodland birds to decline? Conservation biologist Alexander Lees visits Victoria in her garden to discuss the question, and reveal the truly dark side of the Great Tit. A new study of the impact of street lighting on nocturnal insects shows that the local impacts on moths can be dramatic. According to entomologist Douglas Boyes, street lights deter female moths from laying their eggs and make them more vulnerable to predation by bats. He's found that artificially illuminated areas are home to half the number of moth caterpillars compared to dark areas.

Indian authorities have approved the world's first DNA-based covid vaccine for emergency use. Not all the data that has led to the opening of the phase 3 trials is yet publicly available, but as public health policy expert Chandrakant Lahariya explains to Roland, it could be a real help in India's, and the world's, fight to get things under control. The origins of the Covid virus were investigated last winter by a WHO team sent to Wuhan – where the first cases were discovered – earlier this year. Their work has since become the subject of intense political scrutiny and some criticism. This week, members of the team including Marian Koopmans have written a rebuttal, setting out the original terms of the investigation and urging the continuation of the process, as she explains to Victoria Gill. Most of the science written by people from or about the African continent is written in English. Many local African languages do not currently have a meaningful vocabulary for many of the scientific terms and concepts researchers use. This week a team of scientists, journalists, and translators are completing the launch of a project called Decolonise Science, which will take 180 nominated papers posted on the website AfricaArxiv, translate them into 6 African languages including isiZulu, Sothu, and Hausa, and then use Machine Learning methods to build resources for science communication and education in people's home languages. Project partner Sibusiso Byela explains the thinking. This week the UK's Royal Society announced its annual awards. Kenya's George Warimwe has taken the Africa Award for his work creating vaccines for a virus that creates disease in livestock and humans – Rift Valley Fever. His promising approach stems from years of working with adenovirus technology akin to the AstraZeneca covid virus. But as he explains, his One Health approach is to learn from the immune response in humans and apply it to animals, and vice-versa. The grant associated with the award should also help him and his team pick- up on research left-off before the coronavirus pandemic. (Image: Getty Images) Presenter: Roland Pease Producer: Alex Mansfield

A 17,000-year-old tusk contains a remarkable story of the lifetime travels of a woolly mammoth, which roamed the grasslands of Ice Age Alaska. The animal travelled 70,000 kilometres over the course of three decades before his premature death north of the Arctic Circle. The University of Alaska's Matthew Wooller tells Victoria Gill how his team pieced together the mammoth's life from isotopic clues captured in the tusk. Also in the programme: The search for storage capacity underground for all the hydrogen we'll need for a net zero carbon economy, with geoscientists Katriona Edlmann and Eike Thayson of the University of Edinburgh. How the 1987 Montreal Protocol (which phased out CFCs) saved us from an even worse climate crisis than the one we're facing, with climate scientist Paul Young of the University of Lancaster. Probiotics may protect corals from death by bleaching, with marine biologist Raquel Peixoto of King Abdullah University in Saudi Arabia.

Victoria Gill talks to climate scientist Friedericke Otto about the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change's new landmark report. The report this week states that the evidence for humanity's role in changing global change is now unequivocal. Dr Otto was a lead author on the chapter on extreme weather events and explains how human influence can be attributed to the increasing incidence and intensity of heat waves and heavy rainfall events. Also in the programme: Immunological evidence to support a covid vaccine booster programme in the UK, with virologist Jonathan Ball of the University of Nottingham. Faecal transplants that rejuvenated the memory and the brains of elderly mice, with neuroscientist John Cryan of University College Cork. A website for the public to report their sightings and upload their videos of ball lightning, with electrical engineer Karl Langham of Texas State University, San Marcos.

Victoria Gill looks at the latest stories from the world of science. In this week's episode: the threat to bees from multiple pesticide exposure, how bee colonies can evolve defences against the varroa parasite, more problems for the Starliner space capsule, and what may be the oldest fossil animals yet found.

Will we ever find out how the pandemic started? In the past few months, the theory that Covid-19 actually came from a lab in Wuhan (instead of jumping from a bat to a human in a food market) has been back in the spotlight. But is all this chat being led by science or politics? Can the two even be separated anymore? For this special Newscast, Adam is joined by Newsnight's Mark Urban, the BBC China correspondent, John Sudworth alongside his producer Kathy Long, and BBC science correspondent, Victoria Gill. Today's Newscast was made by Maz Ebtehaj with Alix Pickles and Ben Cooper. The Studio Director was Micheal Regaard. Sam Bonham is the Assistant Editor. Dino Sofos is the Editor.

Despite being home to our early ancestors, attempts to find evidence of early burials in Africa have proved unsuccessful. That is until now. Professor María Martinón-Torres explains how findings from a 78,000-year-old Kenyan grave shed light on how our ancestors related to the dead. In keeping with the theme of clues from the past, Cardiff University academics have been studying the remains of crew who drowned on King Henry VIII’s favourite ship, the Mary Rose. As it turns out, Tudor England was more ethnically diverse than we previously thought. Victoria Gill speaks with University of Oxford researcher Dr Mehreen Datoo about a promising new malaria vaccine which was shown to be 77% effective in early trials. And Dr Nir Grossman, explains how his team at Imperial College London has been synchronising electrical pulses with rogue brain waves to treat tremors.

Victoria Gill and guests discuss the signs and symptoms of melting ice and anthropogenic climate warming, illicit CFC production and the racket we make in the seas. As two robotic missions from UAE and China arrive at Mars , and a third from NASA arrives next week, UK astronaut Tim Peake talks of the international collaboration in Mars research that is to come. And continuing BBC Inside Science's look at some of the issues facing COP26 delegates to Glasgow this autumn, Victoria is joined by cryosphere scientist Dr Anna Hogg, Anna studies – sometimes from space - how polar and Greenland ice sheets are melting and shifting as our climate warms. But those giant volumes of ice and concomitant rising sea levels might not be the only threat to people’s lives. It may be that the recent deadly flash flood in India was a result of a swiftly melting Himalayan glacier. The Montreal treaty - prohibiting the production of CFCs to allow the man-made polar hole in the Ozone layer identified back in the 1980s to repair - has long been cited as the classic example of an effective international agreement to protect earth's environment. But just a few years ago in 2018 Luke Western and colleagues identified not just that CFC production was suddenly and unexpectedly rising, but that it was mainly emanating from an area in eastern China. It was speculated then that their use in foams for buildings was happening illicitly on a large scale. This week, they happily announce that those emissions seem to have ceased, and that the target of a healthy ozone layer is back on track. The oceans are, since man first took to the waves, a noisy place. In a comprehensive paper published last week in the journal Science Carlos Duarte and colleagues describe how huge an impact the many anthropogenic noises that echo for miles across the sea beds have on virtually all aquatic life. He argues that it is one stressor, rather like CFCs, that we could and should take swift and effective action to address, that the time for that is ripe, and that doing so will see a swift rebound in many aquatic ecosystems. Humans are not naturally adapted to hear the noise underwater, but to illustrate the point, co-author digital artist Jana Winderen has made an acoustic demonstration for your benefit, of quite how noisy neighbours we are Also, for listeners on BBC Sounds, the BBC's Roland Pease gives an update on where and how scientists think the covid-19 epidemic began, after a WHO team of scientists report on their recent mission to Wuhan and the infamous market. As Roland and WHO delegate Peter Daszak surmise, we still don't quite know, but it wasn't in a lab. Presented by Victoria Gill Produced by Alex Mansfield Made in Association with The Open University.

In this bonus clip, Liz Bonnin, Matt McGrath and Victoria Gill talk about their favourite climate solutions from this series. We've heard over 100 solutions, tips or ideas from our guests - so we've put the longlist on the 'What Planet Are We On?' website so you can see them all.

In part 2, we hear from some of the world's leading young activists; Jamie Margolin, an American climate justice campaigner and the co-executive director of Zero Hour; Vanessa Nakate, a Ugandan climate justice activist and founder of the Rise Up Movement; and 15 year-old environmentalist, Holly Gillibrand, who was one of the youngest climate activists in the UK when she first began school strikes in the Scottish Highlands where she lives. They talk to Liz Bonnin, Matt McGrath and Victoria Gill about who inspires them and about the pressures of having to step up when they feel some world leaders have checked out.

This episode is about leadership. The team are joined by the UN's former top climate diplomat, Christiana Figueres, and her political strategist, Tom Rivett-Carnac, who helped bring together world leaders for the historic Paris Agreement to combat climate change in 2015. They host the ‘Outrage and Optimism' pod and they've written a book called ‘The Future We Choose'. Liz Bonnin, Victoria Gill and Matt McGrath discuss the challenges and opportunities for leaders acting to bring down emissions and hear why Christiana remains stubbornly optimistic for the future.

This episode is about a musician in the award-winning British band, Foals, who wants to see big changes in both the live music industry and wider society. In a rare and personal interview, Edwin Congreave, says certain types of heavily polluting tours shouldn't take place anymore and there are greener alternatives to connect with audiences. Edwin speaks to Matt McGrath and Victoria Gill about his own realisation about the fragility of our planet, his vision for the future of the live music industry and how bands could tour differently. And he calls on society to ask itself, 'what are we going to do about this'?

This episode is about our economy. As governments pour billions into the system following the pandemic, can our future be both prosperous AND green? Liz Bonnin, Matt McGrath and Victoria Gill ask economist Kate Raworth from Oxford University and author of ‘Doughnut Economics' and Professor Rebecca Henderson from Harvard Business School and author of ‘Reimagining Capitalism In A World On Fire' if capitalism holds the solution to a more sustainable future - or if alternative models could be kinder to the planet.

This episode is about optimism and hope and where we can find it in the often depressing climate change story. The supermodel, businesswoman and ‘Who Cares Wins' podcaster Lily Cole talks to Liz Bonnin, Matt McGrath and Victoria Gill along with young conservationist Bella Lack about their own activism and projects, staying positive and the future of the planet. Lily also discusses the challenges of hypocrisy and tells the team, it's better to have lots of imperfect environmentalists rather than a few perfect ones.

In part 2, Alannah Weston, the chair of Selfridges, talks to Liz Bonnin, Victoria Gill and Matt McGrath about how an iconic department store which sells lots of stuff goes about trying to create a more sustainable business model.

This episode is about climate denial, apathy and how we choose to live on the planet. Professor Lorraine Whitmarsh, the director of the Centre for Climate Change and Social Transformations and Professor Katherine Hayhoe, an atmospheric scientist at Texas Tech University join Liz Bonnin, Matt McGrath and Victoria Gill to talk about the scientific basis for human-made climate change and reasons behind our behaviours.

This episode is about food and farming. Hollywood actor Idris Elba and his wife Sabrina Dhowre Elba are UN Goodwill Ambassadors for the International Fund for Agricultural Development and talk about the impacts of climate change on poor, rural communities in Africa. They also share some personal insights with Liz Bonnin, Matt McGrath and Victoria Gill about inequality, the state of our global food systems and how we can all do something to help

In Part 2, Liz Bonnin, Matt McGrath and Victoria Gill discuss the foods we produce, buy and eat and speak to Indra Thillainathan, an agriculture and land use analyst at the Committee on Climate Change, which gives independent advice to the UK government on building a low-carbon economy.

In Part 2, Liz Bonnin, Matt McGrath and Victoria Gill hear 10 things we can do to help tackle climate change with Crystal Chissell, Vice President of Operations and Engagement at Project Drawdown. The non-profit US organisation looks into existing climate solutions.

The celebrated broadcaster, Sir David Attenborough, shares his thoughts about the impact of the pandemic on tackling climate change. He says he is frustrated by the delay of government action to protect the natural world and tells us the excesses of capitalism should be "curbed" to save nature. Plus, Liz Bonnin, Matt McGrath and Victoria Gill reflect on where we are at now and what lies ahead.

NO BS. RAW, TO THE POINT. WE TALK ALL THINGS COVID-19, SELF EMPLOYED LIFE & BREAKTHROUGH MOMENTS. TO GET TO KNOW US BETTER FOLLOW US OVER ON SOCIAL MEDIA: @LUCYSUPERFOX @VICTORIAWELLNESSUK

Pour sauver l'achoque, une salamandre exotique (et adorable) qui vit dans un lac du Mexique du Nord, des scientifiques ont fait équipe avec des partenaires de recherche inattendues : un groupe de nonnes appelé les Sœurs Marie Immaculée de la Santé. Pendant cette conférence charmante, Victoria Gill partage l'histoire de comment cette collaboration peu commune a pu sauver l'achoque de l'extinction, et elle démontre comment les personnes locales et indigènes pourraient garder le secret pour sauver les espèces les plus étranges, fabuleuses et menacées de notre planète.

To save the achoque -- an exotic (and adorable) salamander found in a lake in northern Mexico -- scientists teamed up with an unexpected research partner: a group of nuns called the Sisters of the Immaculate Health. In this delightful talk, science journalist Victoria Gill shares the story of how this unusual collaboration saved the achoque from extinction -- and demonstrates how local and indigenous people could hold the secret to saving our planet's weird, wonderful and most threatened species.

To save the achoque -- an exotic (and adorable) salamander found in a lake in northern Mexico -- scientists teamed up with an unexpected research partner: a group of nuns called the Sisters of the Immaculate Health. In this delightful talk, science journalist Victoria Gill shares the story of how this unusual collaboration saved the achoque from extinction -- and demonstrates how local and indigenous people could hold the secret to saving our planet's weird, wonderful and most threatened species.

To save the achoque -- an exotic (and adorable) salamander found in a lake in northern Mexico -- scientists teamed up with an unexpected research partner: a group of nuns called the Sisters of the Immaculate Health. In this delightful talk, science journalist Victoria Gill shares the story of how this unusual collaboration saved the achoque from extinction -- and demonstrates how local and indigenous people could hold the secret to saving our planet's weird, wonderful and most threatened species.

Para salvar al achoque, una exótica (y adorable) salamandra que se encuentra en un lago en el norte de México, los científicos hicieron equipo con unos compañeros de investigación inesperados: un grupo de monjas llamadas las Hermanas de la Inmaculada de la Salud. En esta charla encantadora, Victoria Gill, periodista especializada en temas científicos, comparte la historia de cómo esta inusual colaboración salvó al achoque de la extinción, y demuestra cómo los pueblos locales e indígenas podrían tener el secreto para salvar a las especies raras, maravillosas y más amenazadas de nuestro planeta.

Para salvar os achoques, uma salamandra exótica (e adorável) encontrada em um lago ao norte do México, cientistas se uniram a um parceiro de pesquisa inesperado: um grupo de freiras chamadas de Irmãs da Imaculada Saúde. Nesta encantadora palestra, a jornalista científica Victoria Gill compartilha conosco a história de como essa parceria incomum evitou que os achoques entrassem em extinção, demonstrando como as populações local e indígena podem deter o segredo para a salvação das espécies mais estranhas, maravilhosas e ameaças de nosso planeta.

북 멕시코에 서식하는 희귀하고 사랑스러운 도룡뇽을 구하기 위해서, 과학자들이 예상치 못한 연구 파트너들과 협력했습니다. 바로, 이메큘레이트 헬스 소속의 수녀님들입니다. 과학 저널리스트인 빅토리아길은 이러한 독특한 협력이 어떻게 멸종 위기의 아초비를 구할 수 있었는지, 그리고 멸종위기에 처한 희귀 동물을 구하는 비법이 지역주민과 원주민에게 있을 수 있다는 사실을 보여줍니다.

This week, a question from Bill. "My question is about Chernobyl and why it is that wildlife seems to be thriving there and yet we understand that humans still can't survive there. Why is this?" Phil Sansom spoke to someone who's actually been there - Victoria Gill, a science correspondent for BBC News... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Thirty three years ago there was an explosion at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant in Ukraine, then part of the Soviet Union. We knew hardly anything about it at the time – only that radiation levels were rising in Western Europe. Of the emergency workers sent to tackle the blast, 28 died within months 19 have died since - 134 got acute radiation sickness. But now tourist groups visit the exclusion zone all the time - and scientists are studying there because the whole place has become a massive laboratory what happens in the aftermath of a nuclear disaster. BBC science correspondent Victoria Gill went there earlier this year and tells us how to assess the risks of radiation.

A convent of Mexican nuns is helping to save the one of the world's most endangered and most remarkable amphibians: the axolotl, a truly bizarre creature of serious scientific interest worldwide and an animal of deep-rooted cultural significance in Mexico. The Sisters of Immaculate Health rarely venture out of their monastery in the central Mexican town of Patzcuaro. Yet they have become the most adept and successful breeders of their local species of this aquatic salamander. Scientists marvel at their axolotl-breeding talents and are now working with them to save the animal from extinction. BBC News science correspondent Victoria Gill is allowed into the convent to discover at least some of the nun's secrets. Producer: Andrew Luck-Baker Picture: Lake Patzcuaro axolotl Credit: Credit the picture Will Condliffe, Chester Zoo

Victoria Gill tells the extraordinary story of the Mexican axolotl: an amphibian that is both a cultural icon and a biomedical marvel. In its domesticated form, the aquatic salamander is a valuable laboratory animal and a popular pet around the world. But in the wild, the species is on the very edge of extinction. Victoria visits one of its last hold-outs among the polluted canals in the south of Mexico City, where she meets the scientists and farmers working to save it. Producer: Andrew Luck-Baker Picture: Street Art, Credit: BBC

A convent of Mexican nuns is helping to save the one of the world's most endangered and most remarkable amphibians: the axolotl, a truly bizarre creature of serious scientific interest worldwide and an animal of deep-rooted cultural significance in Mexico. The Sisters of Immaculate Health rarely venture out of their monastery in the central Mexican town of Patzcuaro. Yet they have become the most adept and successful breeders of their local species of this aquatic salamander. Scientists marvel at their axolotl-breeding talents and are now working with them to save the animal from extinction. BBC News science correspondent Victoria Gill is allowed into the convent to discover at least some of the nun's secrets and explores why axolotls are a group of salamanders so important to protect from evolutionary oblivion. Axolotls are able to regrow lost limbs and other body parts. As a result, the aquatic salamanders are of great interest to researchers worldwide who study them in the hope of imitating the trick: to grow tissues and organs for medicine. The nuns also began to breed and rear their axolotls for medical reasons. They use the salamander as the key ingredient in an ancient Mexican remedy for coughs and other respiratory illnesses. The Sisters of Immaculate Health sell the medicinal syrup to the public. As well as being the basis for a popular folk remedy all over Mexico, the axolotl is also the manifestation of one of the ancient Aztecs' most important gods. The big problem is that all species of axolotl are critically endangered. The nun's species is known locally as the achoque. It only lives in nearby Lake Patzcuaro and it has been pushed to the edge of extinction because of pollution and introduced fish species. This is why the sisters began to breed the animals in the convent about 30 years ago. They were advised to do this by a friar who was also a trained biologist because the supply of achoques from Lake Patzcuaro's fishermen diminished. In the 1980s, 20 tonnes of axolotls were fished from the lake every year. Today they are very few left in the wild. Biologists from the nearby Michoacan University discovered that the nuns are expert breeders of the species and have started to collaborate with them in a conservation programme to make the Lake Patzcuaro an axolotl-friendly habitat once more and (if necessary) to introduce convent-bred animals to restore the lake's tiny population. The project is being supported and funded by the UK's Chester Zoo. The zoo's curator of amphibians Dr Gerardo Garcia visits the convent with Victoria, and demonstrates some of the technical help being offered to the nuns. For example, he micro-chips and takes DNA samples from the nun's breeding salamanders so the sisters can refine their breeding success even further. Producer: Andrew Luck-Baker.

Tales from Thailand, Morocco, Myanmar, Kenya and the US-Mexico border. Kate Adie introduces correspondents’ stories. In a Chang Mai prison, Jonathan Head meets a woman facing more than a decade in jail, convicted of insulting the monarchy and sentenced under Thailand’s lèse majesté laws. Colin Freeman wonders whether change might be coming to Morocco as protests spread across the country – the largest since 2011, the era of the Arab Spring. Jonah Fisher looks back on his three and a half years in Myanmar and wonders how he went from eating cake with Aung San Suu Kyi in her home, to shouting questions at her at public rallies. Harriet Constable joins the roller-blading cool kids of Nairobi and finds a welcome distraction from warnings of violence ahead of Kenya’s upcoming general election. And on the US/Mexico border, Victoria Gill goes in search of the Sonoran Pronghorn as researchers try to assess what impact President Trump's plan for an "impassable barrier" might have on wildlife.

Killer whales and humans are almost unique in the animal kingdom. The females of both species go through the menopause in their 40s or 50s, and then live for decades without producing any more offspring themselves. It is an extremely rare phenomenon. No other mammal does this, including other apes, monkeys and elephants, with the exception of another species of toothed whale. There are good grounds for thinking the menopause evolved for a reason, but why? BBC science reporter Victoria Gill takes to the sea off the north-west coast of the USA with scientists who believe the killer whales in this part of the world can explain why the menopause evolved in both orca whales and our own species. Victoria encounters 'Granny', the world's oldest known orca - a matriarch killer whale who is estimated to be between 80 and 105 years old. 'Granny' has not had a calf for at least 40 years and is still very much the leader of her family group. (Photo: An Orca whale jumps out of the water © Jane Cogan)

Correspondents around the world tell their stories. In this edition Gabriel Gatehouse is back in Tripoli as speculation grows about a new military intervention in Libya; Mark Lowen is in Diyarbakir where there's been intense fighting between Turkish security forces and Kurdish militants; Miles Warde is in a dusty town on the edge of Kenya where there are plans for pipelines, resort cities and Chinese-built railways but the locals wonder if any of them will ever materialise; Claudia Hammond visits what they call a 'geriatric rehabilitation centre' in Cuba where, apparently, there's never a dull moment and Victoria Gill is in Antarctica meeting the rather amusing residents of a place called Moot Point

The Zika virus is dominating the news this week. The latest data says it's been found in 21 countries so far. The symptoms are generally mild, but the possibility of a link to microcephaly has been raised in Brazil. Microcephaly is a serious condition where children are born with abnormally small heads and sometimes incomplete brain development. Trudie Lang, Professor of Global Health at Oxford University, and virologist Professor Jonathan Ball from Nottingham University discuss what we know so far. All the way from Antarctica our reporter Victoria Gill brings us the latest news about the citizen science project 'Penguin Watch'. Victoria installed new cameras with Dr Tom Hart and collected guano with Hila Levy. Gemma Clucas (Oxford and Southampton University) gives an update on what will happen with the collected data. Back in October we featured a major paper by a team of scientists lead by Dr Andrea Manica from Cambridge University. By comparing the 4500 year-old genome of a prehistoric man called Mota to other genomes from living Africans they had mapped a migration of Middle Eastern farmers back into the whole African continent. This week, colleagues identified an error in the way the original team had processed the data, thus overturning one of the key results. But the rest of the findings remain intact. Andrea talks to us about how and why science must make corrections along the path of progress. Heard a few stories about giant dinosaur fossils lately? Usually the giant A-list superstar fossils get all the attention. But according to curator Mark Carnall, about 90% of the collections are mainly uninteresting specimens. Marnie Chesterton went out to meet Mark at the Museum of Natural History in Oxford. He celebrates fragmentary fossils in his blog 'Underwhelming Fossil Fish of the Month'. Warning: Lower your expectations! Producer: Jen Whyntie Assistant Producer: Julia Lorke.

Are you an undecided voter? Claudia Hammond finds out what psychology can tell us about some of the influences on our decision making in the run up to the election. Cognitive psychologist, Professor Colin Davis talks about his research on TV election debates and the influence of the on screen 'worm' used to show what a group of undecided voters think about what's being said throughout the debate. How is mental health portrayed in the media? Paul Whitehouse's recent comedy, Nurse, showed him playing a range of people being visited by community psychiatric nurse, Liz. Is it funny and does it matter if people with mental health problems are used as the subject of comedy? Claudia is joined by real life CPN, Lin, and by anti-stigma campaigner, Nikki Mattocks, to discuss the programme. Also - the call for picture editors not to use 'head clutching' shots to accompany stories about mental health in the media. Sue Baker, Director of Time to Change explains. And what would an ideal asylum look like? Artist James Leadbitter shows reporter, Victoria Gill, his creation.

Chris Smith and Victoria Gill appear at 702 in the flesh to answer questions from the audience and to conduct some illuminating experiments... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Chris Smith and Victoria Gill appear at 702 in the flesh to answer questions from the audience and to conduct some illuminating experiments... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Despatches from correspondents worldwide. In this edition: Mishal Husain's in Lebanon's Bekaa Valley talking to refugees from the war in Syria and learning how a generation of Syrian children is no longer able to go to school; the waters off Somalia aren't the world's piracy hotspot any more - Mary Harper's been finding out how Nigeria's trying to counter an upsurge in maritime crime off the west African coast; with towns and cities expanding across India, Anu Anand has been seeing how animal habitats are being gobbled up, and it's the animals who're suffering; Victoria Gill is in Malawi where powerful motorbikes are now helping out in the country's battle against HIV/AIDS and ... empty that hot tub, do NOT fill the jacuzzi: David Willis says desperate times call for desperate measures in California, now in its third year of drought.

Salamanders can grow back entire limbs if they lose them. A team at University College London lead by Dr Max Yun are looking at the genetic pathways that enable these amphibians to regenerate their arms and legs. This could help us understand how human healing can be improved, as Victoria Gill explains to Chris Smith... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Salamanders can grow back entire limbs if they lose them. A team at University College London lead by Dr Max Yun are looking at the genetic pathways that enable these amphibians to regenerate their arms and legs. This could help us understand how human healing can be improved, as Victoria Gill explains to Chris Smith... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

One of Perth, Western Australia's best-loved and most striking birds - the red-tailed black cockatoo - once common, is now in severe decline. Victoria Gill met Murdoch University's Dr Kristen Warren who has been trying to find out why, by using tracking devices... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

One of Perth, Western Australia's best-loved and most striking birds - the red-tailed black cockatoo - once common, is now in severe decline. Victoria Gill met Murdoch University's Dr Kristen Warren who has been trying to find out why, by using tracking devices... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

This week in the final show from Perth in Western Australia. Chris Smith and Victoria Gill find out how camouflage wetsuits could protect surfers from sharks, hear about a new development in muscular dystrophy treatment, and how sea sponges might be used to mend fractures.

This week, we have a final show from Perth in Western Australia. Chris Smith and Victoria Gill find out how camouflage wetsuits might help protect surfers from sharks, hear about a new development in muscular dystrophy treatment, how sea sponges can be used to mend fractures and whether the chemicals that a cell produces just before death can help us reverse the damage caused by stroke. In the news, why money makes the world go round, the comet that will be lighting up the skies in November, the eniromentally green military flares that could result in clearer firework displays and the scientists that have produced the world's most accurate clock.

This week, we have a final show from Perth in Western Australia. Chris Smith and Victoria Gill find out how camouflage wetsuits might help protect surfers from sharks, hear about a new development in muscular dystrophy treatment, how sea sponges can be used to mend fractures and whether the chemicals that a cell produces just before death can help us reverse the damage caused by stroke. In the news, why money makes the world go round, the comet that will be lighting up the skies in November, the eniromentally green military flares that could result in clearer firework displays and the... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

This week, we have a final show from Perth in Western Australia. Chris Smith and Victoria Gill find out how camouflage wetsuits might help protect surfers from sharks, hear about a new development in muscular dystrophy treatment, how sea sponges can be used to mend fractures and whether the chemicals that a cell produces just before death can help us reverse the damage caused by stroke. In the news, why money makes the world go round, the comet that will be lighting up the skies in November, the eniromentally green military flares that could result in clearer firework displays and the... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

This week, we have another special show from Perth in Western Australia. Chris Smith and Victoria Gill go in search of dolphins, find out how DNA sequencing technology has allowed us to find out what was on Australia's first barbecue, and give a science lesson to children in the outback. In the news, how glucose affects our willpower, why the Antarctic oceans are so different from the rest of the world, and the batteries that store power from renewable energy farms.

This week, we have another special show from Perth in Western Australia. Chris Smith and Victoria Gill go in search of dolphins, find out how DNA sequencing technology has allowed us to find out what was on Australia's first barbecue, and give a science lesson to children in the outback. In the news, how glucose affects our willpower, why the Antarctic oceans are so different from the rest of the world, and the batteries that store power from renewable energy farms. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

This week, we have another special show from Perth in Western Australia. Chris Smith and Victoria Gill go in search of dolphins, find out how DNA sequencing technology has allowed us to find out what was on Australia's first barbecue, and give a science lesson to children in the outback. In the news, how glucose affects our willpower, why the Antarctic oceans are so different from the rest of the world, and the batteries that store power from renewable energy farms. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

This week we have a special show from Perth in Western Australia. Chris Smith finds out whether importing nitrogen fixing legumes could hold the answer to Perth's poor soil fertility and Victoria Gill heads out on a scientific fishing trip to see how Black Bream stocks could give us an insight into the health of estuaries. Plus could gardens hold the answer to preserving the native plants of the Kimberley? In the news, the first measurement of the magnetic field of a black hole, how squid skin could help us hide from infra red cameras and what can David Beckham tell us about playing the piano?

This week we have a special show from Perth in Western Australia. Chris Smith finds out whether importing nitrogen fixing legumes could hold the answer to Perth's poor soil fertility and Victoria Gill heads out on a scientific fishing trip to see how Black Bream stocks could give us an insight into the health of estuaries. Plus could gardens hold the answer to preserving the native plants of the Kimberley? In the news, the first measurement of the magnetic field of a black hole, how squid skin could help us hide from infra red cameras and what can David Beckham tell us about playing the... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

This week we have a special show from Perth in Western Australia. Chris Smith finds out whether importing nitrogen fixing legumes could hold the answer to Perth's poor soil fertility and Victoria Gill heads out on a scientific fishing trip to see how Black Bream stocks could give us an insight into the health of estuaries. Plus could gardens hold the answer to preserving the native plants of the Kimberley? In the news, the first measurement of the magnetic field of a black hole, how squid skin could help us hide from infra red cameras and what can David Beckham tell us about playing the... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

Individuals are not to be sacrificed as means to other people's ends Pirates vs. Emperors by Joseph Nevins http://www.commondreams.org/view/2009/05/07-6 Cruise ship attacked by pirates used sonic weapon (couldn't find exact article referenced) http://www.usatoday.com/tech/news/techinnovations/2005-11-07-cruise-blast_x.htm Governments have once again prevented effective measures of self-defense, this time at sea Accountability for mice and impunity for lions; U.N. is a ridiculous organization "Government" serves as a shield to protect its employees from wrongdoing Rulers nab bad guys so they themselves aren't perceived as bad rulers Initiatory force versus retaliatory force is a critical distinction The Authoritarian Mindset http://aynrkey.blogspot.com/2009/05/authoritarian-mindset.html The most docile slaves and the most demented dictators are psychologically similar; both are driven by fear and pseudo self-esteem, fostered in childhood of course and bolstered by the violent institution known as government Fundamentals of Voluntaryism (nod to Carl Watner) http://voluntaryist.com/fundamentals/introduction.php The Epistemological Argument; The Economic Argument; The Moral Argument; The Natural Law Argument; The Means-End Argument; The Consistency Argument; The Integrity, Self-Control, and Corruption Argument Ideas, both good and bad, are bulletproof "Vital" services are determined by those in the marketplace, not by mafias with flags All prosperity occurs in spite of the parasitism by the State http://anarchy.tv - using logical ideas in fictional stories to reveal truths and portray a better world Abolition of the coercive tools of government engenders respect in the populace, not rebelliousness and chaos To restrict people's freedom is do a terrible thing People aren't coerced to work in government--they choose to coerce others! http://www.amazon.com/How-Lie-Statistics-Darrell-Huff/dp/0393310728 Government (and parents) seek to alter "citizens'" (and children's) volition via threats and punishments Discourse on Voluntary Servitude http://www.constitution.org/la_boetie/serv_vol.htm As people stop supporting their "rulers," they gain more freedom Simple disobedience and non-compliance break the well-oiled (obeyed) governmental machine Empathy begins with recognition of how oneself has been subjected to tyranny Playing politics violates all the principles of voluntaryism There is no respectful or logical alternative to individuals making their own choices One man, SamIAm, refusing to comply with authoritarian sociopaths... http://freekeene.com/2009/05/04/sams-jail-blog-wednesday-april-29/ The stupid pop behaviorism of laws and retribution fosters, among other things, the slacker mentality People working in the "corrections system" are prime examples of irresponsibility, because they imprison rights-respecting people "Judges" do a major disservice to the concept of justice; they violate individuals' rights on a daily basis How does a group of people get a superior claim to your life and property? Illogically, immorally, and unjustly Robo-scientist's first findings by Victoria Gill http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/7979113.stm Amazingly beneficial scientific innovations and discoveries are in store for us--especially as governmental funding declines Scientists need to become fully aware of the moral issues and of how government stifles scientific progress Metaphysical poem: Imagine http://devernay.free.fr/paradoxlost/html/imagine.html bumper music "Holiday in Cambodia" by Dead Kennedys http://www.deadkennedys.com/albums_fresh.html  http://www.myspace.com/deadkennedys to comment, please go to http://completeliberty.com/magazine/category/91697